Democracy Prep’s instructional program is based on five core elements: academic rigor, data-driven decisions, strong school culture, more time to learn, and exemplary teachers. All Democracy Prep courses are rigorous, designed to put our scholars on a college prep track. Democracy Prep believes in frequent assessment to tailor our instruction, utilizing daily course-specific data, weekly progress reports, six-week interim assessments, and trimester comprehensive exams. The academic work that our scholars do is supported by a strong school culture, built on the foundation of safety and structure. The school day and school year at Democracy Prep is extended to allow our scholars enough time to master their academic work. However, the single most important input in student success is exemplary teachers and to that end, we only hire the top 1% of educators to teach our scholars and we give them world-class professional development so they can deliver the best possible instruction.

A commitment to serve all children, including high percentages of those with special needs, and a commitment to educating students to be effective citizens of their communities is what sets us apart. Democracy Prep’s special education program is the Academic Collaboration Team (ACT), which uses a full inclusion model with collaborative team teaching to work with our most challenging scholars.  Second, it is an explicit focus of Democracy Prep to give all scholars the skills to be active members of their communities in order to break the cycle of civic disengagement rampant in our urban neighborhoods. Our scholars conduct annual Voter Registration Drives, Get Out the Vote efforts, meet with their elected officials, and testify at City Hall. Additionally, our middle and high school scholars all take a speech and debate course that prepares them to be articulate advocates for their community.