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KIPP has announced that Richard Bailey will open a KIPP public charter high school in Memphis in 2011. This will be the second school for KIPP Memphis, which plans to expand to eight schools by 2015. When all of its schools reach full enrollment in 2015, KIPP Memphis will serve over 2,500 students from the highest-need communities in Memphis. Richard Bailey, an experienced teacher from KIPP DIAMOND Academy, is currently participating in KIPP’s prestigious year-long leadership training program called the Fisher Fellowship.
Located at 230 Henry Avenue, KIPP DIAMOND Academy opened as the first KIPP school in Memphis in 2002 and serves students in grades 5-8. All KIPP schools conduct mandatory three-week academic enrichment summer sessions, and KIPP DIAMOND is currently running its summer program on weekday mornings until July 30. The new KIPP high school to be opened by Richard Bailey will be located on the same campus as KIPP DIAMOND.
The first KIPP school was founded in Houston in 1994 by Mike Feinberg and Dave Levin, who were both alumni of Teach For America, the national organization that recruits and trains top college graduates to teach in underserved schools. Through the support of Doris and Donald Fisher, the co-founders of the Gap, Inc., KIPP has grown to a national network of 99 open-enrollment public charter schools that serve over 26,000 students in 20 states and Washington, DC.
KIPP is among the featured schools in a new film about the state of the U.S. education system called “Waiting for Superman,” which will be released in theaters across the country this fall. From the director and producer of “An Inconvenient Truth,” Davis Guggenheim’s “Waiting for Superman” includes footage of KIPP co-founders Mike Feinberg and Dave Levin and a spotlight on the enrollment lottery at a KIPP school in Los Angeles.
Richard Bailey is a graduate of the University of Chicago. He currently serves as an instructional coach and seventh grade teacher at KIPP DIAMOND Academy in Memphis, and has also served as an eighth grade teacher at Westside Middle School in Memphis, TN. He also has taught for Summerbridge Cambridge and Summerbridge Louisville.
“I am thrilled to be accepted to the KIPP Fisher Fellowship so I can get a strong foundation for starting a new KIPP high school in Memphis,” said Bailey. “Through our new KIPP high school, I’ll have the chance to collaborate with amazing teachers and leaders to provide students in Memphis with an opportunity to reach their academic and personal potential.”
Bailey got his start in education as a corps member with Teach For America in Memphis. Over 80 percent of this year’s KIPP Fisher Fellows are alumni of Teach For America, and the two organizations share the same commitment to providing all children with access to a high quality public education.
“We are delighted that Richard will become a 2010 KIPP Fisher Fellow and open a new KIPP high school in Memphis,” said KIPP’s co-founder Mike Feinberg. “With his demonstrated commitment to KIPP and effectiveness as a teacher, Richard will take the learning he gains through the Fellowship to help children in Memphis climb the mountain to and through college.”
About KIPP Memphis
KIPP DIAMOND Academy serves middle school students, grades 5 through 8, since 2002. KIPP DIAMOND Academy (KDA) strives to prepare students for top quality high schools, colleges, and the competitive world beyond by instilling in each student a commitment to scholarship, teamwork, integrity, and fun. By extending the school day until 5 pm, two Saturdays per month, plus summer school, and even having teachers available for homework help by cell phone, KDA is proving what is possible in public education. KIPP Memphis will open its first high school in 2015 and aims to have a network of five schools serving students in grades K-12 by 2015. For more information, visit www.kippmemphis.org.
About KIPP
KIPP, the Knowledge Is Power Program, is a national network of 99 public schools in 20 states and Washington, D.C. that prepares underserved students for success in college and in life. KIPP students typically attend school from 7:30 a.m. until 5:00 p.m. on weekdays, every other Saturday, and for three weeks during the summer. Over 95 percent of students enrolled in KIPP schools are African American or Hispanic/ Latino, and more than 80 percent qualify for the federal free and reduced-price meals program. To date, over 85 percent of students who have graduated from KIPP middle schools have matriculated to college.
