In 2002, I met Brent Kastenbaum. He was a senior at Santa Monica High School and had heard of Aspire Public Schools. Brent declared to me that someday, he wanted to start an Aspire school. He went on to be a college freshman at UC Berkeley, and volunteered at Wilson Prep.

This past June, Brent graduated from UC Berkeley after only three years and last month, he became a founding educator at Aspire's newest school located in his home community in the Huntington Park neighborhood of Los Angeles.

When you work with a sense of urgency, things can happen at the speed of light. Like Brent, we view our mission at Aspire Public Schools with that same passion and focus. Our strategy is to create new schools in clusters and in communities where the high school graduation rates are low and college going rates are almost invisible. Our approach is to open new elementary schools and expand our schools as the students grow up. It's a model that is proving successful for us but more importantly, it works for our students. We are deliberate in our growth and believe that a strong elementary school foundation focused on academic rigor will make our college-aspiring students college ready. In our sixth year, it has become clear to us that a consistent and persistent program of strong academics in small schools where every student is well known and with a faculty that is collectively committed to a "College for Certain¢â" culture is producing a vibrant, inspiring generation of students who will become lifelong learners and leaders.

Since our last issue of Aspire Works, our team has been busy and we're happy to report the following:

1. This year, every Aspire school exceeded its state targets on standardized tests by at least four times. The average school in California grew 19 API points - and Aspire's average school growth was 49 points. We are proud of our students for their achievement and to our educators for their hard work.



2. We successfully opened four new schools, including two in Oakland, one in Stockton and our first school in Los Angeles. We now have 14 schools serving over 4,000 students, many who will be the first in their families to attend college.



3. Last June Aspire celebrated is first class of high school graduates. This small group of Wilson Prep seniors all exchanged their individual acceptance letters to four-year colleges in return for their high school diplomas. With a 100 percent graduation rate, we are proving Aspire's reputation for college preparation and academic rigor is getting noticed by universities across the country.



4. We have two new successful partnerships that are helping to reinforce our notion that small schools make a big difference. This fall, Aspire opened an early college high school in North Oakland in partnership with the University of California at Berkeley. Our partnership with College Track, a highly successful program that supports the academic, social and personal skills needed to earn acceptance at major universities, has allowed us to place College Track team members in all of Aspire's secondary schools.



5. We completed our $8 million dollar facility for Benjamin Holt College Preparatory Academy. It marks the third campus Aspire has built from the ground up, a trend we will continue with new construction on schools in Stockton, Oakland and Los Angeles with funds we received from the state of California's school bond propositions, thus helping alleviate overcrowding in urban districts.



6. We welcomed more than 80 new team members to teach our youngsters, and began Aspire's own Special Education department. We are also continuing to develop 20 team members to become school leaders in our jointly developed Master's program with San Jose State University.

When we first founded Aspire Public Schools, our work was considered outrageous. Like Federal Express to the postal system, people questioned whether we were needed and whether or not an "external lever" could improve or enhance a system. Today, it is clear that we are making a difference in the lives of our students. Our results continue to be promising, and we take pride in the fact that we have chosen to be education pioneers who believe that new small schools in underserved neighborhoods will help youngsters aspire and achieve their dreams.

Thanks to all of you who lend your wisdom, work and financial support to Aspire, as we create a lasting institution and model the value that not-for-profit organizations can play in educating California's underserved youth. We are building our organization to last and to make a difference, and your continued support will make that possible.

Currently there are 987 school districts in California and Aspire Public Schools is larger than 709 of them. While our aim is not to be the biggest, we are focused on growing 50 schools that will graduate 1,200 high school seniors each year, all of whom will be college ready and college bound. It's our version of denting the universe, and we look forward to that challenge in the future.

Happy Holidays,

Don