All Black school gets 100% College Acceptance Rate

Is this the model for inner city UK schools? Do we need to send UK educationalist to Chicago, Illinois to find out how they took young black men through a system which normally fails two out of every 3, and ensured a staggering 100% success rate?

Urban Prep Charter Academy Englewood campus, located in Chicago, Illinois, is an all-black, all- male high school with 95% of graduates enroll in college and 100% of students are accepted to a four-year college. Urban Prep Charter Academy breaks the misconceptions that blacks can’t succeed in college and they can only make it as an athlete or musician. Urban Prep  gives the oppurtunity for young black men to reach success and redefines such beliefs. Most Urban Prep students are the first in their families to go to college changing the narratives for Black males in America.

Black students have an overall graduation rate of 59% compared to 80% for whites in 2012/2013 according to Schott Foundation of Public Education report. According to the U.S. Department of Education, 33.1% of black males graduate college. In the UK, there is a worryingly high dropout rate amongst black students being 11.2% in 2010/2011.

With these statistics against Blacks how has this academy reach such high college acceptance rates you may ask? Urban Prep Charter Academy, in short, plans college campus field trips, creates a college culture at the school, prepares students socially and emotionally for college, prepares students academically, offers a college preparation course, selects the right schools to ensure 100% college acceptance, brings in college admission representatives, guides students in the college essay process, helps students choose schools they can afford, signs students up for summer college programs and lastly, celebrates the students’ college acceptance.

Urban Prep Charter Academy seems like an amazing program. I am proud of these young students trying their hardest to meet their fullest potential. Clearly this school is successful, do you believe the strategies used should be applied to more schools in London? How can their tactics of success spread so more can achieve these results?

Briana Bell