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A great public school for every student in DC

We envision a DC where students starting furthest from opportunity can chart their own path and thrive.

Education Forward DC
Education Forward DC

A path forward for all students

Since 2016, Education Forward DC has supported DC education leaders, schools, parents, and students to make meaningful improvements in schools. From an increase in resources, improvements in academic achievement, and additional quality options for students, the landscape of education in DC is changing for the better.

Even though the education ecosystem in DC is improving, not every student has benefited equitably. Only a third of public school students meet the measure designated as an indicator for college and career readiness. And the gaps in outcomes are felt most by students who start out furthest from opportunity — particularly Black and Latinx students who face pervasive, systemic racism in current education structures and practices.

Our work to create a path forward for all DC students — especially those furthest from opportunity — isn’t finished. We need to continue supporting education leaders dedicated to providing DC students the experiences they need to thrive.

Education Forward DC
Education Forward DC
Education Forward DC
Education Forward DC

Accelerating transformation

Education Forward DC invests in the transformation of public schools by providing grants across the city, offering advisory support to our grantees, and coordinating work across schools and organizations to deliver equitable, high-quality educational experiences for students.

How our grantees are changing education in DC

DC Education News

Testimony of Ed Forward DC to the DC Council on Oversight of Education for Students with Special Needs

Education Forward DC’s Partner for Schools, Talent, and Equity Rashida Young delivered the following testimony to the Council of the District of Columbia’s Committee of...

Ed Forward DC grantee schools kick off a new school year

Schools across the District of Columbia are back in session! The entire Ed Forward DC team is so happy to see the smiling faces of students returning to class after...

Ed Forward DC, OSSE, Flamboyan partner to provide microgrants to improve school climate

Education Forward DC has partnered with the Office of the State Superintendent of Education (OSSE) and Flamboyan Foundation to assist schools in building more positive...

What’s in DC’s FY25 budget for education?

Education remains a top funding priority for the District of Columbia, thanks to the work of Mayor Bowser and the DC Council. In late June, the Council finalized its...

Schools share lessons learned from piloting different approaches to improve student, staff well-being

Today Education Forward DC, in partnership with Transcend, released Supporting Student and Staff Well-Being: School Pilots in Action, a white paper exploring what four...

WEBINAR: Data to Action: Insights from Well-being Data and School-Based Mental Health Pilots

Join us for the release of updated data examining students’ well-being, building on the work started last year to understand better how students are fairing during the...

Black male educators deserve support. That’s where NABME comes in.

We’re failing a key group who may be key to our students' success: Black male educators. “Black men are coming into education more than any other demographic,” said...

Testimony of Ed Forward DC to the DC Council on the FY25 Education Budget

Education Forward DC’s Managing Partner Margie Yeager delivered the following testimony to the Council of the District of Columbia’s Committee of the Whole at a hearing...

Ed Forward DC FY2023 Impact Report

We’re excited to share with you our 2023 Impact Report, detailing our work over the last year investing in leaders who are committed to recovering and reimagining...

Ed Forward DC issues RFP for School Support Center

Education Forward DC seeks to identify an organization to develop a business plan and launch plan for a School Support Center in Washington, DC. The organization will...

Gains made in latest assessments, but students still need outsized support post-pandemic

DC students made gains on citywide assessments compared to the previous year, according to data released late last month by the DC Office of the State Superintendent of...

City education leaders look ahead to the future of investing in DC schools

After years of continued growing investments in DC schools, the District of Columbia could be facing a more challenging fiscal picture at a time when DC students need...

Rashida Young joins Ed Forward DC to lead schools, talent, and racial equity investments

Rashida Young joined the Education Forward DC team in April as Partner for Schools, Talent, and Racial Equity. As Partner for Schools, Talent, & Racial Equity,...

New data provides a snapshot of DC student well-being a year after returning to in-person learning

New data released today provides insights into how students in the District of Columbia are faring since they returned to the classroom after nearly two-and-a-half...

Additional schools share experience with innovative staffing pilots

Today, Education Forward DC released an update to its original It's About Time: Learnings from a Staffing Innovation Pilot white paper, which shared several schools'...

Ed Forward DC FY2022 Impact Report

We're excited to share with you our 2022 Impact Report, detailing our work over the last year investing in leaders who are committed to recovering and reimagining...

Testimony of Bisi Oyedele to the DC Council on Academic Assessment Data

Education Forward DC’s CEO Bisi Oyedele delivered the following testimony to the Council of the District of Columbia’s Committee of the Whole at a hearing on academic...

Stabilizing our education ecosystem requires stability in our teachers and school leadership.

Education Forward DC’s CEO Bisi Oyedele delivered the following testimony to the Council of the District of Columbia’s Committee of the Whole at a hearing on the...

Data points to significant work ahead to support students’ academic achievement

Significantly fewer DC students are on track for college and career after more than two years of disrupted learning, according to the first citywide assessments...

Learnings from a staffing innovation pilot

In spring 2022, Education Forward DC funded a staffing innovation pilot to support schools in exploring how they might innovate on their staffing model to increase...

Bisi Oyedele named Education Forward DC’s next CEO

The Board of Directors has chosen Bisi Oyedele to succeed Maura Marino as Education Forward DC’s Chief Executive Officer in September.

New fund. New look.

Last year Education Forward DC embarked on its second round of investing in the visionary leaders who are transforming education to ensure great public schools for...

Recover & Reimagine: Our next five years

The challenges for DC students and families in the last 20 months of the COVID-19 pandemic cannot be overstated. Loss of loved ones, financial stress, managing learning...

Five years of impact for DC students

In July, Education Forward DC celebrated five years of accelerating the work of visionary education leaders in the District of Columbia. In that relatively short amount...

New study details pandemic’s academic impact on DC students

Camila Camborda is the Senior Analyst on our Advocacy and Public Engagement Team Most DC students fell behind on math and reading while learning remotely during the...

As DC recovers, we must lay the groundwork for a reimagined, equitable school experience

Testimony of Managing Partner Bisi Oyedele to the Council of the District of Columbia’s Special Committee on COVID-19 Pandemic Recovery & Committee of the...

Students and families share experiences with distance learning in new report

Today, the DC Policy Center released its annual snapshot of DC’s education landscape and school experience, the State of DC Schools Report.  Traditionally, this report...

Fast facts about the #PreferenceEquity legislation

Margie Yeager is a Partner with our Advocacy grant making team. This week, DC Council unanimously passed legislation to create a lottery preference for at-risk students...

Devices, internet access, and groceries for DC’s students

Sean is Chief Strategy Officer at Education Forward DC. A partnership between Education Forward DC, the DC Public Education Fund, and Greater Washington Community...

What if equity was a part of accessing great schools?

Margie Yeager is a Partner with our Advocacy and Grantmaking team A new report from the DC Policy Center demonstrates what it would mean to preference equity for...

Inside Education Forward DC: Annie Fullas

Annie Fullas is the Special Assistant to the CEO, Maura Marino Ethical and philosophical traditions play an essential role in shaping the motivations of individuals and...

Recent Education Forward DC Grants

We continue to be busy in our grantmaking and provided over $6 million in grant commitments since November to 14 grantees in service of our goal of doubling the number...

Supporting Emerging Leaders through School Leader Lab

At Education Forward DC, our human capital investments are focused on ensuring that every public school in DC has the high-quality teachers and school leaders that...

Understanding Perceptions and Drivers of School Choice Among DC Parents

By Margie Yeager Margie Yeager is a Partner with our Advocacy investments team At Education Forward DC, we believe that public schools in DC should reflect the citywide...

Inside Education Forward DC: Fonda Sutton

Fonda Sutton is a Partner with our Public Engagement investments team. I’ve spent my entire career working in the public education sector here in the District of...

Partnering with Education Forward DC Webinar

On Monday, January 28th, Education Forward DC hosted a webinar to explain how we partner with organizations and entrepreneurs to achieve our five year goal to double...

Education Forward DC Webinar: Monday, January 28, 2019 11:00am-12:00pm ET

Education Forward DC’s mission is to support visionary education leaders to foster a city of high-quality, equitable public schools for every DC student and family. In...

New Education Forward DC Grants

2018 has been a busy year for Education Forward DC as we continue to support organizations to foster high-quality, equitable public schools for every student in DC. Our...

America to Me : A Conversation Around Race and Equity in Public Schools

America to Me is a ten-part docu-series by Academy-Award nominated director Steve James that follows a year in the life of students, teachers, and administrators at Oak...

Maya Martin: PAVE, Parent Leaders, and the Power of Voice

A fifth generation Washingtonian, Maya Martin worked at Achievement Prep and Center City Public Charter Schools, helped launch the My School DC unified enrollment...

Inside Education Forward DC: Celeste Huizar

Celeste Huizar was an intern with the Education Forward DC team from December 2017 to May 2018. Celeste graduated in May 2017 from the University of California,...

Celebrating two years of Education Forward DC

July 1st marked the second anniversary of Education Forward DC! It has been an exciting, inspiring, and challenging ride as we work to foster a city of high-quality,...

An Interview with Education Forward DC CEO, Maura Marino: Leading the Charge for Better D.C. Schools

Thank you to Tom Vander Ark for hosting Education Forward DC’s CEO, Maura Marino, on his Getting Smart podcast.   Learn more about Maura, Education Forward DC’s work...

Learning With Our Grantees as Partners in the Work

By Sarah Barrett Sarah Barrett is a Manager with our Human Capital Investments team. When we started Education Forward DC, we tried to capture a specific approach to...

Mashea Ashton: Digital Pioneers Academy, Computer Science, and Character

A school focused on computer science? “Sometimes I think it isn’t even that innovative; it just makes sense,” says Mashea Ashton, Founder and CEO of Digital Pioneers...

PARCC Testing and Using Student Data to Improve Instruction

By Caitlin Campbell-Hahn Caitlin Campbell-Hahn is a Senior Analyst with our Schools Investments team. Caitlin taught middle school students in Washington, DC and Boston...

A State Report Card For All Families

By Ryan Jones If you’re one of the thousands of families in DC who just submitted school choices in the citywide school lottery, My School DC, you know that finding...

Urban Teachers Fellow Named “New Teacher of the Year”

This evening, Taylor Parson will be recognized as one of seven outstanding teachers at the Standing Ovation for DC Public Schools (DCPS) annual awards event hosted by...

What We Know (and Don’t) About the Public Schools DC Parents Want

By Sujata Bhat Sujata Bhat is Senior Manager of Public Engagement at Education Forward DC. Parents in the District generally prefer schools for their kids that are...

With New Middle School for DC Boys, Shawn Hardnett Follows His North Star

Shawn Hardnett has served as a chief academic officer and principal coach in DC since 2010 and in January 2016 decided he was ready to strike out on his own. With...

Collaborating to Develop Great Instructional Talent

At Education Forward DC, we aim to build community among DC education leaders and provide a forum for tackling collecting issues facing education organizations across...

Antwan Wilson Selected as Next DCPS Chancellor

Earlier today, Mayor Muriel Bowser announced that she was nominating Antwan Wilson to be the next Chancellor of DC Public Schools. Mayor Bowser made her selection after...

Search for the Next DCPS Chancellor Begins

Kaya Henderson has spent her career serving DC’s public school students in various positions, and since 2007 has led efforts at DC Public Schools to improve achievement...

2016 PARCC Results Released

[author title="Author"] Today, the Office of the State Superintendent of Education released the results of the DC state assessment, the Partnership for Assessment of...

Building Instructional Culture with TNTP’s Insight Survey

[author title="Author"] At Education Forward DC, we know that students thrive in schools led by great teachers and leaders. That’s why our strategy includes supporting...

Back to School 2016

[author title="Author"] As summer winds to a close, DC’s students and teachers are heading back to school, and with the new year brings new learning opportunities...

DC Schools Fund: End of Fund Report

[author title="About the Author"] Education Forward DC is building on the progress made through NewSchools Venture Fund’s DC Schools Fund. Recently, NewSchools issued a...

Measuring Equity Matters

[author title="About the Author"] In order to help our schools better prepare historically underserved student populations, we need to understand how well schools and...

The DC Schools Landscape: By the Numbers

[author title="About the Author"] Washington, DC has a rich set of school options for families. Today, there are over 87,000 students enrolled in public schools....

Supporting Our Highest Need Students

[author title="About the Author"] At Education Forward DC, we are committed to serving our most vulnerable students. Over time, we have learned more about which...

Supporting School Leaders

This summer, 30 principals and principal supervisors are building their instructional leadership skills with support from Education Forward DC. The group is...

Meet Education Forward DC!

Today, we are thrilled to announce the launch of Education Forward DC! Education Forward DC is a new nonprofit organization working to advance quality and equity in our...
Education Forward DC
Education Forward DC

Every DC student deserves to thrive.