YES Prep: Achieving 100 Percent College-readiness 

Founded in 1998, YES Prep is a free, open-enrollment public school system that prepares its students for college graduation through a comprehensive and rigorous academic model that mandates a longer school day, Saturday classes, a summer school program, and acceptance by a four-year college in order to receive a high school diploma.

The charter school’s exceptional track record with a student population that is 80 percent economically disadvantaged, 95 percent minority, and 88 percent first generation college-bound is summed up by the school’s commitment to do “Whatever It Takes” to help students succeed.

Most YES students enter the charter school in the sixth grade at least one grade level behind in math and English; yet 100 percent of YES Prep graduating seniors are accepted into college and 91 percent of YES alumni have received or are working on their degrees.

When the Michael & Susan Dell Foundation began conversations with the leadership of YES Prep in 2005, the foundation was impressed by the charter school’s innovative model, consistently high success rate in student achievement, and commitment to expanding its enrollment while improving its performance management system. The foundation has since awarded four grants to YES Prep totaling more than $7 million towards those goals.

In May 2008, the largest class of seniors to date will graduate from YES Prep and head to universities such as Brown, Stanford, University of Texas and Yale. With support from the Michael & Susan Dell Foundation, when the existing five campuses are fully grown YES will serve about 4,000 students.

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