The mission of Alain Locke Charter School is to serve as a demonstration for urban charter schools by exemplifying excellence in academics, the arts and personal and social development. In doing so, Alain Locke produces students who are globally competitive.

Alain Locke Charter School is one of the country’s most high-performing charter schools. Since 2006, it has been named a Spotlight School by the Illinois State Board of Education, a distinction which is given to schools serving a population of at least 50% low-income students with 85% passing state reading and mathematics tests. In 2007, the school was recognized by the U.S. Department of Education as 1 of 7 schools in the United States “Best Closing the Achievement Gap.” This recognition was earned by having Alain Locke Charter School’s students achieve the greatest test score gains in Chicago in the history of Illinois’s State Achievement Test (ISAT). During the 2012-2013 academic year, the ISAT, along with standardized tests throughout the country, incorporated Common Core questions into their testing. While scores dropped nationally, Alain Locke continued to see growth, even with the more challenging test.

Alain Locke Charter School is part of Accelerate Institute, which maintains the singular focus of closing the education gap by creating high-impact school leaders who accelerate student achievement. The innovative programs at Accelerate Institute make this possible: The Principal Fellowship, which identifies and selects the most highly-qualified educators and prepares them through a yearlong fellowship to become transformational leaders for urban charter schools nationwide; The School Accelerator, which trains sitting principals alongside Principal Fellows; The Ryan Award, a national award recognizing principals who have accelerated the results of underserved students to create high-performing schools. To learn more about Accelerate Institute, please visit accelerateinstitute.org.