KIPP History

The Knowledge Is Power Program (KIPP) began in 1994 when Mike Feinberg and Dave Levin completed their two-year commitment with Teach For America in Houston Independent School District and launched as a fifth grade program at Garcia Elementary School. Their mentor teacher, Harriett Ball, motivated the two young men to remain in education and do everything possible to ensure their students were achieving at the highest possible levels in the classroom. The students' academic success and interest in learning inspired Feinberg and Levin to expand the program beyond one classroom. The following year, KIPP Academy opened in Houston, and Levin founded KIPP Academy in the South Bronx, New York. Today, both are recognized nationally as outstanding schools. Click here to see some of the noteworthy statistics.

The achievements of the first two KIPP schools captured national attention. In 2000, Doris and Donald Fisher, founders of Gap, Inc., formed a unique partnership with Feinberg and Levin to replicate the success of the two schools. Following their belief that great schools need great leaders, Feinberg, Levin, and the Fishers created a new organization to recruit, select, and train educators who would plan, open and lead their own KIPP Schools.