A Conversation with Julie Mikuta, NewSchools Venture Fund

Partner
October 2011

NewSchools Venture Fund believes that all children are entitled to a high-quality public education and that the best way to reach this goal is to transform our current systems of public schools into performance-driven organizations that focus on student achievement. NewSchools believes that education entrepreneurs can spark this broader transformation in the public school system.  Carnegie Corporation has invested more than $7 million in NSVF over the past four years in support of its three core leverage points: People, Tools, and Schools.

How does NewSchools try to create positive change?

We seek educational entrepreneurs who have identified solutions to some of the nation's most challenging education problems.  Often they’re operating at a small scale, or just have a great idea.  We try to bring those into reality. 

What are the education system’s biggest problems?

Ten years ago, when we started, there were few examples of aligned school systems. That’s when teachers, administrators, everybody, is focused on helping kids reach the highest levels – and have the information to help get them there.

What are educators themselves asking for?

As many schools put the building blocks of a great education in place, they realize they need more great teachers and school leaders. 

Are they asking for more data?

There's an abundance of data.  But it's not easy for teachers to understand, interpret and use it to inform how they’re teaching.  They need more and better tools to make use of that data so that they can become more effective teachers.

So, is education just about kids getting basic skills?

We are coming to realize that in order for our kids--especially kids from low-income families where often nobody else in their family went to college--to be successful and to graduate from college, they need more than basic skills. And to deliver this, we need to develop new ways of training and supporting outstanding teachers and school leaders.

How might a generation of poorly educated kids affect our future?

Many Americans are wrestling with the direction of the country, both economically and socially.  We’re asking “How do we maintain our role as a world leader?”  If kids, especially kids from low-income communities, are not prepared to engage fully in our current economy, much less the economy of the future, we're simultaneously creating a drain on our economy while also short-cutting economic growth.

Has Carnegie Corporation’s contribution had an impact?

Carnegie Corporation sees the whole as being greater than the sum of the parts.  They have a clear vision of what education could look like for kids across communities in this country. And they’ve been very effective at identifying a major lever, and sticking to it.  Their focus is leading to a domino effect of educational improvement. For example, how do you truly manage and retain high-quality talent across schools?  Carnegie Corporation has focused like crazy on this. They've become a leader in the country on teacher talent strategy.