Salt & Light Academy for Boys, a microschool in Mt. Airy, has won $500,000 as a finalist for the Yass Prize. The award was announced on Oct. 6 in Philadelphia.
The Yass Prize was founded by Janine and Jeff Yass, the richest man in Pennsylvania and a proponent of school choice, in partnership with the Center for Education Reform. Twenty-six education organizations nationwide were announced as contenders earlier this year. The grand prize of $1 million went to The Learning Lounge in Pine Bluff, Ark.
In a surprise announcement beyond the grand prize, eight finalists were recognized …
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Salt & Light Academy for Boys, a microschool in Mt. Airy, has won $500,000 as a finalist for the Yass Prize. The award was announced on Oct. 6 in Philadelphia.
The Yass Prize was founded by Janine and Jeff Yass, the richest man in Pennsylvania and a proponent of school choice, in partnership with the Center for Education Reform. Twenty-six education organizations nationwide were announced as contenders earlier this year. The grand prize of $1 million went to The Learning Lounge in Pine Bluff, Ark.
In a surprise announcement beyond the grand prize, eight finalists were recognized with half a million dollars, recognizing their commitment to one of the four key principles in the STOP acronym: sustainable, transformational, outstanding, and permissionless. Salt & Light was honored under the permissionless category.
“Permissionless, for me, means that despite bureaucracy, despite status quo, despite spoken and unspoken rules, the one who chooses to be permissionless cares so deeply about the people, the lives, the children, their parents, whatever their cause is, that they will do anything short of something illegal to make sure that those people receive exactly what they need to thrive and flourish in their lives,” said Jéneen Winters-Barlow, executive director of Salt & Light.
Omar Barlow, co-founder of the school, said he and his wife are “very, very grateful” for the honor.
“For us to receive a prize of this magnitude, which is only the beginning of what’s to come, is a major affirmation of the work that we’ve been doing for years,” Barlow said.
He believes the award is more than just money, but also an opportunity to join a robust group of accomplished individuals.
“[Being] a Yass Prize finalist brings us into a highly functioning, highly competent network of educators, professionals, community organizers, and tech gurus that are willing to lend their credibility and their expertise to further the mission of Yass Prize recipients,” Barlow said. “We are grateful for the half a million dollars…but in addition to that, we are grateful for the network we are now a part of.”
The Barlows hope to use the money to increase their enrollment from 22 to 75 students, reaching capacity at the New Covenant campus. They also are interested in expanding Salt & Light to new sites across the city.
Maggie Dougherty can be reached at Margaret@chestnuthilllocal.com.
