EDUCATION IN AMERICA

Righting the Wrongs of America’s Education System

JaCorvis T. Cobbs

Brenau University
EDUCATION IN AMERICA

For the last few years, the state of education in America has been under fire from every

angle. Teachers are underpaid and underqualified. The learning material is outdated and

particularly useless. Many parents are shying away from utilizing public school as the institution

of choice to education their children. This creates a need for a more centralized instruction

system that parents have confidence in. Ron Clark Academy in Atlanta, Georgia has set the

standard for alternative schooling since its founding in 2007. Nationally and internationally, the

middle school has been acknowledged for its alternative methods of educating youth from

impoverished backgrounds (Clark, 2019). Since 2007, the academy has provided top-tier, private

school quality education to these students tuition-free. It, currently, serves 120 students ranging

from grades 4-8 and seeks to expand in the near future (Clark, 2019).

I learned about Ron Clark Academy in 2013, when my mentor, during a conversation

about raising children, stated that she would not consider having children until she could afford

to send them to Ron Clark Academy. We conversed about the school for a few hours, but I was

still dubious about the performance of the school and would remain so until conducting my own

research. Fortunately, the school is a demonstration school. According to the school’s official

website, this means that the school is a place where visiting educators engage in a vibrant

professional development experience by observing best practices in action before participating in

hands-on workshops (Clark, 2019). The mission of the organization—To deliver the highest

quality educational experience where global citizens are born through advanced rigor, engaging

teaching methods, and a passionate climate and culture—caught the attention of mogul Oprah

Winfrey in 2009, after which she ended up making a $1.5 million donation to the organization

(Brett, 2009). Eight years later, in 2017, she followed up that donation with a $5 million donation

to the organization (Brett, 2017). Annually, the school requires roughly $3 million to function.
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Funding from its training program, donations from partners such as Delta, Verizon, Comcast,

and Coca-Cola, and unrequired parental contributions keep the school running (Brett, 2009).

By 2023, it is my goal to open the next Ron Clark Academy. In 2018, I attended one the

educator training sessions, where Ron Clark agreed to serve as my mentor and assist with the

initial foundation laying of my school, Lionheart Academy. The school will, primarily, focus on

delivering high-quality educational development to students who, otherwise, lack the resources

to have such. Looking forward, I understand the challenges that I may have. These include, but

are not limited to: funding, marketability, and community relations. Although these may serve as

hurdles for my future organization, they are not barriers and will be faced as such.
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Citations

Brett, J. (2009, Dec 18). Winfrey gives $1.5 million to ron clark academy. The Atlanta Journal -

Constitution Retrieved from https://ezproxy.brenau.edu:2040/login?url=https://search-

proquest-com.ezproxy.brenau.edu:2040/docview/337659699?accountid=9708

Brett, J. (2017, November 04). Oprah Winfrey donates $5 million to Ron Clark Academy.

Retrieved from https://www.ajc.com/blog/buzz/oprah-winfrey-donates-million-ron-clark-

academy/8kLVlDZdBHTTro98hBF9cK/

Clark, R. (n.d.). The Ron Clark Academy. Retrieved from

http://www.ronclarkacademy.com/who-we-are