Annual Report On educational equity
2022-2023

ABOUT OUTSCHOOL.ORG

ABOUT OUTSCHOOL.ORG

OUR MISSION

Outschool.org believes that every child should have access to enrichment to pursue their passions and strengthen skills, but economically and racially marginalized learners are nearly three times less likely than any other child to participate in learning outside of the school day.

Our mission is to provide learners who experience racial and economic marginalization with opportunity and agency to nurture a lifelong love of learning.

OUR VISION

Our 10-year strategic vision is to provide lasting and liberating educational opportunities for learners, families, and communities, working closely with trusted community-based organizations to extend learning beyond traditional K-12 systems.

We plan to build an evidence base for increasing learner engagement, motivation, and well-being, and close academic achievement gaps through supplemental education and enrichment.

Our Theory of Change

Learning outside of traditional K-12 environments is a powerful tool for improving students’ future success in life. Outschool.org partners with community-based organizations to provide learners who have experienced racial and economic marginalization with access to:

PROVEN ACADEMIC SUPPORT

INFORMATION FOR FAMILIES TO NAVIGATE THE EDUCATION ECOSYSTEM

AFFINITY COMMUNITY CONNECTIONS

HIGH-QUALITY NON-TRADITIONAL LEARNING EXPERIENCES

… so that they will overcome the systemic barriers prevalent in traditional K-12 education settings, foster a lifelong love of learning, and use their voices to affect better public policies.

  • Outschool.org was founded in March 2020, when all learners became homeschoolers overnight. Our goal was to ensure learners could have access to Outschool classes, regardless of their families’ ability to pay. Outschool.org provided $2.4M in direct-to-family scholarships for Outschool classes to reach 34,000 learners across the United States.

    At this time, as the world has returned to a state of cautious practicality with schools back in session and typical activities resuming, Outschool.org has brought this pandemic program to a close.

    Another form of emergency relief provided by Outschool.org included $1.55M emergency support to 15 community organizations across the United States, providing access not only to Outschool classes but also training from our highly-qualified program team members and access to other high-quality educational resources for learners.

  • During the 2022-2023 school year, Outschool.org served 700 learners through 10 community partners, 96% of whom identify as Black or Latine, and 87% as low-income.

    Community partners included homeschooling co-ops, community-based organizations, and K-12 charter and public schools. Programs focused on increasing access to both learner interests through enrichment (such as coding, design, and foreign language), and meeting learner’s academic needs in core subjects such as Math and Reading.

    We also launched a new innovation, Outbridge, with Engaged Detroit, a homeschooling co-op that nearly doubled in size during our partnership to serve 193 learners. Outbridge is designed to increase the power and agency of families of color and strengthen the community organizations who serve them.

Academic & Enrichment Programming

FAMILY FINANCIAL ASSISTANCE PROGRAM

Outschool.org launched at the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic. Outschool CEO and Founder, Amir Nathoo, saw the need for providing Outschool classes to families in need. Between March 2020 and August 2023, Outschool.org provided 34,000 economically and racially marginalized learners with engaging, live Outschool classes. Families accessed $300 wallets to select classes aligned with their learners’ interests in needs.

Outschool.org is proud to have provided access to high-quality classes throughout the pandemic, and we are leveraging learnings from the Family Financial Assistance Program to inform the Outbridge innovation.

170,000

HOURS OF LEARNING ON OUTSCHOOL

$2.4M

FUNDS GRANTED

“Outschool teaches what public school covers but in a more exciting way, and that’s the way that my child learns. …We found classes that ignited his passions.”

— SUSY O., PARENT

Community Partner Grant Program

Since 2020, Outschool.org has partnered with 30 community-based organizations, charter and public schools, and homeschooling co-ops across the country; granted $2.3M in funds; and served over 2,500 learners. Outschool.org provides both funding and training to co-design and implement academic and enrichment programs. 80% of our community partners offered enrichment (8/10) such as tennis, coding, health, and Reconstruction classes. 70% offered English Language Arts and/or mathematics. 50% of partners offered both academic and enrichment learning opportunities.

The process of co-designing the academic and enrichment programs is a collaborative effort with Outschool.org's experienced program team. Each community partner works side-by-side with a designated program staff member to identify goals and measurement, determine budget on educational and virtual learning resources, and determine design (e.g., course or tutoring dosage). Our partners can rely on their program team member to strengthen their effectiveness such as offering tactical advice for implementing hybrid learning programs and incorporating learner interest into programming. They can also turn to our program staff for direct coaching and mentorship throughout their program's implementation to ensure effectiveness.

83%

Learners gained new skills from their classes, citing increased confidence and creativity.

95%

Learners think their Outschool teachers challenged them and believed they could do well in class.

100%

Community partners agreed that Outschool.org provided them with valuable support.

87%

Learners agree or strongly agree to wanting to take more Outschool classes.

Spotlight on Tutoring

Academic achievement is a top aspiration for caregivers. Tutoring, however, is often too expensive and highly-qualified tutors are hard to find. As a pilot in academic acceleration, we provided one of our community partners' students with tutoring for 90 minutes a week for 11 weeks.

PARTNER SPOTLIGHT

Charleston County School District (CCSD)

Outschool.org designed small-group, high-dosage tutoring for two schools in CCSD. The goal of the program was to provide a cost-effective way for CCSD to close achievement gaps in ELA and Math, specifically for its students in Turnaround Schools. Charleston County School District (CCSD) is a nationally accredited school district and second-largest school system in South Carolina, serving approximately 49,000 students.

How Outschool.org Supported CCSD

  • Small-group, live tutoring for elementary students with a professional educator.

  • For one CCSD school: ELA tutoring for 90 minutes each week for 11 weeks; For another CCSD school: Math tutoring for 45 minutes each week for 7 weeks.

  • Standards-based, high-quality instructional materials.

  • Regular checks and comprehensive assessments to evaluate academic progress and growth.

100%

Learners showed growth in iReady math scores, with 79% increasing their scores by 10+ points.

76%

Learners showed growth in iReady reading scores.

>70%

Learners, on average, have shown six months of growth in the span of three months.

OUTBRIDGE INNOVATION

Outbridge was born out of a belief that families, particularly those dissatisfied with, and disenfranchised by the traditional K-12 education system, should have more options. Outschool.org selected Engaged Detroit as the initial partner last year to develop the Outbridge innovation. Engaged Detroit is a Black-led homeschooling co-op that nearly doubled in size since partnering with Outschool.org to serve 193 learners. We partnered with Engaged Detroit's founder, Bernita Bradley, and coaches to co-design and deliver alternative pathways to high-quality, identity-affirming, and rigorous learning.

Outschool.org created an easy-to-navigate website with a set of 60 curated providers, including both high-quality virtual providers and local classes recommended by Engaged Detroit families.

We leveraged Engaged Detroit’s monthly community events to nudge families to spend their funding for their learners and provide guidance for families seeking to meet their children’s academic needs and enrichment interests. Community events also proved to be an invaluable time for families to share wisdom and recommendations with each other as spending doubled following community events.

Lastly, Outschool.org developed a train-the-trainer model to provide further support for existing Engaged Detroit coaches to guide families through homeschooling. We know that if families have access to information to choose high-quality resources and funds, and are part of a supportive community, then they can exercise agency to ensure better educational outcomes for their children.

FINANCIALS

In 2022, Outschool.org benefited from the generosity of individual donors, foundations, and corporate partners, including Outschool.

$33.8K

Donations at checkout from Outschool families committed to supporting marginalized learners.

11,720

Number of Outschool parents who donated

17,232

Number of donations made

$225

Cost per learner for one enrichment class

$150

Cost per learner for Outbridge when enrolled in a public direct-to-family funding program (i.e., microgrant or Education Savings Account)

LOOKING AHEAD

Looking forward, Outschool.org is eager to further improve our programs based on our learnings since 2020. Here’s what we’re focused on next:

COMMUNITY PARTNER GRANT PROGRAM

Outschool.org is finalizing recruitment for our third cohort of 8-10 community partners across the U.S. We received more than 340 applications from innovative microschools, K-12 public and charter schools, homeschooling co-ops, and community-based organizations. We look forward to partnering with the 2023-2024 community partners to bring high-quality, enriching, and learner-led education to more learners and families.

OUTBRIDGE EXPANSION TO GRAND RAPIDS, MI

Outschool.org has begun a second pilot with an organization called Amplify GR in Grand Rapids, Michigan. The Oubridge AGR supports 400 learners enrolled in traditional district and charter schools who will use Outbridge AGR funding support to increase access for learning opportunities outside of the school day.

Outschool.org is also supporting 500 learners receiving $3,000 microgrants for tutoring and special education supports from the Virginia Department of Education through its Learning Acceleration Grants program.

Outschool.org will continue to develop and scale the Outbridge program model across the country during the 2023-2024 school year.

IMPACT & THOUGHT LEADERSHIP

Outschool.org will continue to grow our evidence base and collect stories of impact. We will provide thought leadership around developing a love of learning and providing learner-led education for all students.

We spotlighted three of our Black homeschooling partners at SXSW EDU 2023, and hope to showcase even more stories of impact next year.