KIPP Pride High School

OUR MISSION:

KIPP Pride High School, to ensure that all of our students would be empowered with the skills, knowledge and character necessary to succeed at the college of their choice, strengthen their community and fight for social justice.

From inception, KIPP Gaston College Preparatory has admitted all students regardless of prior record and has exempted no students from testing. There would be no excuses made for any students; they are all capable of success in high school, college, and most importantly, life. The consistent hard work of our students, parents, and faculty has created remarkable success. When our first group of fifth graders entered our school, only 49% were at grade level according to North Carolina State Testing. Three years later, 100% are at or above grade level in both reading and mathematics as measured by the same state testing. In three short years, it has become clear that our field of dreams has transformed into a field of possibility.

In order to understand what a huge difference the long hours and tremendous expectations at KIPP Gaston College Preparatory make, it is important to point out the tremendous hurdles that our students must overcome. Although our community as a whole is 59% African American and 39% White, the local school systems are 95% African American, clearly illustrating the powerful legacy of segregation still present in our area. The racial and economic history of our community informs the present-day realities our students continue to face. While battling these obstacles, our students are also faced with the fact that the rates of teenage pregnancy and sexually transmitted diseases in our counties are amongst the highest in the state. Many of these statistics could uproot our field of dreams, but instead our strong family of students, parents, and teachers has chosen to plow ahead.