Aisha Ford, Class of ’04, flourished at The SEED School. She developed strong relationships with her teachers and classmates, and took advantage of every opportunity SEED made available—internships, tutoring, life skills classes, interesting courses, and even travel to Costa Rica and Greece. She is now enrolled at Ohio Wesleyan University, and offered these thoughts about how SEED prepared her for college:
“It was hard to learn and stay focused in my neighborhood, but living at The SEED School gave me the chance to concentrate on my studies and learn how to make good decisions. I would not have accomplished what I have were it not for the support of SEED. SEED prepared me for college, period. I am forever grateful to SEED for helping make me into who I am today.”

Statistics show that many urban children have little hope of attaining college and long-term success. Even when the public day school system offers a strong academic program, these students may not succeed because key environmental factors work against them. Drugs, violence, crime, and teen pregnancy take a human toll on students in urban areas.

To meet the needs of these students, The SEED Foundation, co-founded by Eric Adler and Rajiv Vinnakota, developed the SEED school model and opened its first school, The SEED School of Washington, DC in 1998.

The SEED School provides a tuition-free, intensive boarding education to urban children in grades seven through twelve. Students live in dormitories, benefiting from an integrated curriculum of academic, extracurricular and life skills, and take on mentoring roles, community service, and personal responsibilities. The School provides students with rigorous academic and social curricula, comfortable accommodations, three nutritious meals a day, and an elaborate network of support. SEED’s innovative boarding school model garners success; 100 percent of SEED graduates have, like Aisha Ford above, been accepted to four-year colleges and universities.

Building on the success of The SEED School of Washington, DC, the Foundation seeks to establish SEED schools to serve more families in the District of Columbia region and around the country.