20 Jul Kansas City Girls Preparatory Academy (Girls Prep) Receives $175,000 Grant from the H&R Block Foundation

Kansas City Girls Preparatory Academy (Girls Prep) recently received a grant for $175,000 from the H&R Block Foundation to purchase and renovate a school building for their launch in 2019.

With the support of H&R Block Foundation, Girls Prep will purchase the school building located at 5000 East 17th Street.  Girls Prep will perform environmental remediation, roof repairs, building envelope repairs, foundation waterproofing, water service repairs, structural engineer assessment and ensuing repairs on retaining walls and masonry, upgrades to meet Americans with Disabilities Act standards, painting, and a variety of smaller repairs and improvements.

Under-resourced families in Kansas City have limited access to strong school options, and currently have no access to an all-girls’ public school.  Girls Prep will offer an option for young women who are eligible to attend KCPS under the guidelines for voluntary transfer, including students with disabilities and those who are not proficient in English.  Girls’ schools in Kansas City have a long and proud history; Girls Prep will fit into this tradition but be the first of its kind to be tuition-free, require no admissions exams, and have enrollment by a lottery that prioritizes zip codes with the greatest need for quality school seats.

Girls Prep formed in 2016 to organize and operate a 5th through 12th grade public charter school for young women in the Kansas City, Missouri school district.  The vision of Girls Prep is to provide a college preparatory experience through academic and social development that will allow students to pursue their own educational and professional goals. When Girls Prep welcomes its first students in Fall 2019, it will become the first single-gender, open-enrollment charter public school in Kansas City.  Girls Prep will enroll 100 fifth graders in its first year and grow one grade per year to form a middle school (5th-8th) and high school (9th-12th). Both schools will foster a strong sense of community and a rigorous, college-bound academic culture.