Loan Portfolio

Location: Newark, New Jersey
Enrollment: 1,822
Loan Amount: $17.5 Million
Savings Amount: TBD
School Site: www.greatoakslegacy.org
Ratings Direct: Great Oaks Legacy Charter School
Obligor Summary: Great Oaks Legacy Charter School Obligor Summary 

Founded in 2011, Great Oaks Legacy Charter School serves 1,822 students in grades K-12 across six campuses in Newark, New Jersey. The school's mission is to prepare its students for success in college. Great Oaks does this by creating a strong community built on genuine and meaningful relationships, supporting all students, and setting high expectations for academic growth. Students at the network’s middle and high schools receive daily tutoring during the school day from a member of the Great Oaks Tutor Corps, a one year fellowship facilitated by the national AmeriCorps program.. This unique high-support model has enabled Great Oaks students to far outperform proficiency rates for the surrounding district. 100% of seniors in the Class of 2020 graduated from high school and 79% matriculated to college, further demonstrating the network’s success in closing the opportunity gap for its students, 86% of whom qualify for free or reduced price lunch and 99% of whom identify as non-white.

EFF provided a $17.5 million loan to finance the construction of a new middle school facility in Newark’s West Ward that will allow Great Oaks to serve over 150 additional students.

“When it was time to finance the biggest facilities project in our school's 10 year history, Great Oaks Legacy wanted to be sure we were working with a lending partner that is mission-driven, high-integrity, and focused on putting students first. EFF has been exactly that partner for us and has made the construction of a beautiful new school for children in Newark's West Ward possible while allowing Great Oaks Legacy to be sustainable on the public dollar.”
Benjamin Carson, Chief Financial Officer, Great Oaks Legacy Charter School