Brick Education Network: A Holistic Approach to Transforming Communities

The Brick Education Network is a charter school organization founded 15 years ago in Newark, New Jersey, with a mission to turn around high-poverty schools and put all children on a positive life trajectory, ultimately ending generational poverty. BRICK (Build Responsible, Intelligent and Creative Kids) believes a child's zip code should not determine their educational attainment and that a school, working in partnership with its community, can serve as a gateway to opportunity. The network's approach extends far beyond academics, encompassing a holistic model that supports children and families from prenatal care through college and careers.

A Comprehensive Model: From Cradle to Career

Brick Education Network's approach goes far beyond academics. “We support children and families from prenatal care through college and careers,” he said. “That includes running quality schools, but also ensuring families have access to health care, food and housing. This comprehensive approach recognizes that a child’s success in the classroom is intertwined with the support they receive outside of the classroom.

The network cultivates partnerships with mission-aligned organizations to offer streamlined access to supportive services for families. By partnering with over 25 organizations in Newark, BRICK dismantles barriers and provides holistic support from pre-cradle to career. Through coordinated efforts, they offer equitable, easy-to-navigate access to services like high-quality early childhood centers, schools, healthcare, and housing.

Success in Newark: A Proven Track Record

Brick’s impact in Newark has been tangible. The network was twice awarded the federal Promise Neighborhoods grant, a highly competitive program modeled after the Harlem Children’s Zone - making Brick the only minority-led organization in the nation to receive it twice. This recognition underscores the effectiveness of BRICK's approach in addressing the complex challenges faced by families in high-poverty communities.

In the five years since BRICK Academy launched its first school turnaround effort, there has been significant improvement in student academic performance, attendance rates, and community engagement. This success is attributed to the network's commitment to implementing proven systems and fostering a culture of inclusion and belonging.

Read also: Cut in Brick Bronze

Expanding to New Communities: Buffalo and Rochester

Building on its success in Newark, BRICK is expanding its model to new communities, including Buffalo, New York, and Rochester, New York.

Buffalo: A Community-Rooted Approach

In 2023, BRICK celebrated the official launch of its second region in Buffalo, NY, with the opening of BRICK Buffalo Academy Charter School under the leadership of longtime community member Antwan Barlow. The mission of BRICK Buffalo Academy Charter School ("BBACS") is to graduate a community of learners who will contribute positively to our global society and embrace their role as architects in building a just and better world. By fostering a love for learning and critical thinking, they prepare students for academic and personal success, paving the way for exceptional college and career pathways. The school uses a holistic approach to ensure that students from East Buffalo neighborhoods have the tools needed to be college, career and life-ready upon graduation.

As BRICK expands its services in the Buffalo region, its goal is to understand and meet the needs of the Buffalo community. They will collaborate with residents to implement their innovative school and community model, addressing every stage of a family’s needs from pre-cradle to career. Building on their experience in Newark, they will partner with local organizations and leaders to resource change-makers and unify supportive services. Their focus will remain on running excellent schools, providing holistic support, and creating pathways to college and career success.

BRICK Buffalo Academy Charter School provides a rigorous, inclusive, and culturally responsive curriculum that challenges students academically and builds their social-emotional competencies. They also immerse their families in an ecosystem of rich community partnerships to support them in maintaining the stable and healthy homes necessary for children to thrive. In partnership with their families, they support their students to draw strength from their identity and become leaders in their communities.

Rochester: A Vision for the Future

Inspired by BRICK's success in Newark, Dr. (READY) sought to bring the same holistic model to Rochester, New York. This vision will soon become Brick Rochester Academy, the city’s newest charter school, opening in fall 2026. Brick Rochester Academy will serve primarily children from low-income families within the city, though enrollment will be open to all.

Read also: Mastering False Swipe

As planning continues, BRICK and READY are reaching out to local partners in housing, health care, and workforce development to build a network of support around the school. This collaborative approach ensures that the school is deeply embedded in the community and responsive to its needs.

Key Principles of the BRICK Model

Several key principles underpin the BRICK Education Network's approach:

Holistic Support: Addressing the academic, social, emotional, and health needs of students and their families.
Community Partnerships: Collaborating with local organizations to provide a comprehensive network of support services.
Culturally Responsive Education: Creating a learning environment that resonates with and empowers students by leveraging community knowledge, cultural heritage, and personal identity.
Individualized Learning: Customizing the curriculum to tap into students' individual interests and ensure they have the necessary support to reach their full potential.
Data-Driven Decision Making: Using data to inform instruction and track student progress.
Commitment to Diversity and Inclusion: Fostering a culture of inclusion and belonging for all students, families, and staff.

Addressing Systemic Barriers

BRICK recognizes that families in high-poverty communities face systemic barriers due to racism and generational poverty. These barriers impact access to essential services like quality education, healthcare, and nutritious food. BRICK is committed to dismantling these barriers and creating equitable opportunities for all children to succeed.

Staff Development and Support

BRICK invests in its staff through regular (weekly) one-on-one coaching and support, continuous professional development with content experts and school leaders, and a network-wide Academic Leadership Team to support with curricular materials. They support teachers as content experts for their K-12 curriculum and provide over one month of professional development and support for staff new to the network.

Equitable and Competitive Compensation

BRICK ensures a transparent salary scale and offers salaries in the top 25% for comparable regional roles (in the 75th percentile). This commitment to equitable and competitive compensation helps to attract and retain talented educators.

A Vision for the Future

The Brick Education Network is committed to expanding its reach and impact, transforming communities and creating pathways to opportunity for all children. By focusing on holistic support, community partnerships, and a commitment to equity, BRICK is building a brighter future for students and families in Newark, Buffalo, Rochester, and beyond.

Dismantling Barriers and Building Bridges

BRICK cultivates partnerships with mission-aligned organizations to offer streamlined access to supportive services for families in the South Ward. Their community is made up of vibrant families striving for bright futures despite facing systemic barriers due to racism and generational poverty. These barriers impact access to essential services like quality education, healthcare, and nutritious food. They’re here to change that. By partnering with over 25 organizations in Newark, they dismantle barriers and provide holistic support from pre-cradle to career. Through coordinated efforts, they offer equitable, easy-to-navigate access to services like high-quality early childhood centers, schools, healthcare, and housing.

The "Ubuntu" Principle

At BRICK, they partner with mission-aligned organizations to offer supportive services to families in Newark. They are guided by the “ubuntu” principle, “I am because we are.” They believe that they’re stronger when they collaborate and partner than doing it alone. In this spirit, they cultivate partnerships, resource local changemakers, and unify fragmented services.

Change-Makers

BRICK's education and community model is unique in its approach. They’re committed to a comprehensive educational trajectory that supports children to pursue their individual interests while achieving exceptional college and career pathways. In addition to schools, they offer holistic supportive programing for education, health, housing, and more. They recognize that supportive pre-cradle to career services help disrupt cycles of poverty and create the foundation for a student to thrive. A child’s success in the classroom is intertwined with the support outside of the classroom.

Diversity and Belonging

BRICK fosters a culture of inclusion and belonging. They’re a diverse group of dreamers and do-ers. They’re 86% people of color, they’re women, they’re part of the LGBTQ community, they’re parents, they’re caretakers, they’re cheerleaders, they’re hard workers. They mean it when they say all are welcome here. They are committed to ensuring a culturally competent and diverse leadership teams and their staff reflect the community they serve.

tags: #brick #education #network #overview