Mission: High-Performing Public Schools, Inside and Out EdBuild is a local, entrepreneurial nonprofit, working in partnership with school leaders, parents, community leaders and business leaders to create and sustain more high-performing public schools in Washington, DC. Specifically, EdBuild helps traditional and charter public school leaders improve student achievement by tackling key academic and facility needs concurrently. The result is high-performing schools, inside and out: schools with both excellent instruction by well-supported teachers and buildings that don't distract from learning. History: Local Partnership to Quickly Build Capacity EdBuild was created in 2005 in response to DC Public Schools (DCPS) Superintendent Clifford Janey's call for public-private partnerships to support increased school performance across the city. The organization was developed in close partnership with school leaders, parents, community leaders and business leaders, to accelerate capacity building and planned improvements in public school quality. The Need: Critical Academic and Facility Challenges in Our Public Schools Academically, more than 80% of traditional and charter public schools in Washington, DC are failing to meet minimum benchmarks required by the Federal No Child Left Behind Act. Meanwhile, our public school buildings are old, in very poor condition and have 40% extra capacity, while charter schools are paying for space in the private real estate market. The Opportunity: A Shared Vision for Rapid Improvements Today both the political will and the public funds exist to transform our public school programs and buildings, but more capacity and expertise are needed to support our school leaders in this critical work. The city has allocated $2 billion to fund modernization of nearly all DCPS buildings over the next 10 years. At the same time, DC has adopted new rigorous learning standards for all public schools.