Transforming the Face of Public Education
Mike Feinberg
Dr. Mike Feinberg’s extraordinary vision and unyielding resolve have transformed the lives of students in under-resourced communities throughout the United States. As co-founder of Knowledge is Power Program (KIPP) and Superintendent of KIPP Houston, Dr. Feinberg has challenged public education expectations and practices, and demonstrated how to improve outcomes. Along with co-founder Dr. Dave Levin, he has built KIPP into a network of 109 high-performing public schools serving 33,000 children around the nation.
In addition to serving as a model in the education field, KIPP has been widely recognized as a model for effectively scaling social change. In 2004, Dr. Feinberg was named an Ashoka Fellow, awarded to leading social entrepreneurs with innovative solutions and the potential to change patterns across society. In 2005, he was the commencement speaker for the University of Pennsylvania College of Arts and Sciences. Also in 2005, Dr. Feinberg led the effort to start a public K-8 school in Houston for Hurricane Katrina evacuees from New Orleans. The school, NOW College Prep (New Orleans West), opened in 10 days.
In 2006, Drs. Feinberg and Levin were awarded The Thomas B. Fordham Prize for Excellence in Education, and the National Jefferson Award for Greatest Public Service by a Private Citizen. In 2008, they were named to the list of “America’s Best Leaders” by U.S. News & World Report and received the Presidential Citizens Medal in the Oval Office of the White House. In 2009, in addition to receiving The Charles Bronfman Prize, they were awarded the Manhattan Institute’s William E. Simon prize for Lifetime Achievement in Social Entrepreneurship. And in 2011, they were awarded the Guardian of the Human Spirit Award by the Holocaust Museum Houston, given to dedicated Houstonians who have worked to enhance the lives of others and to better humankind. Dr. Feinberg and Dr. Levin’s efforts became the story told by Washington Post reporter, Jay Mathews, in his book Work hard. Be nice. KIPP has been featured on the Oprah Winfrey Show,CBS 60 Minutes, ABC World News Tonight, and in The New York Times, Houston Chronicle, Washington Post, and more.
Dr. Feinberg received a Bachelor of Arts from the University of Pennsylvania in 1991 and a Masters of Education from National-Louis University in 2005. In 2010, Yale University awarded Dr. Feinberg an honorary doctorate of Humane Letters.
Dave Levin
Dr. Dave Levin is a pioneer redefining what is possible in public education throughout the United States. As co-founder of Knowledge is Power Program (KIPP) and Superintendent of KIPP New York, Dr. Levin has helped thousands of students create better futures for themselves through academic achievement. Along with co-founder Dr. Mike Feinberg, he has built KIPP into a network of 99 high-performing public schools around the nation serving 26,000 children.
In 1994, as recent college graduates working for Teach for America, Levin and Feinberg were struck by the challenges facing students in severely underserved areas surrounding Houston, Texas. Determined to tackle chronic underachievement, they established KIPP to make college education a realizable goal and inspire students to build a lifetime of accomplishment.
Dr. Levin received the Robin Hood Foundation's John F. Kennedy Jr. Hero Award in Education in 1999, was appointed to the New York State Commission for Education Reform in 2003, and was named an Ashoka Fellow, in 2004. In 2006, Drs. Feinberg and Levin were awarded The Thomas B. Fordham Prize for Excellence in Education, and the National Jefferson Award for Greatest Public Service by a Private Citizen. In 2008, they were named to the list of “America’s Best Leaders” by U.S. News & World Report and received the Presidential Citizens Medal in the Oval Office of the White House. In 2009, in addition to receiving The Charles Bronfman Prize, they were awarded the Manhattan Institute’s William E. Simon prize for Lifetime Achievement in Social Entrepreneurship. Dr. Feinberg and Dr. Levin’s efforts became the story told by Washington Post reporter, Jay Mathews, in his book, “Work hard. Be nice.” KIPP has been featured on the Oprah Winfrey Show, CBS 60 Minutes, ABC World News Tonight, and in The New York Times, Houston Chronicle, Washington Post, and more.
Dr. Levin earned a Bachelor’s degree and honorary doctorate of Humane Letters from Yale University.
