Kids First Chicago

At Kids First Chicago, we have been at the forefront of public education innovation and improvement since 2004. Operating initially as the Renaissance Schools Fund/New Schools for Chicago, we helped to create 100 new district and charter schools citywide. We contributed to an era of dramatic improvement, when high school graduation rates across the city rose to 80% in just 19 years.

In reflecting and noticing the need for fair access and opportunity for parent voices to shape education policy, we re-opened in 2015 as Kids First Chicago, with a focus on partnering with parents to amplify their power to ensure kids in all neighborhoods in Chicago can access a high-quality education.

In 2015, responding to the clear need to overcome barriers to quality public education and the recognition that parent voice must be incorporated in shaping education policy, we dramatically shifted our mission and became Kids First Chicago.