BRICK: Building Responsible Intelligent Creative Kids

Building Responsible Intelligent Creative Kids (BRICK) aims to place all children on a positive life trajectory by providing our students with the academic and character skills they need to be college-ready, and by addressing the elements of adversity that impede their academic success so that they can all become successful adults.

WHAT IS BRICK?

BRICK serves children and families exposed to significant adverse childhood experiences and toxic stress through a two-generation evolving comprehensive, interlocking network of education, social services, and community-building programs. BRICK’s long-term strategy seeks to follow students from cradle to college and career, and to bring a transformative force into the whole neighborhood.

BRICK is unique in that it works both within the traditional public-school structure and also public charter schools in the South Ward of Newark. Since 2010 BRICK has managed two traditional public Pre-K-8 schools and in 2017 BRICK launched its first charter school network, Achieve Community Charter Schools. But BRICK’s work doesn’t stop with the end of the school day. We look to create a sense of community participation not just in our schools but in the neighborhood as a whole to broaden opportunity and services that can improve the focus on education.

We believe our method for turning around chronically under performing schools is replicable and can benefit schools in other high-poverty neighborhoods.