A dream is realized with the completion of Zeta Bronx Tremont Park, a brand new school in Central Bronx.
Just two years ago, this school was a methadone clinic.
Our five schools are located in the Bronx and Upper Manhattan, and we plan to grow to 25 schools. This school year, Zeta opened two new schools in areas of great need — Zeta Bronx Mount Eden and Zeta Bronx Tremont Park. From methadone clinic to world-class school in less than two years, the opening of Zeta Bronx Tremont Park is a dream realized.
Zeta Bronx Tremont Park is located in Central Bronx in the poorest Congressional district in the nation. Zeta Bronx Mount Eden, located in South Bronx, is in one of the lowest performing community school districts in NYC.
Adequate space in NYC is a massive obstacle to scaling excellent schools.
For years, charter schools largely pursued a co-location strategy, sharing space in traditional public school buildings. Access to such facilities are subject to political winds, and subjects charter schools to many of the arcane rules and practices of an educational system that has condemned the city’s most vulnerable children to educational failure.
But scalable access to private facilities is incredibly challenging due to skyrocketing real estate costs and the need for substantial capital funding.
Zeta deploys a scalable, capital-light facilities strategy to build beautiful schools in areas of great need.
Zeta maximally leverages New York’s facilities funding to build permanent, private facilities for our schools with minimal up-front capital. Low up-front capital is critical in a school’s early years, when startup costs are high relative to available public facilities funding.
We partner with landlord-developers who seek anchor tenants in prospective mixed-use projects, and who are willing to build schools to our world-class specifications.
Using this innovative strategy, Zeta has closed five private facilities deals since its founding in 2017, four during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic crisis. Two of these facilities have already opened for the 2021-22 school year: Zeta Bronx Tremont Park and Zeta Bronx Mount Eden.
Once built, each Zeta school joins and uplifts entire communities.
Each Zeta school prizes strong partnership with its vibrant local community. We build deep relationships with families and community leaders, and join with them in advocating for the community to ensure that every child can access excellent education within one’s own neighborhood.
