Institutional Investor's Alpha Magazine - September 2008 - (Page 22)

The Good Guys Ending the Cycle New York’s George Jackson Academy aims to break the link that binds poverty and failure. BY DANIELLE BEURTEAUX A “poverty trap” is how Brian Olson describes the often harsh relationship between money and education in the U.S. “In our cities the best determinant of how a kid is going to do in school is the color of his skin and the income of his family,” says Olson, a co-founder of Viking Global Investors. “If you’re poor, you’ll do poorly in school; and if you do poorly in school, you’ll probably be poor.” The 42-year-old Olson is on a mission to help halt this self-perpetuating cycle. In 2005 he joined the board of George Jackson Academy, a private middle school in New York’s East Village neighborhood that caters George Jackson Academy board member Brian Olson with this year’s students. to highly inquisitive boys who aren’t getting the public school attention they need. As chairman of the academy’s ﬁ nance committee, Olson helps it do a lot with very little. The school’s budget is small and its building dates from 1902. Founded in 2003 by Brother Brian Carty, principal and founder of De La Salle Academy (a private Upper West Side middle school that served as the model), George Jackson was created in response to the increasingly common failure of young boys to connect with learning. The academy was named for a student of Carty’s who went to Harvard University and later became a movie producer and president of Motown Records before dying of a stroke eight years ago at the age of 42. The curriculum begins at grade four, Olson says, because boys at that age are quite often still naturally excited about education. The school offers a sanctuary for them, both physical and intellectual. “The niche that George Jackson Academy ﬁ lls,” Olson explains, “is ﬁ nding smart, talented kids from disadvantaged backgrounds and bringing them to this special place where it’s safe to be smart, where it’s cool to be smart, and they can ﬂourish.” Tuition is about $13,000 a year, but admission is needs-blind and families pay what they can afford. The school opened to almost 60 fourth and fifth graders. This year the enrollment — which now also includes sixth, seventh and eighth graders — totals 130. The academy has little trouble ﬁnding students, ﬁelding nominations from public and parochial school teachers who encourage pupils with a love of learning and reading, high IQ scores and supportive parents to apply. The curriculum is demanding, designed with the next step in mind: acceptance to the best high schools in the city. In November the academy will celebrate its ﬁfth anniversary by honoring Robert Lessin. A longtime Wall Street executive who is currently vice chairman at investment bank Jefferies & Co., Lessin teaches two business classes every Wednesday at the school. David Arnold, whose ofﬁcial title is head of school, says he values Olson’s ﬁscal acumen in keeping the academy running on a shoestring: “If it weren’t for the Brian Olsons of this world, this dream would never have occurred.” Most funding comes from philanthropists and foundations. The Tiger Foundation, set up by renowned Tiger Management Corp. founder Julian Robertson Jr. to help disadvantaged families, is an important supporter. Olson, who left Viking in 2005 and is one of the many so-called tiger cubs who worked for Robertson before striking out on his own, praises the students above all. “They’re intellectually curious, poised, very respectful, grateful and dedicated,” he says. “When I visit George Jackson, I wish that I had gone to school there.” For more information, go to www.gjacademy.org. Photo by Kevin Trageser for Alpha 22 • INSTITUTIONAL INVESTOR’S ALPHA • SEPTEMBER 2008 http://www.gjacademy.org

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of Institutional Investor's Alpha Magazine - September 2008

Institutional Investor's Alpha Magazine - September 2008 Contents Letter from the Editor Longs & Shorts Pension Corner: Culling the Herd The Good Guys: Ending the Cycle Interview: Press Credentials Cover Story: Rethinking Chris Hohn Strategies: At the Edge of the Earth Profile: Alpha Femals Strategies: Tails, You Lose Research Center: The Top Equity Trading Firms Alpha Bytes: The Light Is On Unhedged: Commentary: Not-So-Dire Diagnosis

Institutional Investor's Alpha Magazine - September 2008

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