American billionaire and philanthropist Ken C. Griffin donated nine million dollars to Miami-Dade public schools to implement a University of Chicago mathematics tutoring program for sixth through eighth graders.
José Dotres, superintendent of the county school district, said they will partner with Accelerate, a nonprofit dedicated to bringing tutoring and personalized learning to public schools, and the University of Chicago Education Laboratory.
“It’s about celebrating and recognizing that as a school district we can’t do things on our own and sometimes we team up with incredible partners,” he said, quoted by Aol.
Griffin is president of Citadel, a multinational hedge fund and financial services company, and owner of the non-profit organization Griffin Catalyst.
Sadie Stockdale, executive director of the University of Chicago Education Laboratory, explained that researchers did some studies in that state’s public schools before the pandemic, and concluded that high-dose tutoring during the day could double or triple the amount of learning that children gain in a year.
After the pandemic, they decided to develop a national initiative to implement this mentoring throughout the country.
“Earlier this year, the team launched tutoring in nine middle schools, serving about 1,000 students in Miami-Dade. Now they will use Griffin Catalyst funding to expand those efforts over the next three years and hopefully , help thousands more students,” he said.
Julia Quinn, director of Griffin Catalyst, recalled that decades ago, when Griffin lived in Chicago, he tutored students in mathematics and began his commitment to expanding access to education for all students.
“He shares our collective commitment and enthusiasm for personalized learning and the impact it can drive for students here in Miami-Dade and across the country,” he stressed.
Since moving to Miami, the businessman has made several donations to institutions: 50 million to Baptist Health South Florida for research into Alzheimer’s and other neurodegenerative disorders; another 50 million to the Sylvester Comprehensive Cancer Center at the University of Miamiand five million to build 50 mini soccer fields in Miami-Dade.
