Venture Philanthropy

Kim Smith, New Schools Venture Fund

Smith explains that venture philanthropy means investing in ventures that lead to greater changes in the overall system to improve education for kids. The entrepreneur is a part of a much larger system and the aim is to leverage the investments to provide the greatest possible impact. This strategy has led to three key activities at New Schools: the creation of a network to generate more hybrid leaders and inform policy makers, a charter accelerator fund to create charter schools, and a performance accelerator fund to help schools become performance-oriented.