Green Dot Public Schools was founded in 1999 by Steve Barr in direct response to the terrible state of public high schools in the Los Angeles area. LAUSD's high schools were failing to graduate over 50% of their students, and those that were making it through were rarely prepared for college. The vast majority of the students falling out of the system were children from low income families. Mr. Barr started Green Dot with a vision of leveraging charter schools as a tool in order to show the school district and the public at large that there was a more effective way to provide public education to young adults in the Los Angeles area. He felt that opening small successful charter schools in which low income, high risk youth were succeeding would not only provide a quality education to the students those schools served, but would also influence LAUSD and other school districts in the Los Angeles area to adopt the successful small schools model for all of their schools.
Ánimo Leadership
On August 21, 2000, Animo Leadership became the first Green Dot school to open its doors to a group of 140 pioneering students from the Lennox School District. This school started with one principal, a counselor, and five first-year teachers housed in a temporary school facility- leased law school classrooms at the University of West Los Angeles Law. Animo Leadership's success grew rapidly; it has grown to a full sized school with an enrollment of 520 students. Its first graduating class was extremely successful, graduating 96% of its original 140 students, and sending 62% of its students to a four year university. Animo Leadership has continued to achieve high levels of success; the school was ranked by US News and World Report as the #31 high school in the nation, also as the #4 charter high school.
Ánimo Inglewood
Animo Inglewood was started in 2002 to provide the families of Inglewood with an alternative to the large schools run by the district. Animo Inglewood is characterized by the diversity of students that it serves; it draws from the population of the city of Inglewood, which is made up of 47.1% African Americans, and 46% Latinos. Animo Inglewood draws its strength from the diversity of its community.
Oscar De La Hoya Ánimo
Oscar De La Hoya Animo was founded with the support of the Oscar De La Hoya Foundation. This school opened in 2003 to serve the community of Boyle Heights. Oscar De La Hoya personally invested over $1 million to provide the school with the necessary supplies it needed to start, as well as committed the Oscar De La Hoya Boxing Gym and Technology Center to serve as the school's future permanent facility.
Ánimo South Los Angeles
Animo South LA was founded in 2004 in response to the especially dangerous circumstances surrounding Washington Prep High School, one of Los Angeles’s most troubled schools. According to the Los Angeles Times, in the 2000-2001 school year, thirty five percent of Washington Prep students were suspended, far passing district-wide suspension rates of thirteen percent. Not only were test scores and academic performance extremely poor, but the campus itself was so unsafe that in 2002, the teachers filed a written complaint to their union, calling the school “out of control” and demanding increased security on campus. Reports were released that the school was plagued by drugs, violence, and sex. Since Animo South LA was formed in 2004, students at this school have a safe place to go to where they can learn. Animo South LA has outperformed Washington High School in statewide API scores by over 150 points.
Ánimo Venice
Steve Barr founded Animo Venice in 2004 to give back to the Venice community where he had spent a good part of his lifetime. While the area is commonly known for its affluence, Barr wanted to open a school in this neighborhood because of its history of violence and gang warfare. The gang issue still has not been resolved; most of it has been pushed east into Inglewood. The effect is evidenced by Broadway Elementary School’s average student enrollment declining from 700-800 students in the 1970’s to the present 200-300 students. Animo Venice strives to empower its community to stand against poverty and violence. The school aims to bring together long time Venice residents and affluent new comers to bring their children together in school, thus fortifying the strength of the community.