Hip hop artist. Actor. Entrepreneur. Now, “charter school founder” can be added to the list of labels used to describe Sean Combs, who at various stages in his career has gone by Diddy, P. Diddy, Puff Daddy and Puffy.
The New York Times reports that Combs will open the Capital Prep Harlem in the fall. The school will use the successful education model used by Capital Preparatory Magnet, a Hartford, Conn., school. Capital Preparatory Magnet founder, Steve Perry, will oversee the Harlem school, though not as principal.
Combs was born in Harlem and said in a statement that opening the school is “a dream come true for me.” In an Instagram post, he said, “Each one teach one! Capital Preparatory Harlem Charter School is NOW accepting applications for students in the 6th and 7th grade! … We’re gonna build the leaders of tomorrow!”
The school will open with sixth and seventh grade students, eventually expanding one grade per year until it serves 700 students from grades six through 12. Teachers at the school will be called “illuminators,” because their teaching role expands into coparenting. The Los Angeles Times says the illuminators will call parents every other week and check in on students’ social-emotional needs every day. Emotional needs aside, students are still expected to complete college and help their communities.
Combs isn’t the first celebrity to open a charter school. Andre Agassi, Tony Bennett, Magic Johnson, Pitbull, Jalen Rose and Deion Sanders have all opened charter schools. Sanders’s, however, closed in 2015.
Charter schools are publicly-funded and do not charge tuition. Compared to traditional public schools, charter schools have more independence and flexibility in their operations and curricula, which is why so many families find charter schools desirable. They are open to all students, but they often don’t have enough space to meet demand. In that case, they use a random lottery system to determine admission.
Jason Russell is a commentary writer for the Washington Examiner.
