Over the summer, New York officials revealed that an entire class of eighth graders at Success Academy Bronx 2 aced the Algebra I Regents exam. In a school where 90% of students qualify for free lunch, such results are unheard of. But for anyone who has followed the trajectory of Success Academy, the largest charter school network in New York City with over 40 schools and 14,000 students, these scores will not come as a surprise. The network’s test scores continue to surpass those of the wealthiest districts in the state.

In his new book, How the Other Half Learns, Robert Pondiscio, a former journalist and inner-city public school teacher, marvels at the fact that there are “no weak links” in the Success system. Every school is operating on a level that not only places it head and shoulders above its district competition, but also above the other high-performing charter schools in the city. Its leader, Eva Moskowitz, regularly puts the lie to the teacher unions’ position that low-income and minority children cannot learn until we solve the issues of racism and poverty in our society.