The SEED Foundation (also often referred to as the SEED Schools) is a

501(c)(3) organization A 501(c)(3) organization is a United States corporation, Trust (business), trust, unincorporated association or other type of organization exempt from federal income tax under section 501(c)(3) of Title 26 of the United States Code. It is one of ...

, established in 1997 to provide

boarding school A boarding school is a school where pupils live within premises while being given formal instruction. The word "boarding" is used in the sense of "room and board", i.e. lodging and meals. They have existed for many centuries, and now extend acr ...

college-preparatory educational opportunities to underserved students.SEED Foundation History
(organization website) In 2002, the SEED School of DC received a $100,000 grant from

Oprah Winfrey Oprah Gail Winfrey (; born Orpah Gail Winfrey; January 29, 1954) is an American television presenter, talk show host, television producer, actress, author, and media proprietor. She is best known for her talk show, ''The Oprah Winfrey Show' ...

Angel Network Oprah's Angel Network was a charity organized in 1998 and involved in various projects such as education supplies, school construction, disaster relief, and other areas. In May 2010, with Oprah's show ending, the charity stopped accepting donati ...

for the construction of new dormitory facilities. In 2010, the SEED schools were featured on ''

60 Minutes ''60 Minutes'' is an American television news magazine broadcast on the CBS television network. Debuting in 1968, the program was created by Don Hewitt and Bill Leonard, who distinguished it from other news programs by using a unique style o ...

'' and the Washington, D.C. school is featured in the 2010 documentary film '' Waiting for "Superman"''.

Schools

The SEED schools are

s serving disadvantaged students located in Washington, D.C., Maryland, and Miami. The schools integrate "a rigorous academic program with a nurturing boarding program, which teaches life skills and provides a safe and secure environment." The students live in campus dormitories during the week in order to provide students with a uniform residential experience.

Washington, D.C.

The SEED School in Washington, D.C., opened in 1998, has an enrollment of 320 students from sixth through twelfth grades. The school serves students from across Washington, D.C. The majority of SEED students live in the Southeast Washington, D.C. neighborhood. The D.C. school has been called successful with "91 percent of ninth graders go on to graduate and 96 percent of graduating seniors are accepted to four-year colleges". The SEED school in Washington D.C. was visited by U.S. president

Barack Obama Barack Hussein Obama II (born August 4, 1961) is an American politician who was the 44th president of the United States from 2009 to 2017. A member of the Democratic Party, he was the first African American president in American history. O ...

in April 2009, where the president also hosted a bill signing ceremony to enact a national service act. The school was also visited by

Charles, Prince of Wales Charles III (Charles Philip Arthur George; born 14 November 1948) is King of the United Kingdom and the 14 other Commonwealth realms. Charles was born at Buckingham Palace during the reign of his maternal grandfather, King George VI, a ...

and

Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall Camilla (born Camilla Rosemary Shand, later Parker Bowles, 17 July 1947) is Queen of the United Kingdom and the 14 other Commonwealth realms as the wife of King Charles III. Camilla was raised in East Sussex and South Kensington i ...

Maryland

The SEED School of Maryland, opened in August 2008, draws students from across the state. The school currently has an enrollment of 400 students from sixth through twelfth grades. The school's first class of seniors graduated in May 2015. The school is located at 200 Font Hill,

Baltimore Baltimore is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Maryland. With a population of 585,708 at the 2020 census and estimated at 568,271 in 2024, it is the 30th-most populous U.S. city. The Baltimore metropolitan area is the 20th-large ...

Maryland Maryland ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. It borders the states of Virginia to its south, West Virginia to its west, Pennsylvania to its north, and Delaware to its east ...

() SEED Maryland includes boarding facilities. The State of Maryland classifies it as a public school.

Miami

The SEED School of Miami opened in August 2014 on the

Florida Memorial University Florida Memorial University is a Private university, private Historically black colleges and universities, historically black college in Miami Gardens, Florida. Founded as the Florida Baptist Institute, today it claims a focus on broader Christ ...

(FMU) campus in

Miami Gardens Miami Gardens is a city in north-central Miami-Dade County, Florida, United States. It is a suburb of Miami and located north of downtown Miami with city boundaries that stretch from I-95 and Northeast 2nd Avenue to its east to Northwest 47th ...

; FMU is within the former Opa-locka North

census-designated place A census-designated place (CDP) is a Place (United States Census Bureau), concentration of population defined by the United States Census Bureau for statistical purposes only. CDPs have been used in each decennial census since 1980 as the counte ...

. - Page
1
an
2
- The CDP was no longer in effect once Miami Gardens incorporated as a city. It serves 97 sixth- and seventh-graders from all over South Florida.

Other schools

SEED has announced plans to expand with additional schools in other U.S. cities.

Lad Lake Lad Lake is a social service agency with programs for historically underserved youth in Dousman, Wisconsin, United States. Established in 1902 in Dousman, thirty miles west of Milwaukee Milwaukee is the List of cities in Wisconsin, most ...

met with SEED Foundation officials when they were planning their own charter school.Lad Lake wants boarding school
Milwaukee Business Journal, July 26, 2010

References

New York Times Magazine, September 25, 2009
America's Most Amazing Schools #8 - SEED Schools
Ladies Home Journal

New York Times Magazine, September 27, 2009

The Washington Post, May 7, 2006
SEED School gains with $100,000
Washington Times, December 1, 2005

Washington Post, June 30, 2004

Roll Call, November 7, 1997

External links

The SEED Foundation
(website) {{Authority control Boarding schools in Maryland Foundations based in Washington, D.C. Educational foundations based in the United States Organizations established in 1997 Charter schools in the United States Public boarding schools in the United States