Our Mission

Dear Friends of Alexander Twilight Academy,

Over the past decade of working in under-resourced urban schools, I have been simultaneously inspired by the greatest manifestations of hope — my students, their work ethic, and their potential — and disheartened by the most blatant realizations of inequity — a school system that continually fails low-income students of color. Despite ranking first amongst all students in Massachusetts for achievement and growth during their time in my classroom, my students were not able to sustain this performance in other classrooms and schools. One year of excellent education with one standout teacher is simply not enough. The unfortunate reality is that we live in a country where one’s destiny is more likely to be determined by one’s ZIP code than by their intellectual potential or work ethic.

At ATA, we fundamentally believe that consecutive years of great education, the kind that nourishes students’ passions and potential, have the power to transform trajectories. Education CAN be the engine of …mobility, the great equalizer opined by Horatio Alger in his tales of the American Dream. That is, however, if we are bold enough to challenge the status quo and reimagine what is possible for all children.

Alexander Twilight Academy is unafraid and deeply committed to taking such action by providing the highest quality educational and life-enriching opportunities, regardless of family income or circumstance. We are confident in our ability to create change. Over the past decade, we have codified a recipe for success and piloted this educational approach. What transpired with our first ATA cohort was nothing short of magical. I remember opening the school bus door on a Monday morning, expecting to find a subdued group of sleepy nine and ten-year-olds, exhausted from a weekend of playing in the hot summer sun and staying up too late. Instead, I found our students engaged in a roaring debate on whether it would be a blessing or a curse to live forever. What began as a Philosophy class discussion on a Friday morning consumed the entire bus ride home that evening and picked up right where it left off on the drive to ATA the following Monday.

This is what education is supposed to be — something that transcends the four walls of a classroom, that makes you see the world from a different perspective, that forces you to grapple with life’s unanswerable questions, and that takes hold of your imagination, igniting intellectual curiosity and genuine engagement. This is how we make a difference.

We have proven that we can scale the impact I had in my classrooms in East Harlem, Roslindale, and Mattapan and make this standard of education the norm, not the exception. We can close the achievement gap in months, not years.

At ATA, we have the distinct privilege of working with the highest potential young people I have ever met. With this comes an enormous responsibility — to educate the next generation of great doctors, lawyers, engineers, CEOs, and, hopefully, Presidents of the United States. With heart, humility and hustle, ATA will arm our students with an education of both the mind and the soul, so that they will develop the courage, conviction, compassion, and clarity to be the changemakers our world so badly needs and deserves.

I sincerely appreciate you taking the time to learn more about ATA, our results, and our dreams. My hope is that you’ll join us in this journey and in our pursuit for educational equity in Boston.

Warmest regards,

Annie Weinberg,
Founder, Head of School