About Thurgood Marshall Academy

Our mission is to prepare students to succeed in college and to actively engage in our democratic society.

Thurgood Marshall Academy is a college-preparatory public charter high school located in D.C.’s historic Anacostia neighborhood in Ward 8.

Founded in 2001 by law students and their professors at Georgetown University Law Center, our school upholds Supreme Court Justice Thurgood Marshall’s legacy of equal opportunity through a commitment to provide an excellent education for all students.

As a non-selective high school, we are open to all D.C. students, and do not enroll students based on academic ability. The average ninth-grade student enters our school with skills three or four grade levels behind. In order to improve their skills and help overcome years of accumulated academic deficits, incoming students receive twice as much English and math instruction (90 minutes of each per day) as they would in a traditional public school.

Our Model:

• Summer Prep Program introduces incoming 9th and 10^th grade students to the academic and behavioral demands of our school.
• Double-Block Schedule gives students who are academically behind twice as much English and Math (90 minutes each per day) than a traditional high school.
• Legal principles as teaching tools which instill an understanding of democracy and advocacy for students and their community.
• Portfolio Presentations requires all students to give an annual formal assessment of their academic work, behavioral performance, and community service before a panel of faculty and staff.

As a high-performing high school with a successful track record, we contribute not only to the personal, academic, and professional development of our students, but to the development of the community in which they reside. Many schools with similar student populations experience low promotion rates, attendance, and college acceptance rates. Our students are not only attending school each day, but they are attaining the necessary academic skills to gain acceptance into college.