A sustained and deliberate citywide effort in Washington, D.C., to elevate K-12 mathematics achievement presents a compelling case study in urban education reform, demonstrating that progress is not the result of a single policy but a long-term, interwoven commitment. By weaving together traditional academic strategies with innovative, outside-the-box methods, the district has cultivated a consistent and measurable rise in math proficiency across its diverse student population. This comprehensive approach, built on a foundation of strategic investment, collaborative innovation, data-informed instruction, and a profound focus on shifting cultural mindsets about mathematical ability, offers valuable lessons for other urban centers, even as it continues to grapple with significant and persistent equity challenges that temper its success. The narrative is one of methodical persistence, proving that systemic change requires a multifaceted and unyielding approach over many years.
A Blueprint for Urban Math Reform
A Dual-Pronged Strategy
The foundation of Washington, D.C.’s success lies in its multifaceted approach, which deliberately rejects the notion of a single “magic wand” solution in favor of a persistent, combined strategy implemented over two decades. On one hand, educational leaders have fortified the conventional pillars of academic improvement. This includes systematically increasing the rigor of the math curriculum to align with higher standards, providing targeted and intensive supplemental support for students who are struggling to keep pace, and embedding a culture of deep, continuous data analysis to inform every instructional decision. This data-driven backbone allows educators to identify learning gaps in near real-time and adjust their teaching methods accordingly. On the other hand, these traditional tactics are complemented by a suite of creative and unconventional strategies designed to make mathematics more engaging and to dismantle systemic barriers to learning. These innovative efforts range from organizing math-themed field trips that connect abstract concepts to the real world to fostering unique collaborations among public, charter, and private schools to share best practices and resources. A key characteristic of this entire approach is a commitment to agility, empowering leaders to pivot quickly away from interventions that prove ineffective and double down on those that demonstrate measurable impact.
A central tenet of the D.C. model, as emphasized by city officials, is the story of substantial and sustained financial investment that underpins all other initiatives. A significant and unapologetic increase in per-pupil funding has been a critical game-changer, enabling the district to make transformative improvements that attract and retain top talent. The most prominent outcome of this investment has been the ability to boost average teacher salaries to an impressive $110,000, a figure that not only makes the teaching profession more attractive in a competitive market but also serves as a crucial tool for retaining high-quality, experienced educators in the classrooms where they are needed most. Beyond salaries, these funds have been strategically directed toward acquiring high-quality, research-backed classroom materials and curricula, ensuring that both teachers and students have the best possible tools at their disposal. Furthermore, the investment has fueled robust and ongoing professional development opportunities, equipping teachers with the latest pedagogical techniques and ensuring they are prepared to meet the diverse needs of their students in an ever-evolving educational landscape. This financial commitment signals a clear and unwavering belief that investing in educators and resources is paramount to achieving student success.
The district’s ambitious initiative extends far beyond the confines of the public school system, deliberately fostering a citywide collaborative ecosystem where shared responsibility for student success is the norm. A key driver of this collaborative spirit is the Capital Math Collective, a formidable $20 million public-private partnership led by the DC Public Education Fund. This collective has set a remarkably ambitious goal: to make Washington the first urban school district in the nation where every single student outperforms the national average in mathematics by the year 2030. This initiative acts as a powerful catalyst, bringing together diverse stakeholders to align their efforts and resources toward a common vision. The spirit of collaboration is further exemplified by structured partnerships between different school sectors, including public, charter, and private institutions. These cross-sector collaborations have broken down traditional silos, creating a dynamic environment of shared learning, resource pooling, and collective problem-solving. By encouraging educators from different systems to share their most effective practices and innovations, the city cultivates a rich tapestry of educational excellence that benefits all students, regardless of the type of school they attend. This interconnected network transforms the challenge of improving math achievement from a school-by-school effort into a unified, citywide mission.
Gauging the Impact a Look at the Data
The tangible effectiveness of Washington, D.C.’s long-term strategy is validated by clear and significant gains on one of the nation’s most respected educational benchmarks, the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP), often referred to as “The Nation’s Report Card.” The results from the 2024 assessment paint a compelling picture of progress, particularly for younger students. In that year, an impressive 67% of the city’s 4th-grade students scored at or above the “basic” level, which encompasses the basic, proficient, and advanced achievement categories. This figure represents not only a substantial increase from the 57% who reached this level in 2022 but also a monumental leap from the mere 36% who did so in 2003, showcasing two decades of sustained improvement. This performance brought the city’s average 4th-grade math score to within just 3 points of the national average, a remarkable feat for a large urban district. Moreover, D.C.’s score was notably 3 points higher than the average for public schools in other large U.S. cities, indicating that the district is outpacing many of its urban peers. The data further revealed that D.C.’s 4th graders outperformed students in 11 other large urban districts on the assessment, solidifying its position as a leader in urban math education reform.
This encouraging upward trend is not confined to national benchmarks; it is mirrored and reinforced by local data from the district’s own assessments. The results from the 2025 citywide math assessment revealed a pattern of steady and consistent improvement across all grade bands, from elementary to high school, confirming that the positive momentum is a district-wide phenomenon. Among students in grades 3-5, the percentage meeting or exceeding expectations rose to 31.2%, up from 28.4% in the previous year. A similar, and even more pronounced, increase was observed in the middle grades, where 26.4% of students in grades 6-8 met or exceeded expectations, a significant jump from 22.4% the prior year. The progress extended into the high school level, where 15% of students in grades 9-12 reached proficiency, a notable increase from 11.4% the year before. This consistent growth across all grade levels provides powerful local evidence that the multifaceted strategies being implemented are having a broad and cumulative impact. It demonstrates that the positive trends seen in the national NAEP results are not an anomaly but are instead reflective of a genuine and system-wide improvement in mathematics instruction and student learning throughout the city’s schools.
Confronting Inequity and Changing Mindsets
The Unfinished Agenda
Despite the celebrated and hard-won progress, city leaders are quick to acknowledge that their work is far from over, with the persistence of deep and troubling achievement gaps representing the most pressing and formidable issue. The same 2024 NAEP results that highlighted the city’s overall gains also cast a harsh light on the stark inequities that continue to divide student outcomes along racial and economic lines. The data exposed a staggering 65-point gap between the average scores of Black and White students. Perhaps more alarmingly, this disparity has not meaningfully narrowed since 2003, indicating that two decades of reform have failed to close the racial achievement gap in a significant way. A similar, though slightly smaller, chasm exists between economically disadvantaged students and their more affluent peers, with a 45-point gap separating their average scores. These persistent disparities serve as a sobering reminder that while the city’s overall performance is rising, the benefits of this improvement have not been distributed equitably. Addressing these deep-seated gaps is not merely a secondary goal but the central, unfinished agenda of the city’s educational reform efforts, requiring a renewed and more targeted focus to ensure that success is a reality for every student.
Beyond the quantifiable challenges of test scores and resource allocation, educational leaders in D.C. identify a more subtle but equally powerful cultural hurdle: the prevalence of negative math mindsets. Deputy Mayor for Education Paul Kihn has expressed deep concern over the pervasive belief that some people are inherently “not good at math,” a notion that can take root in students, be reinforced by parents, and even be held by educators themselves. This mindset is seen as a profound barrier to progress because it predetermines failure and discourages the very effort and persistence required for mathematical mastery. When students believe their ability is fixed, they are less likely to engage with challenging material or recover from setbacks. Consequently, a core and ongoing component of the city’s work is fundamentally psychological and cultural. It involves a concerted effort to dismantle this deterministic and damaging belief system and, in its place, instill the conviction that every student is a “math person” capable of high achievement. This cultural shift requires a citywide campaign to promote a growth mindset, where intelligence and ability are seen as malleable qualities that can be developed through dedication, effective strategies, and the right support from teachers and the community.
Models of Excellence on the Ground
Exemplifying the city’s vast potential for success, even in the most challenging circumstances, is the Center City Public Charter School’s Congress Heights campus. Situated in Ward 8, D.C.’s lowest-income area, this Pre-K to 8th-grade school has undergone a profound metamorphosis under the steady leadership of Principal Niya White since 2012. It has transformed from an institution plagued by low test scores and high teacher turnover into a designated “Bold Performance School,” a beacon of high achievement. The results are nothing short of astounding: on the 2025 statewide math assessment, a remarkable 70% of the school’s 8th graders met or exceeded expectations. This figure dramatically surpasses not only the 25% citywide average for 8th graders but also exceeds the 64% average in Ward 3, the city’s most affluent area. Principal White emphasizes that this success is not the product of a magic formula but of “lots of hard work” and consistency. Key strategies include dismantling the low expectations often placed on students from low-income communities, providing intensive academic support such as summer school and Saturday tutoring, and offering advanced coursework like Algebra in 8th grade. This is coupled with deep, integrated professional development for teachers and a “data hawk” approach to instruction, where student work is constantly analyzed to provide immediate, targeted support.
Similarly, the Friendship Public Charter School network, which serves 4,600 students across 15 campuses, demonstrates that excellence can be achieved at scale. Four of its schools have been recognized as “Bold Performance Schools,” with the network as a whole showing impressive results for historically underserved populations. Across the Friendship network, 45% of Black students and 42% of economically disadvantaged students scored proficient on the 2025 math assessment. These rates are a full 8 and 9 percentage points higher, respectively, than the average for those same student groups in surrounding neighborhood schools. CEO Patricia Brantley credits this system-wide success to several key initiatives. Following the return to in-person instruction in the fall of 2020, the network made a strategic decision to prioritize COVID-19 learning recovery by focusing intensively on core foundational skills. A commitment to instructional consistency across all 15 schools ensures a stable learning environment for students as they transition within the network. Furthermore, the network fosters deep and lasting teacher-student relationships through practices like “looping,” where a teacher stays with the same cohort of students for multiple grade levels, allowing for a more comprehensive understanding of each student’s long-term learning needs.
A crucial partner in identifying and analyzing these pockets of excellence is EmpowerK12, a nonprofit organization and a key member of the Capital Math Collective. This organization serves as the data and research engine behind much of the city’s progress analysis. EmpowerK12 provides sophisticated data analytics and targeted training to schools across the district, helping them make better sense of their performance data and identify areas for improvement. A central part of its mission is to conduct research to identify “bright spots”—schools that are consistently exceeding expectations, particularly for priority students from low-income backgrounds and students of color. By formally designating “Bold Performance Schools” like Center City Congress Heights and Friendship Chamberlain, the organization does more than simply hand out awards; it highlights replicable and effective practices for the entire city to learn from. EmpowerK12 uses a combination of quantitative performance data and qualitative research, including classroom observations and interviews with staff, to understand the specific factors and strategies driving academic improvement. This work provides a tangible and evidence-based roadmap for what is possible, demonstrating that high achievement is attainable for all students and offering a blueprint for other schools to follow.
A Path Forward Forged in Collaboration
The District of Columbia’s journey toward higher math achievement was a comprehensive and ongoing narrative. It was defined by a long-term commitment to strategic financial investment in teachers and resources, a blended approach of traditional and innovative instructional strategies, and the cultivation of a robust, collaborative ecosystem involving public schools, charter networks, and private partners. While the impressive gains on national and local assessments stood as a testament to the success of this multifaceted effort, the city’s leaders remained acutely aware of the deep-seated equity gaps that had to be addressed. The path forward involved continuing these proven strategies while doubling down on efforts to change mindsets and critically analyzing data to ensure that every single student was being served effectively. This focus on equity and targeted support ultimately made the vision of citywide mathematical proficiency a meaningful reality for all.
