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      Achievement First

      Engaged Employer

      Achievement First reviews

      3.0

      35% would recommend to a friend

      (999 total reviews)
      avatar

      Fatimah Barker

      39% approve of CEO

      21% positive business outlook

      Ratings by demographic groups

      Achievement First has an employee rating of 3.0 out of 5 stars, based on 999 company reviews on Glassdoor which indicates that most employees have an average working experience there. The Achievement First employee rating is in line with the average (within 1 standard deviation) for employers within the Education industry (3.7 stars).

      Reviews by job title

      999 reviews
      4.0
      Sep 27, 2016

      Great professional development

      Anonymous employee
      Recommend
      CEO approval
      Business Outlook

      Pros

      Excellent professional development, excellent staff culture, really good if you have a good school leader

      Cons

      Rigid structures, long hours, corporate

      avatar
      Achievement First Response
      9y
      Thank you for taking the time to give this feedback. There's no doubt that our school leaders play the key role in the staff culture at AF. We've got so many great leaders in this network and we're actually in the middle of studying what our most effective people leaders do so that we can spread that knowledge across our network. Also, as much as we focus on growth here, it was great to hear about your positive experience with our professional development. If you've got a moment, and would be willing to drop me a line to explain more about what you mean in regards to the "rigid structures" or "corporate" feel, I would love to hear and understand more about how that was a part of your experience. We pride ourselves on being a well run organization where teachers are set up for success, but certainly that sometimes makes things feel more "rigid" in a way that I think we can improve. -Tom Kaiser, Chief Talent Officer, tomkaiser@achievementfirst.org
      5.0
      Sep 26, 2016

      Total Transparency From the Top-Down

      Anonymous employee
      Recommend
      CEO approval
      Business Outlook

      Pros

      I have worked for several years at another large charter network in New York, and find Achievement First to be much more transparent from the top-down than what I'm used to. I was recently in a large meeting with the co-founders, where they spent an hour reviewing the 2015-16 school year, and the areas for growth that the network needs to focus on. Doug and Dacia (the co-founders) were completely honest about the things they are working on as the network's leaders, and took total responsibility for mistakes they made the previous year. They then shared the areas of growth they are going to personally work on during the 2016-17 school year. I have never worked for an organization where the leaders dedicate a portion of their day to be honest with their employees about how they, as the head of the organization, can do better. I found this to be very honest and open, and I left the meeting with a level of trust that I never had at my previous, better known, charter network.

      Cons

      There is a lot of feedback here, so you will often be observed and coached on things that you can do better. At the beginning it can be a little overwhelming, but when I saw the co-founders also give themselves feedback and ask for it from others I learned not to take it personally. It is just meant to make you a more effective member of the school.

      avatar
      Achievement First Response
      9y
      Thank you so much for sharing this. When I was a principal and Dacia was my coach she once said to me, "People don't expect perfection from their leaders. But when you've got character that shines through and they see an earnest effort to do better, they will be a whole more understanding about mistakes." She was trying to pay me a compliment but could have easily been talking about herself, or Doug. Though not perfect, it makes it a lot easier to follow their lead when you see how reflective, open, and honest they are about their own growth and learning. They set the tone for our network and I was heartened to see that you've experienced that as well. I will pass your words along to them! -Tom Kaiser, Chief Talent Officer
      3.0
      Sep 25, 2016

      teacher

      Anonymous employee
      Recommend
      CEO approval
      Business Outlook

      Pros

      -salary is higher than doe -support

      Cons

      -long hours -lots of stress -high burnout -lots of teachers turnover -burnt

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