Uncommon Schools (Uncommon) is a nonprofit organization that starts and manages outstanding urban charter public schools that close the achievement gap and prepare low-income students to graduate from college. Uncommon builds uncommonly great schools by developing and managing regional networks that are philosophically aligned and highly accountable.     Excellence Charter Schools, NY North Star Academy Charter Schools, NJ Collegiate Charter Schools, NY True North Public Schools, NY Preparatory Charter Schools, NY

Uncommon manages eleven schools in New York City, upstate New York, and Newark, New Jersey. The organization also has two associate member schools in Boston, Massachusetts. Uncommon ultimately will encompass more than 30 schools, serving more than 10,000 K to 12th grade students, in four geographic regions.

Playing on Horace Mann's notion of the "common school," and born of the fact that too many of today's educational institutions steer toward mediocrity, Uncommon was founded to create more uncommon schools - uncommonly good, extraordinary, autonomous, and distinctive. The organization first supported the creation of North Star Academy Charter School of Newark, which opened in 1997 and has since emerged as one of the most celebrated charter public schools in the nation. In 2005, Uncommon formalized its mission as a charter management organization with the goal of starting schools in the Northeast that create transformative college prep opportunities for low-income children.