New York, NY – In a momentous achievement, Odyssey Charter School, a dual-language Greek immersion multi-charter school, clinched the esteemed Yass Prize and secured a $500,000 STOP Award for Sustainable, Transformational, Outstanding, and Permissionless education. The announcement took place at the third annual Yass Prize Celebration and Gala in Midtown Manhattan.

The Yass Prize, often hailed as the Pulitzer of Education Innovation, is dedicated to identifying, rewarding, and celebrating pioneering organizations committed to breaking the cycle of ineffective education prevalent across the nation.

Selected as one of nine finalists from a pool of over 2,700 qualified applicants, Odyssey Charter School received the award to expedite its mission. The school aims to foster a passion for proficiency in classics, languages, and democracy, combined with 21st-century innovation. This is achieved through rigorous instruction in the Greek language—responsible for nearly 50% of medical terms—and a focus on applied mathematics. The K-12 model, offered tuition-free, is designed to be accessible to the entire Delaware community.

Janine Yass, co-founder of the Yass Prize along with her husband Jeff in 2021, emphasized, “We believe that empowering education innovators to operate outside the restrictive system is the most effective way to transform the lives of America’s students.”

Jeanne Allen from the Center for Education Reform, which oversees the Yass Prize effort, remarked, “The disruptive impact these awardees are having on American education is remarkable.”

Expressing gratitude for the recognition, Elias Pappas, CEO of Odyssey Charter School, stated, “Winning this award will enable Odyssey Charter School to expand its reach and serve as many students as possible who desire to experience the innovative education offered on our Wilmington campus.”

Jeanne Allen, leading the Yass Prize and related initiatives, commended this year’s awardees as exemplifying the best of American educational endeavors.

About Yass Prize

The Yass Prize, in collaboration with Forbes and powered by the Center for Education Reform, is a rapidly growing initiative that seeks, rewards, celebrates, and expands best-in-class education organizations across all sectors. Alongside the $1 million Yass Prize, the STOP Awards initiative will distribute nearly $20 million in 2023 to organizations in its network.