In 2016, BelovED Community Charter School turned to New Jersey Community Capital (NJCC) and Leviticus for an acquisition loan to purchase a vacant site for a new middle school where it could expand its unparalleled learning program for underserved Jersey City students (this loan was featured in Leviticus’ 2016 Annual Report). This year, we again partnered with NJCC in support of Beloved’s growth plans by providing a $600,000 construction loan that was a part of a total $13 million financing package to assist with the construction of the middle school which will eventually serve 1,320 students in grades K-8.
BelovED Community Charter School is the highest performing school for Student Learning Growth in its peer group and ranks in the 98th percentile for performance among all New Jersey public schools. It owes its success to a unique model that connects a proven alternative curriculum to self-development and community development while providing its students with a safe, state-of-the art learning environment. Because it is still a young school with a limited track record, BelovED relies on financing that CDFIs like Leviticus and NJCC uniquely provide to fund its expansion.
Using the collective investment of NJCC and Leviticus, BelovED, which currently enrolls students in grades K-6, will add a 7th and 8th grade each of the next two years, and ultimately serve students through the 12th grade in a district with very limited acceptable or strong educational options. The new middle school facility will enable BelovED to strengthen its capacity to help develop Jersey City youth from young children into capable, community-focused, college-bound young adults.
