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About GPA

Global Prep Academy is a forward-facing, innovative educational program where students act on their academic passions and collaborate to address the defining challenges of a complex and rapidly-changing world.

Founded in 2014, Global Prep Academy is a forward-facing, innovative educational program home to experienced educators, in addition to a well-equipped incubator space that encourages intellectual vitality, collaboration, and  problem-solving.

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The coursework offered at GPA prepares its students to become well-rounded global citizens, equipped with the necessary soft and hard skills to navigate our rapidly-changing economy. GPA is a place where profound self-awareness, complex problem-solving and service to the public good are defined by intense collaboration, limitless creativity, and working in ways that transcend traditional educational boundaries.

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We are a proven entity, saving hundreds of families over 98 million dollars (through value-based grants and scholarships) over the past 5 years. Our students are at Ivy Leagues and top 30 schools, and even programs that only take up to 18 students (in the whole wide world)!

Student outcomes

214 students earned

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1137

acceptances to

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282

colleges & universities

*since 2017

$98.9 million

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in scholarships

earned by students

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83% 

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of EA applicants earned acceptance

98%

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earned one or more scholarships from the schools to which they were accepted to

$98.9 million

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in scholarships

earned by students

*since 2017

$24 million

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average in yearly scholarship earned

63%

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matriculate to their first choice school

88%

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earned acceptance to one of their first three college choices

21​

students received full tuition scholarships

*since 2017

GPA's founding story

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In 2014, David Najar founded GPA with the specific intention of bridging the gap between struggling public school education and the privileged, private boarding school ecosystem that effortlessly regenerates Ivy League (and other name brand colleges and universities) students. Najar, along with co-founders Myra and MJ, imagined an example of new high school education. They began by designing a space that doesn't look like an institution invested in creating servile students who will transition to office spaces or extinct factories. Then, they devised a curriculum that inspires students to fall in love with learning, find their curiosities and graduate high school with a 2030 skill set.

 

GPA understands that packets and standardized testing are the norms. However, we look beyond numbers in our students. We embrace students who think for themselves and find their passions. GPA gets that the future is uncertain; however, our students have the curiosity, creativity, critical thinking, problem solving and social skills that can make them successful in STEM, design, humanities, public policy or any combination of these and emerging disciplines in higher education and beyond.

Founding Story
GPA At a Glance
How it Works

Why should you choose GPA?

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More than ever, colleges nationwide are placing more focus on students who have aligned their academic coursework and their activities outside the classroom, around a cohesive academic pathway. As colleges move away from subject test requirements (even the SAT!), students' passions and tangible skills continue to grow in their importance to the college admissions process. 


Our founders envisioned a program that would help students to align their activities and extracurriculars around a pre-defined pathway. The coursework provided by our experienced educators aims to inspire students to explore global issues and to learn relevant hard skills, which better prepares them for the uncertainty associated with the future of our workforce.

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Numbers remain a component of the application process. However, a students' activities and passions remain an integral component (perhaps more than numbers) to a students' ability to navigate the college process.

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Rojie, Class of 2019

Stanford University, Full Ride

GPA provided me with the right environment and resources to help me to develop into the student that I wanted to be. More than that, I learned a lot at GPA. Their education is practical and daring. The whole team is dedicated to bring your creative ideas to life.

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Why GPA?
Our Team

Our Instructors and Founders

FOUNDER

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David (pronounced "dah-veed")

Founder, CEO, & Head Instructor at Global Prep Academy

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David started this whole Global Prep Academy thing. And it didn’t just start in June 2015, when we opened our doors. Rather, it started when David began teaching close to 29 years ago. It was then that he realized that education was in need of a severe overhaul — he saw that schools were handing out too many packets and multiple-choice tests and not provoking enough passion and critical thinking. Frustrated and saddened by high school teaching, David did some TV and film work (CBS and Disney), contributed to a successful internet startup (Creative Planet), and even reluctantly worked for an online teaching company (Blackboard). He had worked with Professor Edward Said at Columbia University, Jacques Derrida at UC Irvine, and Judith Halberstam at UCSD and knew how thoughtful, experiential learning could lead to a life filled with curiosity and passion.

 

Upon finishing his Ph.D. at UCSD, David decided to take things into his own hands by creating a makerspace, an exciting curriculum, and an enriching environment where students could be themselves, thrive, and become activated global citizens who will change our world.

Myra

Co-Founder, Instructor at Global Prep Academy

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Myra is our Headmistress and heart, which means she keeps the kids in line with her kindness and her intelligence. We call her “Headmistress” because she is our smart Head, but she also teaches and advises our students, utilizing her knowledge and experience cultivated while earning her BA from UCSD and her MA from NYU.

 

Our students always know to come to Myra when they need a little advice and lot of knowledge. She is a successful brand manager, academic, and problem-solver. But, remember, don’t mess with our Headmistress (kidding, she couldn’t hurt a fly. Or could she?)

CO-FOUNDER

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INSTRUCTOR

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Mya

USC Iovine and Young Academy

Instructor in Multimedia Design, Digital Design & Branding

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Mya Davis is an artist, designer, writer, performer, creator, leader, listener, and magician. He always has tricks up his sleeves to showcase his unique creativity and have a maximum positive impact on his community. Mya truly is a renaissance man, to whom we could also add the adjective “nouveau” because though he has an old eclectic spirit, he brings a new flavor to everything he does. He is rising to his second-year at USC’s Iovine and Young Academy, a program of only about 100 students that nurtures critical thinking and unbridled creativity at the intersection of four essential areas: arts and design; engineering and computer science; business and venture management; and communication.

Join Global Prep Academy today

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