A new high school in New York City is promising students they'll graduate with a business that has earned $1 million in profit, or their families will get their tuition back. It's an ambitious guarantee, especially considering tuition is $150,000 a year.
Founders School opened in Manhattan's Financial District in September 2026 with 21 students. Instead of spending most of the day in traditional classrooms, students complete their core academics in approximately three hours using AI-powered instruction. The rest of the day is spent building businesses, developing products, finding customers, and working with entrepreneurs who help guide their projects.
Some students already have considerable experience. The New York Post profiled 15-year-old Sanjay Divakar, who transferred from a Connecticut public school after learning about the program. He had already delivered two TEDx talks questioning traditional education and generated more than $10,000 in revenue from his software business.
Founders School is part of Alpha School, a private education network that uses artificial intelligence to help students learn at their own pace. The idea is to move through academic material more efficiently, leaving additional time for students to develop their interests and pursue practical experience.
There's a lot to appreciate about this approach. Students interested in entrepreneurship can learn finance, marketing, communication, and problem-solving while working with real customers. They're gaining experience that can be difficult to teach in a traditional classroom. And with technology changing how students learn, it's reasonable to reconsider how much time they need to spend in conventional classroom instruction.
But there's another side to what's happening in American education.
According to the 2024 Nation's Report Card, 45% of high school seniors performed below the NAEP Basic level in mathematics. And math is hardly the only concern. Schools are also struggling with reading performance, chronic absenteeism, classroom discipline, and other challenges that affect students' ability to learn.
AI may create new opportunities for students to learn more efficiently, but whether these approaches will produce better academic results remains to be seen. There's also the question of how widely they can be adopted. At $150,000 a year, Founders School isn't a realistic option for most families, and many schools don't have the resources or experienced mentors to offer anything comparable.
That raises a concern that extends well beyond one expensive private school.
We're entering a period when technology may allow some students to accomplish considerably more at younger ages. Businesses will increasingly expect workers to adapt, learn new tools, and become more productive. Those who can take advantage of these changes may find opportunities that previous generations never had.
But what happens to students who can't keep up?
Not every student will become an entrepreneur, and not everyone needs to. We still need skilled tradespeople, teachers, healthcare workers, technicians, and people across countless other professions. But they all need a solid education, practical skills, and the ability to adapt as their industries change.
If schools are already struggling to teach foundational subjects, a faster-moving economy could make those shortcomings more costly. Students who leave school without those skills may have fewer employment opportunities, while businesses struggle to find qualified workers. The consequences don't stop with individual students. They affect families and the communities that depend on them.
The real test will be whether new technology and teaching methods can improve learning for students across the country, including those who are already falling behind.
I hope the students at Founders School build their million-dollar businesses. But their success will be only one part of a much larger story about where American education is headed.
Because when too many young people aren't equipped to participate in a changing economy, the cost eventually reaches all of us.
This Week’s News Roundup: The High School Promise + Two More Stories Worth Watching
