Bloomberg Philanthropies has announced two grants totaling $100 million in support of public charter schools at Harlem Children’s Zone’s Promise Academy and a third grant of $100 million to Success Academy.

Bloomberg Philanthropies had already given Harlem Children’s Zone an unannounced $35 million grant for general operating support, and the second commitment of $65 million boosted its total investment to date to $100 million. Part of the foundation’s five-year, $750 million commitment in support of charter schools, the three grants will be used to fund facilities improvements and expansion, attract and retain educators, bolster programs to mitigate learning loss and improve mental health, and expand college and career readiness for students.

Funding for Harlem Children’s Zone will establish a scholarship fund to provide Promise Academy graduates a debt-free education to any New York State college or university, strengthen the teacher pipeline and ability to retain top educators by providing loan forgiveness and performance incentives, offer extended health and academic remediation services for more students, and develop internship and career readiness programs. Success Academy will use its grant to construct an integrated K-12 campus for 2,400 children in the South Bronx, the city’s lowest-income neighborhood.

“Harlem Children’s Zone and Success Academy have both shown what’s possible when we put students first, set high expectations, and hold everyone accountable for results,” said Bloomberg LP and Bloomberg Philanthropies founder Michael R. Bloomberg, who served as the 108th mayor of New York City and joined the Giving Pledge in 2010. “Expanding access to high-quality charter schools has never been more important, and our foundation is going to do our part.”

“As mayor, Mike Bloomberg nurtured Success from the start. To this day, most of our schools operate out of public-school buildings to which he gave us access despite opposition from special interests,” said Success Academy founder and CEO Eva Moskowitz. “[W]ith this monumental gift, Bloomberg Philanthropies will help us make a giant leap from excellence to extraordinary—with a new K-12 campus that brings that vision to life.”

(Photo credit: Bloomberg Philanthropies)