Kairos Academies 2024-2025 Annual Report
- Stuart Murray
- 5 days ago
- 2 min read
Leadership Grows Here
Here at Kairos, we share a core belief that young people not only deserve opportunity–they deserve to lead. As we reflect on this past year, that belief feels more important than ever.
As a young and growing school system, we’ve faced transitions, tough decisions, and moments where we were learning while doing. But challenge did not shake our conviction. Through every shift and every stretch, our north star held steady: we are here to grow leaders. Leaders who know who they are. Who understand how they learn. Who are ready to shape not just their own futures, but the future of their communities.
And if you want proof of that future, you need only look at our students. Last fall, I met with our high school student council. I expected questions about prom or maybe a pitch about new lunch options. Instead, one scholar asked me–with complete seriousness–”Dr. Graham, what are the strategic priorities for our high school next year?”
In that moment I wasn’t talking to students, I was talking to stakeholders. To young people who see themselves as co-authors of our school’s story, not characters in it. That is the Kairos difference. Leadership doesn’t wait until graduation–it grows here, every day.
That’s why this year’s Annual Report is dedicated to the idea that Leadership Grows Here. Not as a slogan, but as a lived truth. You’ll see it in the data, in classrooms, and in the voices of our students, their families, and teachers. Because leadership doesn’t grow on its own. It grows through community. Through opportunity. Through people who invest–financially, strategically, and on the ground–to help every Kairos scholar find their voice and shape their future.
We are not a perfect school—but no school operates outside the broader forces shaping education today. Across St. Louis, schools are navigating shifting funding and evolving demographics. What defines
Kairos is how we respond: with clarity, resolve, and an unwavering belief in our students’ potential. That commitment carried us forward this year and continues to build momentum as we prepare to
graduate our first high school class—young people ready not just to step into the world, but to lead it.
Dr. Khalil Graham
Chief Executive Officer
Highlights from the 2024-2025 Kairos Academies Annual Report
Kairos grew to 525 students in grades 5-12 as we prepare to graduating our first class of seniors
Ranked in the top 1% nationwide for student sense of belonging at school by the Panorama survey (among inner city middle and high schools with a high population of students receiving free meals)
Raised starting teacher pay to $60,000, $70,000, and $80,000–a committment we call Teacher First Compensation
Scored 10+ percentage points above the local district on state assessments
#1 highest performing non-selective high school in STL for Government scores
#3 highest performing non-selective high school in STL for English scores
Top 10% of all non-selective schools in STL for English scores
Raised $47,000 to support our first class of graduates at our annual fundraising gala