TED fellow Karim Abouelnaga '13 talks education success


Robert Barker / University Photography
Karim Abouelnaga gives the keynote address at the 2014 Service-Learning Showcase on campus.

Education entrepreneur Karim Abouelnaga ’13, founder and CEO of Practice Makes Perfect, has been named a TED fellow and is one of 15 young innovators from four continents who will deliver TED talks in April in Vancouver.

Abouelnaga started Practice Makes Perfect in 2010 at age 18 while studying at the School of Hotel Administration. Based in New York City, the program operates summer schools that match elementary and middle school students with older, high achieving near-peer mentors from their communities for leadership development, academic instruction and career training that address summer learning loss in low-income communities.

The second-oldest of seven children, Abouelnaga was raised by a single mother on government-aid in Long Island City, New York. He was unengaged in middle school and had 60 absences in seventh grade. Several nonprofits, teachers and mentors helped him fulfill his potential, and he received almost $300,000 in scholarships and merit aid to make his college education possible.

“So many of our most admirable education reformers have never attended the schools they are trying to fix,” Abouelnaga said. “Having been blessed with an elite education and the firsthand experiences [of] going through the largest public school system in the U.S., I’m compelled by a sense of moral obligation to create the pathways and opportunities I received for children growing up just like me. … I’m incredibly grateful. This recognition is validation that the work we’re carrying out at Practice Makes Perfect is an idea worth spreading.”

Practice Makes Perfect classes are led by teaching fellows under the guidance of an experienced teacher. The organization has served more than 2,000 students.