Last Monday, 40 kindergartners, most of whom are in the child welfare system, graduated from their class at the Mott Haven Academy Charter School, a charter school sponsored by The New York Foundling, a non-profit agency.

According to a press release, the school’s model is unusual in that it “integrates the rigorous academic curriculum of a charter school with the supportive social services that many of these children and families rely on to remain intact.”

Pictured is Jessica Nauiokas, Mott Haven Academy’s principal and founder, with one of the young students. (Photo courtesy of The New York Foundling.)