Community Partnerships

DC Public Schools (DCPS) 

GW is deeply committed to our city's public schools. Located on the Foggy Bottom campus, GW is intimately involved at the School Without Walls since 1980. Renovated in 2012, Walls’ students share all GW facilities, benefit from GW professors’ teachings, and many even take courses at GW to earn a GW Associates Degree with their high school diploma. The university has another long standing academic partnership: the Duke Ellington School of the Performing Arts. Since its founding over 40 years ago, GW has supported students through use of facilities, professors, library and programs for their academic work. 

In addition, GW's Graduate School for Education and Human Development has offered expertise to support accelerated reforms, which have helped DCPS become the most improved public school system in the nation. GW students, faculty, and staff volunteer frequently to help DCPS students with their academics. To date, GW has provided more than $25 million in scholarships through the Stephen Joel Trachtenberg Scholarship to DC high school students to attend GW with a full, four-year scholarship covering tuition, room and board, books and fees at the university.

DC Department of Health (DOH) 

For more than 50 years, GW Hospital, School of Medicine & Health Sciences and Milken Institute for Public Health have partnered with DOH to improve the health of the city’s residents, including HIV/AIDS surveillance and treatments, ending cancer disparities among people of color, ending the high rate of "Diabesity" (Obesity leading to Diabetes) and promoting healthy lifestyles.  GW also has a seat on the board of Unity Health Care, the largest health clinic in the city, serving over 100,000 at-risk residents. GW students, faculty and staff also volunteer frequently, helping DC remain one of the healthiest cities in America. 

Academics in the Community 

Through the nonprofit Promising Futures, the GW community engages D.C. high school and middle school students to become peer educators on everything from health to social justice and leadership skills. The Promising Futures program, founded by GW alumna and visiting professor Maranda Ward, Ed.D. ’17, is one of numerous community partnerships that GW faculty, staff and students have with nonprofit and government agencies throughout the Washington, D.C., area.