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Awards & Recognition

BASIS Independent Schools Solidify Position as Leading K-12 Network

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The 2025 Niche private school rankings are here, and BASIS Independent Schools has once again secured its spot as one of the nation’s top, private K–12 institutions! This year, five of our seven campuses were eligible for ranking, and all of them received high honors: BASIS Independent Brooklyn, McLean, Silicon Valley, along with Fremont and Manhattan, which were eligible for rankings for the first time this year. BASIS Independent Bellevue and Bothell, our newest schools, will be eligible for ranking in the next few years.

2025 Rankings: BASIS Independent Schools


National Achievements



State and Region Achievements

Niche national rankings

national rankings 2025

Top Rankings by Campus

BASIS Independent McLean: A+ Grade

#1 Best Private K-12 Schools in Virginia

#1 Best High Schools for STEM in Virginia

#1 Best College Prep Private High Schools in Virginia

#1 Best Private High Schools in Virginia


BASIS Independent Silicon Valley: A+ Grade

#3 Best High Schools for STEM in California

#5 Best High Schools for STEM in America


BASIS Independent Brooklyn: A+ Grade

#7 Best High Schools for STEM in New York

#9 Best College Prep High Schools in New York 

#11 Best Private K-12 Schools in New York

#20 Best Private K-12 Schools in America


BASIS Independent Manhattan: A+ Grade
(First year eligible for Rankings)

#15 Best High Schools for STEM in New York 

#20 Best Private K-12 Schools in New York 


BASIS Independent Fremont: A+ Grade
(First year eligible for Rankings)

#6 Best High Schools for STEM in the San Francisco Bay Area

#9 Best High Schools for STEM in California

#13 Best Private K-12 Schools in the San Francisco Bay Area

Niche, a trusted leader in K–12 school rankings, provides detailed profiles for schools across the U.S. using comprehensive search and data tools. The 2025 rankings are based on an in-depth analysis of key data points and millions of reviews from students and parents. Factors such as SAT/ACT scores, the quality of colleges students pursue, student-teacher ratios, and private school ratings are considered. Data is sourced from the U.S. Department of Education, Niche users, and the schools themselves.

“We are both extremely proud and also not surprised by this recognition and attention for BASIS Independent Schools,” says Toby Walker, Vice President of BASIS Independent Schools. “This year, two additional schools were eligible to be ranked and the impressive rankings for BASIS Independent Fremont (CA) and BASIS Independent Manhattan only goes to show the consistency of excellent across our network of schools.”

These exciting achievements further highlight our continued excellence and commitment to delivering world-class education year after year, and further demonstrates the dedication of our Learning and Subject Expert Teachers, and their unwavering commitment to helping students achieve success at the world’s leading colleges and universities. The strength of our network is evident from coast to coast, consistently delivering outstanding results.

Explore Admissions at BASIS Independent Brooklyn today. View upcoming admissions events.

BASIS Independent Schools offer the high-achieving BASIS Curriculum, which was developed in 1998 and serves students from preschool through Grade 12. BASIS Independent Schools educates students to the highest international levels with a spiraling liberal arts and sciences curriculum benchmarked to the best education systems in the world. Our advanced curriculum, unmatched in breadth and depth, prepares students to be innovative, well-rounded leaders across disciplines. BASIS Independent Schools currently offers private school campuses in California, New York, Northern Virginia, and Washington State.

BASIS Independent Schools Solidify Position as Leading K-12 Network

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The 2025 Niche private school rankings are here, and BASIS Independent Schools has once again secured its spot as one of the nation’s top, private K–12 institutions! This year, five of our seven campuses were eligible for ranking, and all of them received high honors: BASIS Independent Brooklyn, McLean, Silicon Valley, along with Fremont and Manhattan, which were eligible for rankings for the first time this year. BASIS Independent Bellevue and Bothell, our newest schools, will be eligible for ranking in the next few years.

2025 Rankings: BASIS Independent Schools


National Achievements



State and Region Achievements

Niche national rankings

national rankings 2025

Top Rankings by Campus

BASIS Independent McLean: A+ Grade

#1 Best Private K-12 Schools in Virginia

#1 Best High Schools for STEM in Virginia

#1 Best College Prep Private High Schools in Virginia

#1 Best Private High Schools in Virginia


BASIS Independent Silicon Valley: A+ Grade

#3 Best High Schools for STEM in California

#5 Best High Schools for STEM in America


BASIS Independent Brooklyn: A+ Grade

#9 Best College Prep High Schools in New York 

#11 Best Private K-12 Schools in New York

#20 Best Private K-12 Schools in America


BASIS Independent Manhattan: A+ Grade
(First year eligible for Rankings)

#15 Best High Schools for STEM in New York 

#20 Best Private K-12 Schools in New York 


BASIS Independent Fremont: A+ Grade
(First year eligible for Rankings)

#6 Best High Schools for STEM in the San Francisco Bay Area

#9 Best High Schools for STEM in California

#13 Best Private K-12 Schools in the San Francisco Bay Area

Niche, a trusted leader in K–12 school rankings, provides detailed profiles for schools across the U.S. using comprehensive search and data tools. The 2025 rankings are based on an in-depth analysis of key data points and millions of reviews from students and parents. Factors such as SAT/ACT scores, the quality of colleges students pursue, student-teacher ratios, and private school ratings are considered. Data is sourced from the U.S. Department of Education, Niche users, and the schools themselves.

“We are both extremely proud and also not surprised by this recognition and attention for BASIS Independent Schools,” says Toby Walker, Vice President of BASIS Independent Schools. “This year, two additional schools were eligible to be ranked and the impressive rankings for BASIS Independent Fremont (CA) and BASIS Independent Manhattan only goes to show the consistency of excellent across our network of schools.”

These exciting achievements further highlight our continued excellence and commitment to delivering world-class education year after year, and further demonstrates the dedication of our Learning and Subject Expert Teachers, and their unwavering commitment to helping students achieve success at the world’s leading colleges and universities. The strength of our network is evident from coast to coast, consistently delivering outstanding results.

Explore Admissions at BASIS Independent Bothell today. View upcoming admissions events.

BASIS Independent Schools offer the high-achieving BASIS Curriculum, which was developed in 1998 and serves students from preschool through Grade 12. BASIS Independent Schools educates students to the highest international levels with a spiraling liberal arts and sciences curriculum benchmarked to the best education systems in the world. Our advanced curriculum, unmatched in breadth and depth, prepares students to be innovative, well-rounded leaders across disciplines. BASIS Independent Schools currently offers private school campuses in California, New York, Northern Virginia, and Washington State.

Nearly 70% of High School Students Awarded AP Scholar Distinction

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At BASIS Independent Brooklyn, we prioritize celebrating our students’ accomplishments across many areas–from fine arts to community service, debate competitions, sports, and beyond. However, academic accomplishment remains a shared priority within our community. Today we can proudly share that based on the 2024 AP scores approximately 68% of our high school students qualified as Advanced Placement (AP) Scholars during their time in our program. Students move from AP Scholar to AP Scholar with Honor and then AP Scholar with Distinction. Approximately 75% of our students reach that highest level of AP Scholar with Distinction by the time they graduate.

“The AP Scholar distinctions our students earned this year are yet another measure of the success that’s earned here at BASIS Independent Brooklyn, ” said Josh Harmon, Head of School for BASIS Independent Brooklyn’s Upper School. “Academically all of our high school students qualified as AP Scholars by the time they finished their junior year. When looking at all students in grades 9-12 nearly 70% of our high school was awarded the honor of AP Scholar or higher. Moreover, our students sat for more AP exams in 2024 than ever before with the growth of our high school.”

AP Scholar awards recognize students who have demonstrated both a depth and breadth of knowledge and whose work has shown college-level mastery across multiple disciplines. The College Board awards the following distinctions for AP exams, and we have students who have achieved all levels.

    • AP Scholar: students who received a score of 3 or higher on 3 or more AP exams.
    • AP Scholar with Honors: students who received a score of 3 or higher on 4 or more exams, and have an average score of at least 3.25 across all exams taken.
    • AP Scholar with Distinction: students who received a score of 3 or higher on at least 5 exams, and an average score of 3.5 across all exams taken.

Nationwide, only about 10% of students earn the distinction of AP Scholar or higher by the time they graduate (based on historic data provided by the College Board). We are thrilled to share some of the top accomplishments here:

    • 75 students in our high school were named AP Scholar or higher distinctions, representing approximately 68% of our high school in May 2024 when the exams were taken.
    • 75% of our seniors received the AP Scholar with Distinction, the highest award offered by the College Board.

Our school has been recognized as a Platinum Member of the AP School Honor Roll. This is the highest recognition possible for a school on the Honor Roll, and it is based on our students’ outstanding results.

Congratulations to all our students who have earned an AP Scholar Award for their performance on the exams during their High School tenure. See the full lists of student recipients updated to include the 2024 results below:

AP Scholar: Students who received a score of 3 or higher on 3 or more AP exams.

Victor B. ’25

Matthias B. ’25

Leo B. ’25

Eden E. ’24

Abraham G. ’27

Joaquim H. ’26

Douglas H. ’27

Gabriel H. ’26

Charlotte J. ’24

Rachel K. ’25

Katherine K. ’26

Avi L. ’24

Hendrix N. ’25

Jason P. ’25

Saajan P. ’26

Sasha T. ’25

AP Scholar with Honors: Students who received a score of 3 or higher on 4 or more AP exams and have an average score of at least 3.25 across all exams taken. Nationwide, only about 6% of students will graduate high school with this degree of recognition or higher. Nearly all of these honorees have done so well before graduation.

Wyatt A. ’26

Laila G. ’24

Archie H. ’26

Laith J. ’25

Alexa L. ’24

Viola L. ’25

AP Scholar with Distinction: Students who have a score of 3 or higher on at least 5 exams, and an average score of 3.5 across all exams taken. These students have already completed at least a semester’s worth of college credit while still in high school. Only about 4% of graduating seniors receive this award, and less than 1/10th of 1% of students receive it after sophomore year.

Overall in our high school, the following 50 students received this honor:

Philip B. ’26

Radha B. ’26

Jack B. ’24

Zeke B. ’24

Jack C. ’25

Nathaniel C. ’26

Mia C. ’26

Nicolas D. ’25

Colin D. ’25

Axel F. ’25

Sofia G. ’24

Alexa G. ’26

Samantha G. ’24

Diego G. ’24

Angelina G. ’24

Maxwell H. ’25

Mateo K. ’25

Lianna L. ’26

Aidan L. ’25

Ye L. ’24

Thomas M. ’25

Sabrina M. ’26

Dilan M. ’24

Maddox M. ’25

Ben N. ’24

Sefir O. ’26

Oliver P. ’24

Talin P. ’26

Charles P. ’24

Gustavo P. ’25

Daniel P. ’24

Kanika R. ’26

Noah R. ’26

James R. ’25

Alexander R. ’24

Skye S. ’25

Nadia S. ’25

Xinyi S. ’26

Gregory S. ’26

Maxim S. ’25

Nadine S. ’24

Yuna S. ’24

Jasmine S. ’26

Jonah S. ’24

Lucas S. ’24

Ryan T. ’25

Beckham V. ’26

Isaac W. ’24

River W. ’26

Andre Z. ’24

Photo (above): Our Class of 2025 posing with Associate Head of School Leo Yoon, Head of School Josh Harmon, and College Counselor Matt Brauch.

Please join us in congratulating our Bears!

BASIS Independent Manhattan Celebrates AP Scholar Recognition

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BASIS Independent Manhattan is proud to announce that nearly half (48%) of our Advance Placement (AP) test-taking students have been recognized by the College Board for their exceptional performance on the 2023-24 AP Exams. These dedicated 23 students demonstrated a remarkable commitment to rigorous academic pursuits and have earned the following prestigious AP Scholar awards.

  • 15 AP Scholars with Distinction: Students who scored 3 or higher on five or more AP exams and an average score of at least 3.75.
  • 5 AP Scholars with Honor: Students who earned scores of 3 or higher on four or more AP exams and an average score of at least 3.5.
  • 4 AP Scholars: Students who scored 3 or higher on at least three AP exams.
  • 1 AP Capstone Diploma: Students who earned a qualifying score on both the AP Seminar and AP Research exams.
Ms. Meimban administers the AP Exams

“We are incredibly proud of our students’ outstanding accomplishments on the AP Exams,” said Ms. Cyndriel Meimban, Academic Programs Manager at BASIS Independent Manhattan’s Upper School. “Their hard work, dedication, and intellectual curiosity have enabled them to excel at the highest levels of academic achievement.”

Additional results worth highlighting include:

  • The average AP score for our students was 4.02 (out of 5), whereas it was 2.96 for the rest of the country and abroad.
  • For two years in a row (2022-2023 and 2023-2024), approximately 75% of our AP students reach the highest level of AP Scholar with Distinction by the time they graduate.

What is increasingly impressive is that our students on average complete 12.4 AP exams and complete their AP course requirements during their first three years of high school. These AP Scholar awards are a testament to the exceptional quality of education at BASIS Independent Manhattan in a supportive learning environment with experienced teachers who provide students with the tools and resources they need to succeed.

Interested in learning more about our program and the High School Years? We invite you to explore our website, visit our school, or contact our Admissions team to see if BASIS Independent Manhattan is the right fit for you.

BASIS Independent Manhattan, a private school offering PreK through Grade 12, is based in Manhattan, New York. Students thrive alongside Subject Expert Teachers as they engage in a liberal arts program with STEM offerings. 

2023-2024 Year in Review

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Dear Families and Staff,

During the summer months, we reflect on the past school year as we reset our school for the year ahead. Today, we celebrate with our community many of the student accomplishments from the past year and pay tribute to our 2024 graduates. We are incredibly proud of our Bears.

Let us start with academics. Data from across our BASIS Independent Schools inform our practice, identify our areas for growth, and allow us to celebrate our successes knowledgeably. For these reasons, we can truly say we practice both the art and science of teaching. Without data, we would not understand our own goals, or we would just assume we were lucky when we met them!

This year more than 60% of our students earned the AP Scholar designation (scoring a 3 or higher on at least three AP Exams). This impressive result is consistent with year-over-year scores, showcasing our program’s strength. Also, in high school, we celebrated our National Merit Scholar winner Jack B. ’24, and 30% of our seniors were recognized as commended scholars.

Speaking of our seniors, let us take a moment to reflect on our sixth graduating class about to head off to the next stage of their educational journey! Approximately 60% of students were offered seats at universities in the top 25 ranked national and international institutions. Today we can share that our students will matriculate at:

  • University of Pennsylvania (2), Duke University (2), Johns Hopkins University, Northwestern University, Cornell University, University of Michigan, Georgetown University (2), Emory University, University of Southern California, NYU (2), Boston University, Northeastern (2), George Washington University, Barnard College (2), Colgate University, Haverford College, Skidmore College, Stevens Institute of Technology, Chapman University, and Cooper Union.

Our Class of 2024 posed on the roof during their senior year. Photo Credit: Danny Dolan at www.dannydolan.com

Celebrating Accomplishments

Throughout the 2023-2024 school year one thing remained the same— student accomplishments across all grades continued to reaffirm the vision behind all that we have built here in Brooklyn. Our educators took pride in providing structure and stability to support content mastery. 

Our students continued to excel at their studies and outside the classroom, our students’ accomplishments made us incredibly proud. An overview of 2023–2024 student accolades and significant developments follows.

Fine Arts

  • Scholastic Arts and Writing Competition: Our students were recognized yet again with many honors this year. One National Gold Key in photography was awarded to Mateo K. ’25; Yuna S. ’24 received a National Silver Key for her work in Digital Art. Many other students were recognized with regional awards: 7 Gold Keys, 6 Silver Keys, and 9 honorable mentions in photography, digital art, painting, and drawing illustration.
  • Our Upper School Choir was invited to perform at Radio City Music Hall before the Christmas Spectacular once again! They won top honors at the Hershey Park Choral Festival as well!
  • High School Choir and Band were invited to play at Universal Studios as part of the Disney Music Series.
  • Our Spring Musical SpongeBob was a rave hit. Upper School drama performances in elective classes were a wonderful celebration of creativity all year long.
  • Our entire Fine Arts team hosted wonderful festivals before Winter Break and at the end of the school year.  

National Scholastic Arts Gold Key winning photo by Mateo K. ’25

Humanities/Social Sciences

  • High School Debate Team won 1st place in team and 1st place speaker in the NYC Urban Debate League Championships.
  • Our Middle School Debate Club tied for 3rd place in the New York Debate League Championships.
  • The Grizzly Co-Editors-in-Chief founded our initial chapter of Quill and Scroll International Journalism honor society, initiating six student journalists.
  • Our Bears won 1st place team in the very competitive K-5 U1200 division at the Primary Chess National Championships! Our K-5 U900 team came in 7th place, and our team of two in K-3 U700 tied for 16th place with just two students. This news came on the heels of winning big at the New York State Championship. There were many, many other chess accolades throughout the year.
  • On the National Latin Exam, Abraham G. ‘29 earned a gold medal, Indi S. ’29 a silver. One of our Grade 6 students Dylan C. was recognized by both the American Classical Association and National Junior Latin League for receiving a perfect score. Four students received gold medals, ten received silver medals in Grade 6 this year as well!
  • This year we launched our inaugural Quiz Bowl team under the leadership of Mr. Koppel. The team performed well in their first year and look forward to picking up steam in the fall!

Our Chess Team at Nationals. Photo credit: Ian West of ICN

Math/Science

  • Our MATHCOUNTS team came in 1st Place in Brooklyn regionals and went on to compete at the New York State Championships. Special shout out to Michael S. ’28 who won top individual honors in Brooklyn. Coach Hughes was very proud of them.
  • The largest group of students ever sat for the MATH KANGAROO assessment for younger grades across both our campuses and comprised our largest group yet to receive accolades from the organization.
  • NOETIC Math accolades poured in with national winners across several grades across both of our campuses.
  • Our school won both 2nd and 3rd Place in New York State TEAMS competition. Thank you to Physics teacher and coach Josh Winter for continuing to grow the team.

Our Lower School Cubs proudly posing with their NOETIC math ribbons and medals.

Sports

  • Our Middle School Baseball team won the CSAA league championship after an incredible first season under Coach Starks. Go Bears!!!
  • Our Middle School Girls Volleyball Team won the CSAA Region 3 Championships!!! Coach Nalipinski was incredibly proud of her players, who participated in this middle school division for the first time.
  • CSAA Boys and Girls Track Team: Our Bears had a great season, and the High School team took home 3rd Place in the CSAA Region 3 championship. Given this was their first season, we could not be prouder of them!
  • Our CSAA Boys Varsity Soccer team made the league playoffs and we were very proud of their determination and drive during the year.
  • CSAA Girls Volleyball made the playoffs after a tremendous fall season with Coach Nalipinski.
  • CSAA Co-ed JHS Flag Football team finished 2nd place in the league! Team spirit could not be stronger, and we want to thank families for showing up consistently to cheer on our Bears.

Coach Starks and our middle school baseball team won 1st place in their league.

Community Involvement

  • This year our high school team arranged a Third Annual Day of Service in the fall to bring our community together and make a difference locally.
  • Our National Honor and National Junior Honor Society students dedicated more than 2,000 hours to service projects this year!
  • Back-to-School Textbook Exchange – Families donated nearly 3,300 textbooks and others bought used textbooks to benefit the Red Hook Art Project.
  • 500 coats, hats, scarves, gloves, and blankets as well as 200 care packages were assembled to support Red Hook’s Redemption Church community.
  • Our Lower School Cubs created more than 100 toiletry kits around the holidays to share with families in Red Hook through Redemption Red Hook Church.
  • Our community created more than 100 Thanksgiving cards for Heights and Hills to deliver with their Thanksgiving meals to seniors.
  • Our Primary School assembled more than 300 bedtime bags for asylum-seeking families through Project Rousseau!
  • Our High School students formed a chapter of JASA at the school with 16 student members who collectively spent 200 hours spending time with nursing home residents and participating in projects to support them.


These awards and examples of community involvement are an amazing testament to the school and the power of the curriculum and teachers. Most importantly, they are an incredible representation of our creative, diverse, driven scholars. It is important to us that as a school we prioritize opportunity, finding opportunities for students to showcase their skills, define their interests, and pursue their passions. 

Looking Ahead

Without community, academic success is temporary and limited. We have made significant growth as a community this year, and it is our priority to support and grow in the year ahead. Cultivating mutual respect and trust is key for our school after ten years in Brooklyn.

Teachers continue to express to us that they love this school because they are allowed to teach the subjects they know best the way they know best. They are allowed to share their passion for their subjects with their students and this builds engagement. We are excited to bring new faculty into the fold and continue supporting veteran teachers returning to our campus.

As we close our thoughts on the year, we want to salute our Class of 2024 for their leadership in shaping our sense of community and traditions at our school. We are grateful to them and want them to know they always have a place here. What we want to ask from our alumni and parents is help to provide professional advice and even connect our students after they graduate to internships and opportunities. This coming year we will be expanding our mentorship program, and we need the help of our community to open doors for our wonderful students.

Overall, we want our students to look back, feel a great sense of pride in their school, and share in the school’s success that they helped create. We have much to celebrate, and we are in an exciting position after ten years of educating students in Brooklyn. We truly look forward to the year ahead!

Sincerely,

Josh Harmon and Rose Miller-Sims

BASIS Independent Manhattan Grads Head to Top Universities: Class of 2024 College Acceptances

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We are thrilled to announce the college acceptances of our inaugural graduating class at BASIS Independent Manhattan! These outstanding results reflect their hard work, dedication, and pursuit of excellence. We are inspired by their achievements and proud to see them succeed.

Senior Class Photo

A Pioneering Spirit Sets the Stage
As Ms. LaNette Hodge, Head of School, reflects, “This is a truly significant milestone for BASIS Independent Manhattan. Many of these students joined us in the very first year we opened our doors. Witnessing their development and evolution throughout their 6th-12th grade experience has been truly rewarding. They are pioneers, setting a high standard for future BASIS Independent Manhattan graduates.”

Head of School and Seniors

College Enrollment Reflects Exceptional Achievements
Here’s a glimpse into the impressive colleges our Class of 2024 will be calling home this fall (listed in order of commitment date):

  • Wesleyan University
  • Yale University
  • Duke University
  • University of Virginia (2 students)
  • Cornell University
  • Stanford University
  • University of California San Diego (UCSD)
  • University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA)
  • Lafayette College
  • Carnegie Mellon University
  • Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (RPI)
  • University of Colorado Boulder

(Full list of college acceptances will be included below.)

Senior Trip to Jackson Hole

The statistics speak volumes about the caliber of this graduating class:

  • 23% of students secured spots at top-10 ranked universities.
  • Over 62% received offers from institutions within the top 25 nationally and internationally, including prestigious names like Stanford, Yale, Duke, and the University of Virginia (three graduates this year!).
  • An impressive 92% gained acceptance to schools ranked in the top 50.
  • Remarkably, 100% were accepted to colleges within the top 75.

These statistics are reflected across the BASIS Independent Schools Network! Check out our blog highlighting the acceptances from our fellow campuses in Brooklyn, McLean, Silicon Valley, and Fremont. Read the blog: The Class of 2024 – Achieving New Heights and Redefining Success

A Journey of Self-Discovery and Opportunity
Ms. Andie Abrams, College Counselor, shares her experience, “While we weren’t quite sure what to expect from our first graduating class, we are absolutely thrilled with their achievements. The students embraced the college application process early, focusing on self-discovery and finding schools that truly aligned with their goals. They celebrated every milestone, big and small, and I have no doubt that they are all well on their way to incredible success.”

We at BASIS Independent Manhattan are beyond proud of our Class of 2024 and their remarkable accomplishments. They are a testament to the power of a nurturing and rigorous academic environment, and we extend our heartfelt congratulations to them all! We can’t wait to see the amazing things they achieve in the years to come.

Full List of College Acceptances:

  1. American University
  2. Babson College
  3. Boston University
  4. Carnegie Mellon University
  5. Cornell University 
  6. Denison University
  7. Duke University
  8. Elon University
  9. Emory University (2)
  10. Fordham University (2)
  11. George Mason University
  12. George Washington University (2)
  13. James Madison University
  14. Lafayette College
  15. Lehigh University (2)
  16. McGill University (2)
  17. New York University
  18. Northeastern University
  19. Ohio State University, The
  20. Pomona College
  21. Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (2)
  22. Rochester Institute of Technology (2)
  23. Rutgers University
  24. SUNY Albany
  25. SUNY Binghamton
  26. SUNY Stony Brook
  27. Stanford University
  28. University of California – Berkeley
  29. University of California – Davis (2)
  30. University of California – Irvine
  31. University of California – Los Angeles (UCLA)
  32. University of California – San Diego (3)
  33. University of California – Santa Barbara
  34. University of Colorado Boulder
  35. University of Connecticut
  36. University of Delaware
  37. University of Indiana at Bloomington
  38. University of Maryland, College Park
  39. University of Massachusetts Amherst (2)
  40. University of Rochester
  41. University of Virginia 
  42. Washington University in St Louis
  43. Wesleyan University 
  44. Worcester Polytechnic Institute (2)

Interested in learning more about our program and the Senior Year? We invite you to explore our website, visit our school, or contact our Admissions team to see if BASIS Independent Manhattan is the right fit for you.

BASIS Independent Manhattan, a private school offering PreK through Grade 12, is based in Manhattan, New York. Students thrive alongside Subject Expert Teachers as they engage in a liberal arts program with STEM offerings. 

BASIS Independent Manhattan Speech & Debate Team Wins Championship Tournament

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We’re thrilled to celebrate our middle school team’s first-place win at the English Speaking Union’s (ESU) New York Debate League (NYDL) Championship Tournament! 

First place championship award

On Saturday, April 27, the ESU NYDL Middle School Parliamentary Debate Championship took place at Speyer Legacy School. The competition was intense, and we are pleased to announce that our team of Anya H., Sasha S., and Daniel Yoonsuh L. emerged as the winners, claiming the coveted 1st Place title. Their performance was a testament to their hard work, dedication, and commitment to excellence.

Undefeated Excellence

The team’s journey to victory was nothing short of phenomenal. They navigated five rounds of debate on these topics:

  • Expanding NATO Does More Harm than Good
  • Makeup Does More Harm than Good
  • This House Prefers Contentment Over Achievement When the Two Are in Conflict
  • College is Overvalued

They demonstrated exceptional research, critical thinking, and persuasive speaking skills, all while maintaining an undefeated record. 

Final debate speech

The final round proved to be the ultimate test. Sasha S. delivered the winning speech in front of a distinguished panel of five judges from some of New York’s most prestigious schools.  They unanimously awarded victory to our Wildcat team’s proposition!

Individual Accolades

Beyond the team win, BASIS Independent Manhattan received the prestigious award for the highest percentage of wins across all competitors. Individually, Sasha, Anya, and Yoonsuh achieved an outstanding 5-0 record (excluding the final round, which they also won). We also commend the efforts of Itamar, Adrika, and Cosmo who secured a commendable 3-2 record throughout the competition.

Speech and Debate Team

The entire day, filled with intellectual challenges and exhilarating competition, culminated in a well-deserved celebration – tired but ecstatic, our champions reveled in their victory alongside their coaches and supporters. They also enjoyed making FaceTime calls to share the big news!

FaceTime winner calls

Congratulations to our incredible Debate Team!  Their dedication, talent, and teamwork have brought immense pride to the BASIS Independent Manhattan community. This incredible win wouldn’t have been possible without the unwavering dedication of our student debaters, the invaluable guidance of coaches Max Singer and Grace Campos, and the tireless support of school administrators and parent volunteers. 

Congratulations to everyone involved. We look forward to witnessing their continued success in future tournaments!

Interested in learning more about our passionate teachers, curriculum, after-school and summer programs, sign up for our interest list, visit our school, or attend an admissions event. 

BASIS Independent Manhattan is a PreK – Grade 12 private school, providing students with an internationally benchmarked liberal arts and sciences curriculum, with advanced STEM offerings. 

2023 – 2024 Startups at Spring Competition: Creativity

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Thinking of a creative and unique business idea is a challenge for even the globe’s most talented and proven business professionals. Give that same challenge to a group of high school students all attending exceptional schools and the results are sure to impress. How could students in Grades 9 – 12 create a start-up idea, product, or service from inception to implementation? One that would also impress a panel of judges made up of industry professionals? That’s what a group of educators discovered at the Startups at Spring Competition. 

The competition is open to high school students attending a Spring Education school and focuses on a specific type of business start-up. This year’s theme was creativity and it allowed the students to think outside of the box and present their ideas, first to their local school, and then one team from each school was selected and invited to attend a network-wide competition. Students then made the same presentation but, instead of it being in front of their peers and school administration, it was in front of industry professionals. 

The professionals judge the competition on the feasibility and profitability of each idea presented. Judges listened to see if the teams explained their business idea clearly, was it unique, and implemented the year’s theme. Beyond those basic judging expectations, they also sought to see if the team understood and addressed the financial challenges of starting a business, did they effectively present their market strategy, and could they answer confidently improvisational questions regarding their “pitch”. 

Ms. Jaymie Silva, BASIS Independent Schools Subject Expert Teacher and organizer of the competition said, “I’m always impressed by what our students are capable of and I appreciate that this competition is open to all high school students across our network of schools. These students develop their ideas and compete in their free time and the passion and engagement in their projects show. They are truly dedicated to making our future world better with their ideas and I can’t wait to see what they come up with next!” 

Third Place (awarded $2,000)

Team Name: Inclusive Experience Corp
Team Members: Stella C. (Grade 10) and Dashiell S. (Grade 10)
School: BASIS Independent Manhattan

Start-Up: The Inclusive Experience Organization (TIEO)
Selected Charity: Adaptive Design Association

Pitch: As music enthusiasts continue to bemoan outrageous concert prices and how they aren’t able to attend concerts due to economic conflicts, they forget that most venues aren’t even accessible to all fans. 

The Inclusive Experience Organization (TIEO) would make the concert experience available for those who have a disability that prevents them from physically attending the venue but still want to enjoy their favorite singer’s performances. Through virtual reality, we plan on solving this issue as well as addressing physiological and psychological disabilities.

Team Take Away

“We want to say we are proud of ourselves as we are some of the younger participants and we feel inspired that we were able to bring an altruistic purpose to this competition.”

To view their entire presentation, click here. 

Second Place (awarded $3,000)

Team Name: Slidebean
Team Members: Shoshana E. (Grade 12)
School: Laurel Springs

Start-Up: HelpUnplugged
Selected Charity: Hostage and Missing Families Forum

Pitch: HelpUnplugged is an AI portable assistance for off-the-grid health concerns. Currently, no smart diagnostic tools with offline capabilities exist for public use. No offline messaging systems exist to link patients with medical help directly. Unwell hikers in remote locations face gnawing worry and possible danger. In Arizona County, 12 hikers died from medical emergencies in remote locations over just 13 years. 

HelpUnplugged would be an AI diagnostic tool that functions completely offline; obtaining vital signs and symptoms, processing data, and signaling help. HelpUnlpugeed will ensure that hikers in peril are aware of their condition and prevent further complications. 

Team Take Away

“Startups at Spring was an amazing experience. The project I pitched related to neural networks and offline communication, but participating in Startups at Spring taught me far more than just machine learning — from the mechanics of marketing to the technicality of TAM calculations. I hope to use what I have learned in college and beyond, and I am so grateful for the opportunity to compete.”

To view their entire presentation, click here.

First Place (awarded $5,000)

Team Name: Claw-Some Cash Cats
Team Members: Zitao (Tommy) D. (Grade 10), Charan S. (Grade 10), and Anshay C. (Grade 10)
School: BASIS Independent Silicon Valley

Start-Up: flAIvr
Selected Charity: Amnesty International

Pitch: Video call an AI chef anytime, anywhere. It is difficult for inexperienced home cooks and people who just want to cook something with the ingredients and equipment they have in hand to actually have a good cooking experience. More than half of Americans struggle with the most basic recipes. Pacing, unfamiliar or difficult techniques, and inaccessible ingredients and equipment all cause this struggle. 

flAIvr is a personalized AI cooking assistant that guides users through video calls with the AI for guidance and assistance in their cooking. 

Team Take Away

“The Startup at Spring contest has been an incredible journey for the three of us. The process of turning a creative idea into a feasible business was a valuable opportunity for us to gain entrepreneurial experience and have fun along the way. We are proud to donate our cash prize to Amnesty International to help defend the human rights of oppressed groups worldwide. Lastly, we would like to thank Ms. Silva for her dedication and generous support throughout our journey.”

To view their entire presentation, click here. 

Congratulations to all the students who participated! 

Expert Judging Panel

Mr. Gordon Green is Co-Founder / Partner at Jordan Partners. Before forming Jordan, he spent eleven years at Light Street Capital in Palo Alto investing in public and private technology companies globally. While at Light Street, Gordon served on the Investment Committee and helped the firm scale from approximately $30M to $3B in AUM across long/short, long-only, and growth equity vehicles. Prior to Light Street, Gordon started his career as an analyst in the Financial Institutions Group at UBS in New York, where he advised banks and insurance companies on M&A and capital markets activities. 

Gordon earned a bachelor’s degree in Commerce with a concentration in Finance from the University of Virginia’s McIntire School of Commerce.

Mr. David Jen serves as the Managing Director of Finance and Corporate Development at X, Alphabet’s Moonshot Factory, where he is responsible for driving business growth through strategic planning and partnerships. In this role, David has led investments in self-driving cars (Waymo), drone delivery (Wing), novel approaches to cyber security (Chronicle), as well as Alphabet’s bets in sustainability and accessibility.

In addition to his full-time role at X, David is also a board member at Quincus, a SaaS logistics company based in Singapore that powers some of the largest 3PLs in the world and a venture partner at UP.Partners, where he invests in technologies that will enable a greener and more accessible planet.

Before joining X, David held various finance roles at Google and worked in consulting and banking. He is also actively involved in volunteering, serving as a board member for the Tufts University Derby School of Entrepreneurship and on the advisory committee for the Asian American Fund. In his free time, David enjoys binge-watching TV from the 90s, listening to music he’s embarrassed to tell people about, and hanging out with his wife and two young children.

Mr. Amrit Saxena is the Founder & CEO of SaxeCap, an AI transformation and private equity investment firm that conducts AI-levered buyouts and transforms enterprises with AI & automation technology. Additionally, he has successfully founded & sold two AI companies (Stella.ai and Fancy That) and is an active angel investor in data, AI, web3, and enterprise software companies in Silicon Valley, investing in 200+ early-stage technology companies (including several unicorns and companies that have gone public), private businesses, and PE/VC funds.

Prior to SaxeCap, Amrit founded and scaled Stella, a talent-sourcing AI company, to over 150 large enterprise clients (including 10% of the Fortune 500), leading technology (data science, product, engineering, etc.) and operations (pre-sales, client integrations, etc.). Stella was sold to Cornell Capital and Trilantic Capital Partners in a $1B+ private equity transaction in 2021. Additionally, Amrit founded, scaled, and sold Fancy That, a retail AI company, to Palantir (NYSE: PLTR) in 2015.  Between his two AI startups, Amrit has experience buying a company, selling two companies, and scaling teams from zero to 50+ people. Amrit previously worked at Bain & Company, Groupon, AmEx, and e2e Analytics and taught and researched AI at Stanford University & MIT.

He received his Bachelor of Science in Computer Science with a concentration in Artificial Intelligence and M.S. in Management Science & Engineering with a concentration in Operations Research, both from Stanford University with Distinction. Additionally, he has garnered numerous accolades, including being awarded seven U.S. patents (relating to AI and optimization), a three-time finalist in the United States of America Mathematical Olympiad (USAMO), winner of the American Mathematics Competition (AMC), finalist in the United States Physics Olympiad (USAPhO), Congressional Award Gold Medalist, Research Science Institute (RSI) Scholar, American Regions Math League (ARML) winner, and was selected for the President’s Award for Academic Excellence and the Tau Beta Pi Engineering Honors Society while at Stanford.

2023 – 2024 Startups at Spring Competition: Creativity

by Leave a Comment

Thinking of a creative and unique business idea is a challenge for even the globe’s most talented and proven business professionals. Give that same challenge to a group of high school students all attending exceptional schools and the results are sure to impress. How could students in Grades 9 – 12 create a start-up idea, product, or service from inception to implementation? One that would also impress a panel of judges made up of industry professionals? That’s what a group of educators discovered at the Startups at Spring Competition. 

The competition is open to high school students attending a Spring Education school and focuses on a specific type of business start-up. This year’s theme was creativity and it allowed the students to think outside of the box and present their ideas, first to their local school, and then one team from each school was selected and invited to attend a network-wide competition. Students then made the same presentation but, instead of it being in front of their peers and school administration, it was in front of industry professionals. 

The professionals judge the competition on the feasibility and profitability of each idea presented. Judges listened to see if the teams explained their business idea clearly, was it unique, and implemented the year’s theme. Beyond those basic judging expectations, they also sought to see if the team understood and addressed the financial challenges of starting a business, did they effectively present their market strategy, and could they answer confidently improvisational questions regarding their “pitch”. 

Ms. Jaymie Silva, BASIS Independent Schools Subject Expert Teacher and organizer of the competition said, “I’m always impressed by what our students are capable of and I appreciate that this competition is open to all high school students across our network of schools. These students develop their ideas and compete in their free time and the passion and engagement in their projects show. They are truly dedicated to making our future world better with their ideas and I can’t wait to see what they come up with next!” 

Third Place (awarded $2,000)

Team Name: Inclusive Experience Corp
Team Members: Stella C. (Grade 10) and Dashiell S. (Grade 10)
School: BASIS Independent Manhattan

Start-Up: The Inclusive Experience Organization (TIEO)
Selected Charity: Adaptive Design Association

Pitch: As music enthusiasts continue to bemoan outrageous concert prices and how they aren’t able to attend concerts due to economic conflicts, they forget that most venues aren’t even accessible to all fans. 

The Inclusive Experience Organization (TIEO) would make the concert experience available for those who have a disability that prevents them from physically attending the venue but still want to enjoy their favorite singer’s performances. Through virtual reality, we plan on solving this issue as well as addressing physiological and psychological disabilities.

Team Take Away

“We want to say we are proud of ourselves as we are some of the younger participants and we feel inspired that we were able to bring an altruistic purpose to this competition.”

To view their entire presentation, click here. 

Second Place (awarded $3,000)

Team Name: Slidebean
Team Members: Shoshana E. (Grade 12)
School: Laurel Springs

Start-Up: HelpUnplugged
Selected Charity: Hostage and Missing Families Forum

Pitch: HelpUnplugged is an AI portable assistance for off-the-grid health concerns. Currently, no smart diagnostic tools with offline capabilities exist for public use. No offline messaging systems exist to link patients with medical help directly. Unwell hikers in remote locations face gnawing worry and possible danger. In Arizona County, 12 hikers died from medical emergencies in remote locations over just 13 years. 

HelpUnplugged would be an AI diagnostic tool that functions completely offline; obtaining vital signs and symptoms, processing data, and signaling help. HelpUnlpugeed will ensure that hikers in peril are aware of their condition and prevent further complications. 

Team Take Away

“Startups at Spring was an amazing experience. The project I pitched related to neural networks and offline communication, but participating in Startups at Spring taught me far more than just machine learning — from the mechanics of marketing to the technicality of TAM calculations. I hope to use what I have learned in college and beyond, and I am so grateful for the opportunity to compete.”

To view their entire presentation, click here.

First Place (awarded $5,000)

Team Name: Claw-Some Cash Cats
Team Members: Zitao (Tommy) D. (Grade 10), Charan S. (Grade 10), and Anshay C. (Grade 10)
School: BASIS Independent Silicon Valley

Start-Up: flAIvr
Selected Charity: Amnesty International

Pitch: Video call an AI chef anytime, anywhere. It is difficult for inexperienced home cooks and people who just want to cook something with the ingredients and equipment they have in hand to actually have a good cooking experience. More than half of Americans struggle with the most basic recipes. Pacing, unfamiliar or difficult techniques, and inaccessible ingredients and equipment all cause this struggle. 

flAIvr is a personalized AI cooking assistant that guides users through video calls with the AI for guidance and assistance in their cooking. 

Team Take Away

“The Startup at Spring contest has been an incredible journey for the three of us. The process of turning a creative idea into a feasible business was a valuable opportunity for us to gain entrepreneurial experience and have fun along the way. We are proud to donate our cash prize to Amnesty International to help defend the human rights of oppressed groups worldwide. Lastly, we would like to thank Ms. Silva for her dedication and generous support throughout our journey.”

To view their entire presentation, click here. 

Congratulations to all the students who participated! 

Expert Judging Panel

Mr. Gordon Green is Co-Founder / Partner at Jordan Partners. Before forming Jordan, he spent eleven years at Light Street Capital in Palo Alto investing in public and private technology companies globally. While at Light Street, Gordon served on the Investment Committee and helped the firm scale from approximately $30M to $3B in AUM across long/short, long-only, and growth equity vehicles. Prior to Light Street, Gordon started his career as an analyst in the Financial Institutions Group at UBS in New York, where he advised banks and insurance companies on M&A and capital markets activities. 

Gordon earned a bachelor’s degree in Commerce with a concentration in Finance from the University of Virginia’s McIntire School of Commerce.

Mr. David Jen serves as the Managing Director of Finance and Corporate Development at X, Alphabet’s Moonshot Factory, where he is responsible for driving business growth through strategic planning and partnerships. In this role, David has led investments in self-driving cars (Waymo), drone delivery (Wing), novel approaches to cyber security (Chronicle), as well as Alphabet’s bets in sustainability and accessibility.

In addition to his full-time role at X, David is also a board member at Quincus, a SaaS logistics company based in Singapore that powers some of the largest 3PLs in the world and a venture partner at UP.Partners, where he invests in technologies that will enable a greener and more accessible planet.

Before joining X, David held various finance roles at Google and worked in consulting and banking. He is also actively involved in volunteering, serving as a board member for the Tufts University Derby School of Entrepreneurship and on the advisory committee for the Asian American Fund. In his free time, David enjoys binge-watching TV from the 90s, listening to music he’s embarrassed to tell people about, and hanging out with his wife and two young children.

Mr. Amrit Saxena is the Founder & CEO of SaxeCap, an AI transformation and private equity investment firm that conducts AI-levered buyouts and transforms enterprises with AI & automation technology. Additionally, he has successfully founded & sold two AI companies (Stella.ai and Fancy That) and is an active angel investor in data, AI, web3, and enterprise software companies in Silicon Valley, investing in 200+ early-stage technology companies (including several unicorns and companies that have gone public), private businesses, and PE/VC funds.

Prior to SaxeCap, Amrit founded and scaled Stella, a talent-sourcing AI company, to over 150 large enterprise clients (including 10% of the Fortune 500), leading technology (data science, product, engineering, etc.) and operations (pre-sales, client integrations, etc.). Stella was sold to Cornell Capital and Trilantic Capital Partners in a $1B+ private equity transaction in 2021. Additionally, Amrit founded, scaled, and sold Fancy That, a retail AI company, to Palantir (NYSE: PLTR) in 2015.  Between his two AI startups, Amrit has experience buying a company, selling two companies, and scaling teams from zero to 50+ people. Amrit previously worked at Bain & Company, Groupon, AmEx, and e2e Analytics and taught and researched AI at Stanford University & MIT.

He received his Bachelor of Science in Computer Science with a concentration in Artificial Intelligence and M.S. in Management Science & Engineering with a concentration in Operations Research, both from Stanford University with Distinction. Additionally, he has garnered numerous accolades, including being awarded seven U.S. patents (relating to AI and optimization), a three-time finalist in the United States of America Mathematical Olympiad (USAMO), winner of the American Mathematics Competition (AMC), finalist in the United States Physics Olympiad (USAPhO), Congressional Award Gold Medalist, Research Science Institute (RSI) Scholar, American Regions Math League (ARML) winner, and was selected for the President’s Award for Academic Excellence and the Tau Beta Pi Engineering Honors Society while at Stanford.

2023 – 2024 Startups at Spring Competition: Creativity

by Leave a Comment

Thinking of a creative and unique business idea is a challenge for even the globe’s most talented and proven business professionals. Give that same challenge to a group of high school students all attending exceptional schools and the results are sure to impress. How could students in Grades 9 – 12 create a start-up idea, product, or service from inception to implementation? One that would also impress a panel of judges made up of industry professionals? That’s what a group of educators discovered at the Startups at Spring Competition. 

The competition is open to high school students attending a Spring Education school and focuses on a specific type of business start-up. This year’s theme was creativity and it allowed the students to think outside of the box and present their ideas, first to their local school, and then one team from each school was selected and invited to attend a network-wide competition. Students then made the same presentation but, instead of it being in front of their peers and school administration, it was in front of industry professionals. 

The professionals judge the competition on the feasibility and profitability of each idea presented. Judges listened to see if the teams explained their business idea clearly, was it unique, and implemented the year’s theme. Beyond those basic judging expectations, they also sought to see if the team understood and addressed the financial challenges of starting a business, did they effectively present their market strategy, and could they answer confidently improvisational questions regarding their “pitch”. 

Ms. Jaymie Silva, BASIS Independent Schools Subject Expert Teacher and organizer of the competition said, “I’m always impressed by what our students are capable of and I appreciate that this competition is open to all high school students across our network of schools. These students develop their ideas and compete in their free time and the passion and engagement in their projects show. They are truly dedicated to making our future world better with their ideas and I can’t wait to see what they come up with next!” 

Third Place (awarded $2,000)

Team Name: Inclusive Experience Corp
Team Members: Stella C. (Grade 10) and Dashiell S. (Grade 10)
School: BASIS Independent Manhattan

Start-Up: The Inclusive Experience Organization (TIEO)
Selected Charity: Adaptive Design Association

Pitch: As music enthusiasts continue to bemoan outrageous concert prices and how they aren’t able to attend concerts due to economic conflicts, they forget that most venues aren’t even accessible to all fans. 

The Inclusive Experience Organization (TIEO) would make the concert experience available for those who have a disability that prevents them from physically attending the venue but still want to enjoy their favorite singer’s performances. Through virtual reality, we plan on solving this issue as well as addressing physiological and psychological disabilities.

Team Take Away

“We want to say we are proud of ourselves as we are some of the younger participants and we feel inspired that we were able to bring an altruistic purpose to this competition.”

To view their entire presentation, click here. 

Second Place (awarded $3,000)

Team Name: Slidebean
Team Members: Shoshana E. (Grade 12)
School: Laurel Springs

Start-Up: HelpUnplugged
Selected Charity: Hostage and Missing Families Forum

Pitch: HelpUnplugged is an AI portable assistance for off-the-grid health concerns. Currently, no smart diagnostic tools with offline capabilities exist for public use. No offline messaging systems exist to link patients with medical help directly. Unwell hikers in remote locations face gnawing worry and possible danger. In Arizona County, 12 hikers died from medical emergencies in remote locations over just 13 years. 

HelpUnplugged would be an AI diagnostic tool that functions completely offline; obtaining vital signs and symptoms, processing data, and signaling help. HelpUnlpugeed will ensure that hikers in peril are aware of their condition and prevent further complications. 

Team Take Away

“Startups at Spring was an amazing experience. The project I pitched related to neural networks and offline communication, but participating in Startups at Spring taught me far more than just machine learning — from the mechanics of marketing to the technicality of TAM calculations. I hope to use what I have learned in college and beyond, and I am so grateful for the opportunity to compete.”

To view their entire presentation, click here.

First Place (awarded $5,000)

Team Name: Claw-Some Cash Cats
Team Members: Zitao (Tommy) D. (Grade 10), Charan S. (Grade 10), and Anshay C. (Grade 10)
School: BASIS Independent Silicon Valley

Start-Up: flAIvr
Selected Charity: Amnesty International

Pitch: Video call an AI chef anytime, anywhere. It is difficult for inexperienced home cooks and people who just want to cook something with the ingredients and equipment they have in hand to actually have a good cooking experience. More than half of Americans struggle with the most basic recipes. Pacing, unfamiliar or difficult techniques, and inaccessible ingredients and equipment all cause this struggle. 

flAIvr is a personalized AI cooking assistant that guides users through video calls with the AI for guidance and assistance in their cooking. 

Team Take Away

“The Startup at Spring contest has been an incredible journey for the three of us. The process of turning a creative idea into a feasible business was a valuable opportunity for us to gain entrepreneurial experience and have fun along the way. We are proud to donate our cash prize to Amnesty International to help defend the human rights of oppressed groups worldwide. Lastly, we would like to thank Ms. Silva for her dedication and generous support throughout our journey.”

To view their entire presentation, click here. 

Congratulations to all the students who participated! 

Expert Judging Panel

Mr. Gordon Green is Co-Founder / Partner at Jordan Partners. Before forming Jordan, he spent eleven years at Light Street Capital in Palo Alto investing in public and private technology companies globally. While at Light Street, Gordon served on the Investment Committee and helped the firm scale from approximately $30M to $3B in AUM across long/short, long-only, and growth equity vehicles. Prior to Light Street, Gordon started his career as an analyst in the Financial Institutions Group at UBS in New York, where he advised banks and insurance companies on M&A and capital markets activities. 

Gordon earned a bachelor’s degree in Commerce with a concentration in Finance from the University of Virginia’s McIntire School of Commerce.

Mr. David Jen serves as the Managing Director of Finance and Corporate Development at X, Alphabet’s Moonshot Factory, where he is responsible for driving business growth through strategic planning and partnerships. In this role, David has led investments in self-driving cars (Waymo), drone delivery (Wing), novel approaches to cyber security (Chronicle), as well as Alphabet’s bets in sustainability and accessibility.

In addition to his full-time role at X, David is also a board member at Quincus, a SaaS logistics company based in Singapore that powers some of the largest 3PLs in the world and a venture partner at UP.Partners, where he invests in technologies that will enable a greener and more accessible planet.

Before joining X, David held various finance roles at Google and worked in consulting and banking. He is also actively involved in volunteering, serving as a board member for the Tufts University Derby School of Entrepreneurship and on the advisory committee for the Asian American Fund. In his free time, David enjoys binge-watching TV from the 90s, listening to music he’s embarrassed to tell people about, and hanging out with his wife and two young children.

Mr. Amrit Saxena is the Founder & CEO of SaxeCap, an AI transformation and private equity investment firm that conducts AI-levered buyouts and transforms enterprises with AI & automation technology. Additionally, he has successfully founded & sold two AI companies (Stella.ai and Fancy That) and is an active angel investor in data, AI, web3, and enterprise software companies in Silicon Valley, investing in 200+ early-stage technology companies (including several unicorns and companies that have gone public), private businesses, and PE/VC funds.

Prior to SaxeCap, Amrit founded and scaled Stella, a talent-sourcing AI company, to over 150 large enterprise clients (including 10% of the Fortune 500), leading technology (data science, product, engineering, etc.) and operations (pre-sales, client integrations, etc.). Stella was sold to Cornell Capital and Trilantic Capital Partners in a $1B+ private equity transaction in 2021. Additionally, Amrit founded, scaled, and sold Fancy That, a retail AI company, to Palantir (NYSE: PLTR) in 2015.  Between his two AI startups, Amrit has experience buying a company, selling two companies, and scaling teams from zero to 50+ people. Amrit previously worked at Bain & Company, Groupon, AmEx, and e2e Analytics and taught and researched AI at Stanford University & MIT.

He received his Bachelor of Science in Computer Science with a concentration in Artificial Intelligence and M.S. in Management Science & Engineering with a concentration in Operations Research, both from Stanford University with Distinction. Additionally, he has garnered numerous accolades, including being awarded seven U.S. patents (relating to AI and optimization), a three-time finalist in the United States of America Mathematical Olympiad (USAMO), winner of the American Mathematics Competition (AMC), finalist in the United States Physics Olympiad (USAPhO), Congressional Award Gold Medalist, Research Science Institute (RSI) Scholar, American Regions Math League (ARML) winner, and was selected for the President’s Award for Academic Excellence and the Tau Beta Pi Engineering Honors Society while at Stanford.