Primary School to Close After a Decade, CZI Pledges $50 Million Investment

Preserving the School’s Legacy

The Primary School, a tuition-free private institution co-founded by Priscilla Chan, wife of Meta Platforms Inc. founder Mark Zuckerberg, will cease operations after almost a decade. The school, which caters to 543 students, announced on its website that it will close following the 2025-2026 academic year.

Community Investment

• The Chan Zuckerberg Initiative (CZI) has committed to investing $50 million in the communities served by the school.
• The investment will be distributed over the coming years to maintain the school’s legacy.

In a note on its website, the school expressed that the decision to close was challenging, and a considerate and supportive transition will be provided for students and families over the next year.

Health and Education Integration

Chan, a pediatrician, established the school in 2016 with a combined health and education model to collaborate with families and children from birth through high school. The nonprofit’s first middle school cohort commenced in 2023.

• Over 95% of the Primary School’s East Palo Alto students are underrepresented minorities.
• The school had more than $30 million in assets as of June 2023.

Billionaire-Backed Educational Initiatives

The Primary School is not the only educational endeavor initiated by billionaires in recent years. Elon Musk, Jeff Bezos, and Larry Ellison have also founded schools.

• Musk’s nonprofit, the Musk Foundation, has contributed $237 million to his educational venture.
• Bezos launched a network of Montessori-inspired preschools for children in underprivileged communities.

Zuckerberg’s Business Empire Transformation

The Primary School’s closure coincides with Zuckerberg’s significant alterations to his business empire to align better with the Trump administration. He has appointed longtime Trump allies to his board and discontinued Meta’s US fact-checking program.

• Zuckerberg also dismantled the company’s hate-speech policies and eliminated key diversity, equity, and inclusion programs at Meta and CZI.
• The Primary School prioritized diversity efforts, conducting an audit in June 2020 and creating a DEI task force that fall.

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