The BES Fellowship

Applications for the 2026 BES Fellowship are currently open! View priority regions and apply here. If you don’t see your region, complete an interest form.

Design, found, and lead a high-quality K-12 public school in your community. The BES Fellowship is one or two years of training followed by three years of dedicated post-authorization support through Follow On Support to ensure that the school starts strong and sustains excellence over time.

BES Fellows are locally responsive and design schools to meet the unique needs of the community they serve. They work closely with coaches who guide them in school design, governance, and finance and operations. BES also partners with local and national partners who provide additional support to Fellows.

Since 2001, BES Fellows have designed school models that serve students across the K-12 continuum, focusing on rigorous academics and areas such as project-based learning, entrepreneurship, leadership, STEAM, student wellness, CTE specializations, and diverse learning needs.

Learn about some of our BES Fellows here.

BUILD TRACK

Fellows found and lead a fresh-start public charter school in response to community needs and grounded in learnings from excellent schools. Fellows benefit from one training year to write and submit a complete high quality charter application as well as identify and prepare a diverse, high capacity, and mission aligned founding team and governing board.

Within the Build Track, some Fellows are identified as Character & Equity Fellows. These Fellows found a school with character and equity at the core of its model, in addition to other locally responsive elements. Fellows engage in additional opportunities such as communities of practice and conferences to center character and equity in their school models. Currently, all Fellowship spaces in Arizona are reserved for Character and Equity Fellows.

If you are interested in this track and located in a different region, we invite you to submit an interest form.

COMMUNITY CO-DESIGN TRACK

Over the course of two years, Fellows design and prepare to lead a fresh-start public charter school that has been co-designed alongside a community co-design team. The first year allows Fellows to develop a co-design team of 7-10 individuals to help seek out and incorporate community input into the design of the new school. The second year allows Fellows to write and submit a complete high quality charter application as well as identify and prepare a diverse, high capacity, and mission aligned founding team and governing board. The Community Co-Design Fellowship is currently available in Metro Atlanta and Alabama. If you are interested in this track and located in a different region, we invite you to submit an interest form.

GROWTH TRACK

If you are a school founder who is interested in support to replicate or expand an existing school, reach out to us at partners@bes.org to learn more.

While this track is not open for candidates to directly apply to, BES develops partnerships with schools or networks planning to grow and then works to identify and/or support a Fellow to lead these efforts.

We are currently accepting applications in the following regions: Arizona, Ohio, Tennessee, and Georgia (outside of Atlanta). 

Don’t see your region? We invite you to complete this form to receive future updates if spaces become available.

Fellowship placements in priority regions are made possible by local funding and support from our various regional partners.

An additional 1-2 placements per year are made possible through national funding that can be flexibly allocated to regions with demonstrated community need. While there may not be dedicated partners in certain regions, we believe there is an opportunity for leaders to found a new charter school. Once announced, we encourage interest form submissions for these additional regions from serious candidates– especially those who have begun initial community engagement work and/or have deep connections to the community in which they are proposing to found a school.

The following list includes some but not all benefits that are provided to Build Track Fellows for one full year. Community Co-Design Track Fellows receive two years of support.

• Grant of $100,000 over 12 months
• Healthcare reimbursement of up to $6,000 for an individual healthcare plan or up to $8,000 for a family plan
• Travel and accommodations for training and during school study travel
• Technology support
• Reimbursement for up to $5,000 in moving expenses
• Reimbursements for school design expenses, design team expenses, or professional development (amount dependent on track)
• The opportunity to apply for BES start-up fund awards and/or those provided exclusively to Fellows by our partners

All Fellows are required to demonstrate proof of medical coverage during the Fellowship. For other benefits offered to Fellows, please review the BES Fellowship job application.

The BES Fellowship selection process is intentionally rigorous, designed to understand who you are as a leader and how you will design a transformational, community-aligned school. Most applicants bring extensive professional experience, instructional background, and meaningful ties to their proposed region, and the selection process evaluates readiness across three domains aligned to the FY26 Fellowship Selection Rubric.

Leadership
This domain assesses your readiness to found and lead a school by examining your strategic leadership experience, your track record of producing meaningful student outcomes, and your ability to communicate with clarity and conviction. Successful candidates demonstrate the judgment, alignment-building, and instructional understanding necessary to lead in complex environments; hold themselves and others accountable to ambitious results; and communicate in ways that inspire confidence, build trust, and advance a clear vision.

Relationships & Community
This domain evaluates your connection to and understanding of the community you hope to serve, as well as your ability to design a school alongside families and stakeholders. Strong candidates show deep, authentic investment in local context, articulate a differentiated school model that responds to regional needs, and demonstrate equity-driven leadership rooted in cultural competence, humility, and inclusive practice. Community voices and lived experiences are clearly centered in how they listen, plan, and envision their future school.

Ownership & Drive
This domain focuses on your entrepreneurial mindset, resilience, and growth orientation. Candidates who excel take initiative, move ideas forward without needing direction, and respond to ambiguity with urgency and follow-through. They demonstrate the determination required for long-term school founding work, persisting through obstacles with composure and solution-oriented thinking. They also show a strong desire to learn and grow, embracing feedback, reflecting on their development, and continuously refining their leadership practice.

All successful candidates will also be aligned with BES’s beliefs about high-quality and equitable schools.

View the BES Fellowship Candidate Profile to learn more about ideal applicants who thrive in the program.

Applications for the 2026 BES Fellowship will be reviewed on a rolling basis until all spots are filled.

Regular Deadline: February 2, 2026

Applicants are encouraged to apply as soon as possible in order to secure limited spots in our available regions. We encourage you to connect with our team if you have questions about the Fellowship or selection process before you apply.

Step 1: Online application

Step 2: Phone screen

Step 3: Coach interview

Step 4: Leadership Interview (This stage also includes an online presence check, reference check, and performance task.)

Step 5: Hiring manager conversation (This stage also includes submission of previous record of results.)

Step 6: Funder / partner approval

Upcoming Webinars:

• Dec. 11, 2025: Lunch & Learn: “Pitch Perfect” Coaching Workshop

Already attended or watched a webinar or info session, but still have questions? Perhaps, you aren’t ready to apply, but want to stay in touch? Below are next steps on how you can reach out and stay up-to-date!

• Schedule a Q&A call
• Subscribe to our Email List