Inside Kanye West’s unaccredited Christian school, Donda Academy: for US$15,000 per year and a signed NDA, students can join Ye’s choir or basketball team that wears Balenciaga and Yeezys
- Kanye West opened a private Christian school in a conservative Los Angeles suburb in November 2021, named after his late mother, Donda West
- For US$15,000 per year, the pre-K to 12th-grade school offers a choir programme overseen by Ye himself, parkour classes and Balenciaga uniforms and Yeezys for its basketball team
Tucked away in a conservative suburb of Los Angeles is a small, Christian school offering an unaccredited education the owner claims could “actually turn your kids into, like, geniuses”.
Kanye West, 45, who now goes by Ye, opened Donda Academy in November 2021 but he claimed in September that he had never read a book because “reading is like eating Brussels sprouts”. Last month on Good Morning America, West said the school – run by administrators, some of whom have limited education experience – could turn kids into “geniuses” but acknowledged even his own children do not attend.
Since its opening in the quiet enclave of Simi Valley, the rapper and designer has answered few media questions about the school, which requires a signed NDA to attend, but he told GMA the academy gives kids “practical tools that they need in a world post the iPhone being created”. West added that there are currently 82 enrolled students.
(Representatives for West did not respond to request for comment.)
We took a closer look at West’s enigmatic school …
Daily worship, choir … and parkour
Initially registered with the state of California as a kindergarten through eighth grade academy, the school – named after West’s late mother, Donda West, who worked for decades as an English professor at Chicago State University – currently offers classes for students in pre-K through 12th grade, according to the school’s website.
“Using an ethic of integrity and care, Donda Academy prepares students to become the next generation of leaders, thinkers and innovators by providing them with a world-class education that includes a rigorous core curriculum, and an emphasis on sustainability, creativity, critical thinking and problem solving,” the Donda Academy website reads.
