Mission, Purpose & Vision
Mission
To drive economic mobility through the development of diverse leaders, placing students from underserved communities on a pathway to prestigious colleges and impactful careers.
Purpose
To help close the opportunity and achievement gaps for students from underserved communities by providing academic and professional development programming that makes them ultra-competitive.
Vision
Veritas envisions a cutting-edge multicultural institution that cultivates exceptionally skilled and empathetic leaders trained to solve the most pressing issues in society. This vision involves crafting a curriculum and environment that mirrors the spectrum of diverse people, cultures, and ideas that exist in our world.
What is Veritas?
Veritas is a nonprofit network of pre-collegiate Saturday schools for gifted and talented youth in grades 5-7 (Veritas Preparatory Program) and grades 8-12 (Veritas Debate Institute). Through a suite of program offerings, Veritas provides accelerated academic and professional development training to place students on a pathway to prestigious colleges and impactful careers.
YEAR ONE: Saturday School + Harvard Summer Residential Program (Grades 8-12)
Students accepted into Veritas first complete a full year of academic training in Atlanta through the nationally-acclaimed Veritas Debate Institute (VDI) where they learn a variety of college-level survey courses such as philosophy, political science, sociology, economics, and more.
The school year culminates with an international summer residential debate program at Harvard University, where Veritas scholars study for two weeks alongside hundreds of gifted youth from around the world. The summer residency concludes with an academic debate competition on campus. Veritas has won the international academic debate competition for six consecutive years (every year since the program’s inception in 2017).
AFTER YEAR ONE: PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT PROGRAMMING (Grades 8-12)
Following the one-year VDI academic program, Veritas scholars become alumni who receive access to programming (throughout high school & college) that is designed to first make them competitive in the college admissions process and then the workforce. Veritas provides monthly training and experiences that equip our alumni with exceptional professional skills and robust resumes. The monthly programming is hybrid, taking place both in person and virtually.
The additional programs include:
- Veritas Global Travel Program
- Veritas Corporate Immersion Program
- Veritas Career Readiness Program
VERITAS PREPARATORY PROGRAM (Grades 5-7)
Veritas Prep is a Saturday school for high-achieving students in grades 5-7. Veritas Prep exists for parents who want their children to go beyond what’s taught in regular school and explore more advanced learning at an earlier age to promote accelerated academic and social development.
College-Level Training
8th - 12th-grade students accepted into Veritas begin with our flagship program, Veritas Debate Institute, which includes 11 months of weekly Saturday school where students are taught philosophy, political science, sociology, humanities, rhetoric, debate, and literary criticism among other college-level disciplines. Courses are taught by Veritas alumni alongside nationally acclaimed educator Brandon P. Fleming who is a former Harvard debate coach, award-winning author, renowned speaker, and President & CEO of Veritas.
Harvard Residential Program
Veritas Debate Institute concludes with the Harvard Debate Council’s international summer residential debate program at Harvard University. Alongside hundreds of gifted youth worldwide, Veritas scholars reside and study on campus for two weeks. Students are taught by award-winning faculty from elite institutions like Harvard, Oxford, Stanford, etc. The Harvard residential program culminates in a debate competition that Veritas scholars have won for six consecutive years.
Professional Skills Training
Upon successful completion of Veritas Debate Institute, the focus shifts from academic to professional skills training. Scholars are given access to monthly alumni programming that is designed to advance their professional skills, build robust resumes, and prepare them for prestigious colleges and careers.
What we Teach
During the weekly Saturday school sessions, Veritas teaches a variety of social science-based survey courses including:
- Philosophy
- Political Science
- Sociology
- Humanities
- Rhetoric
- Literary Criticism
- Debate
Why Social Sciences?
Social Sciences are about the IDEAS that shape the world in government, law, science, technology, economics, and every facet of society. Therefore, social sciences are the academic disciplines that give students the most well-rounded, comprehensive understanding of the ways social and commercial institutions are built, sustained, and improved. Veritas teaches the social sciences as a means to develop the next generation of innovative thinkers and leaders who will create ideas that will make the world a better place for everyone.
How we Teach
To explore the social sciences, we employ the Debate Learning Method (DLM), the unique award-winning teaching model designed at Veritas that has been proven to develop students into superior critical thinkers, problem solvers, and communicators. DLM is a problem-solving framework fit for every academic discipline. Veritas has trained over 100,000 educators nationwide on how to implement DLM in all core content areas to optimize student engagement and accelerate student performance.
To learn more about DLM, visit Veritas Teachers Institute.
Who is Veritas For?
Veritas is an accelerated learning program gifted and talented students in grade 5-12. Veritas is for students seeking access to higher-level academic training that will challenge them beyond the rigors of a traditional school setting. The ideal candidate is motivated to achieve the highest levels of academic excellence in pursuit of prestigious colleges and careers.
Applications for the next Veritas cohort open each year on February 1st.
If you are a student who would like to become a Veritas scholar, apply at
www.theveritasschools.org/apply
Our Programs
Our Why
Too often, youth from underserved communities are not given access to high-quality educational opportunities that will make them competitive for college admissions and the workforce. This opportunity gap creates an achievement gap that swells into the racial wealth gap that we see in America. We are closing that gap and creating generational wealth by positioning students to become high earners and contributors.
Our History
Veritas was founded in 2017 by Brandon P. Fleming, an award-winning author, educator, and former Harvard debate coach, as a campus program called Harvard Debate Council Diversity Project. During his tenure at Harvard as assistant debate coach, Fleming identified the need for more representation of Black and brown students in Harvard’s summer residential debate program, understanding how such prestigious academic opportunities impact students’ chances to earn acceptance into elite colleges and universities. With Harvard’s support, Fleming founded the Harvard Debate Council Diversity Project to create access for Black youth from Atlanta to study and compete in Harvard’s annual summer residential debate program.
The Harvard Debate Council Diversity Project (now Veritas Debate Institute) was designed as a weekly Saturday school to equip Atlanta youth with higher-level academic training to prepare them to compete on an international stage at Harvard’s summer residential debate program. Since 2017, all six cohorts of the Veritas Debate Institute’s students have won the Harvard Debate Council’s international academic debate competition for six consecutive years – outperforming hundreds of gifted youth from over 25 countries around the world. As a result, Veritas alumni have been accepted into top colleges and universities around the world.
Through his work, Veritas has shown the world what youth from underserved communities are capable of achieving when the playing field is leveled and they are given access to the quality of education they deserve. The program’s proven success led to a rapid increase in demand, creating a need for growth and scale. Fleming scaled the Harvard Debate Council Diversity Project into the Veritas School of Social Sciences to expand the organization’s services to include more programming and allow more youth and educators to access the life-changing educational model.
Our Founder, President & CEO
Over the past decade, Brandon P. Fleming has emerged as one of the most awarded and sought-after educators, entrepreneurs, authors, and speakers worldwide. Fleming’s incredible story of transformation, detailed in his book Miseducated, has gained such national acclaim that it is currently being optioned for television and film, and is in the process of becoming a major theatrical production.
An at-risk youth and college dropout turned award-winning educator, Fleming is a former debate coach at Harvard University and Founder & CEO of The Veritas Schools, a network of schools headquartered in Atlanta, GA, with campuses expanding to Washington, D.C. and Los Angeles.
In 2017, Fleming was recruited as Harvard University’s assistant debate coach at the age of 26. Fleming soon made history at Harvard by founding the first pipeline program, the Harvard Debate Council Diversity Project, aimed at increasing Black and brown enrollment in Harvard’s residential debate program, where hundreds of talented young scholars from over 25 different countries study and compete in international academic debate competitions.
Over seven years, Fleming has raised millions of dollars to enroll more than 250 students of color in Harvard’s summer debate residency on full scholarship. However, Fleming faced a significant challenge: How could he prepare Black and brown youth from predominantly under-resourced schools in Atlanta, who had never been exposed to the rigors of academic debate, to compete in just one year against some of the most elite debaters from around the world? Fleming developed a transformative curriculum designed to level the playing field for underserved students. And it worked. For seven consecutive years, since the program’s inception in 2017, every cohort trained by Fleming has won the international competition as seven-time consecutive champions. News of this accomplishment has gone viral, making national headlines and being featured on CNN, Good Morning America, the Steve Harvey Show, and more. Fleming’s vision has garnered support from Fortune 100 companies, including The Coca-Cola Company, UPS, Chick-fil-A, and others.
Beyond the classroom, Fleming’s humanitarian impact reaches around the globe. Fleming has earned awards for his global leadership. Fleming has facilitated and led peacebuilding missions for over 200 world leaders to Israel, Poland, and the United Arab Emirates. His school also emphasizes international education, taking students on learning expeditions to countries like Italy, Japan, South Africa, and more.
As a renowned speaker, Fleming has delivered keynote addresses on world stages like the United Nations. Fleming has spoken at the nation’s most prestigious colleges, universities, and K-12 conferences. Additionally, Fleming has keynoted conventions for corporate executives at major brands such as Airbnb, Walmart, Bank of America, McDonald’s, and many others.
At the age of 29, Forbes Magazine named Fleming to the Forbes 30 under 30 list. In 2020, The Root Magazine named Fleming one of the top 100 most influential African Americans in the United States. And in May 2021, North Carolina Wesleyan College bestowed upon Fleming the honorary Doctor of Humanities degree.
Our Partners
