Behind Alpha’s stalled push into Massachusetts public schools

Some parents and teachers also expressed frustration that they were unaware of the plans.

Official response and confirmed impact

The pilot never launched after a district-wide cyberattack forced schools to close for four days and disrupted access to school technology.

And the company had a high-ranking state official help introduce its model to district leaders: Secretary of Education Stephen Zrike.

Alpha is best known for its small, private schools where tuition can exceed $50,000 a year.

The company's first private Boston campus opened this fall.

Alpha claims its students learn “twice as much” as those in traditional schools while typically spending only two hours a day on core academics.

Some parents praise the program for the personal attention their kids receive and the emphasis on teaching skills like financial literacy and teamwork that can fall through the cracks.

Incident background

But Springfield was only one part of Alpha's broad push to work with Massachusetts public schools.