Former NFL Player Robert Golden Is Behind ‘The Nation’s First Nature-Based Urban Charter School’
Robert Golden’s vision has always been to serve others.
This vision dawned on Golden during his athletic career at the University of Arizona and in the NFL, he shared in an interview with AFROTECH™. His mission has been shaped by his upbringing in Fresno, CA, an area he described as “one of the most impoverished” and “under-resourced” in the state. The chances of overcoming significant obstacles to achieve wealth can seem slim, and even more so for making it to the NFL, a feat accomplished by only 0.016% of college players, according to AS. That he was able to reach such heights further inspired him to help others do the same.
Golden Charter Academy
Golden started his NFL career with the Pittsburgh Steelers and spent six seasons on its roster before signing a free agent deal with the Kansas City Chiefs in 2018, according to the Chiefs’ official website. However, soon after he asked to be released from his contract and retired from the NFL.
While still in the league, he realized he could have a lasting impact beyond the football field, he told AFROTECH™. This realization led him to establish the Golden Charter Academy in 2021.
The school serves K-8 students and is guided by the following principles: stewardship, equity, and access, its website states. It is reportedly recognized as the nation’s first nature-based urban charter school and partners with Fresno Chaffee Zoo, according to information shared with AFROTECH™. Through this partnership, students regularly visit the zoo to help them become “stewards of our planet,” the school’s website notes.
“I saw how the statistics work for people to become a doctor or people to become a scientist or a zoologist and biologist. Getting those type of occupations is a lot easier than making it to the next level [of sports],” Golden told AFROTECH™.
“So for me, you know, I always wanted to just give people experience and exposure… they don’t have to become professional football players to be considered successful. That was pretty much my ultimate goal, to be able to give back to the city of Fresno, to help other kids — like I mentioned — that are growing up in similar areas as myself be able to see more, do better, and have better for their lives as well,” Golden continued.
The school aims to provide enriching experiences that empower students in their journeys of environmental education while equipping them with skills in language arts, mathematics, science, humanities, and functional literacy, as mentioned on its website.
In addition to traditional education, Golden Charter Academy integrates hands-on learning into its curriculum. In 2024, students visited the Fresno Chaffee Zoo to plant milkweed, the only plant that endangered Monarch butterflies can eat, according to the National Wildlife Federation. The school also offers other experiences, such as encounters with animals to explore the five senses. Additionally, Golden shared that students planted over 200 trees in communities lacking tree equity and created a robo-grazer, which they used during a cleanup of the San Joaquin River.
“Instead of collecting trash and putting it into big trash bags, they’ve been able to create these robo-grazers by doing biomimicry and studying giraffe necks and seeing how many vertebrae they have… then they created these robo-grazers that are able to pick up trash and remove invasive plants out of the river to help clean up the river and keep it healthy and thriving for some of our local native turtles,” Golden shared with AFROTECH™.
Students share their findings in a Presentation of Learning. For instance, a group of 5th-grade students took on the role of food scientists, focusing on solubility, mixtures, and emulsifiers to ensure that food was “safe, tasty, and convenient,” as noted in an Instagram post.
“They have these hands-on learning experiences, but they are also approaching this work with an environmental and sustainability mindset. So when we talk about the tech industry, or when we talk about these kids stepping into these occupations, they’re going to be stepping into them with a sustainability mindset,” Golden informed AFROTECH™.
While encouraging students to explore and innovate with a sustainability lens, Golden has sought opportunities to expand his own knowledge. He told AFROTECH™ that he spent some time in the Amazon Rainforest with the Morpho Institute and attended with his administration team and instructional coaches. They learned how to conduct field research and write research papers that will allow the students to have a greater impact in their communities.
“Every single unit of study that we do is tied to some type of civic engagement project. So the work that we were able to do down in the Amazon was really an opportunity for us to see how we can study a problem and figure out the best way to provide a solution,” he said.
What’s Next
Looking ahead, Golden shared with AFROTECH™ that the Golden Charter Academy will move to a new $26.8 million facility being built next to the Fresno Chaffee Zoo. The project broke ground in March 2025, and leaders expect it to be completed in June 2026. Golden hopes to raise an additional $1 million per year to support ongoing operational costs.
