Dear Pioneers,

Education Reimagined has always been guided by the idea that Margaret Mead shares so eloquently: “Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world, indeed it’s the only thing that ever has.”

As proof of that, we were born out of a dialogue of 28 ideologically diverse education stakeholders—all of whom were willing to let go of fears of being disappointed and give their whole selves to reimagining education and shooting for the stars. They had the courage to throw themselves into a process with people they didn’t know or trust for the sake of having a system that truly works for each and every child in this country. This led to the creation of a vision and a theory of change that fundamentally believes that each person is truly unique, capable, curious, and wondrous—children and adults of all ages.

This fundamental belief in the individual is what held them back from prescribing “the” answer for what learner-centered environments and systems should look like. Rather, they believed that learner-centered environments should be created by people in their communities to fit their own learners and circumstances. They (and we) continue to have incredible trust in people—young and old—who are learner-centered.

This past week, this trust was displayed in all of its grandeur at SparkHouse, a two-day learner gathering. 42 learners from 15 learner-centered environments from 12 states came together to explore both what learner-centered education is all about and what leadership they want to contribute to the movement. These inspiring young learners are committed to making learner-centered education available to all learners. In this issue, check out some of their reflections. They are already at work making things happen—sharing the possibility of learner-centered education with their communities and the country.

We never doubt the power of a small group of thoughtful, committed people. And, I will tell you this group blew us away! Go #SparkHouse!

Warm Wishes,
Kelly Young