Springhouse Community School

TUCKED AWAY IN THE HILLS OF SOUTHWESTERN VIRGINIA’S BLUE RIDGE PLATEAU, Floyd County is home to a vibrant and welcoming community. Boasting a population smaller than many senior classes, it may come as no surprise that a local learning environment, Springhouse Community School, is the smallest learner-centered environment we have discovered thus far—but don’t let their size fool you.

The Springhouse vision allows for adaptability and improvisation, which is of utmost importance when leading an age-diverse group of just 17 learners. Given this small cohort, many school-centric philosophies had to be thrown out the window immediately—giving way to a free exploration of what education could be.

When launching Springhouse, there was an intentional focus on key core values: resiliency, curiosity, integrity, and a recognition of individual wholeness. Currently, they are cultivating an environment that “helps students discover and inhabit their soul calling through mentorship, serve the community, and foster a connection to Earth.” The resulting model has spurred an invigorating learning culture.

Creating mixed-age advisories—akin to small family structures—Springhouse learners are engaged in a social environment on a daily basis. Every morning begins with “advisory time,” where learners discuss current events, share personal life stories, and plan the days and weeks on the horizon.

This peer-to-peer connection permeates every aspect of the learning culture at Springhouse. For example, when learners prepared for a mock trial in their Radical Civics course—facilitated by a lawyer who specializes in social justice—the defense and prosecution teams had to identify and capitalize on the individual strengths of each member, utilize the guidance of the Assistant Commonwealth’s Attorney, and synchronize their work to present a clear and cohesive argument to the judge and jury. Every participant was tasked with taking ownership of their role in the proceedings—regardless of age. Combining teamwork with the recognition of personal autonomy, learner agency was brought to the forefront in Springhouse’s socially embedded culture.

But, it isn’t always about group work. These learners are able to step away from these team environments with personal projects and self-directed learning. Although guided by a project management protocol—which includes one-on-one weekly check-ins to discuss the learners progress and develop a strong learner-educator mentoring relationship—the topic of study, design of expected outcomes, and relevancy to the learner is in complete control of the child. Topics of study have ranged from the history of Thomas Jefferson and Monticello to learning how to play the harmonica.

Springhouse is much more than its small size. It is a powerful example of what a group of passionate, knowledgeable leaders and curious, independent learners can make possible. The highway to a learner-centered education system has plenty of room for all vehicles of transformation (no matter the size or shape). It is this diversity and accessibility that allows for the continued growth and sustainability of the learner-centered movement.