Springhouse

Springhouse was founded in 2014 in the Blue Ridge mountains of Floyd County, Virginia, and is one example of what can happen when educational design is used to support the holistic development of teens and adults and to build a vital community and culture.  Springhouse has a central message which is: Life is a gift. Take care of it. Springhouse is a school that envisions a regenerative culture where all people are connected to the vitality within themselves, their community, and the Earth. The mission of Springhouse is to create and share a model of regenerative culture through vitality-centered education that equips people to courageously respond to the community’s emerging needs. Springhouse operates with a generative economic model and is not tuition-based; making this program accessible to anyone who wishes to redesign education in ways that create sustainable and thriving communities and culture. 

Springhouse is a prototype of Sourced Design; a design that emerged from almost ten years of experimentation at Springhouse and outlines five principles that support taking care of life and fostering vitality in an individual, community, and culture. Those principles include:

• Taking care of vulnerability.
• Cultivating personhood.
• Building beloved community.
• Remembering the wisdom of the Earth.
• Loving and serving others. 

Springhouse shares the Sourced Design principles with a global community of nearly 150 educators and practitioners from ten countries, to support more communities interested in taking care of life in ways that respect the uniqueness of various contexts.

Springhouse creates the conditions for the gifts within a teen and adult to emerge, while strengthening connection to community by assessing and serving its needs. The educational design has four components: sharing knowledge related to our vision and mission; supporting holistic development in teens and adults; providing opportunities to practice being of service in community; and finally, opportunities to reflect and celebrate one’s learning. Springhouse is a strong local example of the design. Springhouse offers a Day School program for adolescents and families interested in redesigning education as a community; a self discovery and personal development program for adults, and a 2-year certificate program in Regenerative Cultural Design and Practice. Globally, Springhouse offers cultural design programs to study and practice Sourced Design to create healthier communities. Springhouse has a main campus in Floyd County, including a farm, and a creative placemaking initiative, Springhouse Downtown, located in the town of Floyd and dedicated to intergenerational arts programming to support adolescent development.