Learning Innovation Fund

Has been selected as a member of the LAUNCH Ohio team with Jobs for the Future. The partners for this include representation from: Ohio Department of Higher Education, Ohio Workforce and Education Department, Industry (advanced manufacturing, health care and cyber security/IT), our partner districts and ESCs for the Micro Schools, Lt. Governor Husted’s Workforce Transformation Team and Ohio Excels. The goal for this working group is to watch and monitor barriers to implementation (state policy, local policies, laws, boards etc.) that arise as we work toward the successful implementation of innovative practices that result in an improved workforce either through direct employment after high school or after training in a 2 or 4 year institution of higher education.

Rooted School received a $4m grant from USED to replicate 3 new charter high schools in NV, OH, and SC over the next 5 years.

A small group of students from the microschool hit the trails around the school to investigate native and invasive plants while collecting water samples from streams and ponds in the area. The students also took a moment to meet Issaquah’s troll, Jakob Two Trees.

A cooperative initiative began between Ellemercito Academy and ASU. This partnership combines the strengths of ASU, the largest public university in the U.S., with Ellemercito Academy’s pioneering microschool model to introduce a new product specifically designed to meet the unique needs of microschools. The collaboration emphasizes a mutual focus on innovation, sustainability, and global impact, enhancing personalized learning pathways and broadening the reach to students seeking new and diverse educational models.

Ellemercito Academy was recently chosen as fellows for the ASU Prep Microschool Entrepreneur Fellowship. Additionally, Founder Lizette Valles recently contributed to the global discourse on educational freedom through a submission to the UN Special Rapporteur on the right to education, Ms. Farida Shaheed.

Both Hidden Valley Middle School and Myrtle Elementary created prototype innovations for their microschool launches in the fall. These prototypes include competency-based portfolios, genius hours, community-connected interdisciplinary projects, and innovative schedules. We’re now moving into testing and refining these prototypes with opportunities for student and community feedback.

Rooted School Foundation secured $1M from the City of New Orleans to grow The $50 Study to reach more high school students in New Orleans over the next three years.

Gem Prep has 3 learning environments- Online, Full Size Brick and Mortar, and Learning Societies. On February 8th, Gem Prep was approved to open a new campus in Rexburg, Idaho. The Rexburg campus will be Gem Prep’s 9th full size campus. The school district where this campus will be located is the largest district in Idaho without a charter school. Consequently, when Gem Prep opens, for the first time, families in Rexburg will have a choice about where their children are educated. This is a big moment for Gem Prep and for Rexburg, Idaho.

Da Vinci RISE High School has partnered with the Kaiser Permanente Bernard J. Tyson School of Medicine to deploy a Healthcare Exposure Series called “The Heart of Medicine”. During session 1, students were exposed to career paths in medicine through a series of medicine and professional development focused sessions. They began their exploration through an examination of the heart. Within the second series the students learned about common diseases and social determinants of health. The vision is that this series of medical courses will evolve into a pre-med pathway instilled in the RISE framework.