LiberatED Podcast

Kenisha Skaggs founded SOAR Academy in Georgia in 2011 as a non-traditional private school that focuses on an individualized approach to learning. Approximately 85% of SOAR Academy's students are neurodiverse or have special learning needs. Since its founding, SOAR Academy has reached more than 500 students and continues to have a long waitlist.  *** Sign up for Kerry's free, weekly email newsletter on education trends at fee.org/liberated.

Stacey Hammerlind and Jessica Rothbart are the cofounders of Micah Studios, a low-cost, secular microschool for children ages 6-18 in Newport, New Hampshire with a specific focus on low-income students who are now eligible for various school choice programs. Jessica is a homeschooling mother of six children and Stacey is a mother of four adult children and grandmother to two with a shared passion for education and expanding learning options for local families.  Register here for the Encouraging Education Entrepreneurship & Innovation in N.H. Conference (September 30, 2023) *** Sign up for Kerry's free, weekly email newsletter on education trends at fee.org/liberated.

Eric Eisenbrey is the founder of the Eyes and Brains STEM Center, a microschool in the small town of Elkins, West Virginia that opened last year with a focus on science, technology, engineering, and math.  Eric was a public school teacher for 10 years before creating his exciting year-round, K-12 microschool, which he launched with the help of Microschool Builders. *** Sign up for Kerry's free, weekly email newsletter on education trends at fee.org/liberated.

Dal “Doc” Richardson launched BreakOut School in Utah County, Utah in 2019 as an outdoor-based microschool focusing on kids with ADHD and neurodiversity. After a 20-year career as a pharmacist, he saw the need to create new and different learning options for young people in his community. *** Sign up for Kerry's free, weekly email newsletter on education trends at fee.org/liberated.

Laura George, a homeschooling pioneer, talks about the challenges and benefits of homeschooling, the history of hybrid homeschool programs, the affordability and accessibility of Compass Prep Academy, pursuing ideas and the importance of a capable team, as well as the momentum and demand for alternative education.

Our Resilient Community ALC is a Georgia-based microschool for LGBTQ+ youth. It is part of the Agile Learning Centers (ALC) network of self-directed education schools and homeschool learning centers across the US and around the world. Thea Canby and Nicole Gustafson cofounded Our Resilient Community in January 2022, but both of them had been working at an ALC prior to launch, and each have more than 10 years of experience as educators. *** Sign up for Kerry's free, weekly email newsletter on education trends at fee.org/liberated.

Olivia Hasey and Emily Sieger, co-founders of Raindrop Academy, discuss their Waldorf and Montessori-inspired microschool in rural Oregon. They talk about their motivations for homeschooling during the pandemic, creating a learning space that meets children's needs, and the growth and future of Raindrop Academy.

Chioma Onyewuchi is the founder of Heart & Heritage Center, an alternative experiential, outdoor program for homeschoolers in Houston, Texas that focuses on childhood creativity, curiosity, and a deep connection to African heritage and culture. Chioma was born and raised in Aba, Nigeria, and came to the U.S. for college, where she graduated summa cum laude from Fairleigh Dickinson University. She currently homeschools her two children, ages 10 and 8. *** Sign up for Kerry's free, weekly email newsletter on education trends at fee.org/liberated.  

Karinna Fairbanks has experienced a wide variety of learning environments during her childhood and adolescence, including public schooling, virtual schooling, homeschooling, microschooling, and unschooling. Now, at age 15, she is entering college this fall as a sophomore, having accumulated numerous credits as a self-directed teen. *** Sign up for Kerry's free, weekly email newsletter on education trends at fee.org/liberated.

Phoebe Love and Jennifer Lin and staff members at the Saint Louis Sudbury School, a self-directed, democratic, Sudbury-model school located in Saint Louis, Missouri. *** Sign up for Kerry's free, weekly email newsletter on education trends at fee.org/liberated.