Learning Solutions – NewSchools Venture Fund

Students Are Calling for Change, and We’re Listening

bmiller — Tue, 10 Dec 2024 17:00:38 +0000

As 2024 comes to a close, I find myself reflecting on both the challenges and the opportunities we’ve seen in education this year. Across the country, young people are asking for something better — learning experiences that are meaningful, engaging, and connected to their futures. At NewSchools, we’re inspired by how educators and entrepreneurs are stepping up to this moment. They’re designing solutions that respond to the needs of today’s learners. In this first year of our new investment strategy, we invested $13.4 million in 54 early-stage ventures reimagining education. Here’s a look at some of the most interesting themes across our investing activity, as well as promising innovations that bring us closer to ensuring every student is prepared to thrive in school and in life.

New High Schools Bridge Classrooms and Careers

High school should set students up for success, but right now, it isn’t working for everyone. Nearly 15 million students are chronically absent, and 42% say they feel disengaged, sad, or hopeless. Yet 80% of students say they value on-the-job training more than traditional post-secondary options (Gates Foundation). Career-connected learning is one way to make high school relevant again. By teaming up with colleges, businesses, and community organizations, schools are giving students opportunities to explore careers, gain hands-on experience, and earn credentials that lead to good jobs.

This year, 52% of the school teams we’ve funded are creating new middle and high school models that connect learning to real-world opportunities. For example, Philadelphia Middle College Foundation is designing a school where students begin exploring career and college pathways in middle school, then continue in high school with internships, early college credits, and certifications in fields like healthcare and technology. In Georgia, Simple Vue Academy will help students take on real-world challenges and prepare for entrepreneurship and financial management with internships, business pitch competitions, and mentorship programs. These models will not only help students build durable skills, but also give them a clear path to meaningful careers and economic mobility.

Namahana Education Foundation

A Resurgence in Rural Innovation

With more students leaving urban centers, there’s a renewed focus on ensuring rural communities have great schools and access to economic opportunities. We’re seeing creative approaches in rural education that address the unique challenges and incredible potential of these communities. Schools like Namahana School in Hawaii and Sledge Institute in North Carolina are designing models rooted in competency-based learning and career-focused programs aligned with local industries like agriculture and advanced manufacturing to prepare students for high-demand jobs.

Beyond academics, rural schools are becoming hubs for critical services like mental health support, food security, and healthcare. These partnerships aren’t an afterthought — they’re being built into the design of schools from the very beginning. In some cases, nonprofit organizations are leading the way by pooling resources and talent across districts and creating shared models that bring robust career and technical education (CTE) pathways to life. These efforts show how constraints can spark innovation.

Literacy Solutions Designed to Unlock Learning for Every Student

Education should work for all students, but too often, “one-size-fits-all” approaches leave too many learners behind. Generative AI is changing that, enabling solutions that adapt to students’ unique strengths and needs in ways we couldn’t imagine before. The innovators we’re supporting are tapping into this potential.

Bili App by Bilingual Generation

They are creating solutions that bridge research and practice and place learners furthest from opportunity at the center of their designs. Take Project Read AI, for example, which uses generative AI to create personalized reading experiences grounded in the Science of Reading and explicit instruction. With accessible fonts and an AI tutor, it supports early readers, including those with dyslexia, through oral instruction and repeated readings.

Other innovators in our portfolio are addressing the disconnect students feel when learning materials don’t reflect their lives. For example, Bilingual Generation’s BiliApp features Spanish-language stories and phonics games that celebrate students’ cultural backgrounds while building literacy skills. By strengthening literacy in their home language, Bili helps students build a strong foundation for learning English. What makes these solutions stand out is their ability to combine research-backed practices with approaches that honor students’ identities and lived experiences, ensuring every student feels seen, engaged, and inspired to learn.

Innovations in Reimagining the Teaching Profession

This year, I’m especially proud of the launch of our Teaching Reimagined investment area, which supports solutions that make teaching a more sustainable, effective, and fulfilling profession. I was inspired to see that over half of the ideas submitted came directly from former and current classroom teachers — people who understand the challenges firsthand and are driving change from within. We funded a range of efforts, including ventures that are bridging divides across traditional education roles and positioning teachers and community members as equal partners in reimagining the educator workforce. You can learn more about them in our latest blog.

To meet the challenges ahead, we need more visionary leaders with bold ideas — and supporters ready to step up and make a difference. If you’re an innovator with a vision to create more meaningful and relevant learning experiences for students, we invite you to apply to our funding opportunity.

Finally, thank you to our innovators, supporters, and partners who joined us this year to unlock new possibilities for students. Your dedication fuels our resolve to ensure every student has a life of choice and opportunity. Across the country, students are asking for something better — and with your partnership, we’re ready to deliver.

Unlocking the Potential of Students with Learning Differences

Cameron White — Tue, 01 Mar 2022 14:55:41 +0000

Cameron White, Partner and Erin Stark, Senior Associate Partner

Nationwide, 1 in 5 students learn and think differently. Sometimes these students have formally diagnosed disabilities and for others, these differences are undiagnosed and often result in a lack of personalization and engagement. Children who are further marginalized by racism and poverty are especially vulnerable to the effects of school systems that are not designed to meet their needs. Yet with the right instruction and support, students with learning differences can thrive and excel – in and out of the classroom.

After two years of interrupted schooling, this moment represents a unique opportunity to empower students with learning differences in ways that are responsive to short-term needs while also driving systemic change. How can we learn from what is working and continue to reimagine learning environments that support all students’ academic and social-emotional growth? We posed this question to families, educators, researchers, and developers. They shared many insights and perspectives, including three opportunities for how innovators can help schools better meet the needs of students with learning differences.

If you have an early-stage idea for how to empower students with learning differences, please apply to our open funding opportunity by March 28th. We are excited to support innovators who are working to ensure that all students are able to realize their full potential.

1. Create supportive and inclusive learning communities

Too often, students with learning differences can be made to feel like they are the problem. They are told they are not trying hard enough or that they lack discipline when in fact these students are just as bright and capable as their peers. Schools and districts need to account for students’ learning and thinking differences by building more supportive and inclusive communities where these students can learn alongside their peers. Communication and collaboration across differences is a critical aspect of social-emotional development, just as diversity of thinking creates better opportunities for all students to learn and grow. In addition, all teachers should be well-trained and supported to reach every learner. General and special educators must work together to ensure students’ experiences are aligned and integrated throughout the school day.

2. Build stronger school-family partnerships

Students perform better when they feel supported by the adults in their lives. Families are a critical part of students’ learning journeys, supporting development, managing relationships, and building insights about how students learn best. Caregivers and teachers often play a critical role in advocating for students with learning differences to be able to secure the services and support they need. The work of changing perceptions around learning differences – overcoming potential fear and isolation too often associated with diagnosis – is so critical for families looking to get more involved with their students’ learning. At the same time, educators are looking for better systems to communicate and collaborate with families as well as colleagues and support providers. Stronger school-family partnerships can also enable more seamless learning experiences as students move between classrooms and from school to home.

3. Use data and assessments to improve equity

Along with designing environments and instructional materials to reach every learner, data and assessments can be used to improve equity. Data can empower students with learning differences by helping point the way toward new opportunities to demonstrate mastery of knowledge, providing immediate feedback on performance, and enabling short-term goal setting and positive reinforcement. Data can also provide educators with critical insights that enable targeted instructional interventions tailored to each student. There is a need for better and more accurate diagnosis of learning needs, especially approaches that minimize potential biases related to race and income. Students and families also want increased voice and agency, including more input on which academic and social-emotional skills are targeted, and how these relate to individual students’ dreams and goals.

With generous support from Oak Foundation, we are excited to deepen our commitment to equity and fund new solutions and approaches to empower students with learning differences who are also experiencing the impacts of racism and poverty. Oak Foundation’s Learning Differences Programme commits its resources to help unlock the creativity and power of every young person and equip youth to shape more just and equitable communities.

If you have an early-stage idea for how to empower students with learning differences, please apply to our open funding opportunity by March 28th. We are excited to support innovators who are working to ensure that all students are able to realize their full potential. We also plan to share resources and insights along the way!