The number one thing we hear from entrepreneurs and artists and creatives when we ask them about their education is about how irrelevant it was to their story. Sure, some folks had wonderful educational experiences, but for many their experiences left them feeling ill prepared for life and their careers. So, we wanted to create a space for folks to share their experiences and ideas for how we can improve our educational system.

Amber Neighbors and Gracie Hardy

Amber: 1. Switching the focus to a growth mindset instead of perfectionism. There is far too much pressure on kids to be the best or top percentile for everything. It’s time to value each child’s strengths and praise them for their specific gifts. Read more>>

Stephanie Fleary

As an educator for 20 years and a parenting coach for 8 years, I think the educational system needs to focus on the development of the whole child and shift the focus away from statistics and scores. Every child is so unique in how they learn and retain information and every city is different in terms of the learning environment that is created and available to students. Read more>>

Kasia Harria

This is our future and a very important topic for all students and parents. I believe the school systems could spend more effort on educating the youth in money management, debt and investments. Business driven courses should be mandatory in all high school curriculums. We need to help the future generations feel comfortable with making smart choices with their earnings and maybe create less overall poverty within our systems. Read more>>

Ashley Scott

Here are 5 things that I absolutely love about our education system. 1. The Support of School Choice, charter schools and the making of vouchers available for students to attend private schools. 2. The push for industry certifications 3. Dual Enrollment Course 4. Funding supporting the increase of school safety 5. The push to support early childhood education programs Here are 5 things that I would change about our education system. Read more>>

Autumn Stankay

The educational system is setup perfectly to follow the mold of traditional studies/academics from Kindergarten through end of your college days, without any push in a different direction. There are so many avenues other than traditional college degrees – such as small business ownership or creative fields that may not have a good college option (like photography!). Read more>>

Nyia Luna

I would shift the expectation that college equals success, encouraging students to give their passions more attention when debating their future field of work. I have taken the steps to enact this change in the educational system through my partnership with Hip Hop For Change. Read more>>