We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Lance Bennett. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Lance below.
Alright, Lance thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. So, let’s start with a hypothetical – what would you change about the educational system?
If I could change one thing about the education system, I would place a much stronger emphasis on character formation alongside the development of 21st-century workforce skills. While academic achievement and technical competencies are important, they are not sufficient for building a fulfilling life or a sustainable, meaningful career. Education should help us become better people—not just better workers—and I believe that happens best in the context of community.
Our system often treats learning as an individual race toward measurable goals. But what if we treated learning as a communal journey toward wisdom and wholeness? What if we taught collaboration, resilience, self-awareness, and moral courage as intentionally as we teach coding or calculus?
By integrating character education with real-world skills—and grounding both in meaningful relationships—we can prepare students not only to succeed, but to flourish. That’s the kind of education that changes lives, and changes the world.
As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?
I’m the President and Founder of The People’s Institute for the Common Good, a startup nonprofit with a bold and hopeful mission: to create spaces where people come together to learn from one another, wrestle with hard questions, and serve their communities. At the heart of our work is a belief in the transformative power of dialogue, reflection, and collective action—especially when guided by a commitment to the common good.
My path into this work wasn’t linear, but it was deeply personal. I’ve always been drawn to questions of justice, purpose, and belonging—questions that often don’t have easy answers but deserve our attention. Over the years, I’ve worked in education, community organizing, and nonprofit leadership, and I’ve seen both the beauty and the brokenness of our institutions. I founded The People’s Institute because I saw a need for spaces that center curiosity, compassion, and courageous conversation. We’re here to nurture the next generation of changemakers and cultivate communities that are more just, inclusive, and humane.
We currently offer three core programs. The Better Society Bookclub brings people together around powerful texts and meaningful dialogue about the issues shaping our world. It’s more than just a book club—it’s a practice in listening, understanding, and imagining new possibilities together. Our Imaginative Futures Forum—launching in Fall 2025—is a two-day online gathering that brings together thinkers, creatives, and changemakers to reimagine what a better future could look like. It’s designed to be dynamic, creative, and grounded in real-world challenges and solutions. Then, in Summer 2026, we’ll launch the Common Good Fellowship, a summer program for high school students that blends critical thinking with community engagement. Fellows will explore two fundamental questions: What does it mean to be a good person? and How can I contribute to my community? Through a mix of reading, reflection, discussion, and hands-on service, students will grow as thoughtful, grounded, and visionary young leaders.
What sets us apart is our commitment to cultivating both the intellect and the spirit. We believe learning should be rigorous and relational. We believe in asking big questions—not just for the sake of asking, but to spark action rooted in empathy and shared responsibility. In a time of deep polarization and disconnection, we’re building a different kind of community—one that’s brave, generous, and hopeful.
What I’m most proud of is the way our work is already creating a sense of belonging and possibility for those who engage with us. Whether it’s a small book discussion or a large public forum, people leave feeling seen, challenged, and inspired. That’s the kind of change that ripples outward.
For anyone curious about our work, I’d want you to know this: we’re building something rooted in love and possibility, and there’s a place for you here. Whether you’re a student, a teacher, an artist, or simply someone who cares—you are welcome. Together, we can imagine and create a better world.
How about pivoting – can you share the story of a time you’ve had to pivot?
Becoming an edupreneur was not just a career shift—it was a calling. After years of working in higher education, I began to feel disillusioned by what I saw as a widening gap between the promise of education and the reality of its practice. The institutions I once believed were shaping informed, ethical citizens were increasingly prioritizing technical knowledge that could be quantified and measured—often at the expense of essential human values like character development, moral reasoning, and a sense of responsibility to community. This was especially disheartening given our collective need for an educated public that can uphold and sustain a thriving democracy.
In response to this growing void, I founded The People’s Institute for the Common Good—a space rooted in the belief that education should not only prepare people for careers, but also for community, citizenship, and moral responsibility. The Institute was born from a desire to ask and explore profound questions: What does it mean to be a good person? How can we be good to each other? What kind of future can we imagine, and how can we build it together? These are the types of questions I saw too often dismissed or devalued in formal education settings.
The People’s Institute for the Common Good is designed to create inclusive, intergenerational learning spaces outside traditional educational structures. Our aim is to bring people together from all walks of life—educators, community organizers, faith leaders, students, artists, parents, and professionals—to learn with and from one another. We believe in education that strengthens not only individual skill sets but also our collective capacity for empathy, ethics, critical thought, and civic action.
Our programs are guided by the idea that education should nourish both the head and the heart. Yes, we engage with rigorous content, and yes, we develop tools that support professional and community-based problem-solving. But more importantly, we place equal emphasis on why we do the work and who we’re doing it for. In a society that often treats knowledge as a commodity, we seek to reframe knowledge as a public good—something that must be shared, discussed, and put into practice to benefit the whole.
By stepping away from the rigid systems of higher education, I’ve been able to build a model that is flexible, values-based, and deeply rooted in community engagement. I became an edupreneur not because I gave up on education, but because I believe so deeply in its transformative power. I wanted to create a space where education could once again be about becoming—not just achieving. A place where learning is a pathway to creating a just, compassionate, and sustainable future.
That future isn’t something we wait for—it’s something we imagine and build together. The People’s Institute for the Common Good is my contribution to that vision.
Are there any books, videos or other content that you feel have meaningfully impacted your thinking?
Two books that have profoundly shaped my management and entrepreneurial thinking are Imagination: A Manifesto by Ruha Benjamin and Teaching Community: A Pedagogy of Hope by bell hooks. While neither is a traditional business manual, both have redefined how I think about leadership, responsibility, and transformation—core elements of any entrepreneurial or managerial philosophy.
Ruha Benjamin’s Imagination: A Manifesto challenges us to see imagination not just as a personal or artistic tool, but as a collective, political force. She encourages us to question default systems and build alternatives rooted in justice and care. As someone navigating organizational structures and building initiatives, this book reminded me that true innovation begins with the courage to imagine radically different futures. It reframed management for me as an act of stewardship over possibilities—not just resources or people.
bell hooks’ Teaching Community deepened my understanding of leadership through the lens of relationality and education. Her vision of a democratic classroom translates directly to my approach to organizational culture: emphasizing dialogue, shared power, and the necessity of building community across difference. She taught me that leading and managing is as much about cultivating belonging and trust as it is about setting goals and strategies.
Together, these works inspire a philosophy of leadership that is transformative rather than transactional. They ask not just “How do we grow?” but “For whom, and at what cost?” They’ve taught me to center humanity, imagination, and equity in every entrepreneurial effort. Management, in this light, becomes an act of co-creation—where people are not just resources to be organized, but partners in envisioning and building more just and sustainable futures.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://instituteforcommongood.org
- Instagram: @instituteforcommongood
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/company/the-people-s-institute-for-the-common-good
