Our children are our future. Education is at the heart at developing their skills and abilities and yet year after year we hear about the degrading state of our educational system. Our nation has spent trillions of dollars on failed programs that research and experts had promised would work. Achievement gaps persist, performance declines are accelerating and so it is of paramount importance that we explore novel ideas and solutions. You might not agree with many or any of the ideas below, and we certainly are not endorsing policies – our hope is just to create a space where bright, dedicated folks from the community can share their ideas – so that we can all come together and better understand each others experiences, concerns and how we might move forward together to build a brighter future.

Rosemary Brensen

Growth is not always the goal. (I realize the irony of that statement as I am a Business Growth Strategist), but growth is not for everyone! Growth should feel like a choice and not a burden. There is a sweet spot for every business, a revenue size that is profitable, that maximizes capacity, square footage, current staff, etc. And in between these sweet spots are so-called “valleys of death” where it is very capital intensive to get to the other side. I always want my clients to know what challenges lay ahead as well as what is the life on the other side going to look like. Read more>>

Hayden Van Hulzen

I personally feel that traditional PR services should not be an isolated service if a brand is hoping to move the needle in an expedited period of time. I do however think you can move the needle with social media marketing, without PR. Read more>>

Francesca Perini

Working in social media, we need to have a very flexible schedule when it comes to the management of the accounts, client communications, last-minute requests, etc. We want to be understanding of our clients, most of whom are small local businesses, while also paying attention to our own needs not just as professionals, but also as normal human beings. I truly believe that the core of a successful relationship with one’s job is a healthy work-life balance, and it is extremely important that we as professionals take time to build that balance. Read more>>

Elle Monus

I’m not very traditional in any sense, really. My background is in People & Operations for tech startups- that sounds super boring, I know. And it is- to most people, but it’s where I nerd out. So when I started TRUE, I relied heavily upon that background. I built my company to scale efficiently from a business standpoint, but everyone can do that with the right knowledge. Most companies don’t understand how to maximize their human capital. Read more>>

Joseph Steinberg

For well over a decade I have argued that the conventional password strategies offered by so many “experts” – for example, that people use complex passwords, change passwords often, don’t ever reuse passwords, etc. – is bad advice. For many years I stool nearly alone in my opposition to de facto “industry standards” – today, however, things are changing… Why do I oppose strategies that appear to many folks to be obviously correct? You can read my thoughts here: Why You Should Ignore Everything That You Have Been Told About Passwords Read more>>

Kelsey Phillips

As someone who went through the public school system and a child of a public school teacher I can easily say: our education system has a lot of problems. There’s definitely a lot to say about paying teachers more I grew up always feeling like the arts were undervalued in my schools Read more>>

Kalisa Conner

If I could change anything about the educational system it would be to let kids find them selves and figure out who they want to be in life and what they’re passionate about. Teach them about generational wealth, credit and money management something that would benefit them long term so they can be advanced and settled into their lives when they’re old enough instead of getting old and playing catch up when it could have already been taught in school. That would be life changing and add value to the school system and if you were a child that choose to go to college I would place programs in place to help you figure out how to payback student loans. Honestly if it was up to me school would be free! Read more>>

Shayna Ellis

What I would change about the educational system is to incorporate more business classes in the curriculum and to bring back speech classes. I would make these classes graduation requirements among the students career path while going through their high school career. Yes there are already business management classes in high school. However, those classes are offered as electives by choice. Read more>>