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.

Bria Spivey-Lockley

I think this is a great question! To be completely honest— there are many things I would change about the education system, but what I feel is a priority (especially among minority majority institutions) are financial literacy and career readiness classes/workshops. These are topics that I wish had been introduced to me as early as elementary school. It would have saved me a great deal of hard lessons as a young adult. Read more>>

Carrie Schneider

Throughout my life, the themes of teaching, learning, and education have been central to my journey. Following my academic pursuits, I became a teacher and then an assistant principal. When the pandemic occurred, it shifted my life in a different direction—into the world of entrepreneurship, establishing my own business, The Blooming Container, a container garden design and installation company. This diverse trajectory has granted me a multifaceted perspective on the current state of our educational system. Drawing upon my experiences, I firmly believe that several pivotal changes are necessary to enhance our educational system, ensuring it equips students for a more enriching and successful life and career. Read more>>

Milan-Devi LaBrey

There isn’t just one thing I would change about our education system because the fact is that it is broken in a myriad of different ways. This isn’t anything that we haven’t heard before. There isn’t enough funding. Teachers aren’t paid enough. Children deal with the looming threat of a mass shooting. There are countrywide budget cuts. Students aren’t reaching grade-level milestones. There is more physical and verbal violence in school. The long of the short is that children are not getting an education that not only gets them ready to be contenders in a global job market but also prepares them to cope with the hardships of life. Read more>>

Stacy Markow

I’m a massive advocate for education. I’d love to see coursework offered to high school students around personal + business finance, where they can learn how to balance bank accounts, how to build wealth through compounding interest and investments, and ways to
manage debt to start businesses and control the costs of pursuing higher education. Read more>>

Brandon LaValley

I think the public education system does a real disservice in providing even basic financial education to our students. I was recently giving a guest lecture to a group of seniors at a local high school. Out of 24 students, 22 of them could not correctly fill out a check. Only one said they had ever filled out a budget and only two said they help with the budget at home. Only about 1/2 the class had a basic understanding of how credit works and how it gets reported. Less than half could tell me anything about how the stock market works, how a bond price is calculated, or the basic process of a mortgage. Read more>>

Alaine Jacobs

The United States educational system is at a pivotal point where we need to seriously evaluate what future we are preparing our students for, and what skills our students will need to live in the current world. So much has changed since I was in school, and most of that is due to technology. To be frank, when I was in school we barely even had text messaging! With the rapid advancement in technology, students need to be learning things like entrepreneurship and how to problem solve and think outside of the box. We are now living in a world where job flexibility is a reality and people no longer have to go to a 9-5 job to have a viable career. It would be beneficial for students to learn skills that they can transfer to any job or employment opportunity, since many young people these days “job hop” and no longer stay with a company until retirement. Read more>>

Kristina Peck

I am a college dropout. I was an “alright” high school student. I never really studied or took it too seriously, but still managed to make Honor Roll. I applied to some colleges, and got into most of them, but quickly realized that I couldn’t afford much more than a community college. Going to college was the only way I knew. No one ever told me about another path, so I thought I was doing what I was “supposed” to do. I took our $10,000 in loans and majored in Mechanical Engineering at MVCC in Utica, NY. And I hated it. I hated the major. It wasn’t something I wanted to do for the rest of my life, but after you graduate from high school, everyone rushes you into college like your life depends on it, so I did the first thing my Dad suggested which was Engineering. Read more>>

Elisa Serrano

As an entrepreneur in a creative industry, I have been able to see how amazing it is to create a business that is tied in with your passion. Rodney and I (Elisa) wouldn’t be where we are if it wasn’t for the creative leaders and art teachers we had and who supported our passions. The reason Rodney got involved with screen printing was hugely thanks to his graphic design teacher, Mr. Layton. He still teaches design, and now the student has truly become the teacher – we print tees for him now! Read more>>

Tesha Smith

To prepare students for a more fulfilling life and career, the education system should focus on holistic skill development, which includes incorporating entrepreneurship education, prioritizing emotional and mental well-being, and offering comprehensive career guidance and exploration programs. By nurturing a wide range of skills beyond academics, teaching entrepreneurship to cultivate innovation and business acumen, promoting emotional and mental well-being, and providing guidance for career exploration, students will be better equipped to navigate the complexities of the modern world and pursue fulfilling and successful lives. Read more>>

Janice Yow Hindes

Public Education is in crisis. So many changes are needed. Art is part of everything we see. The other part is science. Nothing we have is not touched by art, yet we do not teach it with proper importance in our schools. An architect designs buildings, and carpenters, tools, and machines build them. An automotive designer plans our cars, and men and machines build them. Art is where imagination and problem-solving are presented at a high level for students, but our schools often see art only as wall decoration. Art is the creative process of our brains. Einstein tells us that genius has limitations while imagination has none. Serious, thoughtful, challenging art classes are desperately needed in public schools along with a million other changes. Public education is one of the main factors that made America this great nation. We are rapidly dismantling the foundation of our strength. Read more>>

Mary Resenbeck

I want to share some experiences from my family’s life that underline the urgent need for a change in our education system. It’s a change that can provide a more supportive and inclusive environment for children with diverse learning needs. My husband’s lifelong struggle with dyslexia serves as a powerful reminder of the importance of compassion and understanding for students facing reading difficulties. His school days were marked by teachers who couldn’t recognize that his slow progress wasn’t due to laziness but rather dyslexia. This lack of understanding resulted in him becoming a target for bullying, both from teachers and peers, creating a traumatic school experience. Read more>>

Mind Provoking

Within the education system, I would change the lack of mental health support; children have today which eliminates thriving opportunities regarding the lack thereof. Children need stability in various aspects, as their home life is sometimes ignored; linked to their behavior. A particular story would be one of my clients stating their school counselor cares less about issues in their home; more focus driven on academic success alone. Academic success depends on the nourishment at home and school. When one is off balance, the other is left as a continuous stressor. Read more>>

Lauren Urso Gray

Ten years ago I graduated from high-school as a self-proclaimed “theatre kid” and would go on to study Musical Theatre and Opera at an arts conservatory-style university. Today, I am a business owner, solopreneur, teacher, mentor, and multi-hyphenate. Over the last decade, my dreams of performing on Broadway evolved into starting my own business in Dallas and unintentionally inspiring others to find, or even create for themselves, fulfilling and successful careers. Read more>>

Amanda Vincent

The harsh truth is that there is a lot of room for improvement in our education system, and this is as true now as it was in our pre-Covid world. Students are individuals, with unique thoughts, personalities, learning styles, life struggles, aptitudes, abilities, and talents. And yet we educate children with a broad brush, in classrooms with teachers who are expected to teach, coach, tutor, parent, and discipline. It is not a formula for optimal student success. Read more>>

Jazmin Jude

What I would change about the education system is to implement a more creative curriculum and to have more art classes and music classes available, especially in under served communities. I think that would help students explore their creative side, help manage their stress and it will give them a chance to learn a new talent or skill they may have not known they had or were able to do. Read more>>

Jacob Wachtel

Schools and sport can work in cooperation with this, but they can also learn from each other so they can better their students and athletes and prepare them to be well rounded adults. I think schools and sports have numerous opportunities to prepare students for engaging careers and fulfilling lives, but I think more can be done to foster self discovery, promote self reflection, and cope with shortcomings and failures. As a teacher of seven years, I work to see each student as an individual with particular learning strengths, difficulties, and needs and work to cater to that specific student as they learn in my class. Read more>>

Nare Avagyan

In today’s rapidly changing world, preparing students for a fulfilling life and career requires an educational approach that extends beyond traditional methods. First and foremost, fostering an environment that encourages creativity and critical thinking is essential. This involves creating opportunities for students to experiment, embrace failure as a learning opportunity, and develop resilience. These skills are crucial for navigating the complexities of modern life and work. Secondly, integrating real-world applications into the curriculum is pivotal. This approach ensures that students can directly apply their learning to practical scenarios, thereby enhancing their readiness for future challenges. Read more>>