LiberatED Podcast

Collin Hitt, Ph.D., is the executive director of the Policy Research in Missouri Education (PRIME) Center at Saint Louis University in Missouri. He is also a homeschooling dad and the co-author of a new report on homeschooling's growth that was recently published in the Journal of School Choice.

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Luba Vangelova is the founder of The Hub, a part-time online microschool for homeschooled teens and tweens that emphasizes curiosity, collaboration, and community.

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Kimberly Amee is a homeschool mom and former teacher who in 2021 founded Above Reproach Academy, a private umbrella school, homeschool co-op, and educational resource center located in Spring Hill, Florida that now serves over 100 learners.

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Ar'Jillian Gilmer is the founder of Gilmer's Learning Solutions, a tutoring center and microschool in Little Rock, Arkansas. A public school teacher for nearly a decade, Ar'Jillian felt the pull towards education entrepreneurship and creating innovative learning options for local children.

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Danielle Strachman is the cofounder and general partner of the 1517 Fund, an early-stage venture capital fund and community supporting college dropouts and tech-focused scientists working on entrepreneurial solutions to big problems.

Danielle has worked with young entrepreneurs for over a decade, including during the founding in 2010 of the Thiel Fellowship, a program started by entrepreneur and investor Peter Thiel to provide funding to ambitious young people who opted out of college in favor of entrepreneurial ventures.

Prior to that, Danielle was an education entrepreneur! She founded and directed Innovations Academy in San Diego, a K-8 charter school serving 400 students, with a focus on student-led, project based learning and other alternative programs.

Read more about 1517 at Substack.

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Kristy Moody is the cofounder, along with her husband, of Acton Academy Palm Harbor in Florida. A former public school teacher and principal, Kristy tried to make change within the conventional system but ultimately decided on entrepreneurship. She launched her school in August of 2022 to provide a space for learner-driven education in her community.

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Nicole Stewart is the founder and president of the National Association of Black Microschool Leaders, as well as the founder of Legacy Prep Collegiate Microschool which opened this fall in Lakeland, Florida. A public school teacher for 18 years, Nicole is finding deep fulfillment in education entrepreneurship, with plans to open more Legacy Prep microschools while helping other founders get their schools off the ground.

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Nance Confer is the founder and director of Florida Unschoolers. Launched in 2001, Florida Unschoolers is a tuition-free, private "umbrella" school for nearly 14,000 Florida unschoolers and homeschoolers.

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Happy Thanksgiving!

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Kidvation Global is a nonprofit focused on administering programs that connect young people worldwide to create innovative, entrepreneurial solutions for present-day issues. Founded in 2022 by Harold Lee and Brent Wheelbarger, Kidvation has worked with over 2,500 students, including microschoolers and others learning in unconventional educational environments.

Read more about Kidvation in this recent FEE.org article.

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