A recurring theme of the Friday Feature is public school teachers who start their own alternative educational options—such as Deeper Root Academy, Safari Small School, Urban Cottage Educational Collaborative, and Valley Troubadours.
A new report out of Florida, Leaving a Classroom But Starting a School, highlights the experiences of 10 former public school teachers who ventured out to start new private schools. This diverse group of teachers participated in focus groups led by Step Up for Students and EdChoice to help researchers understand their journeys and what obstacles they faced. The group included founders of three larger private schools and three smaller ones, along with one microschool, one homeschool co‐op, one hybrid homeschool, and one learning pod.
When asked what prompted them to leave public school teaching and found their own schools, the most frequent reasons were: frustration with public schools, wanting to give their own children a better education, and providing more options for teachers. These responses fit with what I hear when I talk to former public school teachers who have either started their own learning entities or joined someone else’s. In particular, teachers tell me the system is too bureaucratic and doesn’t give them the freedom to help kids in the way they think is best.
An interesting part of the new report is where the teachers share what hurdles they’ve faced. Start‐up funds, facilities, and compensation for themselves and their employees were common responses. In a webinar yesterday with three of the focus group members, they talked of pouring all of their savings into their new endeavor and the fear that came with that decision.
Fortunately, for entrepreneurial teachers in Florida and other school choice friendly states, programs like tax credit scholarships, tuition vouchers, and—especially—education savings accounts (ESAs) can help solve these problems. But since the funds are often distributed throughout the school year, and the per student value is typically far below what public schools receive, challenges persist.
The focus group participants discussed other solutions to the obstacles that make it hard to start new schools, including: raising awareness about entrepreneurial opportunities among teachers, starting networks to help would‐be school founders connect, simplifying the rules around facilities, expanding ESAs, and incorporating educational entrepreneurship and school choice ideas in teacher prep programs.
In addition to the report, you can find videos of some of the teachers sharing their stories as well as charts and graphs that help tell the story of education today.
Just like more parents are open to new educational options, teachers are increasingly realizing there are opportunities beyond district schools. They can still do what they love—teach students and help put them on a path for future success—without dealing with the bureaucracy and inflexibility that are part and parcel of government‐run schools. This new report is a terrific resource that will help other teachers follow their own dreams. And it gives policy makers a wealth of information to help craft public policies that will help—instead of hinder—these entrepreneurial teachers.
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If you’re interested in more about this topic, please join us for an online panel, School Choice Is Good for Teachers Too, on September 14th 4–5 p.m. EDT. I’ll be joined by the three former public school teachers who have found happiness in new teaching environments. We’d particularly love to connect with current or potential public school teachers to help them learn about other options and see how they can create their own paths with nearly limitless possibilities.