LiberatED Podcast

What does it take to step outside the system and build something new? Nadine Smith, founder of The Gathering Place , an all-girls microschool in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, sits down with Kerry McDonald to share her story of leaving the public school system to create a microschool focused on personalized, mastery-based learning. They discuss the realities of running a small school, Nadine's plans fo...

In this episode of LiberatED , Kerry McDonald talks with education entrepreneur Courtney Klein—co-founder of All One Thing and SUNSCHOOL , and Senior Strategist with ASU Prep. Courtney shares her remarkable journey as a social impact entrepreneur from founding her first nonprofit at age 21, to starting SEED SPOT, a global startup incubator, to now leading cutting-edge ventures in alternative educa...

Melanie Smith's path to education entrepreneurship was anything but typical. A U.S. Army veteran who once worked in a European command war room, Melanie found her true calling in peace education through the Montessori method. After years teaching in both public and private schools, she launched Freedom Montessori Academy , an eco-school in Florida that blends individualized Montessori learning wit...

In this episode of LiberatED , Kerry McDonald talks with Katie Saiz, founder of Greengate Children's School in Wichita, Kansas. Katie shares her inspiring journey from running a home-based daycare while homeschooling her children to leading a thriving private school serving nearly 100 students across preschool through middle school, with future plans for high school expansion. Katie explains how G...

In this episode of the LiberatED Podcast, Kerry McDonald talks with Jennifer Palmer, former special education teacher and now founder of Mobile Classroom Solutions in Polk County, Florida. Jennifer shares her journey from the conventional public school classroom to building a thriving microschool and learning pod that serve diverse learners, including many with special needs. We discuss how COVID...

Today is the official launch date of host Kerry McDonald's new book, Joyful Learning: How to Find Freedom, Happiness, and Success Beyond Conventional Schooling ! Check out this special interview—and get your copy of Joyful Learning wherever books are sold!          

Sulaya Williams has been a teacher and administrator in the Florida public schools for 15 years. She left the school system in June to pursue entrepreneurship full-time as the founder of  Link Up & Build Global Academy. ***   Sign up for Kerry's free, weekly email newsletter on education trends at edentrepreneur.org .

Think of Alexa Achille as an "Alexa" for innovative education in South Florida. A former special education teacher in the New York City public schools, Alexa finds great fulfillment in helping families discover the benefits of unconventional education. She is the founder of The Collabo in West Palm Beach, Florida,   which empowers homeschooling families by providing enriching learning experiences...

Today on LiberatED , Kerry McDonald sits down with Bonnie Benjamin-Phariss, the Executive Director of Mosaic at WeAreBornToLearn.org —a vibrant online hub where families can reimagine education in meaningful ways. Founded by philanthropist Jeff Westphal and supported by the Jeff & Jenifer Westphal Foundation, Mosaic blends community with curated resources and practical tools to help young people f...

Kerry's new book, Joyful Learning: How to Find Freedom, Happiness, and Success Beyond Conventional Schooling , will be on bookstore shelves two weeks from today—Tuesday, August 19th.   Preorder your copy today at this link and use code JOYFUL20 at checkout for 20% off. Or visit your favorite local bookstore or online retailer to get your copy. ***   Sign up for Kerry's free, weekly email newslette...

Today's guest, Tiffany Blassingame, is reimagining Christian education. As the founder and lead teacher at  The Ferguson School —a progressive, faith-based K-5 microschool in Decatur, Georgia—she blends over 20 years of experience in public and private education with a heart for helping students thrive. A fourth-generation educator, Tiffany primarily serves Black and brown gifted and neurodiverse...

Today's guest is Ryan Delk, cofounder and CEO of Primer , a fast-growing platform helping top teachers to launch microschools in their communities. He's spent the last decade building tech companies (like Square, Gumroad, and Omni), and was homeschooled from kindergarten through 8th grade. Ryan lives in San Francisco with his wife and three kids. ***   Sign up for Kerry's free, weekly email newsle...

My guest today is Emma Rodriguez, founder of Lighthouse Christian Academy , a microschool in Frisco, Texas that opened in January of this year. After graduating from Texas A&M University, Emma spent seven years teaching in one of the largest and fastest-growing school districts in the country. While she loved the classroom, she saw firsthand how traditional education often leaves students behind a...

Today's guest is Sana Khan, a Board-certified Family Medicine Physician and founder of  Ihsan Academy of Texas Microschool , a full-time, in-person program serving Grades 1-8 in Katy, Texas. The word Ihsan is Arabic for "Excellence", highlighting the vision of the school to provide Excellence in both the knowledge and application of the Islamic faith, and Academic Scholarship. ***   Sign up for Ke...

Jackie Bonath was a public school teacher for 14 years before quitting her job earlier this year to launch Creekside Cottage School , a full-time, multi-age microschool located in Gahanna, Ohio, a close suburb of Columbus, that is focused on nature-based learning. With 20 students already enrolled for this fall, and daily inquiries from interested parents, Jackie sees growing demand for innovative...

Today's guest is Pam Frankforther, founder of Pioneer Reading Center in Wayne, Ohio. Pam left her job as a longtime public school teacher this year to launch Pioneer as full-time microschool for students with dyslexia and other learning differences. She was motivated to create a science-backed, literacy-rich learning environment for children in her community after listening to the popular podcast...

Jennie Jones is an Entrepreneur-In-Residence at FEE's Education Entrepreneurship Lab . She is a former professional ballerina, turned homeschooling mom of four, turned education entrepreneur who launched her home-based microschool,  Treehouse Agile Learning Community , in St. George, Utah last fall and is expanding into a second location this fall. Jennie was an earlier guest on the podcast talkin...

More than a decade ago, Matt Bowman cofounded My Tech High as a platform that enabled personalized, customized learning through tuition-free partnerships with innovative public and charter schools and in collaboration with individual education providers. With a bold vision to expand personalized learning options to more families, Matt recently rebranded the company to OpenEd.co . To date, his comp...

Deja Hillis is the founder of Faithscape Learning Pod , a faith-based K-5 microschool in Casa Grande, Arizona, near Phoenix, which she launched in August 2024. An early elementary school teacher for nearly a decade, Deja has a passion for literacy education and is the author of four children's books. *** Sign up for Kerry's free, weekly email newsletter on education trends at edentrepreneur.org . 

Today's guest is Joanna Cervantez, founder of A Fuller Education Microschool just outside of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania which she launched in the fall 2024. Joanna has both a bachelor's and master's degree in education and began her career as a middle school math teacher in inner-city Los Angeles, later teaching in a school for an orphanage in El Salvador. Since 2013, she has been coaching K-12 te...

Today's guest is Kate Lundquist, founder and principal of Northshore Prep Academy . A former public high school math and physics teacher, Kate opened her secular K-8 hybrid school in Mandeville, Louisiana, a suburb of New Orleans, in 2015. Today, Northshore Prep Academy has 75 students enrolled.   *** Sign up for Kerry's free, weekly email newsletter on education trends at edentrepreneur.org .

Today's guest is Barbara Jauregui Wurst, a medical doctor and adjunct professor at George Washington University who cofounded Acton Academy Falls Church in Northern Virginia in 2021.   Read Courage To Grow by Acton Academy cofounder, Laura Sandefer. Check out this new article at our Education Entrepreneurship Lab by a recent graduate of an Acton Academy in Kansas.  *** Sign up for Kerry's free, we...

Today's guest is Cassandra Orozco, the founder of Beacon of Hope Academy , a faith-based microschool serving K–5th grade students with special needs in Lake Worth, Florida, set to open this fall. As a certified special education teacher with experience in both charter and private schools, Cassandra is passionate about reimagining education to better serve neurodiverse learners. Through Beacon of H...

Today's guest is Alexandra Batista Rodriguez, founder and director of Steps Learning Center in Orlando, Florida, a specialized K-8 microschool for neurodiverse learners with moderate to significant special needs. Steps Learning Center takes a nontraditional, student-centered approach to learning, and serves a variety of families through various flexible programs, including full-time and part-time...

Today's guest is Sara James, a former public school teacher who founded Spark Christian Academy , an Acton Academy affiliate in Harrison, Ohio, near Cincinnati, in 2022. *** Sign up for Kerry's free, weekly email newsletter on education trends at edentrepreneur.org .