Building the future of learning for all.
Getting Smart specializes in Learning Design, Professional Learning, Strategy, Storytelling and Systems Transformation.
Our Services and Solutions
Strategic Advisory
We provide strengths-based, flexible, client driven strategic support to a variety of philanthropic, educational and workforce organizations and school districts. Our varied strategy partnerships include project design, planning and management, network design and development, scaling strategies, strategic guidance, technical assistance, product and brand development, product development, market positioning and go-to-market strategy, organizational development, strategic communications, and education foundation investment strategy.
System and Learning Design
Our team empowers leaders in learning. We specialize in instructional, school and system design, network advising and innovative leadership and learning models. This work includes workshops, design sessions, coaching, thought partnering, innovative program design and implementation support for learner-centered personalized learning.
Professional Learning
We design and facilitate in-person and virtual school and learning tours, speaking engagements, professional learning, and workshops. We also work with clients to develop event strategies and provide event management and logistics.
Storytelling
We design and implements high impact, change making, thought leadership campaigns and initiatives with foundations and learning organizations. This movement building work includes spotting, naming and framing emerging issues, initiative and partnership building, campaign management, and tool and resource development, publication and dissemination.
What Our Partners Are Saying
Latest Resources
Experience Matters: A Common Language for Talent, Trust, and Economic Mobility
This publication addresses the “experience gap” by proposing a common language of Autonomy, Complexity, and Contribution to better design and validate real-world learning. It offers a structured framework to help learners articulate their value and provides employers with a high-fidelity signal of talent.
Microschools Final Report
This culminating report explores the rising K-12 movement toward intentionally small, personalized learning environments that prioritize learner agency, mastery-based progression, and student wellbeing. It advocates for policy changes and expansion of public microschools to bridge the gaps left by traditional industrial-era education systems.
Parents’ Guide to Microschools
The modern world demands learner agency—the intrinsic power for students to direct their own education and develop skills like critical thinking and self-direction. Microschools are presented as a compelling solution, as their small, flexible, and personalized environments are uniquely structured to cultivate this agency through tailored curricula, real-world projects, and greater student choice.
Assessment and Evaluation for Microschools
Standardized tests and other industrial-era metrics fail to capture the full scope of student growth and the emphasis microschools place on skills like critical thinking, creativity, and collaboration. As a result, holistic and authentic assessment practice are necessary, this includes portfolios, observation-based reports, mastery tracking, and a focus on social-emotional learning (SEL). At the same time, governments are expanding access to microschools through programs like Education Savings Accounts (ESAs) while simultaneously voicing concerns about a lack of traditional oversight.
The Public Microschool Playbook
Type: Playbook
At this pivotal moment in American education, public microschools provide a transformative approach to meet the evolving needs of learners and the rapidly changing demands of the workforce.
This playbook from Getting Smart Collective, Learner-Centered Collaborative and Transcend covers the What, How and the Why Now?
Marketing and Branding Your Microschool
Type: Guide
Starting a microschool means assuming a lot of new responsibilities in communications, marketing, branding and building culture. We’ve put together a guide of some of the most important (and often overlooked) aspects of marketing skills and techniques that will help get your microschool’s communications strategy off on the right foot.
Exploring Public Microschools
Type: Case Study
Traditional public school systems can be slow to evolve, but public microschools offer small, nimble learning communities, enabling districts to pilot flexible, more student-driven education models. Districts unlock access to low-risk innovation, where successes can inform wider system reforms and have a feasible chance at reshaping public K-12 education from within. This case study highlights three exemplars.
Microschools Serving Unique Student Needs
Type: Case Study
This resource from Getting Smart explores how microschools across the U.S. are effectively meeting the needs of students who are often underserved in traditional school settings. It highlights examples of microschools serving students with disabilities, those in foster care, students recovering from trauma, and others needing flexible, personalized learning environments. The report showcases innovative approaches to education, such as trauma-informed instruction, individualized pacing, and family-centered support.
The Third Horizon of Learning: Shifting Beyond the Industrial Model
Type: Digital Publication
America’s education system was a groundbreaking effort to help a growing nation thrive in the 19th century. Now, 200 years later, the world has changed; the horizon looks drastically different. Collectively, we need to redesign our education system to enable all of our children — and, by extension, our nation — to thrive today and tomorrow. This publication tells the stories of schools, districts and organizations who are leading this effort.
A New Education Architecture: New Goals, Learning Experiences and Signals
Type: Publication
This paper describes a policy opportunity in three interlocking areas:
- New goals for learners,
- New learning experiences aligned with those goals, and
- New signals that track progress and mastery of those goals
State-Level Guidance for Unbundled Learning
Type: Publication
Every learner deserves an unlimited number of unbundled opportunities to explore, engage, and define experiences that advance their progress along a co-designed educational pathway. Each pathway provides equitable and personalized access to stacked learning experiences leading to post-secondary credentials and secure family-sustaining employment. This vision is only enabled by an unbundled learning ecosystem.
Expanding Access, Value and Experiences Through Credentialing
Type: Publication
In an era where skills and competencies are at the forefront of educational success, the transition from traditional transcripts to Learning and Employment Records (LERs) is pivotal. This analysis provides key insights and practical frameworks to help educational institutions and organizations implement equitable and transparent credentialing systems.
New Pathways Handbook
Type: Publication
Over the last few years, we’ve shared hundreds of pathways stories through our blog, podcast, and various publications. To synthesize these key learnings, we compiled the New Pathways Handbook, a great jumping-off point to our numerous resources and launchpad for getting started with pathways.
The Portrait Model
A “Portrait” framework helps leaders implement a new collective re-design vision. This publication highlights the “how” and the “why” of five interconnected and dynamic portraits: the Portrait of a Learner, the Portrait of a System, the Portrait of a Leader, the Portrait of an Educator and a Self-Portrait.
Support & Guidance
Type: Publication
With Support and Guidance, strong advisory systems build purpose, help learners explore careers, build their social capital and skyrockets their potential. Strong Support and Guidance systems are critical for learners to increase their agency and sense of belonging. This publication highlights models and exemplars of robust advisory.
AI In Education
Type: Publication
AI in Education is a comprehensive exploration of the potential benefits and challenges of AI integration in the education system. The publication starts with a brief history of AI and its impact on different sectors, including education. It then delves into the potential benefits of AI in education, including personalized learning, improved outcomes, and reduced administrative burden for educators.
Green Pathways
Type: Publication
Climate change and massive funding support has created new demand for rapid infrastructure building and greening our economy. This publication focuses on identifying the many opportunities for developing a purpose-driven and skillful workforce via Green Pathways.
The goal of Green Pathways is to generate quality jobs, which will happen through the introduction and nurturing of green skills.
Credentialing for All
Type: Publication
This publication answers the “how,” “what,” “why,” and “who” of credentialing learning experiences. Through video, diagrams and countless examples, we explore what an education system that empowers learners with transparent, portable learner records could look like and addresses the many benefits of a credentialed approach.
View More Resources
We’ve been doing this for over a decade and have authored and co-authored tons of great resources. Check them out!
Innovative School Spotlight
P-TECH at Thomas Jefferson High School
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This podcast highlights developing trends in K-12 education, postsecondary and lifelong learning. Each week, Getting Smart team members interview students, leading authors, experts and practitioners in research, tech, entrepreneurship and leadership to bring listeners innovative and actionable strategies in education leadership.