What if every community member, from a landscape architect to a university researcher to a sitting senator, could become part of a student's education? CommunityShare has been quietly building that reality since 2015, connecting more than 85,000 students and their educators with community partners across 12 states through a model it calls a human library. This Steward Stories profile traces the vision, the timeline, and the hard-won lessons behind one of the most compelling ecosystem intermediaries in the country. Education leaders who are wrestling with relevance, learner agency, and community trust will find both inspiration and a practical framework here.

Students at Eastern Hancock Schools are reminded by a sign on the wall of their value: Joy

Future of Learning

The Microschool Mindset: Why Small Thinking Is the Biggest Shift in Education

Guest Author

Aug 3, 2026

What if the most transformative idea in education right now has nothing to do with how big your school is? In this piece, George Philhower, superintendent at Eastern Hancock Schools and co-founder of the Indiana Microschool Collaborative, makes the case that the microschool mindset is a philosophy any school can adopt. From grading practices to flexible pathways to joy as a design principle, this is a grounded, visionary read for every leader asking what school could look like if we built it around learners instead of legacy systems.

Ed Policy

Schools Are Testing the Past: How Assessment Must Evolve for Writing, Speaking, and Listening in the AI Age

Eric Tucker

Jul 24, 2026

When a student completes a writing test in a locked browser, we learn what they can do alone. But the world asks something harder: can they use AI without being used by it? In this sharp and timely essay, Eric Tucker argues that assessment for writing, speaking, and listening has not kept pace with how communication actually works, and maps a practical path forward. Education leaders navigating AI policy, curriculum design, and high-stakes testing will find both a diagnostic and a blueprint here.

Equity & Access

Steward Stories: Spotlight on Providence After School Alliance

Guest Author

Jul 21, 2026

What does it look like when a city becomes a learning campus? The Providence After School Alliance spent two decades answering that question, aligning schools, city agencies, and community organizations so young people could access high-quality learning far beyond the school day. This Steward Story traces PASA's evolution from a bold response to a local crisis into a nationally recognized model for ecosystem building, credit-bearing out-of-school learning, and the kind of coordination that outlasts leadership transitions. For education leaders navigating fragmented systems, PASA's journey is both a blueprint and a call to action.

	Beginning	Piloting	Implementing
From Fixed Standards to Competency-Based Mastery	BeginningFrom Fixed Standards to Competency-Based Mastery Beginning	PilotingFrom Fixed Standards to Competency-Based Mastery Piloting	ImplementingFrom Fixed Standards to Competency-Based Mastery Implementing
From One-Size-Fits-All to Adaptive Learning	BeginningFrom One-Size-Fits-All to Adaptive Learning Beginning	PilotingFrom One-Size-Fits-All to Adaptive Learning Piloting	ImplementingFrom One-Size-Fits-All to Adaptive Learning Implementing
From Prescribed Knowledge to Innovation & Inquiry	BeginningFrom Prescribed Knowledge to Innovation & Inquiry Beginning	PilotingFrom Prescribed Knowledge to Innovation & Inquiry Piloting	ImplementingFrom Prescribed Knowledge to Innovation & Inquiry Implementing
From Subjects as Silos to Transdisciplinary, Real-World Learning	BeginningFrom Subjects as Silos to Transdisciplinary, Real-World Learning Beginning	PilotingFrom Subjects as Silos to Transdisciplinary, Real-World Learning Piloting	ImplementingFrom Subjects as Silos to Transdisciplinary, Real-World Learning Implementing
From Schools as Self-Contained to Schools as Embedded in Communities	BeginningFrom Schools as Self-Contained to Schools as Embedded in Communities Beginning	PilotingFrom Schools as Self-Contained to Schools as Embedded in Communities Piloting	ImplementingFrom Schools as Self-Contained to Schools as Embedded in Communities Implementing
From Standardized Testing to Meaningful Assessment	BeginningFrom Standardized Testing to Meaningful Assessment Beginning	PilotingFrom Standardized Testing to Meaningful Assessment Piloting	ImplementingFrom Standardized Testing to Meaningful Assessment Implementing
From Institutional Ownership of Student Data to Student-Controlled Learning Wallets	BeginningFrom Institutional Ownership of Student Data to Student-Controlled Learning Wallets Beginning	PilotingFrom Institutional Ownership of Student Data to Student-Controlled Learning Wallets Piloting	ImplementingFrom Institutional Ownership of Student Data to Student-Controlled Learning Wallets Implementing

Advocacy

Advisory

Topics

Recent Releases

Future of Learning

Subscribe to Our Podcast

Find us on: