“Inside every human being is a hero waiting to emerge.”

Those words, by Holocaust hero and survivor Luba Tryszynska-Frederick, have guided me in my mission to help students discover their gifts and purpose – their ability to be someone’s hero.

As a young child I was placed in a project-based pull-out program with an extraordinary teacher. The afternoons I spent in that space were my favorite as I felt accepted, challenged, engaged, and free to pursue my passions. Some time between sixth grade and high school I lost my zeal for learning. I was very involved in my community and found great reward in those experiences, but the classroom was a place where I felt stifled and bored. When I entered college to become an educator, I was determined to provide a different type of experience for my students.

After college, I taught in DC as a 5th grade teacher and then as an enrichment specialist. The school transformed my view of education because it put the whole child first and strived to find a place within the school that each child felt they belonged. While there I helped direct the school’s musical, led the Student Council, organized the 5th grade Embassy Adoption Program and the Mini UN, served on the district’s experiential learning task force, and was featured over at National Geographic. After leaving the classroom for two years to finish my Master’s degree in education and write/adapt curriculum for the US Institute of Peace and Heartwork, I re-entered the public school system as a gifted intervention specialist in Colorado.

I realized during my teaching experiences that all educational environments are not equal. What makes a school outstanding for many students often makes it less than ideal for asynchronous students. I felt limited in my ability to foster growth and empowerment in my students and decided there must be a better way. After visiting with and learning from several visionary micro school founders, it became clear that micro schools are a better way. We decided to combine my passion for student-centered learning and my husband’s entrepreneurial expertise to create a micro school here in our local community. 

Our tagline is Growing Minds, Giving Hearts because we help our learners expand their knowledge, curiosity, and love of learning while providing a safe environment to embrace their capacity to make positive change. Children have the ability to see unique solutions to challenging problems and have the intensity and drive to do something about it – even at a young age. We couple their innate desire to be successful and industrious and their natural curiosity so that each child can strengthen the gifts that are uniquely theirs and are vital to our world.

-Sarah (and Lydia and Nick)

A little about us:
I (Sarah) love to bake, quilt, play piano, read, and spend time with friends. I caught the “teacher bug” when I was in second grade and started helping in my mom’s first grade class.
Nick loves to cook, read, fly fish, and snowboard. Although his first entrepreneurial experience was less than successful and included a lemonade stand, too much sugar, bees, and one of his best friends, he has since started several successful software companies.
You can often find us playing board games and telling stories at a local coffee shop with our sweet daughter.

P.S. I’d love to hear from you!