Best Virginia Policy Review Podcasts (2025)

1
A longtime Florida hybrid homeschool founder reflects on today’s innovative education movement 41:25

3d ago41:25

41:25

Today's guest is Ali Kaufman, a longtime education entrepreneur who began offering tutoring services more than two decades ago and has since built a thriving hybrid homeschool program, Space of Mind, in Delray Beach, Florida that today serves dozens of K-12 students with both full-time and part-time enrollment options. *** Sign up for Kerry's free,…

1
Public microschooling gains popularity and support 40:13

6d ago40:13

40:13

Today's guest is George Philhower, Superintendent of the Eastern Hancock Public Schools in rural Charlottesville, Indiana, who is launching and leading the new Indiana Microschool Collaborative, a non-profit network designed to bring the microschooling model into the public education system. Read more about public microschooling in Kerry's latest F…

1
A former public school teacher launches a new Mississippi microschool 41:13

10d ago41:13

41:13

Nefertiti Harris is a former public school teacher, mom of five, and founder of Empowered Prep Academy, a microschool located in Jackson, Mississippi for students in grades 3-12 who desire a flexible and more individualized learning environment. As a certified special education teacher, Nefertiti focuses specifically on helping dyslexic students an…

1
Encouraging new educational models in New Hampshire 38:03

13d ago38:03

38:03

Today's guest is Jody Underwood, the founder and president of EdOpt, a platform offering information, support, and connections to New Hampshire families who want to explore their education options. Jody has spent most of her professional life involved in education, including getting a Ph.D. in science and technology education to complement her Mast…

1
Exploring alternatives to college 37:58

17d ago37:58

37:58

My guest today is Connor Boyack, founder of the Libertas Network, prolific author, creator of the wildly popular Tuttle Twins book series, and now the new president of Praxis, the decade-old apprenticeship preparation and placement program that the Libertas Network recently acquired. *** Sign up for Kerry's free, weekly e-newsletter on education en…

1
Who needs college and who doesn’t, with author Kathleen deLaski 45:49

20d ago45:49

45:49

Today's guest is Kathleen deLaski, author of the thought-provoking new book: Who Needs College Anymore? Imagining A Future Where Degrees Won’t Matter. Kathleen spent 20 years as a journalist, including time as an ABC News White House correspondent. In the second half of her career, she has focused on education reform, cofounding or founding several…

1
A former public school teacher shares why she launched a Virginia microschool 38:30

24d ago38:30

38:30

Today's guest is Crystal Goins, a mom of 5 and founder of Heartwise Scholars Microschool in Chesapeake, Virginia. A public school teacher for over 13 years, Crystal joined the Kaipod Catalyst microschool accelerator program to help get her microschool off the ground, and opened her microschool last August. She shares insights and information for pa…

1
Since 2013, the Agile Learning Centers (ALC) network has been a leader in self-directed education 47:26

27d ago47:26

47:26

My guest today is Tomis Parker, cofounder of the Agile Learning Centers (ALC) network that launched more than a decade ago. Since 2014, Tomis has led business operations at ALC Mosaic in Charlotte, North Carolina, and he recently founded a new project called Prism, which is a web application designed to make it easier to document and communicate th…

1
How two homeschool moms created a North Carolina microschool 41:55

1M ago41:55

41:55

Today's guests are Laura Greene and Angela Ruth, cofounders of Harmony Homeschool Academy, a secular homeschool hybrid solution for middle and high school students in the greater Raleigh-Durham-Cary, North Carolina area. Laura is a licensed psychologist with a background in school psychology. She is also a homeschool parent. Angela is also a homesc…

1
The enduring popularity of homeschooling among US military families 49:09

1M ago49:09

49:09

Natalie Mack is a homeschooling mom of 5 children who has been serving military homeschooling families for more than two decades. Her husband is a US Navy chaplain who recently retired after 34 years of service. Through her business, Natalie Mack LLC, she offers consultations to homeschoolers. She is also the founder of the nonprofit Military Homes…

1
A retired education entrepreneur shares tips for new school founders 52:07

1M ago52:07

52:07

David Jackson is an entrepreneur and longtime executive director and president and CEO of Fairmont Schools, a large, secular private school located in Orange County, California serving students in preschool through 12th grade. Fairmont was founded in 1953 by Kenneth Holt, David’s stepfather, and then David joined the school in a leadership role in …

1
A Florida farm-based, faith-filled Acton Academy 35:10

1M ago35:10

35:10

Today's guest is Michael Bonifacio, the founder of Acton Academy Estero in Fort Myers, Florida. Part of the global Acton Academy network of learner-driven schools, Acton Academy Estero operates on a 32-acre working farm. It opened in January 2024 with 9 learners, and today has over 40—with more than 60 students projected for this fall. *** Sign up …

1
Homeschooling To College: Two Seniors Talk About Which College to Attend 56:20

1M ago56:20

56:20

In the final episode of our 4-part series on Homeschooling To College, Kym Kent and I are joined by our two homeschooled high school seniors as they reflect on their homeschooling experience, what the college admissions process has been like, and how they are narrowing down their many college acceptances to choose the one that is right for them by …

1
Why a homeschooling mom in Washington, DC created Kids & Culture Camp 35:06

2M ago35:06

35:06

Today’s guest is Jania Otey, a homeschooling mom and founder of Kids and Culture Camp, an educational enrichment program for homeschoolers and conventionally-schooled children located in Washington, DC. *** Sign up for Kerry's free, weekly LiberatED e-newsletter on education trends and entrepreneurial stories at fee.org/liberated.…

1
An online learning community for self-directed teens 35:24

2M ago35:24

35:24

Today's guest is Terry Travers, the founder and director of Astrolabe Academy, a unique high school experience and teen community that supports self-directed learners on their individual learning journeys. Terry has a background in communication design, ocean science, and sustainable farming. Passionate about alternative education, she began homesc…

1
What is "school choice"? 36:36

2M ago36:36

36:36

Today's guest is Colleen Hroncich, a policy analyst with the Cato Institute's Center for Educational Freedom. She maintains the Private Schooling Status Tracker, which tracks private school openings and permanent closures along with tuition and demographic information when available. Each week in the Friday Feature blog series, Colleen shares inter…

1
Homeschooling To College: Insights from a College Admissions Counselor 55:49

2M ago55:49

55:49

In part 3 of our 4-part series on Homeschooling To College, Kym Kent and I talk to Rebecca Stuart-Orlowski, an independent college admissions counselor based in Southern California who helps students and families navigate the college admissions process. A former public school teacher, Rebecca homeschooled for 25 years, sending her own three childre…

1
Our 300th episode! Celebrating founders & families 4:45

2M ago4:45

4:45

Welcome to the 300th episode of the LiberatED Podcast! That’s hundreds of conversations, stories, and insights all centered around one core mission: reimagining education and helping families, educators, and innovators discover what’s possible beyond the conventional classroom. Check out Kerry's forthcoming book: Joyful Learning: How to Find Freedo…

1
The Growth and Impact of Sudbury-Model Schools & Spaces 28:34

2M ago28:34

28:34

Today's guest is Ben Draper, Executive Director of the Macomber Center, a self-directed education center for homeschoolers in Massachusetts. Ben is a graduate of the Sudbury Valley School, where he spent most of his childhood and adolescence before attending college at Tufts University and later earning a studio art degree from the Boston Museum Sc…

1
Microschool in a Mall: Dominque Burgess on education entrepreneurship in North Carolina 39:18

2M ago39:18

39:18

Today's guest is Dominque Burgess, a former public school teacher, visionary education entrepreneur, and a national leader in the microschool movement. As the founder of Burbrella Learning Academy Inc. in Burlington, North Carolina she has successfully launched multiple innovative microschools, including transforming an old Foot Locker in a mall in…

1
Makenzie Oliver on helping teachers to let their light shine! 48:42

2M ago48:42

48:42

Today's guest is Makenzie Oliver, host of the popular podcast Teacher, Let Your Light Shine! and its associated Facebook community. An award-winning public school teacher, Makenzie decided to leave the conventional classroom to launch her own microschool, Lighthouse Learning Microschool and Homeschool Hybrid, in 2020 in Longwood, Florida. She now h…

1
Homeschooling to College: Common Myths Around Admission & Affordability 53:45

3M ago53:45

53:45

In this second episode in our series, Homeschooling To College, Kym Kent and I talk about some of the common myths around college admissions and affordability, as well as how to navigate the Common App as a homeschooling family. "A trend colleges might not want applicants to notice: It's becoming easier to get in" (The Hechinger Report, Nov. 2024) …

1
From homeschooling mom of 7 to Kentucky microschool founder 58:33

3M ago58:33

58:33

Today's guest is Lauri Muse, a mom of of 7 children who has been actively homeschooling for 27 years. She recently launched World of Wonder Hybrid Microschool and Homeschool Enrichment Program in Union, Kentucky, near Cincinnati, Ohio. Her weekly homeschool enrichment program now serves over 140 kids, while the 3-day-a-week microschool she opened l…

1
How 3 families got together to create Three Cords Academy in Georgia 44:53

3M ago44:53

44:53

Today's guests are Katie Kilgore and Michael Frost who are the cofounders, along with a third family, of Three Cords Academy, a student-focused, Biblically-centered microschool currently serving 2nd-6th grades which they launched in Fall 2024 in Carrollton, Georgia. *** Sign up for Kerry's free, weekly LiberatED e-newsletter on education trends at …

1
MacKenzie Price on 2-Hour Learning, Alpha School, and AI in Education 42:15

3M ago42:15

42:15

Today's guest is MacKenzie Price, cofounder of 2 Hour Learning and Alpha School, a K-12 private school in Austin, Texas which she launched in 2014. MacKenzie is currently working to scale the Alpha School model nationwide, with additional schools currently operating or opening soon in several states. A graduate of Stanford University, MacKenzie hos…

1
Homeschooling To College: High School Prep and the Pre-Application Process 56:09

3M ago56:09

56:09

In this episode, Kerry chats with Kym Kent, a veteran homeschooling mom of 6 and founder of a Maryland-based homeschooling program who has already graduated 4 of her children and is currently going through the college admissions process with her son Samuel. Kerry's daughter Molly is a lifelong homeschooler who is also going through the college admi…

1
How a teacher and Minnesota mom of 4 created Our Village School, serving 150 learners 42:58

3M ago42:58

42:58

Today's guest is Maria Stalsberg, founder of Our Village School, a creative learning environment for homeschooled kids ages 6 and over in Lakeville, Minnesota. Maria holds a Master’s degree in Teaching and a Bachelor’s in Business Administration. She began her career in Corporate America before transitioning to becoming a classroom teacher in the t…

1
A Big Announcement! 3:35

3M ago3:35

3:35

I am so excited to share the news with you that my new book, Joyful Learning: How To Find Freedom, Happiness, and Success Beyond Conventional Schooling, is now available for preorder! Published by the big New York City publisher Hachette, under its PublicAffairs imprint, Joyful Learning is brimming with information and inspiration for parents and t…

1
A conversation with the cofounder of the Modern Classrooms Project 27:11

3M ago27:11

27:11

Today's guest is Robert Barnett, a former teacher in both public and private schools, and the cofounder and Chief Product Officer at the Modern Classrooms Project, a nonprofit teaching and professional development resource which he helped to launch in 2018. *** Sign up for Kerry's free, weekly LiberatED e-newsletter on education trends at fee.org/l…

1
How one mom unschooled her way to opening a school for unschoolers 45:24

3M ago45:24

45:24

Our guest today is Jennie Jones, a former professional ballerina, turned homeschooling mom of four, turned education entrepreneur. In September 2024, Jennie launched The Treehouse Agile Learning Community as a home-based microschool in St. George, Utah that uses agile learning tools to foster intentional community, natural learning, and independenc…

1
The future of the fast-growing Acton Academy network, with Jake Thompson 39:02

4M ago39:02

39:02

Jake Thompson is the founder of Heroes Academy, an Acton Academy in Boise, Idaho that he opened in 2016. Jake is also now the head of the entire Acton Academy network, which includes over 300 learner-driven schools serving thousands of students worldwide. Check out Kerry's LiberatED interview with Acton Academy network cofounder, Jeff Sandefer. ***…

1
Two teachers and a Texas microschool: How to rekindle your love of teaching 53:07

4M ago53:07

53:07

Today's guests are Taylor Munro and Lacey Fickes, cofounders of Peak Academy, a microschool in Richmond, Texas currently serving students in grades K-8, with a high school expansion in the works. They launched Peak Academy in August 2022, but prior to that both founders worked for many years as public school teachers in Texas. *** Sign up for Kerry…

1
“I shouldn’t have to sneak around to make my students feel successful and be happy.” A former public school teacher explains why she opened her own school 35:42

4M ago35:42

35:42

Tonya Kipe was an elementary school teacher in Florida public schools for over a decade before launching Kipe Academy, a microschool in Polk City, Florida. She grew her microschool from one student in January 2024 to 26 students today, including those with special learning needs. Read more about Tonya's microschool in Kerry's latest article at The …

1
“As a classroom teacher, I felt helpless.” Founder Latoya Nelson on launching a hybrid homeschool-microschool 38:43

4M ago38:43

38:43

Today's guest is Latoya Nelson, founder of The Attuned Community School, a hybrid homeschool program in Warner Robins, Georgia. Latoya is an experienced educator who taught in public schools and charter schools for over a decade. She has been especially interested in working with children in foster care, as well as adoptive families. Latoya launche…

1
Microschooling Predictions for 2025, with the National Microschooling Center 34:34

4M ago34:34

34:34

Don and Ashley Soifer of the National Microschooling Center join me to talk about some of their microschooling predictions for 2025. *** Sign up for Kerry's free, weekly LiberatED e-newsletter on education trends at fee.org/liberated.By Kerry McDonald

1
Learning the business side of running a school: Founder Giselle McClymont on the shift from teacher to entrepreneur 40:21

4M ago40:21

40:21

Giselle McClymont knew from second grade that she wanted to be a teacher. She went on to earn an education degree in college and taught in Florida’s Broward County public elementary schools for six years before leaving the system in 2022 to be a stay-at-home-mom with plans to homeschool her daughter. A year later, she learned about microschools and…

1
Entrepreneurship & Education Choice in North Carolina: “The state scholarships have been really, really important for opening up accessibility.” 41:58

4M ago41:58

41:58

Susan Haws is the founder and Executive Director of Insight Colearning, a private learner-centered, micro-high school located in Durham, North Carolina. She began her career as a Teach For America member in the Rio Grande Valley in Texas in 1993. She went on to teach middle school and high school in traditional public schools, until she left the cl…

1
How microschool teachers can benefit from professional development 38:10

4M ago38:10

38:10

Our guest today is Coi Morefield, founder of The Lab School of Memphis in Tennessee whose newest endeavor is Microschool Masters, a masterclass program for innovative schools and spaces that provides professional development resources for microschool teachers and leaders. *** Sign up for Kerry's free, weekly LiberatED e-newsletter on education tren…

1
A former public school teacher finds fulfillment in her Ohio microschool 45:20

5M ago45:20

45:20

Melanie Leone is a former public school teacher with a Master’s degree in Educational Leadership. Over the course of her career, she’s worked in multiple states and spent five years as a childcare center director which changed her philosophy of education. In fall 2023, she founded Anchor Center for Learning in Stow, Ohio as a three-day-a-week, mult…

1
Supporting self-directed learning in and out of conventional classrooms 37:40

5M ago37:40

37:40

Today's podcast guest is Tyler Thigpen, co-founder and CEO of The Forest School: An Acton Academy, The Forest School Online, and the Institute for Self Directed Learning in Fayetteville, Georgia. Tyler is also the Academic Director at the University of Pennsylvania Graduate School of Education, a guest lecturer at the Harvard University Graduate Sc…

1
How One Missouri Mom Created A Microschool Serving 200 Students 48:36

5M ago48:36

48:36

Kate Brockmeyer is the founder of Off the Page Co-Learning, a microschool located just outside of St. Louis, Missouri that now serves nearly 200 students, ages 4 to 17. Kate launched her microschool in the fall of 2022 and has seen the program’s popularity soar since then. She’s attentive to the needs and wants of the homeschooling families she ser…

1
In Upstate New York, A New Acton Academy Takes Off 40:04

5M ago40:04

40:04

Melissa Borkowski is the cofounder, along with her husband Nick, of Acton Studios of Rochester in Rochester, New York that is part of the vast Acton Academy network of learner-driven schools serving thousands of learners around the world. *** Sign up for Kerry's free, weekly LiberatED e-newsletter on education trends at fee.org/liberated.…

1
How a homeschool mom created an education website that reaches millions 37:47

5M ago37:47

37:47

Debra Ross is a homeschool mom and the founder, publisher, and CEO of Kids Out And About, LLC, a media and marketing company that provides information on family-focused resources and events in communities across the country through its two main platforms, KidsOutAndAbout.com and BeyondTheNest.com, which reach 11 million visitors. *** Sign up for Ke…

1
How microschools are sharing instructors and building community across the US 29:54

5M ago29:54

29:54

Sara Casey Taleff has been involved in education for more than 20 years, working in public schools in New York City as well as at the state Department of Education in Montana. For the last 10 years, Sara has lived between Montana and New York creating innovative learning environments. She founded and directs the nonprofit, Cottonwood, which operate…

1
A university researcher explains why homeschooling numbers continue to grow 20:09

5M ago20:09

20:09

Collin Hitt, Ph.D., is the executive director of the Policy Research in Missouri Education (PRIME) Center at Saint Louis University in Missouri. He is also a homeschooling dad and the co-author of a new report on homeschooling's growth that was recently published in the Journal of School Choice. *** Sign up for Kerry's free, weekly LiberatED e-news…

1
An online microschool for homeschooled teens and tweens 45:01

5M ago45:01

45:01

Luba Vangelova is the founder of The Hub, a part-time online microschool for homeschooled teens and tweens that emphasizes curiosity, collaboration, and community. *** Sign up for Kerry's free, weekly LiberatED e-newsletter on education trends at fee.org/liberated.By Kerry McDonald

1
A Homeschool Mom Founded Above Reproach Academy, Now Serving 100+ Learners 39:27

5M ago39:27

39:27

Kimberly Amee is a homeschool mom and former teacher who in 2021 founded Above Reproach Academy, a private umbrella school, homeschool co-op, and educational resource center located in Spring Hill, Florida that now serves over 100 learners. *** Sign up for Kerry's free, weekly LiberatED e-newsletter on education trends at fee.org/liberated.…

1
Founder Ar’Jillian Gilmer on the journey from Arkansas public school teacher to education entrepreneur 30:16

6M ago30:16

30:16

Ar'Jillian Gilmer is the founder of Gilmer's Learning Solutions, a tutoring center and microschool in Little Rock, Arkansas. A public school teacher for nearly a decade, Ar'Jillian felt the pull towards education entrepreneurship and creating innovative learning options for local children. *** Sign up for Kerry's free, weekly LiberatED e-newsletter…

1
Investing in entrepreneurs, with 1517's Danielle Strachman 39:28

6M ago39:28

39:28

Danielle Strachman is the cofounder and general partner of the 1517 Fund, an early-stage venture capital fund and community supporting college dropouts and tech-focused scientists working on entrepreneurial solutions to big problems. Danielle has worked with young entrepreneurs for over a decade, including during the founding in 2010 of the Thiel F…

1
Why a former public school teacher launched an Acton Academy 36:39

6M ago36:39

36:39

Kristy Moody is the cofounder, along with her husband, of Acton Academy Palm Harbor in Florida. A former public school teacher and principal, Kristy tried to make change within the conventional system but ultimately decided on entrepreneurship. She launched her school in August of 2022 to provide a space for learner-driven education in her communit…

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Virginia Policy Review Podcasts

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