Growing schools and programs

[Alan P Berger]

We, as an alternative education community, often provide more help to start schools and programs than we do once they are off the ground. From my time being involved in this movement, ten years now and counting, I've seen several schools and programs start up and peter out, or just get stuck and not really thrive or grow the way the founders had originally envisioned. I'd like to help change that. The more we build great and thriving schools as models, the stronger our argument becomes for more student centered and democratically based education and the greater our influence will be.

 

I've just finished a ten year run as the Founder and Executive Director of Brooklyn Free School, a successful non-profit, independent, diverse, democratic education school in Brooklyn, NY, that has 60 students and is growing, and is financially stable.

 

In addition to running the day-to-day operations and working on the strategic planning of the school, I've also helped to spread the news about this movement through starting a regional association and conference, NADEC, organizing two education symposiums at Medgar Evers College, helping to stage a TEDx talks event, and gaining lots of media exposure-including articles in The New York Times, The Huffington Post, a segment on NPR's This American Life, and most recently in the current issue of Wired magazine.

 

I'm interested in leveraging these experiences, as well as previous public education and business experience, to help schools and programs become everything they'd like to become and in so doing, help the movement.  Send me an email or call me at 917-715-7157 and let's start a conversation.

 

Thanks!

Alan