Let the Designing Begin!
School Design Institutes are for people like you: students, parents, educators, community members, industry partners, and other Massachusetts stakeholders who see a need for change in our schools — either in their own communities or across the state — and are ready to take steps towards that change. These changes can be incremental steps or big ones: prototyping a new approach in one grade, reinventing a current school, or designing an entire new one. Participating in a School Design Institute will help you get there. We will focus on developing the knowledge and skills needed to design and implement effective, innovative, and high-quality learning models.
Together during the sessions we will dig into problems of practice you identify and support you to create solutions that you can implement in your own communities. And following each Institute, there's an opportunity to apply for a grant to support implementation of the solutions you create. You can read more about our past grant recipients on the Stories page.
What do past participants say about the school design institute experience?
We have received positive feedback from participants in our School Design Institutes to date. Here are some of their comments:
“Having [the facilitators] introduce us as a team to the design process, then train us and pace us as we practiced, ensures that we… now share ownership of this method and have the confidence to put it to use on a regular basis.”
“Specifically, I appreciated the opportunity to work with my team on getting clarity around the problem we were trying to solve…The work on clarifying our goal was super helpful and I move forward with the confidence that we are clear on our problem of practice and committed to next steps.”
“My most significant takeaway was witnessing how empowered my teachers felt by the end of the weekend. They walked away viewing themselves as capable school designers and agents of change. My personal learning is around the fact that I can apply tools to create this experience for all our teachers. After two days of Mass IDEAS, my teachers who attended have a spring in their step that’s still present after a week of school.”
“Thank you for an incredible and thought-provoking experience. I left energized and excited, as well as solutions-oriented.”
Who HAS PARTICIPATED SO FAR?
We are so excited that teams from across Massachusetts have participated in our School Design Institutes. Make sure to sign up for our mailing list to hear when the next Institute will be available for you to apply.
Baystate Academy Charter School (Springfield)
Blackstone Valley Education Hub
Boston Advertising & Design High School (TBD)
Brighton High School
Cohasset Center for Student Coastal Research
Cohasset Middle High School
Dearborn STEM Academy (Boston)
Essex North Shore Agricultural & Technical School (Hathorne)
Excel High School (Boston)
Galvin Middle School (Canton)
Holyoke STEM Academy
Jabish Brook Middle School (Belchertown)
Kane Elementary School (Marlborough)
Leading Edge (TBD)
R.C. Mahar Regional School (Orange)
McCormack Middle School (Boston)
McKay Arts Academy (Fitchburg)
Melrose High School
Milford High School
Mohawk Trail Regional School (Shelburne Falls)
New Bedford Cheironeum
Peck Full Service Community School (Holyoke)
Resiliency Preparatory Academy (Fall River)
Salem High School
TechBoston Academy
Veritas Prep Holyoke
Westport Junior Senior High School
Wildflower Montessori Middle School (TBD)
Winship Elementary School (Boston)