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lt's time for innovation to transform education

It’s no secret that the U.S. education system is facing numerous challenges. The standardized, one-size-fits-all approach focuses on memorization and rote learning, often failing to cater to the unique needs and talents of individual students. This lack of personalization can lead to disengagement and poor outcomes, leaving students feeling unmotivated and unprepared for life beyond school.

Innovation in education needs funding. But there’s a catch: to receive funding, entrepreneurs usually need to show proof of concept — that their idea works.

That can be tricky for education entrepreneurs who want to think outside the box. In the United States, trusted old models receive funding from legislators because they use outdated measures and assessments to decide “what works” in traditional settings. But it’s exactly those old models and metrics that need to be transformed.

Academic achievement among American students continues to fall behind their global counterparts. According to the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), U.S. students rank 25th out of 37 countries in math proficiency, and similarly low in reading and science.

The fact is, in the U.S., education from 1st to 12th grade has long been more about tradition than innovation. For generations, the school experience has barely changed. Our schools may look the same as our parents’ schools — and their schools looked the same as their parents’. It was more about listening to lectures, memorizing facts, and writing essays than about exploring the things that make each student uniquely themselves.

What if education and imagination could be synonymous? That is the vision the VELA Education Fund aims to realize through its work funding diverse educational models for students across the U.S.

This nonprofit has flipped the script — instead of handing large sums of money to a select few, VELA offers millions of dollars in small grants to thousands of everyday entrepreneurs. This model generates fresh, community-rooted approaches to education. These creators share a self-starting spirit, a desire to meet the needs of the learners and families they serve, and a willingness to rethink the “where, how, and when” of school.

VELA’s model is unique because it instills trust and encourages autonomy in educators, believing that those closest to the problem should be the ones designing its solutions. Unlike other grants, VELA doesn’t require as much proof of concept upfront, allowing funding to drive the outcomes — not the other way around. By awarding smaller grants to a broader range of applicants, it supports a more diverse array of ideas, backgrounds, and educational models. These smaller grants also give recipients the freedom to take risks and be more creative.

“We limit our potential when we limit the people who have access to opportunities to drive social change,” said Meredith Olson, president of VELA. “A few thousand dollars to the right person can fuel innovation on a scale we never imagined.”

So far, VELA has awarded more than $35 million in grants to nearly 2,500 recipients — including microschool founders, homeschool leaders, and many others — who collectively serve over 5 million students across the country. The organization’s continued support sends a strong message to other education funders: trust that families and educators know how to support their learners best — and empower them to do so.

(Adapted from Why we need more Innovation In education & VELA Education Fund Catalyzes Innovatlon In Educatlon)