Our story
“One of the most distinctive features of human intelligence is the capacity to imagine, to project out of our own immediate circumstances and to bring to mind things that aren’t present here and now.”
When I founded the Liberi School in 2015, my goal as a parent and educator was to create a more contemporary and dynamic model of education. Bureaucratic schools systems, which prioritize conformity and standardization in the classroom, are failing to prepare students for a future that demands creativity, empathy, and innovation.
Inspired by the children, teachers, and families who joined me, we started a vibrant independent school for Pre-Kindergarten through Grade 8 in Hudson, New York. Our project-based interdisciplinary curriculum allowed students to thrive in a brilliant learning community of creative independent thinkers. The whole school worked synchronously on curricular themes—such as poetry, ancestry and immigration, seeds and bees—cultivating the 21st-century skills of creativity, critical thinking, collaboration, and communication. Children developed teaching and learning relationships across age groups as they followed connected lines of inquiry.
COVID 19 was a turning point. During our pivot to remote learning, I was amazed to discover that meaningful education can translate online. I realized that—with intention and inspiration—it is possible to build an enriching virtual learning community. Watching the children’s faces light up during our whole school Friday morning meetings (which included a legendary three-part talent show) or seeing the students’ satisfaction of presenting their final science projects (3-D sculptures of evolutionary future birds constructed with materials found at home) on zoom allowed me to glimpse what exhilarating potential this new modality held for the design of learning environments.
Given the current climate, many families and teachers do feel freer and safer teaching and learning at home, which allows them to more fully engage in the deep, cumulative learning we strive for. School reopenings have been fraught with chaos, stress, and unrealistic expectations. In-person learning continues to cause anxiety and ongoing uncertainty. Disruptions amplify frustrations for so many involved.
Facing the question of how to keep Liberi’s mission alive in the context of a worldwide public health crisis, I believe in pioneering a more sustainable way forward. While many schools are mired in contingency planning, we’ve been busy dreaming up a new model for the future of education.
We envision an education that can encompass the globe: a virtual schoolhouse that connects teachers and children on the ground from around the world. Geographical boundaries are lifted as children’s worlds expand. Consider studying rivers like the Everglades or the Amazon with someone who lives near their banks. Joining storytellers from every continent in a writing workshop. Or partner reading with a classmate from another coast or state. Anything is possible if you dare to imagine.
Remote learning is not the same as in-person. Rather, it’s a viable and liberating alternative for many families that opens up new possibilities. Imagine being able to live or travel anywhere and still know your children can get a world-class education. The number of homeschooling families is skyrocketing this year. I’ve spoken to so many parents who are embracing this newfound flexibility. Yet the expertise and knowledge needed to educate their students at home remains daunting for most parents. We want to solve that for you.
We are here for families who are homeschooling, microschooling, or enrolled in a school whose virtual learning program is not working (unstimulating or overtaxing). If, like us, you’re looking for an intentionally designed year of uninterrupted and inspired learning at home, join our community.
Liberi’s curriculum will nurture your children’s innate curiosity, empathy, and creativity without compromising on academic rigor. We emphasize learning how to learn through problem solving, taking risks, embracing the unknown, and relishing the process of discovery. Our emergent curriculum lives, breathes, and takes shape with truly personalized, student-centered inquiry.
Liberi’s programs offer daily live zoom classes with passionate, experienced teachers who focus on hands-on, real-world, off-screen learning projects. We provide expert instruction and the structure for student sharing, discussion, and collaboration.
Teaching and learning happens in relationship. When children are engaged emotionally, intellectually, and imaginatively, they drive their own learning. Small class sizes allow for meaningful social-emotional focus and building friendships and mentorship opportunities across a whole school community that cultivates respect and trust. Guided by our social-emotional mentor Elizabeth Letsou, children have the chance to chat with each other, find common interests, and develop important social skills through informal zoom snack breaks, meet ups, and student-run clubs.
Beginning September 2020, we have transformed our brick-and-mortar school into a global virtual schoolhouse, where students can build meaningful relationships and learn with their teachers and peers from anywhere in the world.
To bring the Liberi education online and reach children learning from home, without geographical limitations, is a beacon of hope in challenging times.
The global pandemic upended the world of education and awakened a new urgency to the question of how we teach our children. Change has been accelerated. This can be a year of expansion and growth for your children, with unique (and unexpected) opportunities. Inspired by the potential to expand our geographical boundaries beyond our pandemic bubbles, we are excited to partner with I Am: International Foundation in our global outreach efforts.
We believe that bringing a world perspective to students learning at home and connecting children with culturally diverse communities and people is more important now than ever. Our children are global citizens and engaging them in a worldwide conversation allows them to envision and work towards a future that includes all of humanity.
Education must always mean freedom and hope.
