New School Creation Fellowship
Design and launch an innovative school focused on equity and deeper learning
Reimagine Education for Justice
A Letter from our Directors:
Over the past six years, we have proudly supported over 200 educators and leaders in their quest to design nearly 100 innovative schools grounded in equity and deeper learning across the country. We are extremely proud of the work we’ve done with our school founders, alongside the mentors, advisors, and thought partners who have supported this work.
Our generous grant funding has sunsetted, and so we will not be accepting a new cohort of Fellows for the 2023-2024 academic year.
We are currently working on developing new pathways of support for current school leaders, NSCF alum, and other passionate visionaries working to design transformative deeper learning communities and who hold equity at their core.
If you are still interested in school design, we invite you to join our email community for more information about our current and future offerings.
With gratitude,
Team NSCF
Stacey Lopaz, Tony Simmons, and Melissa Daniels
What sets us apart
18 STATES
New School Creation Fellows connect to the broader landscape of innovative school designers around the country from 18 different states
89%
Nearly 90% of NSCF fellows identify as people of color — 4.5x the national average for school leaders — many of whom come from the communities they serve. NSCF has supported the design and start-up process of nearly 50 schools across 13 different cities.
97 SCHOOLS
New School Creation Fellows are part of broad alumni network representing 97 different school founding teams
About the Program
Engage with school founders around the country who are working to dismantle systems of oppression in the communities they serve.
Funded by the Walton Family Foundation, The New School Creation Fellowship (NSCF) is offered as a two-year, hybrid, online program with two fully-funded residencies at our San Diego campus. The fellowship is available for aspiring school founders in the United States.
In Person Residencies
- In Year 1, fellows will have the opportunity to attend an in-person Fall Residency in October and an in-person Spring Residency in March.
- In Year 2, fellows will have the opportunity to attend an in-person Residency in the Spring.
- All residencies take place at High Tech High in San Diego, CA. All lodging and travel expenses will be covered by the Fellowship.
- At these Residencies, Fellows will build relationships, work with National Faculty, visit HTH schools, and engage in design work with their team members.
Year 1:
Fall Residency (October)
Spring Residency (late March)
Year 2:
Spring Residency (late March)
Monthly Online Programming
- Monthly online Fire Talks and expert panels with thought leaders in the field of education
- Workshops focused on the process of opening a school
- 1-2 hours online programming/month
National School Visits
- Learn from New School Founders in their context
- Hear the stories of their students, parents, & community members
- Explore the criticality of place, people & higher purpose
- Hear from innovative leaders in different industries
- Broaden and deepen your relationships across the country
- Up to 2 visits over 2 years
Mentor & Advisor Support
- Each fellow/team is partnered with a National Faculty mentor whose background meets their interests. They will serve as a thought partner, confidante and champion for the fellow. Fellows meet with their advisors monthly
- Fellows will also received personalized support through a small-group advisory that meets monthly
Meet Our Fellows
Our fellows are passionate visionaries on a quest to ideate, create, innovate, test, and iterate upon their human-centered school models, all in service of building dynamic and transformative deeper learning communities that hold equity at their core.
Launch Date
Duration
Format
Our Team
Brittney Quinones
Kaleb Rashad
Kelly Wilson
Melissa Daniels
Stacey Lopaz
Tony Simmons
Address
Office of Admissions
High Tech High
Graduate School of Education
2150 Cushing Road
San Diego CA 92106
Contact
Contact us if you have questions about any of our programs.
(619) 398-4902