It’s hard to believe it’s already the one‐​year anniversary of the Friday Feature. It’s been a great opportunity to talk to parents and teachers around the country who have stepped up to provide new learning environments for kids. It’s also enabled me to connect with policymakers and researchers while examining ways to encourage more education entrepreneurship.

Most Friday Feature pieces have highlighted educational options like microschools, hybrid schools, co‐​ops, learning pods, and homeschool programs. The diversity of options illustrates that education is not one size fits all. Classical education models, like Classical Conversations and Merit Academy, appeal to some families. Others prefer a less formal approach, such as unschooling. Some take education outside with a forest school like the Garden School or Barefoot University.

But there’s more to life than “school,” whatever form it takes. The Acton Children’s Business Fair, competitive speech and debate, sports, music, and cybersecurity competitions are examples of learning opportunities that can engage kids in a wide variety of ways.

Sometimes the Friday Feature focuses on policies that support innovation in education. The series started with a look at New Hampshire’s Learn Everywhere program, which allows public school students to earn graduation credits for certain outside educational opportunities. Tax credit scholarships and education savings accounts, which help parents choose an education beyond their assigned district schools, have been covered as general ideas and as specific programs in Tennessee and West Virginia.

In the past few years, private donors have become more involved in providing funding opportunities for educational entrepreneurs. The VELA Education Fund and the STOP Awards are grant programs that can help innovative educational models grow and expand. The combination of expanding school choice and new grant opportunities has also helped give rise to increasing numbers of teacher entrepreneurs.

The Friday Feature gives a glimpse of what is possible in education today. There’s no reason to limit kids to the district school they happen to live near—that’s a relic from a time gone by, when people traveled on foot or horse and buggy. With modern transportation and technology, the possibilities for individualized education are nearly limitless.

I’m looking forward to another year of connecting with inspirational entrepreneurs and leaders and sharing their stories through the Friday Feature. And if you see something that would be a good fit, please send it my way.