Education Revolution: Summer Schneider Of Legacy College Prep On Innovative Approaches That Are Transforming Education

An interview with Eden Gold

Consistency is key. Know your values, know the values of the organization and stay true and consistent to those values. Treat all of those working with you consistently and fairly and you will be respected even when you are not making popular decisions.

The landscape of education is undergoing a profound transformation, propelled by technological advancements, pedagogical innovations, and a deepened understanding of learning diversities. Traditional classrooms are evolving, and new modes of teaching and learning are emerging to better prepare students for the complexities of the modern world. This series will take a look at the groundbreaking work being done across the globe to redefine education. As a part of this interview series, we had the pleasure to interview Summer Schneider.

Summer Schneider is the Founder and Executive Director of Legacy College Preparatory Charter School, dedicated to providing rigorous academics and fostering a strong school culture. With 15 years of experience in education, she has coached and managed numerous teachers and staff, previously serving as a Dean of Instruction and math teacher at Noble Network of Charter Schools. Summer holds a BS in Business Economics and Business Administration from the University of Kentucky and an MA in Secondary Mathematics Instruction from the University of Missouri-St. Louis.

Thank you so much for doing this with us! Our readers would love to “get to know you” a bit better. Can you share the “backstory” behind what brought you to this particular career path?

I started teaching right out of college and spent two years at a traditional public school district followed by five years at a high performing charter school network. I saw the differences between how the two organizations were run and knew that I wanted to run a charter school. The school I was working at was a college prep school but they enrolled scholars starting in 9th grade, which meant that by the time many of our scholars got to us it was too late for them to be considered for many of the top colleges and universities. I became passionate about wanting to start with scholars in 6th grade to see if the extra years of middle school would help more scholars achieve on grade level and be prepared entering high school.

Can you share the most interesting story that happened to you since you started your career? Can you tell us what lesson you learned from that?

Interesting, I think of the COVID-19 pandemic but that happened to everyone. What some people forget is that New York schools were virtual much longer than the rest of the country. When we finally returned to in-person instruction in the fall of 2021 I was 7 months pregnant and my high school Principal was 9 months pregnant. She went out on maternity leave in September and I was supposed to follow her in November. Those two months were probably the most interesting of my career because we were trying to teach scholars how to come back to an in-person setting after being out of the classroom for a year and a half. We had the vaccine mandate where I had to let go of eight teachers in October because they refused to be vaccinated. I was also struggling to find someone to support the high school because our interim principal was not equipped to handle the challenges of running a school that was in-person for the first time ever with two grade levels. The lesson this taught me was to build your bench and train your leaders for the unexpected. If I had spent more time that summer training our leaders to handle the challenges that were to come we would have been more prepared for that fall.

Can you briefly share with our readers why you are an authority in the education field?

I don’t love the word authority, but I think I had a lot of experiences that have built who I am today in the educational field. I have been a teacher, an instructional coach, a Principal, a superintendent, an adjunct professor. I have trained teachers for organizations like Teach For America and Relay Graduate School of Education. I have run a charter school organization for close to ten years, founding it from the ground up which included establishing the board and writing the charter to get the school approved. I think my longevity and my experiences make me an authority in this field.

Can you identify some areas of the US education system that are going really great?

I think the fact that the country is trying to have consistent standards across all states is a really good step in the right direction. I grew up in Kentucky, which is one of the poorest states in the country and when my husband and I talk about our educational experiences (he went to school in a wealthy Connecticut suburb of NYC) there are drastic differences in the quality of education. I don’t think that where you live and which state you are in should determine the level and quality of education you receive and consistent standards is a step in the right direction.

Can you identify the key areas of the US education system that should be prioritized for improvement? Can you explain why those are so critical?

I think more people should talk about 3K and Pre-K for all. I think our country loses a lot by not starting school earlier and I think the fact that childcare options are not accessible and available to all hurts our low-income families the most. Scholars that start school in kindergarten are behind. If we started earlier and had consistent programs that were well funded, we would see greater success for scholars across the country.

I also think the teacher shortage is going to become a really big problem for this country in the long term and we should be working on ways to incentivize people to become teachers. We are going to look back at a generation who were educated by subs and wonder what happened.

Please tell us all about the innovative educational approaches that you are using. What is the specific problem that you aim to solve, and how have you addressed it?

One of the problems we are currently facing is a teacher shortage. We are trying to maintain consistent teachers for our scholars and motivate those teachers to stay in the profession longer. We have created several initiatives or put into place a few things that have helped with this that involve creating a balance for teachers and making the work more sustainable.

1. We try to ensure that teachers have equal preparation and planning time during the day to the amount of time they teach.
2. We are exploring flexible schedules to allow some teachers to work remotely on Fridays.
3. We pay extra stipends to teachers who teach multiple contents, teacher advance placement courses, and/or teach college-level courses through our partnership with Syracuse University.

In what ways do you think your approach might shape the future of education? What evidence supports this?

We need to think about how to create a balance for teachers that makes them want to stay in the profession. Research for years has pointed to teacher quality as one of the biggest factors that led to a child’s success in the classroom. We believe that by retaining quality teachers and training them well, that we can see greater results for scholars.

How do you measure the impact of your innovative educational practices on students’ learning and well-being?

We look at scholar results. How are scholars doing on Regents exams, the SAT, AP exams, etc. Also, how are scholars doing in terms of being promoted to the next grade level, and being on track for graduation. Finally, how are scholars doing at being ready for what comes next. We track our alumni to see how they are doing after high school and to make sure they have support after they leave us.

We also look at scholar retention. Are scholars staying with us because they feel like the school has their best interest at heart?

What challenges have you faced in implementing your educational innovations, and how have you overcome them?

The biggest challenge is that the day is pretty inflexible. Scholars need to be in school for a certain number of hours and they need teachers in person to teach them. We tried to look at what we could do within that structure to give teachers more time and space to do their jobs so that the task felt more manageable.

The next biggest challenge is funding. We need to ensure that we can pay teachers competitively and offer those stipends/bonuses to reward teachers who go above and beyond. One of the ways we do this is by cutting some of our overhead costs. We don’t have a lot of leadership team members at the top who don’t teach running the school. All of our deans teach, and all of leaders wear multiple hats to ensure that the teachers are support.

Keeping in mind the “Law of Unintended Consequences” can you see any potential drawbacks of this innovation that people should think more deeply about?

I think anytime you change the schedule or work environment you might entice someone to look for work elsewhere. That is always a risk.

What are your “5 Things I Wish I Knew When I First Started”?

1 . Leadership is a marathon and not a sprint. Take the time to learn what you need to learn before moving on to the next level. This will also build your capacity to take on more responsibility as time goes on.

2 . Organization is crucial to survival. Plan how you use your time instead of letting your time happen to you. Leadership can end up being a dash from one fire to the next if you haven’t planned out how to use your time.

3 . Consistency is key. Know your values, know the values of the organization and stay true and consistent to those values. Treat all of those working with you consistently and fairly and you will be respected even when you are not making popular decisions.

4 . Know your people and choose to love those who work for and with you. This will make it easier to manage people and motivate you to inspire them and help them grow.

5 . Remember to put your own oxygen mask on first. You need to be the very best version of yourself to lead others. Make sure you take time for yourself and find ways to relax and release so that you can be the strong leader you need to be for your organization.

Can you please give us your favorite “Life Lesson Quote”? Can you share how that was relevant to you in your life?

“If my mind can conceive it, if my heart can believe it, then I can achieve it.” — Muhammad Ali

This quote has always helped me believe that we can achieve anything. When things seem hard and out of reach, you have to get your mind right, make yourself believe you can do it and then you really can do anything.

We are blessed that some of the biggest names in Business, VC funding, Sports, and Entertainment read this column. Is there a person in the world, or in the US, with whom you would love to have a private breakfast or lunch, and why? He or she might just see this if we tag them :-)

Elizabeth Warren. She is one of the few people in politics talking about 3K and Pre-K for all. I would love to learn more about efforts on a national level to make this happen.

How can our readers further follow your work online?

Check out our website or instagram pages for Legacy College Prep Charter School and Legacy College Prep High School.

Thank you so much for these insights! This was so inspiring!

About The Interviewer: Eden Gold, is a youth speaker, keynote speaker, founder of the online program Life After High School, and host of the Real Life Adulting Podcast. Being America’s rising force for positive change, Eden is a catalyst for change in shaping the future of education. With a lifelong mission of impacting the lives of 1 billion young adults, Eden serves as a practical guide, aiding young adults in honing their self-confidence, challenging societal conventions, and crafting a strategic roadmap towards the fulfilling lives they envision.

Do you need a dynamic speaker, or want to learn more about Eden’s programs? Click here: https://bit.ly/EdenGold