Accelerator
Accelerator
Announcements, Press Releases
Pedal to the Metal in Miami
November 28 - December 1, 2022
Florida is known as the Sunshine State, but it was 32 STOP-enabled semifinalists who truly shined during our fast-paced and jam-packed Accelerator to the $1 million Yass Prize this past week. From California to Vermont and everywhere in between, education innovators said they “learned how we can do even MORE for our students” with “insight on how we can all continue our journey to change the world.” Another said: “Enlightening doesn’t even come close.”
Jeb Bush reminded everyone to focus on literacy and that parents are students’ “first teachers.” Bitcoin backer and education entrepreneur Michael Saylor encouraged semifinalists to be intentional about equipping students with techniques for what’s in-demand and to inspire students to create what can be automated so it can be spread further and faster. “If you have a brilliant teacher or classroom experience that is performing for students they care about,” Saylor said, “put a camera on them and the class”—and make it available to the world. Saylor’s own free Academy serves more than 1.5 million students of all ages, and thousands more enroll each quarter. Michael Sorrell, president of Paul Quinn College—America’s oldest historically black college west of the Mississippi River—shared what he learned from his family: “You can do anything you set your mind to. And you have an obligation to do something about it.”
Yass Prize semifinalists clearly set their mind to their students’ success. And in Miami, they learned how to say as much. Before they each made their pitch, they were encouraged to “Look at every slide and say, ‘So what?’” Yass Prize judges evaluated the “what” of every pitch and we look forward to announcing what comes next.
We didn’t take our foot off the gas at our Accelerator, however. Yass Prize founder, and what one semifinalist called the “Education Oprah who is literally transforming education,” Janine Yass indicated things are just getting started. Yass announced the six runners-up award to $1 million Yass Prize will now be doubled to $500,000 each! “We need you to grow more rapidly to give more students the education they deserve,” Yass said. Look for more here soon on who’s accelerating to the prestigious $1 million Yass Prize to be announced in New York City on December 14!
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The Yass Foundation advances the four core STOP principles: Sustainable, Transformational, Outstanding, and Permissionless education. Each year, the Foundation will reward dozens of organizations, building a growing network of innovative providers that
demonstrate these qualities in their commitment to new ideas, technologies, and approaches to learning that bring education into
the 21st century. The Foundation is powered by the Center for Education Reform (CER) in partnership with Forbes.
