09/30/2026
A yellow school bus that doubles as a classroom. A school where students help decide who gets hired. Classes grouped by ability instead of age.
These are real Virginia microschools, and each was founded by a former teacher who saw a better way to help children learn.
In Norfolk, Sarah Harrington's Solstice Hybrid Academy takes students on a field trip every day aboard a renovated bus, with stops ranging from college-level science labs to animal rescues.
In Leesburg, Andrea Cubelo-McKay runs the Embark Center for Self-Directed Education as a sociocracy, where students and staff share an equal voice in decisions large and small.
In Yorktown, Mercedes Grant Path of Life Learning Learning places students by ability in each subject so every child moves at their own pace, all within a Christian environment.
Three very different models share one conviction: education should bend to fit the student, not the other way around. That is permissionless education at work across the Commonwealth.
Virginia needs more schools like these, and we are here to help them grow!
Read their stories: (Article by James Eustis) https://virginiamicroschools.org/news/the-small-schools-bringing-innovation-to-education
