OUR mission
To provide a learner-centered, experience-based and project-driven alternative education program for homeschooling families of innovative children who wish to benefit from meaningful educational and social enrichment as part of a microschool community of learners, parents, and teachers.
What is scholé?
Restful Learning
Our educational philosophy is inspired by the concept of scholé, or “restful learning.” We believe in education for the pursuit of truth, beauty, and goodness, not for checking boxes. Our philosophy is best described as classical progressivism: in order to be part of the “great conversation” of human history, one must be familiar with the canon of knowledge, however, the best way to truly become educated is through real, hands-on experiences, self-motivated learning, and learning side-by-side with others.
our goals
001.
To provide an experiential, project-based learning environment.
002.
To integrate the benefits of home and institutional learning.
003.
To provide a setting for group problem solving and the social construction of knowledge.
004.
To form a partnership community among families, students, and teachers.
005.
To support students’ whole being through extensive opportunities for movement, unstructured play, and being outdoors.
006.
To provide opportunities for students to engage in real-world projects that utilize their skills and talents to benefit their larger community.
Our story
Scholé Center for Innovative Education was founded in 2022 by Lauren Yacht and Sarah Lavezzo. As homeschooling moms and former public school teachers, we loved the flexibility and individualization homeschooling provided our families, but missed the opportunities for communal learning that traditional school offered. We sought an environment where our quirky, inquisitive children could thrive and learn deeply—something academically rich, but not achievement-based, where students were being prepared for real life, not tests, and children were educated holistically as whole individuals. We envisioned a balance between classroom, home, and field learning, and couldn’t seem to find a program that checked all of the boxes. When we connected online, we discovered that our oldest children were the same age, had similar gifts and challenges, and that we both happened to be moving back to the same part of Northern Virginia (on the same day)! With our educational vision aligned in a way that felt too purposeful to be fortuitous, we decided to launch Scholé to serve our families and our larger community.
With only three months between meeting and the first day of school, we decided to pilot our vision as a homeschool cooperative for the first year with the intention to transition to a hybrid drop-off model. Our nine founding families helped to shape the culture of our program and established the heart of our school community. We will always cherish the idyllic year we spent reading books, building aqueducts, experimenting and dissecting, feasting, running through the garden, and starting each school day with a pile of shoes on the porch. This is the year the we knew learning could be both deep and restful, rigorous and joyful.
In 2023, we transitioned to a drop-off hybrid program and moved out of our founder’s home and into our own rented space. We began this year as an elementary program with students grades K through 6, with two classes and three teachers. We expanded in 2024 by adding a middle school class, who started their tenure with a bang by placing first in the World Affairs Challenge among 170 teams from eight countries!
Thanks to the enthusiasm of our students, staff, and families, the future of Scholé feels limitless. We will be adding a high school program in 2026, and are excited to continue innovating ways to serve our students and larger community!