Parent's frustration with school leads to Acton

Parents Reflect on their Journey to Acton:

"We can't think of a better legacy than this."

We had high expectations for Acton Academy coming in, and Acton has exceeded them.

​Our journey to Acton is probably like many others. We felt there was more to education than what we'd seen with traditional schooling. And that's not a knock on the teachers, only the current system they work in, which in our view is suboptimal. Reading books like Nurture Shock and The Talent Code and listening to TED Talks like Sir Ken Robinson's opened our eyes to a new way of thinking and inspired use to explore alternative education options in Lincoln, Nebraska. We questioned why today's approach to traditional schooling is essentially the same as decades ago. 

Why the disconnect in our school system? Why not emphasize usable skills in today's world--creativity, collaboration, communication, and critical thinking--instead of procedural rigamarole?

A series of events then unfolded that led us to Acton Academy Lincoln. First, our daughter, who is very much an outside-the-box thinker and someone who is always coming up with new ideas, was being graded on her handwriting in 1st grade. What wasn't on the checklist scorecard was creativity, where she thrives. Why is that? Doctors toil for years after college, working long hours to perfect their craft, and we consider them successful in life. You know what else they're known for...having illegible handwriting. So why the disconnect in our school system? Why not emphasize usable skills in today's world--creativity, collaboration, communication, and critical thinking--instead of procedural rigamarole? Our daughter would come home from traditional school exhausted, no doubt because they forced her to learn in a manner that didn't suit her best. We can only imagine how many other kids are in her shoes.  

​During the fall of 2020 through the spring of 2021, we homeschooled our daughter. Our daughter thrived under this less rigid education model. She had the autonomy to study what she wanted when she wanted. To spend more time on something that interested her and less time on what didn't while still getting the work done. The idea that a one-size-fits-all approach works for school doesn't make much sense. The home school experiment was not a long-term solution, so thankfully, we learned about Acton during the tail end of our daughter's second-grade year.  

We had high expectations for Acton Academy coming in, and Acton has exceeded them. We love this school, its mission, philosophy, and how it encourages kids to be kids—Forest Fridays, learning about podcasts and outdoor survival, engineering, etc. We love the mixed-age studios and how everyone works together and encourages each other. Focusing on critical thinking skills, collaborating with your peers, communication, and brainstorming creative ways to solve problems are vital skills for today's world.   

Not to mention, we love the entrepreneurial focus of Acton and how they encourage young minds to consider the possibilities and challenge the status quo. A person can read about starting a business or running a business until they're blue in the face, but nothing replaces doing those things. Firsthand experience is essential to growth; it's where the mistakes are made and thus where the lessons are learned. It's much safer to stay on the sidelines and criticize others doing the work, but the actual rewards are in the doing. At Acton, kids learn to be, learn to do, and learn to learn. Acton is creating lifelong learners and kids who have a growth mindset. We can't think of a better legacy than this.

- Jon & Audrey Sevenker

Acton Lincoln Parents