In most areas of life, if something isn’t working, we look for another option. But not in K–12 education. The current system assigns kids to public schools based on where they live, not what they need. When it’s not working, the default is to assume there’s a problem with the child instead of asking if the school is the best fit. Of course, sometimes kids just need to work through challenges. But often, a different environment is what’s needed.
The spread of school choice programs that allow state funds to be used beyond public schools is opening the door to other learning environments—and that’s expanding educational freedom. But many parents and teachers aren’t aware of the diverse array of alternatives available today. Each week, the Cato Friday Feature showcases these options, along with the policies and organizations that make them more accessible, raising awareness for policymakers and parents. Educational freedom can only change lives if the people most affected know about it!
Living in Arizona—a state at the forefront of school choice and education entrepreneurship—Jennie Jones learned about Prenda microschools soon after she began homeschooling her oldest child. She was intrigued. “I thought, wow, that would be so fun to bring a few kids to my house,” she recalls.
But then her family moved to Utah, and she didn’t see Prenda there. She wasn’t sure she was allowed to start a microschool. “I kind of was unsure how to navigate the legal side of it,” says Jennie. “I was like, ‘Can you just do that in your house?’”
Around that time, Utah passed two laws that changed the landscape—Utah Fits All, an ESA that allows state funding to be used for a variety of educational expenses, and Senate Bill 13, which removed many of the barriers to creating microschools in homes and other spaces. “That shifted everything for me because it felt so safe,” she says. “I just felt like, okay, I’m doing it. I’m jumping in.”
The Treehouse began in her home with an emphasis on project-based, self-directed learning. Now entering its third year, Jennie has capped enrollment at 32 students due to space constraints and has a waitlist. “The demand was here,” she says. “So we grew fast, and I’ve been learning a lot as I go.”
Students are divided into two cohorts of 16; one meets on Mondays and Wednesdays, while the other meets on Tuesdays and Thursdays. On Fridays, the entire group does off-campus activities together.
The school’s name reflects Jennie’s vision for education. Her house had lots of stairs and sat on a hill, suggesting children climbing, moving, and trying new things. “We also loved the idea that a treehouse is like something you build with friends,” she adds. “And you kind of design it as you go. So I wanted the kids to feel like they own what we’re building.”
That philosophy of student ownership shapes the school day. Younger children enter a Montessori-inspired space and get to work with their hands. Older students create project plans and move among spaces dedicated to digital work, art, and music. Afternoons feature facilitator-led “offerings,” often based on students’ requests—from science projects to learning GarageBand.
“Parents will say, ‘I love that with you they get all the messy things, all the active and loud things, all the collaborative things,’” Jennie says with a chuckle. “That’s kind of what we specialize in.”
Students have considerable freedom to pursue their own interests. Still, Jennie is continually experimenting with how to support them, including stretching beyond familiar activities and breaking larger projects into manageable steps. “We’re definitely still exploring the best way to help kids become self-directed,” she says.
Jennie’s willingness to experiment has itself become a lesson—especially for her own children. The Treehouse is a real-world project unfolding in front of them, complete with uncertainty, regulatory questions, rapid growth, and ideas that need revising.
“They’re seeing me do project-based learning as an adult,” she says. “I am modeling for them that I don’t have all the answers. And sometimes you just have to try an idea.”
Her advice for would-be education entrepreneurs is in a similar vein: Don’t wait until every question has an answer. “You don’t have to have it all figured out because it’s actually good for the kids to see you struggle and question and try an idea and have it not work and iterate.”
