As a species, humans are smart, adaptive, and resilient.  We all have the capacity to think, create, and contribute to society at a high level.  What stands between this shared capacity and everyone realizing its full potential is the opportunity to learn.  This is where human shortcomings come in … including greed, power, fear, racism, and othering.  They play a role in the development of schools and education systems that are not only far from equal in the provision of opportunity to learn, but are too often designed in ways that undermine the agency, belonging, and connection we all need to thrive, especially for those furthest from opportunity.

In today’s episode Bob Balfanz is joined by Michael Wotorson, director of the Schott Foundation for Public Education’s National Opportunity to Learn Network, who has been at the forefront of efforts to organize and support community-driven efforts to push schools towards opportunity to learn for all.