OUR STORY

We facilitate professional development and learning that transforms public education by providing educators with culturally sustaining, human-centered tools and strategies to nurture creativity, belonging, deeper learning and critical thinking. 

Our practice is rooted in arts-centered experiences and strategies that enrich and engage the imaginations of learners, teachers, administrators, and communities. At the center of our approach is Creative Inquiry, a holistic strategy for exploring interdisciplinary thinking across ideas and topics, tapping the curiosity and interest of learners to build thinking, problem solving, creative skills, and the care needed to develop the kind of deep understanding that can promote social change towards transforming communities and educational systems. 

IDEAL’s team of educators, researchers, and seasoned leaders have worked together for more than a decade to create a new lens for teaching, learning, and leadership based on the pedagogical practices of arts-centered, integrated learning. Within this community, we helped to develop the Integrated Learning Specialist Program (ILSP), formally at the Alameda County Office of Education. The ILSP was an award-winning professional learning program rooted in creative practice, culturally responsive teaching, and research-based educational frameworks.   

Our team works within educational systems at all levels including schools, districts, county offices of education, higher education, and community based organizations both within California and throughout the country.

Our Core VALUES

  • Liberation and Connection
    We believe in the imaginations of our communities to change the world!

  • Sharing Power
    We believe that the best ideas and solutions come when all who are engaged take ownership of the outcomes. 

  • Centering Culture
    We believe in centering the cultural practices and beliefs of those we work with to support new narratives in public education.

  • Trust in the Process of Community
    We move at the speed of individual and collective learning. (Thank you adrienne maree brown for teaching us this!)

  • Creativity and Joy
    We believe that creative, arts-centered methods embed joy into the act of learning, fostering a more beautiful future. 

  • Interconnectedness of Natural and Social Systems
    We believe that all natural systems are connected and we work to develop a kinship with local ecosystems as a strategy for creating a healthy future.

  • Rest and Reflection
    We honor the importance of rest and reflection as an integral aspect of learning.

What People Are Saying

  • Special Education Teacher

    “There are the intangibles that learning through the arts provide - students feeling seen/heard when given choices in how they can show their learning. Building a classroom culture of trust by doing improv and dance, sharing their artistic creations. Students learning to trust each other and become brave enough to connect as people. IDEAL’s professional learning has made me a better teacher by freeing me from some of my own doubts and fears. I don't have to do things the same old way - it's liberating!”

  • High School Teacher

    “The throughline of our professional learning (with IDEAL) has been quite present on my mind every time I’ve reflected on a completed unit. Specifically as I look at students' artifacts. At times I get artwork that pushes the limits of projects or the norms in the school setting, but I remind myself that art is beautiful in that way, it allows for originality, unique thoughts, and rebellion in its purest form. As an educator I should allow students to have that freedom. My students need an educator that is passionate and “joyful” about what they are teaching!”

  • OCP Teacher

    “Through working with IDEAL I have learned that in order to engage students in the process of learning and allow them to understand the power of their voice to bring change, they must see a purpose to their learning. In order to do this, the learning and their environment need to be woven together in a way that supports the goal. They must be able to express their understanding using their talents and creativity. The benefits are large, I am able to see engaged and flourishing students - this is social change.”

Connect with Us

We are excited to hear more about how we might support you and your community!