Company Profile
The Future Project
Company Overview
At The Future Project, we're fighting to revolutionize the education system, transforming schools into places of inspiration, creativity, and action. We do this by introducing a new character into high schools, a "Dream Director," who works hand-in-hand with the principal, teachers and community to help inspire students to believe in themselves and to start taking action towards their dreams. The Future Project, in its second year, is already impacting over 1,000 students in three states, with over $1.5 million in funding raised. The Dream Director represents a bold innovation in education reform, able to plug into any existing high school to oversee a school-wide transformation towards 21st century learning. Their mission is to unleash students so that they thrive both in the classroom... and beyond. One of our partner principals has stated that in twenty years of education, he has never seen anything, "so resourceful or so magical."
Company History
The Future Project began in 2010 when a few passionate people noticed two things. The first was that we are a generation of young people who are tired of waiting to act on the things we care about, tired of putting our dreams on hold, and hungry to serve one another and future generations. The second was that the institutions that are supposed to cultivate passions and inspire people are often doing the opposite.
Over the year – and over countless coffee-shop conversations and conference calls – we quit our jobs, crossed our fingers, and did something we never thought we would do: launch a national experiment in human possibility, focusing first on the institution in greatest need of renewal: our schools.
It was the only place to start. Too many leaders were saying schools – and the people dedicating their lives to them – were the problem. We trusted our gut that the real problem was the way we think about school – as places of achievement, not aspiration, exams not exposure. And so we began to re-imagine – to ask what high school could be. We imagined schools that gave us the confidence and cutting-edge skills to pursue our dreams. That took young people in poverty and turned them into passionate visionaries for life – without exception. That left students with the grit and curiosity to not just be the recipients of school change, but the creators of it. That weren’t for the rich or lucky, but for the “every student.”
And so The Future Project was born. In October 2011, we recruited hundreds of young Americans to join our team as Future Coaches – college students, graduate students, and young professionals ready to roll up their sleeves– and launched in three cities – New York, New Haven, and Washington DC. Over that first year, we helped hundreds of high school students start projects that changed their worlds – and brought their schools to life. The Future Projects came in all shapes and sizes. Mariely Garcia launched a global campaign to redefine perfection. Amie Durakay produced an international conference on human rights. Team Swag produced a documentary to highlight bullying in their New Haven high school. Over that year, high school stopped being about multiple-choice tests. Ordinary high schools became creative laboratories where students could identify their passions and take bold steps to turn those passions into action. Motivation was an understatement. These students were on fire. And school cultures were beginning to tip.
When we started, we knew we were onto something. And we’re just now discovering how wild and wonderful that something is.
Onward.
Notable Accomplishments / Recognition
Among The Future Project's Board Members and National Advisors are Timothy Shriver, Dan Pink, Bill Drayton, Sonal Shah, Caroline Kennedy and Tony Wagner.
The Future Project has raised over $1.5 million in funding from Google, Wells Fargo, Yale University, and various philanthropists.
The Future Project received a grant from the Draper Richards Kaplan Foundation, which funds less than 2% of applicants.
Andrew Mangino, The Future Project's Co-Founder and CEO, was named one of the "top 30 social entrepreneurs under 30."
We are meticulously measuring our impact and are finding that The Future Project not only helps students develop critical social-cognitive skills such as creativity, motivation, leadership, grit and hope - but also impacts traditional metrics such as attendance, grades, and standardized test scores.