Innovation in Action: Volume 20
Testing What Works: Innovation in Practice
Welcome to Innovation in Action, a one-of-a-kind news brief highlighting transformative voices from the Yass Prize community of awardees. The Yass Prize for Sustainable, Transformational, Outstanding, and Permissionless education - now in its sixth year - is a rapidly growing effort to find, reward, celebrate, and expand best-in-class education organizations from every sector, in every state.
The Yass Prize is committed to fueling more education entrepreneurs to expand their high-quality, STOP-aligned schools, expanding the supply of school options to meet growing parent demand.
When education innovators test new tools, refine their models, and share what actually works, the entire field moves forward. Our 20th volume captures Yass Prize leaders doing exactly that: closing out a national roadshow, partnering across sectors to bring financial literacy into the classroom, and evaluating AI tutoring with rigor and transparency. These are the stories of schools and platforms built not for systems, but for students.
ELEVEN DAYS LEFT: What would YOU do with the $1 million Yass Prize?
This year, the Yass Prize will identify a select group of STOP-enabled organizations to vie for the $1 million Yass Prize during the prestigious business accelerator.
Hear directly from cohort members and former speakers why this is the most powerful network in education innovation. If not you, then who? Apply now at YassPrize.org!
Know of an organization that is doing incredible work and should be delivering their model to more students? Forward this volume and encourage them to apply. One little nudge goes a long way!
The Finale of the Yass Prize Roadshow for Opportunity: A Visit to The School House
On Monday, March 17, at the Long Island campus of the 2025 Yass Prize Finalist - The School House - the 2026 Yass Prize Roadshow for Opportunity came to a close.
Serving students from 18 months through eighth grade, The School House has spent fourteen years building what they call the American Emergent Curriculum - a one-of-a-kind interdisciplinary framework spanning 4,000 years of history, 35 countries, and more than 45 works of literature annually.
“I feel like I have family in this work because of all of you,” shared Tee Wilson, 2025 Yass Prize Semifinalist and Founder of B.E Academy for Girls, who attended all seven roadshow stops. “Every gathering gives me the strength to keep pushing forward.”
Learn more about The School House Roadshow, and watch highlights from the day.
Turning Test Scores into Stock Returns: A Cross-Sector Yass Prize Partnership
Last month at the World Bank and IMF Spring Meetings, leaders made clear that equipping students with economic knowledge and decision-making skills is no longer a nice-to-have - it’s foundational. The message to schools is direct: preparing students for life beyond the classroom now includes preparing them to navigate money, risk, and long-term planning. Enter ClassBank (2022 Quarterfinalist), co-founded by Abby Coyle, who continues to demonstrate how financial literacy can be woven directly into classroom culture. Over the past few years, her team has worked with ASU Prep (2023 Semifinalist) campuses to help students connect real-world economic concepts to their daily learning - and one recent example stands out.
During testing season, ASU Prep educator Kelvin A. launched an “Invest In Yourself” initiative using ClassBank’s platform. Students invested up to 30 ClassBank coins into their own academic “stocks.” If they showed growth on their assessments, their stock doubled. If they moved up a full proficiency band, it tripled. The lesson turned end-of-year exams into a tangible lesson on risk, return, and long-term investment, all while motivating students to track their own progress.
“We’ve had the opportunity to work with one of the ASU Prep campuses the past few years,” Abby shared, “and have loved seeing creative implementations like their ‘Invest In Yourself’ testing season lesson, where students use ClassBank to simulate stock market investing tied to academic growth.”
By distributing investment certificates, displaying them visibly in the classroom, and issuing bonuses based on results, educators are helping students understand that investing isn’t just financial - it’s personal.
Yass Prize Awardee Tests AI Tutoring at Scale–And the Results Are In
VictoryXR (2023 Semifinalist), led by CEO Steve Grubbs, has developed HoloTutor, an AI-powered tutoring platform designed to guide students through problem-solving rather than simply provide answers. To test whether the tool functions as a true teaching aid in real classroom conditions, VictoryXR partnered with KIPP Atlanta Collegiate to complete a rigorous, real-world evaluation. The goal was straightforward: determine whether HoloTutor supports learning the way a skilled tutor would, not just an information provider. Following the study, findings were presented to a national audience of educators at the ASU+GSV Summit, offering a model for how charter networks and ed tech companies can collaborate to test emerging tools with rigor and transparency.
The results were clear. 81.8% reported that HoloTutor encouraged them to think through problems rather than copy answers. Additionally, 54.5% of students reported improved study efficiency, and 63.6% said the platform helped them better understand concepts and complete homework. “KIPP Atlanta Collegiate banned ChatGPT from school devices to preserve the need for teaching and learning,” said Jenesia Welch, Manager of Technology, “however, we wanted to test an AI tool built specifically for tutoring, and HoloTutor passed the test. A-plus.”
Grubbs emphasized the importance of maintaining rigor in the age of AI: “Preserving the productive struggle of learning matters to us. We hope this demonstrates to schools and parents that learning with an AI can make a positive difference.” As schools continue to navigate the role of AI in education, this partnership offers a model grounded in evidence, not hype.
💐 Congrats To…
Liberty STEAM Charter School (2024 Semifinalist) for being named a 2026 Palmetto Silver Award recipient by the South Carolina Department of Education. This distinction is awarded to schools that demonstrate high levels of academic achievement and strong student growth.
WIN Academy (2024 Semifinalist) for expanding opportunity in West Virginia with a new Information Technology and Cybersecurity pathway, building on a model where high school students are completing college-level courses. This addition gives students access to a field that is growing quickly and offers strong career options close to home.
American High School (2025 Semifinalist) for receiving an official proclamation from Mayor Nick Sortal in Plantation, Florida that recognizes their work in redefining education through innovation, technology, and their Plantation microschool.
Oakmont Education (2022 Finalist) for their location at Old Brook Parma being recognized by Senator Moreno with a Senate Award. In addition, they were also one of only five schools across America selected for the inaugural Future Forward Leadership Cohort. Lastly, there are also four students from Old Brook presenting at the national charter schools conference, doing everything from start to finish themselves!
STOP for Education is an initiative focused on developing and expanding the transformational impact of Yass Prize awardees and partners who are dedicated to the four core STOP principles - Sustainable, Transformational, Outstanding, and Permissionless education. This publication, Innovation in Action, features the latest from best-in-class education providers.
Follow along STOP for Education on X @edreform. Learn more about STOP for Education and CER’s initiatives here.