Joy at the Remake Learning Assembly | Photo by Ben Filio

Moments of Impact and Insight

Field Notes from Pittsburgh’s learning ecosystem, July - October 2025

Every year, Remake Learning follows a familiar rhythm. Summer offers the space to reflect, regroup, and shape the ideas that will guide us forward. Then, as a new school year begins, the pace shifts—quickly—into a season of activation. This fall was no exception.

Across Southwestern Pennsylvania, educators, partners, and young people moved from planning to purposeful action. New Moonshot projects launched, districts and community organizations shared emerging work, and collaborators—from our region to international partners like Doncaster—continued looking to our learning ecosystem for insight and inspiration.

As I look back on the past few months, I’m reminded of how well this natural cycle serves us: thoughtful reflection followed by meaningful momentum. These field notes capture just a slice of what emerged during that shift from summer planning to fall engagement—a snapshot of a region once again rolling up its sleeves to create more future-ready opportunities for every learner.

New Moonshot Investments

In August, we announced 36 new Moonshot Grants, investing $650,000 in bold ideas aligned with network priorities in STEAM Learning, Personalized Learning, and Civic Learning.

13 STEAM Learning Moonshots are guiding students toward emerging career pathways through exposure to industry, hands-on making, mentorships, and real-world problem-solving, while also sparking curiosity in elementary learners.

  • Tech 25: BPM Starter Packs for WavMakers
  • West Allegheny School District: Human-Centered AI as a Pathway to Re-envisioning K-12 Education
  • Northgate School District: Parents as Allies in the Future
  • Best of the Batch Foundation: STEMpact Entrepreneurs Initiative
  • Brentwood Borough School District: Imagination in Motion
  • Carlynton School District: Project HOLO
  • Chance to Change Lives (CCL-US): Unlocking the Final Frontier
  • Curious Minds Dive Foundation: Dive Into the Future
  • Gwen’s Girls: STEMPowered 4Her Future
  • Intermediate Unit 1: Cracking Real-World Codes with The Math Vault Challenge
  • Avonworth School District: The Aerospace Learning Lab
  • Old Economy Village: InHarmony
  • The Citizen Science Lab: 36 Chambers of VR

13 Personalized Learning Moonshots are building infrastructure, partnerships, and student-led learning experiences that promote confidence, ownership, and long-term success.

  • ARYSE: The ARYSE Storytellers
  • Beaver Area School District: Beaver County Borderless Beanery
  • California Area School District: The Village Transcript
  • Clairton City School District: Entrepreneurship in Action
  • Rivers of Steel Heritage Corporation: Embrace Your Place
  • WQED: The Learning Locker!
  • Burrell School District – Huston Middle School: A Future-Ready Learning Hub
  • Elizabeth Forward School District: The RENE Project
  • Local X Change: Redux
  • Open Up: Open Connections
  • Hampton Township School District: FutureShift
  • The Legacy Arts Project: Roots in Motion
  • Ruach Cycling Lab: Bicycling from Concept to Construction

10 Civic Learning Moonshots are expanding student leadership and community engagement through hands-on participation, cross-sector collaboration, and meaningful opportunities for learners to shape their world.

  • Trinity Area School District: It Takes a Village
  • Block Chronicles: MKR CITY
  • Youth Enrichment Services: Pittsburgh is a Place for Us
  • Involvemint Inc.: Waste to Wealth
  • West Virginia Civic Education Foundation: Generations in Action
  • Upper St. Clair School District: Panther Pack
  • LIGHT Education Initiative: Hands-on Humanities
  • Shaler Area School District: Greenprint 2035
  • The Women and Girls Foundation of SWPA: Think Globally, Act Locally
  • The Reading Room Pittsburgh, Inc.: Literacy as Leadership

The 2025 Remake Learning Assembly

On September 26, more than 250 people, including 80 students, gathered at the Children’s Museum for this year’s Assembly. The day featured everything from horses to honeybees, historic artifacts to robots, and even a brand-new student-run food truck.

Students took center stage at the event, giving them a first-hand look at the innovations shaping learning across the region while showcasing projects they co-created with educators in their schools and communities.

We were honored to welcome our friend Sean Fearn from the City of Doncaster Council in the UK. Together with educators and community leaders in Doncaster, Sean has been leading the development of a learning ecosystem inspired by Remake Learning. We were also joined by Remake Learning Days festival leads from across the Commonwealth, who used the gathering not only to celebrate the 10th Remake Learning Days milestone but also to strategize together for an even stronger statewide festival in 2026.

The event also celebrated milestones, like the 10th Remake Learning Days festival, and announced upcoming opportunities like the Pulse Check Moonshot Grants and the new event series Meet Your Neighbors.

Stories From the Network

Outside Voices
Nurturing Dance-in-Education
Industry & Art Educator Training
  • Learning From, In, and With Nature: Moonshot projects across the region are exploring how outdoor learning can foster curiosity, stewardship, and a deeper connection to place.
  • A Year of Youth Leadership: Teen leaders from the World Affairs Council of Pittsburgh shared strategies for navigating national education conferences in How to Make the Most of SXSW EDU as a Young Leader.
  • Blazing New Pathways: Districts and community partners are piloting creative pathways into the teaching profession, expanding certification routes in response to the region’s educator shortage.
  • Reflections from Pittsburgh: Sean Fearn from the City of Doncaster Council reflects on his 3-day visit to Pittsburgh and what he noticed about the values and strengths shared by our hometown and his.
  • Rolling Forward: A recap of the first Rolling Forward showcase of rural education innovation that brought educators, learners, and community members together at the PA Trolley Museum in Washington County.

Diving into the Big Questions About AI & Learning

The ninth season of Remake Learning’s podcast featured conversations with leading thinkers boldly grappling with the challenges and opportunities posed on AI on all aspects of our lives, including how children learn and develop. Catch up on discussions with:

The season continues through the fall featuring conversations with Kim Smith from Learner Studio and Greg Rosenbaum from SXSW. Catch up on the whole season here.

Fullscale Symposium

Fullscale Symposium

Remake Learning co-presented two sessions at the FullScale Symposium in New Orleans.

  • Networked Transformation: Our own Stephanie Lewis joined Autumn Turk from Burrell School District, Vanessa Boyd from Butler Area School District, Lori Phillips fromKnowledgeWorks, and Gina Masciola from WQED, plus co-presenters from the Student Ready Success Network in Missouri, to share lessons from leading regional initiatives for change.
  • The Educator Reimagined: Stephanie also shared the stage with Bobbi Macdonald from Education REimagined and Coi Marie Morefield from Education Reimagined, and Geoffrey Roehm from Runway Green, to discuss the skills and competencies educators need to thrive in a learner-centered ecosystem.

These sessions highlighted how regions can activate ecosystems to redesign learning.

Working Group & Special Projects

Civic Learning Ecosystem
AI Horizons
Rolling Forward

Over the summer and fall, the Civic Learning Ecosystem worked with teens, educators, and civic partners to design a CivicAI Map, a new tool that charts the people, places, and relationships where young people say they feel seen, heard, and powerful. The project launches on December 15th with a party celebrating this student-led innovation.

The Personalized Learning Working Group published the new Pennsylvania Innovation Guide, showing how districts can use current state policy to personalize learning. A fall outreach and promotional campaign is now underway.

Future-Driven Schools, now 47 districts strong, continues to redesign experiences that prepare learners for tomorrow: sharing strategies, testing ideas, and supporting one another in bold, practical innovation. Nearly two dozen participating superintendents attended the AI Horizons summit in Pittsburgh this fall to explore the potential and the pitfalls of artificial intelligence’s growing role in students’ lives.

Together with IU1, the Rural Schools Collaborative hosted Rolling Forward on October 2, bringing together students and educators from across southwestern Pennsylvania at the PA Trolley Museum. From drones to tiny livestock to 3D-printed monuments, the event showcased the creativity powering rural learning across the region.

Pulse Check Moonshot Grants

Our two Pulse Check series exploring Artificial Intelligence and Outdoor Learning identified key priorities for the region.

AI in Education priorities:

  • Preparing learners for careers in an AI-powered world
  • Using AI to spark creativity and design
  • Leveraging AI to connect learners and expand collaboration

Outdoor Learning priorities:

  • Expanding outdoor career exploration
  • Creating seamless indoor–outdoor learning experiences
  • Strengthening partnerships to support STEELS implementation

We launched a Pulse Checks edition of Moonshot Grants, offering grants of up to $50,000 to catalyze action in these areas. Network members submitted 100 eligible Letters of Intent, with 55 for Outdoor Learning and 45 for AI in Education. Full proposals will be invited in December and grant awards will be announced in February 2026.

Recent Media Coverage

Between July and October, more than 20 media stories highlighted Remake Learning’s work, including these highlights:

As we look toward winter and the opportunities ahead, I’m more convinced than ever that our collective efforts matter. Whether you’re prototyping a Moonshot, shaping policy into practice, nurturing youth leadership, or strengthening partnerships in your community, thank you for all you contribute to this network. Together, we’re creating the conditions for learning that are more joyful, more just, and more future-ready for every young person in Southwestern Pennsylvania.

Authored by

Tyler Samstag

Executive Director
Remake Learning