Learning Experiences: Experience Matters, From the Start
Citizen Schools founders Eric Schwarz and Ned Rimer
On Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Day in 1995, Eric Schwarz and Ned Rimer walked into a Boston classroom with a bold idea: what if students could learn not just from teachers, but from everyday professionals willing to share their skills and passions? What if education felt more like the real world—hands-on, engaging, and filled with opportunities to try, fail, and try again?
That first afternoon, they worked with a small group of fifth graders, guiding them through two apprenticeships. One group became journalists, interviewing community members and publishing their own newspaper. Another trained in first aid, practicing life-saving skills that made them feel capable and important delivering services to their school. For many of these students, it was the first time they had seen learning come alive in such a tangible way.
Schwarz recalls the bigger vision behind that moment:
“I think most people learn best from experiences and relationships, yet schools are not built around that. I did an internship [in college] for a political campaign, and I probably learned more from that experience than all 32 of my college classes put together. That experience led me to develop a great sense of purpose that was relevant and tangible to the real-world.”
One of Citizen Schools’ first apprenticeships guided students to publish their own newspaper.
Our founders recognized the opportunities they'd been afforded, and how they could pay it forward in schools where too many students don't get enough opportunities. But for too many students, those opportunities never come. The traditional school day, especially for students in under-resourced communities, often lacks hands-on experiences that spark curiosity and persistence. Schwarz and Rimer believed that education should provide multiple opportunities for students to find their strengths—whether in writing, science, coding, or the arts.
Citizen Schools was founded on that principle, and in the 30 years since, the organization has helped nearly 100,000 students discover their passions through real-world learning.
At its core, Citizen Schools remains true to the belief that education is a community effort. What started as a single classroom experiment has grown into a movement—one that continues to redefine what education can be.