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Welcome to the FerskenED
Build a Microschool or education business that actually last
The FerskenED Edupreneur Mastermind helps microschool founders, hybrid school leaders, and education entrepreneurs launch, grow, and scale sustainable education businesses.
I'm ready to take action:
I would like to
You Know Education...
...But nobody taught you how to run the business.
Most edupreneurs start with passion and vision.
Then reality hits:
- Enrollment uncertainty
- Marketing confusion
- Financial pressure
- Parent communication
- Staffing
- Operations
- Legal questions
- Burnout
You don’t need another webinar.
You need a community of people actually building schools right now.
That’s why we created the FerskenED Edupreneur Mastermind.
Built for Education Founders
Perfect for:
- Microschool founders
- Hybrid homeschool program leaders
- Private school startups
- ESA-focused education businesses
- Tutors building learning centers
- Education consultants
- EdTech founders serving alternative education
- Teachers leaving traditional systems
- Operators scaling beyond one campus
Not for:
- People looking for theory only
- Passive networking groups
- Generic entrepreneur coaching
- “Someday” dreamers
This community is for builders.
What Happens Inside the Mastermind?
Monthly Founder Sessions
Real conversations around growth, operations, enrollment, staffing, finances, and scaling.
Direct Access to Experienced Operators
Learn from founders actively running microschools and education businesses right now.
Guest Experts
From school attorneys and marketers to ESA experts and financial strategists.
Problem-Solving Hot Seats
Bring your biggest challenge and get feedback from experienced edupreneurs.
Private Founder Community
Connect with operators across Texas and the country who understand the unique challenges of microschool leadership.
Growth-Focused Accountability
This is not just encouragement.
It’s execution.
Microschools Are Growing Fast.
Most Founders Are Building Without a Playbook.
Families are demanding flexible, personalized education models more than ever before. Microschools and hybrid learning environments are expanding rapidly across the country.
But building a sustainable school requires more than educational passion.
FerskenED helps founders navigate:
- Enrollment growth
- Tuition models
- Parent communication
- Staffing structures
- Operations systems
- Marketing
- Expansion planning
- Long-term sustainability
We don’t just talk about microschools.
We operate them.
Built by People Actually Doing the Work
Founded by Doers
FerskenED was founded by education entrepreneurs who believed there had to be a better way to serve students and families.
Since launching in 2021, the Edupreneur Mastermind has supported founders across:
- Microschools
- Private schools
- Hybrid programs
- EdTech
- Student enrichment businesses
- Education consulting
We’ve helped founders:
- launch schools,
- grow enrollment,
- improve operations,
- build sustainable models,
- and avoid expensive mistakes.
“This was the first room where people actually understood what building a microschool looks like.”
Tamara Becker, Adamo Education
“I saved months of trial and error because someone in the group had already solved the problem.”
Lindsey Blackburn, Educator
“The mastermind helped me move from educator thinking to founder thinking.”
Amanda Sinott, Edu Tutoring
July 2026 Cohort Opens Soon
Cohort Includes:
- Monthly mastermind sessions
- Founder community access
- Guest expert workshops
- Resource library
- Strategy discussions
- Networking opportunities
- Founder hot seats
Spots are intentionally limited.
We prioritize founders who are actively building and ready to grow.
Frequently Asked Questions
Please reach us at partner@ferskenED.com if you cannot find an answer to your question.
No — but microschool founders make up a large percentage of our community.
Anywhere from idea-stage to multi-campus growth.
95% of our sessions are in zoom. When we do in-person events, they are tied to major education conferences.
Not exactly. It’s a founder mastermind focused on collaboration, strategy, accountability, and practical business growth.
Most business groups don’t understand education.
Most education groups don’t understand business.
We live in both worlds.
Past Edupreneur Promo Videos:
What were we planning in 2023?
Did you know you can find hundreds of video clips from our sessions on YouTube? Check out more videos here:
What changed with our second iteration?
Stay tuned to hear from us about Edupreneur Mastermind 3.0 soon!
In the meantime, check out our clips from past sessions below.
2024 Edupreneur Mastermind Clips
Elizabeth Anderson
Discover the power of data-driven decisions with Elizabeth Anderson from Embraced Wisdom in an exclusive session for small business owners with the FerskenED Mastermind. Gain actionable insights to propel your business forward. Watch now to unlock growth and success!
Lea Ann Lockard
Join Lea Ann Lockard as she addresses the imminent financial challenges facing district schools in an eye-opening session with the FerskenED Mastermind. Learn about the critical issue of temporary funding for permanent staff positions and raises, and discover actionable strategies to navigate this impending financial cliff. Don't miss this opportunity to gain invaluable insights and safeguard the financial future of your school district. Watch now to ensure stability and sustainability for your educational institution!
Dan Eskelsen
After a retiring once and then finding his new gig, Dan Eskelsen brings a wealth of business background and shares several funny stories about doing business in Asia, learning how to think creatively, and so much more. Watch now to get a quick taste of our Edupreneur Mastermind session with Dan Eskelsen, aerospace dude!
2023 Edupreneur Mastermind Speaker Series
Kristen Tyagi on Advocacy and Building Coalitions
Kim Stanley on "What is a Fractional CFO and do I need one?"
Kristen Tyagi on Advocacy and Building Coalitions
Kristen Tyagi, the Executive Director of the National Coalition for Public School Options has a rich background in policy and advocacy. Her organization supports parents and families to select the best educational option for each individual student.
Learn more:
SPECIAL EDITION, LIVE From DLAC in Austin, TX
Kim Stanley on "What is a Fractional CFO and do I need one?"
Kristen Tyagi on Advocacy and Building Coalitions
DLAC celebrates K-12 digital learning practitioners, researchers, and policymakers; learn from each other; and share best (and worst!) practices in this new and innovative conference. We interviewed edupreneurs Josh Solomon and Steve Southwick during this in-person event.
Learn more: https://www.evergreenedgroup.com
Kim Stanley on "What is a Fractional CFO and do I need one?"
Kim Stanley on "What is a Fractional CFO and do I need one?"
Jason Nelson on "I'll take Sales, with a side of sales, please."
Kim Stanley spent 20+ years working with high growth edupreneurs and edtech companies. Along the journey, she discovered a love of building and operating businesses. She ran and expanded the largest group of culinary arts schools in the world, Le Cordon Bleu, with over 20,000 students and 17 campuses across the USA She then helped to create the world’s first online Title IV eligible culinary arts program at Escoffier Schools of Culinary Arts.
Learn more:
Jason Nelson on "I'll take Sales, with a side of sales, please."
Tim Moran on The Place where Public Affairs and Advocacy Intersect
Jason Nelson on "I'll take Sales, with a side of sales, please."
Jason Nelson is the current sales director for Apps Without Code, but has deep roots in overcoming objections, clearing the path to the sale, and understanding how to look for what the buyer really wants.
Learn more:
Tim Moran on The Place where Public Affairs and Advocacy Intersect
Tim Moran on The Place where Public Affairs and Advocacy Intersect
Tim Moran on The Place where Public Affairs and Advocacy Intersect
Tim Moran has over 20 years of experience working in public policy, political strategy, and grassroots mobilization. He has held leadership roles in both presidential campaigns and a comprehensive list of state & federal campaigns before serving as the senior director for a national grassroots organization.
Learn more:
Craig Chavis on Strategic Alignment
Tim Moran on The Place where Public Affairs and Advocacy Intersect
Tim Moran on The Place where Public Affairs and Advocacy Intersect
Craig M. Chavis Jr. is a Holistic Business Coach and founder of the Solo CEO Club: a done-with-you membership program that helps creators to package, price, and sell their knowledge.
At the core of Craig’s coaching philosophy lies the mantra – Become the Entrepreneur of Your Life.
Learn more:
Burck Smith on The Beginning and the End: Raising Capital and the Sale
Burck Smith on The Beginning and the End: Raising Capital and the Sale
Burck Smith on The Beginning and the End: Raising Capital and the Sale
Burck Smith is an education entrepreneur founding Palette Edu, StraighterLine, and SMARTHINKING (now a Pearson company). Burck has written chapters for three books on education policy for the American Enterprise Institute (AEI), and is a former independent consultant and journalist.
Learn more:
Chase Thornock on Healing and Reconnecting
Burck Smith on The Beginning and the End: Raising Capital and the Sale
Burck Smith on The Beginning and the End: Raising Capital and the Sale
Chase Thornock was placed as the CEO of a venture backed software company, but behind it all, he was incredibly sick with a severe autoimmune disease. After multiple surgeries, he had a vision of clarity: Only he could heal himself. The doctors could not.
He sacrificed greatly and learned how to control and manipulate his mind and body through his autonomic nervous system. He learned how to heal.
Learn more:
Jason Turner on Weaponizing Data: Offensive and Defensive Use Cases
Burck Smith on The Beginning and the End: Raising Capital and the Sale
Jason Turner on Weaponizing Data: Offensive and Defensive Use Cases
Jason Turner is the Vice President of Global Services with MetaMetrics in Durham, N.C., where he has played a variety of roles over the last ten years. Jason has managed training, implementation, and professional development for the Lexile and Quantile Frameworks. Jason has worked closely with assessment and publishing partners around the world in the implementation and development of reading and math programs.
Learn more:
Rob Harrison on protecting data while growing a business
Rob Harrison on protecting data while growing a business
Jason Turner on Weaponizing Data: Offensive and Defensive Use Cases
Rob Harrison has served in several senior leadership positions of both public and private companies. Serving as a long-standing board member of the Utah Technology Council, Rob remains an active member of the Association for Information Management (AIM) and the Utah CIO Council.
Learn more:
Colleen Hroncich on The State of Education in 2023
Rob Harrison on protecting data while growing a business
Colleen Hroncich on The State of Education in 2023
Colleen Hroncich is a policy analyst at the Cato Institute’s Center for Educational Freedom. A mother of four—whose children have experienced public, private, cyber, and home education—Colleen was well‐versed in educational freedom long before she began working to advance it. She has written extensively about school choice, education entrepreneurship, and diverse learning models. Each week in her Friday Feature blog series, Colleen shares interesting stories in the education space, from innovative schools and exciting educational programs to inspiring students, parents, and teachers.
Learn more:
2022 Mastermind Sessions
John Watson
John Watson is the founder of the Evergreen Education Group, which for 20 years has been a leading consulting and advisory firm serving school districts, state agencies, foundations, and companies in the K-12 digital learning field.
Learn more: https://www.evergreenedgroup.com
Heather Jones
Heather Jones is dedicated to all your different bookkeeping and payroll needs. I am here to ensure that your QuickBooks file is accurate and that you have the reports that you need to make the right business decisions. She is an Advanced Certified QuickBooks ProAdvisor and has an MBA in Finance.
Learn more:
Scott Burday
Scott Burday is the President of Trinity Integrated solutions. For over 20 years Trinity has been partnering with clients to deliver business software solutions and process improvements. Scott works with companies to determine their business requirements and then develop the application to meet those needs.
Learn more:
Holly Morgan
Holly Morgan is an Emmy Award-winning journalist with more than 10 years of news experience as an anchor, correspondent and reporter. During 2020/2021 she founded Holly Morgan Media, a full-service PR agency, to serve as a publicist for businesses that want to maximize brand exposure and individuals who want to be considered experts in their field. She delivers PR services via earned media through print, online, TV, and radio segments.
Learn more: https://www.hollymorganmedia.com
Seth Odell
Seth Odell is Founder & CEO of Kanahoma, a San Diego-based education marketing agency. Widely considered one of the industry's leading enrollment marketing experts, Seth brings 15 years of education marketing experience at some of our sector's top organizations, including Southern New Hampshire University, UCLA, National University System, and more. Seth's work is Emmy-award winning and has been heralded by the Chronicle of Higher Education as "Exhibit A of marketing success."
Learn more:
Bret Gerard
Bret Gerard, attorney and counselor at law is unique in that he provides direction, consultation, and gives business advice while assessing proper risk for success in the business world. There are times when the business owner can make the call. Other times it is important to reach out to your small business attorney to get advice, guidance, and insight into making a business decision.
Learn more:
Lisa Song Sutton
Lisa Song Sutton is a successful entrepreneur, real estate investor, former Miss Nevada United States and former Congressional candidate for Nevada’s 4th District. Lisa started her business career working in a top Las Vegas law firm, specializing in business litigation. Her entrepreneurial spirit led her on to create companies of her own.
Learn more:
Sundae Bean
Sundae Bean has a strong focus on intercultural competence development, She's provided executive coaching to key organizational leaders across many businesses. I’ve worked with individuals living or working in international contexts, including diplomats and country representatives, first-time accompanying partners, experienced expats, CEOs, department directors, and new and seasoned professionals.
Learn more:
Dan Mahlandt
Dan Mahlandt is currently the Executive Director of Valor Preparatory Academy of Arizona, a hybrid learning school for students grades 6-12. Dan brings 31 years of experience in education including 18 years in the classroom, 13 years as an administrator of online programs and innovative learning spaces for traditional public and charter schools. He has supported teachers in converting traditional classrooms to hybrid models, led the transformation to competency-based learning, served as Principal of an online/onsite lab school for at-risk students, as well as created a blended and full-time K-12 virtual academy.
Learn more:
Tatia Zuloaga
Tatia Zuloaga is the founder and CEO of Upnotch which is a free mentorship platform for executives, entrepreneurs, and professionals. Tatia helps industry leaders share their knowledge through on-on-one mentorship and mentor-to-mentor talks.
Learn more:
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