It started with five young people—and the mothers and grandmothers who refused to give up on them. During the pandemic, they created a small homeschool pod in Richmond where belonging became the foundation for learning. Inspired by Harbor Me by Jacqueline Woodson, they learned that to “harbor” is to provide safety, understanding, and courage.

The Harbor School carries that same spirit forward: a place where every learner can grow with confidence and purpose.

The Harbor School is a middle school for 6th–8th graders.

Glad you asked! Yes, it’s a lot to take in, and we’d love to dive deeper in a 1:1 session or at one of our events. For now, here’s a quick overview:

Competency-based learning reframes the way we think about teaching and learning. While traditional learning centers the curriculum and end-of-year tests, competency-based learning centers core competencies. The SOLs and other curriculum support learners as they journey toward these competencies, rather than driving every moment of learning.

This approach allows us to expand learning beyond the standards and create cohesive, authentic experiences that make sense for each learner. Learners still acquire the skills covered in the SOLs and take the tests at the end of the year—but the daily conversations and learning experiences focus on their whole growth and readiness for high school.

Take a look at Harbor’s competencies here —>

While we expect our learners will do well on the SOLs, we believe there is a better question: Will our learners be ready for life?

Research from the Learning Policy Institute’s “Too Essential to Fail” report shows that the skills most critical for success today — problem-solving, self-direction, collaboration, and resilience — grow best in competency-based, whole-child learning environments, not through rote test preparation.

Harbor’s model ensures every learner builds deep mastery of essential academic concepts and the competencies they’ll need to thrive in high school, career, and community. When students understand themselves as learners and can apply their knowledge, they succeed on any test life gives them — including the academic ones.

Actually, yes! Many schools and districts across the country recognize that the traditional model doesn’t work for all students and are trying out new, learner-centered approaches.

Organizations like Fullscale, Learner-Centered Collaborative, Marzano offer support for this innovative teaching approach, showing just how popular and effective it’s becoming.

Not only is it okay—it’s part of our DNA. Richmond has a rich history of embracing innovative schools, including Franklin Military, Open, Community, Maggie Walker, and more. And, we also already have two charter schools - Patrick Henry School of Science and Arts and Richmond Career Education & Employment Charter School.

Harbor is a charter school because charters are Virginia’s current way to try new methods of teaching and learning. They allow the system to provide high-quality education to more students while exploring innovative approaches that traditional schools can’t always implement.

Research shows that adding charter schools strengthens the entire public school ecosystem and helps close achievement gaps.

Charters do need resources to thrive—just like any school. And yes, as public schools, they use some of Richmond’s public school dollars. But here’s the key: these are dollars already being spent on these same students. The question isn’t whether it costs money—it’s whether we invest in a well-researched, innovative approach that works for students who aren’t currently thriving. Or do we keep pouring funding into the same approaches that are leaving quite a few of our kids behind?

We need authorization from the Richmond Public School Board to open. This requires us to submit an application, for the public to voice their excitement for the school, and for the board to vote to add it to our public school ecosystem. We are in the process of doing this now - and your voice is important to making it happen.

Join us to get involved so we can open as soon as possible! —>

Harbor does not yet have a home. We will open in an area of town that wants this school to be a part of their community and where our learners will feel welcome and supported. Our school will be small at first and grow in capacity over time - so, we will not need a permanent location until several years after opening. In the meantime, if you want this school in your neighborhood, connect with us and let us know! —>

The Harbor School is a public charter middle school, created with Richmond families.

Once authorized, it will be part of the Richmond Public School system—publicly funded, tuition-free, and built to innovate.

The Harbor School is tuition-free and open to all through a public lottery system.

That’s because Harbor will be part of the Richmond Public School system once authorized. Like other public schools, it’s funded by public education dollars, so families never pay tuition or fees to attend.

As a public charter school, Harbor is held to the same academic standards and accountability as other Richmond schools, but has the flexibility to innovate—designing learning that’s more personalized, developmentally aligned, and meaningful for students.

Every child, no matter where they live in the city or what school they currently attend, has an equal opportunity to enroll once the lottery opens. There are no entrance exams, no tuition fees, and no barriers based on background or income.

The number of relationships that people manage within our model is intentionally small—one of the things we’re most proud of. The Harbor School is organized into “pods” of 108 learners from all three grade levels. Pods are designed to create a small school feel for every learner in the building; at full enrollment, the school will have three pods totaling 324 learners.

Because learning at Harbor isn’t fixed by classroom or schedule, the student:teacher ratio isn’t fixed either. Each learner is part of a cohort of 8–12, supported by a Cohort Leader who knows them as a person and co-designs their learning journey, connecting core skills to multidisciplinary projects grounded in their interests and goals, including Virginia's required Standards of Learning. Group size varies based on a learner’s needs and readiness, from 1:1 instruction to small groups and larger collaborative projects. Short skill-building workshops, exploratory and interest-driven projects, and Socratic Talks further foster curiosity, communication, and analytical thinking.

At full enrollment, the building-wide ratio will be approximately 12 learners per teacher (we call them learning coaches), well below Virginia’s 21:1 requirement. Our staffing model includes more than the required number of certified classroom teachers and those with related skills— youth development experts, and other specialists—providing layered support so every learner can thrive.

The Harbor School follows a year-round, trimester schedule designed to keep learning consistent and balanced.

Each trimester provides clear goals and reflection points, helping learners stay engaged and on track without burnout. The rhythm of shorter, more frequent breaks—gives learners time to rest, recharge, and return ready to grow. And - just as important - it gives educators a chance to reflect, recover, and collaborate for the next learning adventure.

This structure supports the cycle of feedback, reflection, and communication required to keep learning goal-centered and focused on the futures each learner desires.