Vida School was founded by educators who are deeply experienced, highly trained, and devoted to the craft of teaching.

Long before Vida existed, Michelle, Randi, and Leslie had each spent decades in the field of education: in classrooms, in leadership roles, and in ongoing study and practice. They held advanced degrees, but more importantly, they held a lived understanding of children, how they learn, how they grow, and what they truly need to thrive.

That foundation is what sets Vida apart.

In 2020, the world changed.

When the pandemic hit, the education system—as families and educators had known it—collapsed almost overnight. Classrooms closed. Routines disappeared. Children were suddenly cut off from the places and people that had grounded them.

In the uncertainty, parents scrambled for solutions.

Michelle did what many families did in those early months: she gathered her own children alongside neighbors and close friends, forming a small home pod of nine kids. At first, it was simply about survival—keeping children safe, learning, and connected.

But something unexpected happened.

When the focus shifted from systems to individual children—when learning became hands-on, relational, and responsive—when “school” was experienced as something joyful rather than something to endure—children didn’t just keep up. They thrived.

Michelle could feel it. This wasn’t a temporary workaround. This was a glimpse of something deeper—something truer.

She picked up the phone and called Randi, a trusted colleague from their previous school:“I think we’re onto something here,” she said. “Do you want to start a school?”

For Randi, it was as if a door she had been standing in front of for years finally swung open. Within twenty-four hours, those long-held visions became a written philosophy. Invitations went out for a Zoom information session to families they knew and loved.

The response was immediate.

At the same time, Leslie—another deeply respected colleague—said yes. Her presence completed the picture. The leadership team was whole.

In September 2021, Vida School officially opened its doors as a private school. What began as a home pod became a community of thirty-five students, their trusting families, and five courageous, dedicated progressive educators willing to take a leap—and to reimagine what learning could be.

There was just one challenge: the pandemic was still very much present. State mandates required masked indoor classrooms, and the team could feel that this wasn’t what children needed after a year of isolation.

So Vida made a bold decision: they would spend the year outdoors.

What followed became one of the most joyful years of education the team had ever witnessed.

Under open skies, Vida focused on something essential: healing. Children were gently supported as they relearned how to be together. Anxiety softened. Confidence returned. Teachers met each child exactly where they were—some having surged ahead during homeschooling, others needing careful academic rebuilding.

The fresh air, sunlight, and freedom had a profound effect. Children’s mental health improved. Academic growth accelerated. School became a place of safety and delight again.

During this time, Vida brought on Dr. Stephanie Greenquist-Marlett to lead the development of Vida Values—a first-of-its-kind, deeply integrated Social Emotional Learning framework. These values were not born from theory alone, but from a lived understanding of what children truly needed: to be seen, supported, and held with care.

Word spread quickly.

By 2022, Vida had grown from thirty-five to seventy-five students. By 2023, the community had outgrown its campus and moved to its current home at the historic Cornell Schoolhouse—a setting worthy of the vision unfolding within it.

Today, Vida School serves students from Transitional Kindergarten through sixth grade, and is now expanding into Middle School—continuing to grow with intention, integrity, and deep respect for each stage of childhood and adolescence.

Every day, Vida stands as proof of what becomes possible when experienced educators trust their deepest knowing about children – when learning is rooted in relationship, joy, and respect for who each child is becoming.