Lean Lab leaders dissect recent politics spurring U.S. education engagement

March 17, 2017  |  Startland News Staff

Lean Lab co-founder Katie Boody

Editor’s note: In partnership with the Wide Ruled podcast hosted by Brainroot Light and Sound, Startland News hopes to offer its audience more avenues to learn about innovators in Kansas City. Opinions expressed in this commentary are the author’s alone.


Wide Ruled is a podcast on equality in education. Each episode showcases a struggle or triumph in working toward a better education system. In this episode, host Nathaniel Bozarth talks with Katie Boody and Aditya Voleti of the Lean Lab about the recent appointment of Betsy DeVos as U.S. Secretary of Education, and how it’s caused a spike of interest and activism regarding education. 

Nathaniel Bozarth

Nathaniel Bozarth

The Lean Lab works closely with KC Social Innovation, Village Capital and the City of Kansas City, Mo. The program has supported 16 startups and granted over $100,000 to support ideas that have the potential to disrupt the education system.

Launched in 2013, the Kansas City-based education tech incubator engaged over 900 individuals in conversation on education innovation in 2016. In addition, last year marked the organization’s first step to go international, attracting entrepreneurs that hail from 28 different cities and three countries.

Listen to what Boody and Voleti recommend on what you can do to engage with education in your neighborhood.


Nathaniel Bozarth is a regional Emmy-award winning producer with Brainroot Light and Sound. Over the past three years he’s teamed up with Christopher Cook to create engaging documentary content on how race and immigration impact opportunity in America. Wide Ruled is Brainroot’s newest production on this trajectory. @bo_nathaniel

startland-tip-jar

TIP JAR

Did you enjoy this post? Show your support by becoming a member or buying us a coffee.

Tagged , , , ,
Featured Business
    Featured Founder

      2017 Startups to Watch

        stats here

        Related Posts on Startland News

        Modern world requires entrepreneurs to think like creatives, says KU’s Innovator in Residence

        By Tommy Felts | September 5, 2024

        Editor’s note: The University of Kansas’ School of Business is a partner of Startland News. LAWRENCE, Kansas — Building a skill set around creativity is critical to entrepreneurship — especially at a time when careers can be short-lived, said Josh Wexler. “Jobs are no longer for life,” explained the Innovator in Residence at the University…

        Grantmaking reboot ‘just one piece of the larger puzzle’ in Kauffman Foundation reset, CEO says

        By Tommy Felts | September 5, 2024

        Overhauling the Kauffman Foundation’s grantmaking strategy aligns with a broader, holistic reset for the influential Kansas City organization, said Dr. DeAngela Burns Wallace, emphasizing org-wide moves to deepen the impact and dialogue sparked by its giving. “We’re still engaged in the work happening locally, regionally, and nationally,” said Burns-Wallace, president and CEO of the Ewing…

        KC Current’s goalkeeper AD Franch lauded for teaming with WeCodeKC to empower urban youth 

        By Tommy Felts | September 4, 2024

        AD Franch is more than just a world-class athlete; she’s a true community servant, said Tammy Buckner, founder of WeCodeKC, heaping praise on the KC Current goalkeeper-turned-advocate for technology education in Kansas City. “Her passion and dedication to our students are unmatched,” said Buckner. “Through her partnership, we’ve been able to bring sports and technology…

        Midwest crypto platform Normal aims to bring blockchain ‘banking’ to the mainstream

        By Tommy Felts | September 4, 2024

        Cryptocurrencies are poised to radically disrupt and transform monetary systems across the globe, said Joshua Blew, noting the coming financial freedom offered by such developments is closely tied to individuals’ access to the best tools and ownership of the right assets. But connecting to them in a world of banking behemoths and entrenched financial institutions…