Problem/Approach

Hoxby and Avery found that academically gifted students from first-generation low income college backgrounds were systematically passing up on the opportunity to apply or attend selective colleges, a phenomenon they called undermatching. This is a complex phenomenon, as selective colleges can offer relative advantages, notably in the realm of offering higher earning potential and connecting students with opportunities for social mobility. The Pivotal Network was established to address this issue and identify the barriers that FGLI students face when applying to colleges.

The Pivotal Network drew on the expertise of teachers who work with high proportions of FGLI students. We identified teachers based on their letters of recommendation for their students, invited them into the network, and began co-designing a professional development network to build initiatives based on their success with students.

Solution/Outcomes

Our work evolved as we learned; we promoted teacher research, created alignment between college and high school curriculum, and addressed structural biases and the hidden curriculum. Later, the teachers told us our work was not only transformative, but also a pillar of support in a dark time. This practice of co-designing through listening, prototyping, and iteration is now central to my design approach.

My Contributions

• Website
• Focus Groups
• Facilitation of design sprints