The culture of kindness and entrepreneurship that is facilitated through WeWork's co-working spaces, is being translated to a new WeWork-branded elementary school, called WeGrow.
The private elementary school concept offers parents an alternative to the traditional schooling systems in New York. The educational programming takes inspiration from the Montessori model, and educates children of different ages in one shared space. The WeGrow pilot classes' curriculum focus around kindness, conscious leadership and entrepreneurship, through a variety of class offerings which include mindfulness, yoga, meditation, farming and farm-to-table cooking.
If the pilot classes continue to produce effective results, the company hopes to open WeGrow inside of WeWork buildings, so parents can bring their kids to school, complete work and even visit their kids at lunch, all in one convenient, community-based space.
Kindness-Focused Elementary Schools
WeWork Developed an Elementary School Program Called WeGrow
Trend Themes
1. Kindness-focused Education - Creating an educational culture that focuses on kindness and empathy creates new opportunities for curriculum development and teacher training, as well as new markets for educational products and services.
2. Entrepreneurship in Early Education - Offering entrepreneurship education in early education presents an opportunity to cultivate innovation and creativity among the next generation of entrepreneurs and innovators, whilst expanding the market for educational products and services.
3. Community-based Education - Enabling parents to work, learn and visit their kids in a single, co-working, community-based space like WeGrow creates new opportunities for businesses to collaborate and build cohesive community-based ecosystems that support new innovations and work patterns.
Industry Implications
1. Education Industry - Companies in the education industry, such as educational resource providers, curriculum developers, and teacher training organizations, can explore new opportunities for product and service development, with a focus on kindness and mindfulness education.
2. Childcare Industry - Developing community-based, co-working spaces that integrate childcare services, like WeGrow, presents opportunities for entrepreneurs to develop new childcare models that highlight mindfulness, kindness and conscious leadership.
3. Hospitality Industry - Community building and coworking continue to be a key part of the growth of the hospitality industry, allowing for the repurposing of existing properties for community-engagement purposes such as innovative nursery, childcare, and more mindful education, like WeGrow.