2026 ASU+GSV Summit School Tours

Thank you to Our Partners:

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Supported By

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ASU+GSV Summit School Tours offer a front-row seat to what is possible when learning is designed around students, community, and real-world outcomes. These immersive visits showcase different ways schools are rethinking learning, from student-centered design and learner agency to hands-on experiences, work-based learning, and strong community partnerships. You’ll hear directly from students and educators, see learning in action, and leave with new ideas you can carry back to your own community.

‍Tours take place on Monday, April 13, 2026, and RSVPs are required. Spots are limited and available exclusively to registered ASU+GSV Summit attendees. Once you reserve your spot, you’ll receive a confirmation email with additional tour details.

Individual departure times are listed in each tour description below. All tours depart from the Kettner Blvd. entrance of the Manchester Grand Hyatt on the first floor near Market One, and return to the Hyatt after the tour. One week prior, you’ll receive a follow-up email confirming your tour’s exact departure time.

Thank you to our presenting sponsor, Epic, supporting partners Wayground (formerly Quizizz) and Cajon Valley Union School District, and collaborating partners Big Picture Learning and Learner-Centered Collaborative.

If you have any questions, please reach out to megan@gsv.com. See you at the bus stop!

Learner Centered Collaborative's Design39 TK-8 Campus

https://design39campus.powayusd.com/

Estimated tour departure: 8:15 AM
Estimated return: 12:10 PM
Transportation: Bus
Grades served: TK–8

Join the Design39Campus tour for a chance to see learner-centered learning in action. Engage with Learning Experience Designers and students from TK through eighth grade as you explore the campus, then break into sessions to reflect on learner-centered shifts, learner agency, space, and exhibitions of learning.

Big Picture Learning’s San Diego Met High School

https://sdmet.sandiegounified.org/about_us

Estimated tour departure: 7:45 AM
Estimated return: 12:05 PM
Transportation: Bus
Grades served: 9–12

By visiting The San Diego Met, you’ll get an up-close look at how relationships between students and advisors create a truly student-centered learning environment. You’ll join an Advisory circle, participate in classroom activities, and learn more about Big Picture Learning’s internship-driven model by speaking directly with students. The Met is distinguished by Learning by Doing, Advisory, Internships, and College and Career preparation.

SCHOOL DESCRIPTION

‍San Diego Metropolitan Regional, Career, and Technical High School (known as "The Met") is a public school in the San Diego Unified School District, serving grades 9-12. We are part of the Big Picture Learning network of student-centered and relationship-focused schools. At the Met, we believe that every student has unique interests, skills, cultural assets, and learning needs, and as such, our teachers focus on "one student at a time," creating a learning environment where each student is empowered to truly personalize their educational path. We are located on the campus of San Diego Mesa College, and we leverage our relationship with Mesa to provide students with unparalleled college access and preparation.

The Met is distinguished by our 4 pillars:

1. Learning By Doing

Every Met student engages in learning experiences that challenge them to get hands-on, explore important questions and concepts, and demonstrate their learning in a variety of authentic ways. Work is grounded in real-world contexts and connects to students’ backgrounds and interests, making it relevant and meaningful. Time is built into each class for students to work, receive personalized feedback, and revise their work to move closer to proficiency.

2. Advisory

Every Met student joins an Advisory, which is a small cohort of students in the same grade level who become incredibly close with each other and their Advisor throughout their years at the Met. Advisory is the heart of our relationship-centered model, inspiring students to participate in a supportive community that is often described as a “family.”

3. Internships

Every Met student pursues their interests and gains real-world work experience two days a week through the most extensive internship program of any high school in San Diego. Internships provide students with the opportunity to explore careers and learn valuable skills through hands-on experiences under the guidance of an industry mentor who becomes part of the student’s support network.

4. College and Career

Every Met student prepares for life after high school through college and career readiness activities, including our partnership with San Diego Mesa College, which allows our students enroll in college and earn transferable credits while in high school, all for FREE.

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PRE-READING FOR ATTENDEES

Prior to your tour, please explore the following resources and guiding questions:

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Guiding questions to help you reflect on your experience before, during, and after your tour:

What would be possible if we centered our curriculum on the student instead of particular content?
What is the role of educators in helping students develop social capital?
How do internships and other work-based learning experiences help students develop agency?
How might our understanding of rigor and authentic assessment shift when we use the community as a space and resource for learning that is just as impactful as our school building?
How can a personalized learning model address equity challenges and achievement gaps?

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Linda Vista Innovation Center (SDCOE)

https://www.sdcoe.net/schools/linda-vista-innovation-center

Estimated tour departure: 8:45 AM
Estimated return: 12:00 PM
Transportation: Bus
Grades served: Elementary and Middle School

At the Linda Vista Innovation Center, the San Diego County Office of Education creates an environment where young innovators explore, create, and learn through hands-on interactive educational experiences. You’ll begin with an introduction to LVIC and the RIASEC Assessment, then rotate through innovation labs that simulate real work environments aligned to priority economic sectors.

Right to Dream Academy

https://www.sandiegofc.com/academy/

Estimated tour departure: 7:45 AM
Estimated return: 11:40 AM
Transportation: Bus
Grades served: 6th–7th (planned expansion: 6th–12th)

During the tour of Right to Dream San Diego, participants will experience portions of a “day in the life” of an Academy student-athlete. The tour begins on the pitch, transitions through the Academy performance center spanning athletic, residential, and education spaces, and concludes with participation or observation of a community circle. Throughout the visit, attendees will engage in guided questions and discussion with coaches, educators, student-athletes, and Academy leadership.

SCHOOL DESCRIPTION

Right to Dream San Diego is a groundbreaking youth development academy and educational institution based in San Diego, built on the globally respected Right to Dream model originally developed in Ghana. For over two decades, Right to Dream’s model has been successful in Ghana, Denmark, and Egypt. The San Diego campus brings this philosophy to North America, creating new pathways for talented youth in the region and beyond. It’s a fully funded residential program that combines elite football (soccer) training, rigorous academics, and character development for young student-athletes. Football is the entry point, but the mission extends to building leaders with the skills to succeed in college, careers, and life and ensuring that the opportunity to realize one’s dreams is extended to all young people who aspire by eliminating the barrier of cost. Right to Dream Academy San Diego includes world-class coaching and sporting development for young people identified as having high-potential as professional soccer players embedded within a comprehensive, college-preparatory, independent middle (and eventually middle through high) school and residential program. In its first full year of operation, the Academy currently serves 19 student-athletes ages 11-13 in grades 6th and 7th. Eventually, the Academy will grow to offer grades 6th-12th and will serve up to 100 student-athletes, both male and female.

The mission and vision of the Academy at large are reflected through our vision for instruction and culture. The power of our learning environment is predicated on a commitment to creating spaces of psychological safety which anchor in relationships, a commitment to values, the behaviors of accelerated learning, communication for effective feedback, and shared developmental mindsets.

In terms of our instructional framework, we use the California Common Core State Standards, Next Generation Science Standards, and National Arts Standards as a content scope and sequence and criteria for our curriculum selection, but allow our practitioners the flexibility and autonomy to adapt curriculum to our unique environment and student-athlete needs. Instructional leaders use best practices and principles from resources and theories such as Understanding by Design, Research for Better Teaching, Cognitively Guided Instruction and Constructivist/Design Thinking to inform our design. Our academic model goes beyond the content to include an emphasis on interdisciplinary skills and concepts for success across subject-matter and grade level such as evidence-based reasoning, modeling and systems thinking, creative and flexible problem-solving, reflection and metacognition, and communication and collaboration. In some ways, the complexity and fluidity of soccer is a microcosmic analogy for the complexity of navigating the real world. We leverage naturally existing and create new opportunities on and off the pitch to push our Student-Athletes’ conceptual understanding, critical thinking, creativity, team leadership, and voice. We create environments that encourage high-engagement, risk-taking, curiosity, ownership, and advocacy. In an age where technology and virtual intelligence makes access to content information readily accessible, our Student-Athletes will set themselves apart by honing mindsets that promote deep learning, thinking, and doing which lead to the innovation and skill to excel in the new and unknown challenges of our future.

PRE-READING FOR ATTENDEES

Resources

Right to Dream Website (San Diego)
Right to Dream Academy YouTube - watch the 4 part series on San Diego
Right to Dream Website (Global)
If you are not yet familiar with the Savannah Bananas, check them out! We have used their 5 guiding principles for innovation in redesigning storied traditions in baseball as we think about designing locally at the Academy. Here is an adaptation of guiding questions from those principles that we can consider in addition to the sample questions below:
- What IF school was a place you YOURSELF would really enjoy (both as a child and a teacher/leader)?!
- What IF we dared to envision something completely different?
- What IF we could pull on ideas from outside our field to make our schools really unique?
- What IF all our future enrollment came from word of mouth? What would we want our community (students, staff, families, etc.) to say?
- What IF we weren’t afraid to fail fast, learn and iterate? What IF nothing stood in our way from making the changes in our schools we think our children deserve/need?

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Sample Guiding Questions:

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‍Taking all your experience to date into consideration, if you were given a blank slate to design a developmental space for young people, what is 1 practice/mindset/way of being that you would insist is replicated? What is one practice/mindset/way of being that you would insist is disrupted or left behind? Why?‍
‍What habits, skills, and mindsets are necessary for young people to thrive in today’s society (and the unknown future) and to become the best versions of themselves? (Think human capacities in addition to academic skills)
‍If schools were designed for the purpose (of the above), what would they look/sound/feel like?

E3 Civic High School

https://www.e3civichigh.com/

Estimated tour departure: 8:50 am PT
Estimated return: 11:35am
Transportation: Bus
Grades Served: 9-12

Join a tour of e3 Civic High given by scholar ambassadors, where you’ll see how the mission and vision come to life within studios and learning spaces. After touring campus, you’ll participate in a panel discussion and breakout groups with school leadership focused on sustainable learning models, whole-scholar systems, and preparation for college, workforce, and life. Guests will also hear scholar design thinking and entrepreneurship pitches.

Del Mar Heights

https://delmarheights.dmusd.org/

Estimated tour departure: 7:45 AM
Estimated return: 12:05 PM
Transportation: Bus
Grades served: K–6

Get ready to explore a learning environment designed to inspire and empower young minds at Del Mar Heights School. You’ll visit STEAM+ Studios and the Innovation Center, experience flexible learning spaces and Learning Commons, and join breakout conversations that explore learning spaces, STEAM+ and special programs, design thinking, and creating a culture of thinking.

SCHOOL DESCRIPTION

Del Mar Heights School, serving students from kindergarten to sixth grade, is part of the Del Mar Union School District, known for its commitment to educational excellence and innovative practices. Del Mar Heights, originally built in 1959, underwent a rebuild and reopened in 2024. ‍

The district's mission centers on igniting genius and empowering students to advance the world. Two instructional frameworks, Creating a Culture of Thinking and the Essential Elements of Instruction, guide teaching and learning practices throughout the district.

Del Mar Heights embodies this vision by fostering a nurturing and stimulating environment that encourages students to explore their creativity, think critically, and collaborate effectively. Student thinking is valued, visible, and actively promoted. Dynamic learning environments help students develop as thinkers and learners around dispositions identified in our Portrait of a Learner. Through Cognitively Guided Instruction, students actively deepen their mathematical understanding by solving word problems where student thinking and conceptual understanding lead the way. Our credentialed STEAM+ teachers support our district's mission to educate the "whole" child by providing students with opportunities for hands-on activities, problem-solving, innovation, teamwork, and exposure to the arts and sciences that extend beyond the general education classroom.

Get ready to explore a learning environment designed to inspire and empower young minds at Del Mar Heights School! The campus is a dynamic hub of activity where students are thinkers, creators, and innovators. Step into our STEAM+ Studios and Innovation Center, where science, technology, engineering, and the arts come together to ignite the unique genius of each student. Equipped with cutting-edge resources and flexible workspaces, students collaborate, experiment, and bring meaningful learning to life.

The nature-integrated campus invites students to explore adjacent outdoor learning areas, expansive playgrounds, and fields. Natural light and fresh air permeate vibrant interior learning spaces throughout the school. Del Mar Heights is designed for every learner and to support a variety of teaching activities. Learning Studios have ergonomic, flexible furnishings and tools for personalized, collaborative learning. Traditional ideas around hallways have been turned into Learning Commons for student and teacher use throughout the day. The Learning Commons also houses a large portion of the decentralized library, placing books near students for increased access. Cozy Learning Nooks offer the perfect spot for quiet reflection or focused teamwork. Operable walls that open between learning studios or to the outdoors support learning beyond the individual classroom into an integrated school community.

PRE-READING FOR ATTENDEES

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Del Mar Heights School Website ‍

DMUSD Strategic Plan: Destination 2028!

Six Key Principles of the Cultures of Thinking Project

Campus Map and Descriptors

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Guiding Questions:

In what ways is student thinking valued, visible, and actively promoted?

What priorities and values related to learning does the environment communicate to visitors?

How does the environment support the deprivatization of teaching and learning for teachers and students?

Avocado Elementary

https://avocado.cajonvalley.net/

• Estimated tour departure: 8:30 AM
• Estimated return: 11:40 AM
• Transportation: Bus
• Grades served: TK–5

At Avocado Elementary, you’ll experience how World of Work and the RIASEC framework shape a schoolwide culture focused on purpose, identity, and future readiness. You’ll see how career exploration shows up through shared experiences, creative projects, and intentional structures across classrooms, and you’ll hear directly from students during a moderated RIASEC conversation.

Meridian Elementary

https://meridian.cajonvalley.net/

• Estimated tour departure: 8:30 AM
• Estimated return: 11:40 AM
• Transportation: Bus
• Grades served: K–5

At Meridian Elementary, World of Work and RIASEC aligned career exploration are intentionally woven into daily instruction in alignment with priorities of belonging, academic excellence, and family and community engagement. You’ll see how RIASEC based lessons are integrated across literacy, math, and science so students can connect learning to real-world contexts while reflecting on strengths, interests, and values.

Bostonia Global

https://bostonia.cajonvalley.net/

• Estimated tour departure: 8:30 AM
• Estimated return: 12:00 PM
• Transportation: Bus
• Grades served: TK–12 (Two Stops: Bostonia Global Elementary & Bostonia Global High School)

Bostonia Global offers a deeply integrated TK–12 World of Work pathway that ensures every student has a clear, supported route to postsecondary education, paid apprenticeships, and meaningful careers. On this tour, you’ll visit both the elementary and high school campuses to see how Advisory anchors relationships, reflection, and goal-setting, and how students build toward future pathway design as they progress.