The Ruckus Report
Quick take: When the system broke her heart, she built a new one. From a classroom with no chairs to a network of 1:1 micro schools, Lena Martinez Kalilian is rewriting the rules of what school can be.
🤝 Meet Your Fellow Ruckus Maker
Lena Martinez Kalilian is a former classroom teacher who experienced the limits of traditional schooling firsthand. Now a pioneer at Fusion Education Group, Lena leads a nationwide network of one-to-one micro schools designed to prioritize student belonging, interest-driven learning, and flexible, personalized schedules. She’s on a mission to put love at the center of school design — and create places where students thrive, not just survive.
Breaking Down the Old Rules
🧠 Key Insight #1: The Class Size Myth
- What’s broken: Cramming 40 kids into a classroom and expecting personalization.
- The shift: A micro school model with 1:1 instruction and flexible pacing.
- Impact: Students are engaged, confident, and finally seen — teacher burnout drops dramatically.
🧠 Key Insight #2: Teaching Before Trust
- What’s broken: Leading with content before connection.
- The shift: A learning philosophy built on love, motivation, then teaching.
- Impact: Relationships become the gateway to mastery and critical thinking.
🧠 Key Insight #3: Standardized Systems, One-Size-Fits-All Schedules
- What’s broken: Age-based cohorts, rigid start times, and locked-in pacing.
- The shift: Flexible, personalized schedules based on student peak learning times and interest development.
- Impact: Students discover self-agency, intrinsic motivation, and joy in learning — and it sticks.
Quotable Ruckus
Your Do School Different Challenge
Ready to implement these ideas? Start here:
- Tomorrow: : Ask your staff: what would it look like to lead with love in our classrooms?
- This Month: Audit your schedule for flexibility. Where can you give students more autonomy?
- This Semester: Pilot a mentorship-first initiative where teachers focus on connection before content.
Connect & Continue
Get the full episode transcript: here
Follow Lena Martinez Kalilian: https://www.fusionacademy.com/
Follow Lena Martinez Kalilian: LinkedIn
Ruckus Makers Don't Just Listen — They Act
If education ain’t a bit disruptive, then what are your students really learning?
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Ruckus Makers Don’t Just Listen — They Act
Today’s RUCKUScast in Partnership with:
ODP Business Solutions®
Looking to create the kind of campus experience students never forget? ODP Business Solutions® transforms ordinary spaces into extraordinary learning environments.
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PLAY PIPER
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