Our program is built on best practices and research.
The Possible Zone built our current program from the ground up, based on a research-based Theory of Change (ToC). Our ToC combines previous lessons learned from the organization’s first decade of impactful programming, input from stakeholders, input from field-leading experts and advisors, and evidence from multidisciplinary research on:
Competency-Based Education and Gamification
Culturally-Responsive and Trauma-Informed Teaching
Design Thinking
Ecosystems
Entrepreneurship
Job-Readiness
Out-of-School Time (OST)
Personalized Learning
Project-Based Learning (PBL)
Social-Emotional Learning (SEL)
STEAM Self-Efficacy
Work-Based Learning (WBL): Apprenticeships and Internships
Identity development/Occupational Identity
Social Capital
Economic mobility
This research-informed TOC provides a roadmap for our mission of reducing inequities in our society. Dedicated educators implement an experiential-learning program designed through the integration of leading data-driven educational platforms. Students learn and thrive in our state-of-the-art Innovation Center, harnessing converging technologies and further developing their own sense of self. They leave our program as lifelong learners with enduring social and emotional skills, STEAM agency, and a roadmap for their college and career pathways in this second decade of Industry 4.0- when intelligent digital technologies integrate into manufacturing and industrial processes.
Our skilled TPZ team members generously share their diverse experiences, field expertise, and valuable networks, enhancing our collective learnings, growth mindset, and entrepreneurial culture and spirit which ensures that both our students and organization thrive—and pivot strategically, when needed—in a rapidly changing world. We are building relationships with leading academic and industry partners to ensure pathways to innovative careers, such as those emerging in Advanced Manufacturing, Clean Energy, Healthcare, IT/Healthcare Technology, or Life Sciences for our students. And we have credit articulation agreements with several higher education institutions, including Ben Franklin Cummings Institute of Technology, Cambridge College, and Bay Path University, with more expected in 2024 and 2025.
