Microschool fellowship program helps former public school educator pursue his entrepreneurial dreams

Primer Microschools Leader Fellow Adam Tweet with his wife, Paloma, and their daughter, Harper

Growing up, Adam Tweet loved learning. Until he didn’t.

Kindergarten was amazing, but as he got older, Adam wanted the freedom to pursue things he enjoyed. He loved reading but not books typically found on school reading lists. Comic books and interactive Choose Your Own Adventure books fed his passions.

But teachers told him he couldn’t read those books, even if they sat on school library shelves. He needed to read what they assigned.

“And that just turned me off reading,” Adam said. Now, the former Florida public school teacher and administrator wants to offer a learning environment for kids who were like him, who chafed under rigid rules and found joy by pursuing their passions, which for Adam included soccer and ice hockey.

Adam is one of 50 people across the United States chosen to be part of  Primer Microschools’ inaugural Leader Fellowship program. Likened to an evening MBA program, its goal is to help participants open and run Primer Microschools in their communities. Adam is among 28 fellows across Florida, where universal eligibility for education savings accounts has created a supercharged environment that allows the state to celebrate National School Choice Week with gusto.

A Minnesota native and self-described “average student,” Adam majored in P.E. and health. After graduation, he found few opportunities to teach those subjects. He fell into elementary school teaching after RCMA Immokalee Community Academy, a Florida charter school that serves primarily migrant farm working families, turned him down for the P.E. job but offered him a position teaching third grade. That started an education career that spanned more than a decade, including a year in Brooklyn, New York, and eight years in administrative roles for the School District of Lee County in Florida.

Then he became a parent, and his perspective changed.

“I was going on with my career and I’m like, ‘Public schools, public schools, I love them,’” he recalled. “And then I had my daughter, and it kind of switched.”

Adam and his wife, Paloma, wanted to examine every option to find the best education for their daughter, Harper, who is now 4 and in voluntary pre-kindergarten.

That exploration included research into microschools, which are intentionally small, teacher-led learning environments. They have been called a modern version of 19th-century one-room schoolhouses.

Florida has a plethora of such schools, including Kind Academy of Coral Springs, which began in 2016 and offers full-time and hybrid homeschool programs. Kind’s founder, Iman Alleyne, started her own 10-week training program for aspiring founders in 2022, with a goal of opening 100 microschools in 10 years. About a half-hour south in Davie, Colossal Academy offers middle school students the chance to spend part of their time on a farm. Partnerships with other nearby providers such as Surf Skate Science, which provides a hands-on approach to learning math, science, and design through the pursuits of surfing and skateboarding. Acton Academy has also brought its brand of student-directed learning to Florida, with 15 schools that put students on a “heroes’ journey.”

The National Microschooling Center estimates 95,000 microschools across the United States served more than 1 million students last year. With the passage or expansion of education savings accounts, microschools are expected to grow more in 2025.

When Adam and Paloma discovered Primer Microschools, they liked what they saw: competency-based learning with no age-based groups and with dedicated time for students to pursue passion projects that can range from setting up an art gallery to making and selling lip gloss. As a former P.E. teacher, Adam also liked the emphasis on outdoor activities.

Adam could also relate to Primer founder Ryan Delk’s story growing up as a homeschooler in central Florida. Delk’s mom, a teacher, wasn’t satisfied with the low-rated zoned school after moving to his grandparents’ home in 1996. So, she started a small homeschool for him, his siblings, and a few neighborhood kids. Rather than relying on textbooks, Delk’s mom made learning an adventure. She took them on field trips to historic sites to learn about the American Revolution and created a network of cardboard tunnels for students to crawl through to learn how the human digestive system works.

Adam wanted that experience for his daughter. And himself. Last summer, while his car was being serviced, he decided on a whim to fire off a text to Delk asking about the launch of a new fellowship program to help teachers start their own Primer Microschools.

To his surprise, Delk responded immediately.

“We talked for about 10 to 15 minutes,” while the mechanics worked on his car, Adam said.

Delk was moved by Adam’s sharing his sadness at watching once wide-eyed kids gradually lose their love for learning as they progressed through the traditional model and invited him to apply for the fellowship program.

“I really believed in what he was doing,” Adam said. “Academics are certainly important. Mastering reading, mastering math. But their project-based learning is amazing. Behavior problems are non-existent. Engagement is through the roof.”

Adam applied and was accepted. Primer is funding the program with a $1 million Yass Prize last year and is working to scale its established networks beyond South Florida and Arizona, and into new locations throughout Florida — from the Gulf Coast to the Panhandle — and into Alabama.

Fellows attend weekly live virtual training and work toward key milestones, such as finding a location. A new Florida law that Delk helped get passed last year eases certain zoning rules for those opening in locations such as religious buildings, libraries, community centers, former schools, and even theaters.

Fellows also receive a $500 monthly stipend. Training is held during the evenings to enable participants to continue their day jobs.

When they open their schools in August, they will become Primer employees and receive a salary and benefits.

Adam, who has enrolled his daughter for next year, plans to start his school in Fort Myers. His goal is to enroll 45 students, with three groups, one for kindergarten through second grade, another for grades three through five, and a third for grades six through eight. His school, like other Primer Microschools, accepts state school choice scholarships. Primer also works with qualified families to secure other need-based financial aid.

Now, Adam and the other fellows are working hard to prepare. They are learning from Primer leaders about the school’s proprietary software, its instructional methods, how to recruit students and navigate real estate matters.

Adam said the software program is “very user-friendly” and allows parents to keep track of what their kids are working on and their daily progress. The best thing, however, is being able to ask questions, share ideas, and celebrate wins with other fellows through a Slack group.

“Having the community of Primer has been incredible,” Adam said. “I don’t feel like I’m doing it alone.”

He looks forward to being able to “help other families in our community whose kids are similar to mine – they have passions but where they’re at now is not meeting those passions.”

Adam said he is working to finalize a location and anticipates an August opening.

Mornings will be devoted to core academics, while each afternoon, students will have an opportunity to pursue dreams that could include learning to code, creating podcasts, baking cakes or writing songs.

Adam’s classroom will be well stocked with reading materials, including lots of Choose Your Own Adventure and comic books.


Avatar photo

BY Lisa Buie

Lisa Buie is managing editor for NextSteps. The daughter of a public school superintendent, she spent more than a dozen years as a reporter and bureau chief at the Tampa Bay Times before joining Shriners Hospitals for Children — Tampa, where she served for five years as marketing and communications manager. She lives with her husband and their teenage son, who has benefited from education choice.