Pitch Playground

About Pitch Playground

How could $50,000 transform learning? On Pitch Playground, we invite education innovators and social entrepreneurs to throw their best ideas at us. From technologies that build empathy to providing affordable childcare and reimagining the way we learn—this is a place for pitches from visionaries. Each episode features an intrepid edupreneur workshopping a $50,000 project to solve a critical problem in education. With support from mentors, funders, and fellow entrepreneurs we'll explore what it takes to turn dreams into reality. At the end of the season, we award $50,000 to the best pitch we've heard on the show. We're inviting educators and social entrepreneurs to play in the sandbox with us and share their vision for the future of education. We encourage these visionaries to be BOLD—don't just think outside the box; reshape the box itself. Draw outside the lines. It's about making good ideas last longer and go further. About the Host, Nicole Jarbo: Nicole Jarbo is the host of Pitch Playground and the CEO of 4.0. A serial entrepreneur, former educator, and proud 4.0 alum, Nicole has a track record of building impactful ventures across a variety of industries, including education, financial technology, and media. Passionate about storytelling and innovation, she’s sharing the inspiring stories of the 4.0 community and believes in work that makes the world more livable, creative, sustainable, and fun. About 4.0: 4.0 is a hub for education innovators and social entrepreneurs reimagining the future of learning. Through mentorship, funding, and community support, we empower bold thinkers to turn their dreams into reality. To date, 4.0 has helped spark and invest in over 1,600 ideas, and our alumni have impacted millions of students and families. We envision a future where our education system meets the needs of every family and improves life outcomes for all. Have a Pitch to Transform the World? We’d love to hear from you! Whether you're an educator, entrepreneur, or just passionate about changing education, reach out to share your story, ideas, or feedback. Visit us at https://pitchplayground.com/ and subscribe to Pitch Playground wherever you get your podcasts.

Publisher

4.0

Category

business · education

Language

en

Explicit

No

First episode

22 Nov 2024

Latest episode

16 Jul 2025

Latest episodes

13 episodes in the feed.

1. 

   16 Jul 2025

   Winner Announced!!!

   Nicole Jarbo announces Jonathan Santos Silva of The Liber Institute as the winner of the Pitch Playground prize, who plans to expand access to community-led education.

2. 

   10 Jun 2025

   Call to Vote: Which Idea Should Win $50k?

   This episode of Pitch Playground presents ten education entrepreneurs, including Lisa Maria Rhodes of Alas, Jonathan Santos Silva of The Liber Institute, Jaime-Jin Lewis of Wiggle Room, Victoria Chen of BridgeYear, Aaron Frumin of UnCommon Construction, Jonathan Teske of ReFrameXR, Evan Wilson of ScaffoldEd, Dr. Erin Flynn of Hedge School Cooperative, Jacob Adams of Inner Spark, and Danette Buckley of Dream Tech Academy, who are competing for $50

3. 

   27 May 2025

   Building a Better Childcare System: How Jaime-Jin Lewis’s AutoEnroll Simplifies Childcare Operations

   Jaime-Jin Lewis, founder of Wiggle Room, discusses her Auto-Enroll tool that simplifies childcare operations for providers, while Jin-Soo Huh explores scaling trust-based technology and community-led design in this interview.

4. 

   13 May 2025

   Redesigning Rural and Indigenous Education: How Jonathan Santos Silva’s Liber Institute Empowers Communities at the Margins

   Jonathan Santos Silva of The Liber Institute discusses redesigning education for Indigenous communities with mentor Niloy Gangopadhyay, focusing on community-driven school redesign and leadership development in this interview.

5. 

   29 Apr 2025

   A Story Behind Every Empty Seat: How Evan Wilsons’ Scaffold Ed is Tackling Chronic Absenteeism with AI

   Evan Wilson of Scaffold Ed discusses his AI-powered tool with Jin-Soo Huh from The Learning Accelerator, which uncovers the stories behind student absences and helps educators provide targeted support in this interview.

6. 

   15 Apr 2025

   One Size Doesn’t Fit All: How Danette Buckley’s Dream Tech Academy Offers Personalized Education

   Danette Buckley of Dream Tech Academy discusses her personalized education model with Kelly Smith of Prenda in an interview, highlighting how it supports students with varied learning needs and paces.

7. 

   1 Apr 2025

   Hard Hats, Soft Skills: How Aaron Frumin's unCommon Construction Prepares Students for College and Career Success

   Aaron Frumin of unCommon Construction discusses with Spencer Sherman of Education First how his apprenticeship program integrates construction skills with soft skills to prepare students for college and career success in this interview.

8. 

   18 Mar 2025

   Beyond Compliance: How jacob adams’ Inner Spark Learning Lab Cultivates Critical Thinkers

   Jacob Adams of Inner Spark Learning Lab discusses his journey from a "troublemaker" to creating student-centered learning environments that foster critical thinking with Niloy Gangopadhyay of Teach for America in this interview.

9. 

   4 Mar 2025

   Consent-Based Education: How Dr. Erin Flynn’s Hedge School Prioritizes Student Autonomy

   Dr. Erin Flynn discusses consent-based education and student autonomy at the Hedge School, while Kelly Smith provides mentorship on scaling the microschool model in an interview with Nicole Jarbo.

10. 

    18 Feb 2025

    Interrupting the School to Prison Pipeline: How Lisa María Rhodes' Alas Advocates for Students

    Lisa María Rhodes of Alas discusses her organization's mission to support students impacted by the legal system, providing advocacy and resources, in an interview with Molly O’Donnell, offering insights on scaling impact and securing funding.

11. 

    4 Feb 2025

    Immersive Classrooms in Mixed Reality: How Jonathan Teske's Reframe XR Brings Learning to Life

    Jonathan Teske of Reframe XR discusses with Jin-Soo Huh from The Learning Accelerator how mixed reality enhances education through spatial classrooms and interactive learning experiences, addressing funding and educator buy-in in this interview.

12. 

    21 Jan 2025

    Why College Isn’t the Only Option: How Victoria Chen’s BridgeYear Transforms Career Pathways

    Victoria Chen of BridgeYear discusses with Molly O’Donnell how her organization provides non-college-bound students with hands-on career exploration, offering alternative pathways to well-paying jobs, in this interview.

13. 

    22 Nov 2024

    Introducing Pitch Playground

    How could $50,000 transform learning? On Pitch Playground, we invite education innovators and social entrepreneurs to throw their best ideas at us. From technologies that build empathy to providing affordable childcare and reimagining the way we learn—this is a place for pitches from visionaries. Each episode features an intrepid edupreneur workshopping a $50,000 project to solve a critical problem in education. With support from mentors, funders, and fellow entrepreneurs we'll explore what it takes to turn dreams into reality. At the end of the season, we award $50,000 to the best pitch we've heard on the show. We're inviting educators and social entrepreneurs to play in the sandbox with us and share their vision for the future of education. We encourage these visionaries to be BOLD—don't just think outside the box; reshape the box itself. Draw outside the lines. It's about making good ideas last longer and go further. About the Host, Nicole Jarbo: Nicole Jarbo is the host of Pitch Playground and the CEO of 4.0. A serial entrepreneur, former educator, and proud 4.0 alum, Nicole has a track record of building impactful ventures across a variety of industries, including education, financial technology, and media. She’s passionate about sharing the inspiring stories of the 4.0 community and believes in work that makes the world more livable, creative, sustainable, and fun. About 4.0: 4.0 is a hub for education innovators and social entrepreneurs reimagining the future of learning. Through mentorship, funding, and community support, we empower bold thinkers to turn their dreams into reality. To date, 4.0 has helped spark and invest over 2,000 ideas, and our alumni have impacted millions of students and families. We envision a future where our education system meets the needs of every family and improves life outcomes for all. Have a Pitch to Transform the World? We’d love to hear from you! Whether you're an educator, entrepreneur, or just passionate about changing education, reach out to share your story, ideas, or feedback.  Visit us at https://pitchplayground.com/ (https://pitchplayground.com/) and subscribe to Pitch Playground wherever you get your podcasts.

Who has been a guest on Pitch Playground

Names identified in recent episode analyses. Showing up to five guests.

• Jonathan Santos Silva
• Lisa Maria Rhodes
• Jaime-Jin Lewis
• Victoria Chen
• Aaron Frumin

Reach and audience

Public platform figures. Ratings count people who left a rating, not total listeners.

Apple Podcasts (US)

4.8 / 5

18 ratings

Spotify

5.0 / 5

13 ratings

Podcast Authority Score: 30 / 100

A composite of feed quality, social presence, YouTube performance and engagement. Read the methodology.

Quality

26

Social presence

0

YouTube

0

Engagement

85

Contact Pitch Playground

Guest appearances

Does not typically book guests

Based on episode analysis; this does not confirm that the show is currently accepting guests.

Questions about Pitch Playground