At CAST, we often say a core value is: “if you want to know what is happening in schools, ask the students.”

Since inception, our many industry partners have reminded us that successful businesses always listen to their customers. We also hold a deep-seated respect for young people and the contributions they are ready to make. Listening with empathy to those you hope to serve is also at the heart of design thinking, which is an approach shared by CAST Schools and many successful businesses.

This Spring, we have had an opportunity to live into that value as we design a new middle school at Brooks to be co-located with our CAST Med High School.

In recent weeks, we have held a series of design sessions to include students, parents, teachers, and a variety of stakeholders including educators, nonprofit and civic leaders, and our industry partners. We continue to push out this survey to middle school students because we know that if we keep their interests top of mind, the chances of young people flourishing will be so much higher.

Jeanne Russell

Executive Director

CAST Schools