What if we knock down the walls?

The XQ Institute is in service of parents and pioneers, entrepreneurs and teachers, business leaders and administrators, youth and education experts—who are joining a movement to rethink America’s schools. Together, we can use our knowledge, rigor, and creativity to create a new model for school itself.

IQ: How We Think

It measures your cognitive capabilities.

EQ: How We Learn In The World

It measures the ability to connect, collaborate, and learn from others.

IQ + EQ + That Certain Something

XQ is the agile and flexible intelligence that prepares students for a more connected world, a rapidly changing future, and a lifetime of learning.

Russlynn Ali is the chief creative officer of XQ Institute. She brings decades of experience in many arenas to her position, prime among them a knowledge of what is truly required to design schools that will best serve American students for years to come. Before coming to XQ Institute, Russlynn served as assistant secretary of civil rights at the U.S. Department of Education. Russlynn also serves as managing director of education at Emerson Collective.

Laurene Powell Jobs chairs XQ Institute’s Board of Directors and is the president of Emerson Collective. Her two decades in the education field have convinced her that America is ready for a sea change to overhaul the system.

Deep collaborators include Yo Yo Ma, the globally accomplished musician and creator, who wants to see schools that use creativity as a window to discipline, rigor, and a better world. Geoffrey Canada—education advocate and head of the Harlem Children’s Zone—believes it’s time to look at the hard data, and think about how students need to be treated with a whole new level of respect if they are to truly excel. Leon Wieseltier—writer, former editor of The Atlantic, advocate of true cultural discussion—believes that we should engage deeply in conversation, debate, and ultimately resolution about the intent of our public school system in America.

From our inception, we realized this will be a many-to-many effort—involving many talented experts at the core of the Institute collaborating with many talented participants in the movement itself. The following organizations are bringing a broad range of talents—from deep understanding about the science of learning to design thinking skills, from fueling the movement through compelling communication to digital tools that spark new imagination, from magnifying student voice to helping the national media see the issues and solutions of our time.