A Bold Vision for Our Children—and Our Country

Stepping away from my career to start something bigger than myself: a school where children aren’t just educated—they're forged. In a culture that too often confuses safety with purpose, comfort with meaning, and conformity with success, we're building a place that does the opposite.

This is Acton Academy Santa Barbara—a one-room schoolhouse reborn for the 21st century. It’s where children are treated like heroes-in-training. Where they learn by doing, thinking, building, failing, and trying again. Where family and freedom are not afterthoughts—they're the foundation.

We’re raising $50,000 in seed funding to launch this fall, and every dollar helps move us closer. We’re asking for small contributions—$100 to $1,000—from people who believe courage, grit, and truth still matter. Contributions are tracked carefully, and our goal is to raise the full amount by July 15 to secure a location and open our doors on time.

At Acton, guides replace lecturers, and students drive their learning through hands-on quests, Socratic discussions, and real-world challenges—earning badges, building portfolios, and shining at public exhibitions. The result? Many leap 2–3 grade levels ahead, thriving in a process they love.

Why California—and Why Now?

Because we’re falling behind. In 2023, only 34% of California 4th graders were proficient in reading. Just 28% could do grade-level math. That’s not a small crack in the system—that’s collapse.

But this isn’t just a California problem. When California—home to one in eight Americans—fails to educate its children, the ripple effects impact the whole country. Culture, policy, innovation, and leadership all flow outward from here. If we want a different future, it starts with different schools.

And while this school is rooted in Santa Barbara, it’s built on values that resonate far beyond it: freedom, self-reliance, and the belief that young people are capable of far more than we’ve been told.

As Merlin says in The Once and Future King, “Education is experience, and the essence of experience is self-reliance.”

That’s what we’re building here: not just learners, but creators. Young men and women who can think for themselves, stand on principle, get knocked down, and get back up. The kind of kids who become the kind of adults this world desperately needs.

We’re not building this school for some hypothetical family. We’re building it for our own—and for every family who’s ready to choose courage over comfort.

If this vision resonates with you, we’d be honored to have your support—financially, prayerfully, or just by spreading the word.

Let’s give our kids the chance to become the heroes they were meant to be.