Professional Development & Consulting
Place-Based Symposium
Where Place-based ideas come to life
Teton Science Schools’ annual Place-Based Symposium was originally designed to celebrate the place-based teaching and learning happening across the organization, bringing together our faculty, staff, AmeriCorps, students, and regional community members to share and discuss best practices in local learning and global citizenship. Since its establishment in 2016, the Place-Based Symposium has evolved into an annual event through which educators and thought leaders from around the world exchange place-based inspired ideas, learnings, and aspirations.
In 2022, we also began co-hosting an every-other-year International Online Place-Based Education Symposium with our colleagues in Bhutan from the Samtse College of Education, Bhutan Youth Development Fund, and Ministry of Education and Skills Development.
2027 Place-Based Education Symposia
Our 2027 Place-Based Education Symposium is scheduled for Friday, April 23rd. Please mark your calendars for April 23, 2027, and check back in the fall of 2026 for more information about the 2027 Symposium.
Teton Science Schools hosted our 11th Place-Based Education Symposium on Friday, April 24th, 2026.
We had ~160 attendees – staff from TSS, local educators and students, and teachers from across the USA interested in place-based education. A highlight of the Symposium was Julia Putnam’s keynote exploring the inherent patriotism in place-based education. She shared the story and inspiration of founding the James and Grace Lee Boggs School in her hometown of Detroit, MI, and the opportunity for place-based education as a patriotic act.
The best presentation winners from the Symposium are:
Best Student Project in the Student Showcase – Chloe Hayes, 8th grader from Mountain Academy Teton Valley Campus, with her project – Sagebrush Restoration in Grand Teton National Park.
Best Lightning Presentation – Tim Gruber, K/1st grade teacher at Mountain Academy’s Teton Valley Campus, with his presentation – What a Goat Taught Me About Place-Based Education
Best Individual Presentation: Human & Community Connections Track – Sean Kerrane, Middle School English Teacher at Wilmington Friends School (DE), with his presentation – Community Profiles
Best Individual Presentation: Ecology & Community Connections Track – Courtney Gomola, Youth Open Enrollment Program Manager at Teton Science Schools, with her presentation – Landscape Healing: Harnessing Social and Ecological Community to Restore Post-Wildfire
Thank you to all of the presenters and attendees at our 2026 Symposium!