Career preparation for K-12 educators
Teachers, your next move starts here.
We’re building NextGround: career preparation for educators, in a cohort, one-on-one, or one session at a time. Learn the work, practice with feedback, and build evidence for your next role.
- Grow in schools
- Work alongside schools
- Go beyond education
No sign-up needed. Your preview stays open for 24 hours.
In development. Join the waitlist to follow along and help shape what comes next.
Three directions.
Your teaching experience can take you so many places. These are just a few, and NextGround plans to offer this and so much more.
Track 01
Within education
Grow your leadership without leaving schools.
Sample roles
- Instructional coach
- Department or team lead
- Specialist
- Assistant principal
- And more
Building now: First-Time Instructional Leader
Track 02
Education-adjacent
Keep your expertise. Change your work environment.
Sample roles
- Curriculum writer
- Edtech customer success
- PD facilitator
- Implementation specialist
- And more
Track 03
Beyond education
Take your skills into roles that value facilitation and execution.
Sample roles
- Project manager
- Learning and development
- Corporate trainer
- Operations
- Instructional designer
- And more
Building now: Instructional Design
Rewording your résumé doesn’t close a skill gap.
This is a different job market. Hundreds of educators are applying for the same roles, and most are rewording the same experience. If you aren’t building new skills, you will keep feeling stuck.
A reworded résumé
New words. Same gaps.
- Skills the new role needs that you haven’t built yet
- Work you have read about but never actually done
- Interview questions you can only answer in theory
The résumé sounds better. The gaps are still there when you get to the interview, or the first day.
Preparation with NextGround
We help you close the gaps before you apply.
See your gaps clearly.
Learn what the role actually asks of you, and where you are today.
Build the missing skills.
Practice the real work, get feedback, and try again before the stakes are real.
Apply already ready.
Walk in with work you have done and can explain, not just new words for old work.
You’re not asking a hiring team to imagine you in the role. You have already started doing the work.
No master’s degree. No extra certification. No big tuition bill.
You learn from practitioners who work in these fields right now and know what today’s hiring teams expect, not from people who are out of touch with this new market.
3 in 4
nearly, in our early educator research
The opportunity was there. They did not feel ready.
Nearly 3 in 4 educators said they had decided not to apply for a role or opportunity because they did not feel prepared.
Nearly 9 in 10
took on new responsibilities to prepare for a future role.
More than 4 in 5
rated practicing future-role skills as highly valuable.
Source: NextGround Educator Career Growth & Mobility Survey. Early directional research, not a nationally representative sample.
Read the full early educator research briefPreparation for the work, not just the application.
Learn the role from a former teacher who has held it.
Practice the hard moments before they count.
Prepare with a cohort headed the same way.
Leave with proof you can show in an interview.
Not a certification, a job board, or a course library. Preparation for the role you want next.
Don’t want to wait for the next cohort? You can start now.
Recommended
Cohort
Five months with a small group headed your way.
Premium
1:1 Coaching
A practitioner in your corner every week.
Start now
Prep Session
One focused hour on what is coming up for you.
Coming soon
Self-Paced
Learn on your own schedule, once it opens.
Weekly pace
Flexible, not a two-hour minimum.
Some weeks may take an hour or less. Spend more time when you want more practice.
Live calls
Two calls a month.
Alongside short videos, practice on your own schedule, and connection with your cohort.
Pricing
Flexible payment options will be available.
Pricing will be announced before applications open. Some paths may cost more based on the tools they require.
How a cohort runs
Learn with a practitioner, try the work, get feedback, and build your portfolio with a cohort. We’re planning support through your first 90 days in the new role, too.
Curious what learning with us feels like?
Take a private look inside the learner app. No account or password needed.
No sign-up needed. Your preview stays open for 24 hours.
Learn from people who have held the job.
Every practitioner here was a classroom teacher first. We look for people who have made the move themselves, because someone who has walked the walk can show you your very next step.
Devin LewisFounder, former Director of Teacher Evaluation
Renicka BeardenDirector of Secondary Program Success
Holly OwensInstructional DesignWe’re adding more practitioners as educators tell us which pathways they want. So this is not the whole list.
Why Devin built NextGround
“I intentionally did more in every role so I could be ready for the next.”
Taking on new responsibilities gave me practice before I made my next move. I’m building NextGround to help other educators prepare with guidance, feedback, and people headed the same way.
Don't spend another hiring cycle guessing.
Find a role that fits your experience, or take a private look at how you could prepare for it.
Hear first
when the first path opens
Shape it
tell us what you need to prepare for
Follow along
as each new route takes shape
Not sure where to start? The Role Matcher asks 45 quick questions and shows which line fits you, plus three real roles to explore.
No sign-up needed. Your preview stays open for 24 hours.
NextGround is still being built. Waitlist members will hear first as plans develop.