#382 – Future Ready Schools, with Thomas Murray

In this episode of Unpacking Education, we welcome back Thomas Murray to dive into the evolving landscape of Future Ready Schools. Tom shares insights on creating learning environments that truly prepare students for an unpredictable future, focusing on effectiveness, engagement, and innovation. From strategic frameworks to workforce readiness, he challenges educators to think beyond the basics and ensure that every student has the tools to live life on their own terms. Tune in for free resources from All4Ed, actionable ideas, and a fresh perspective on what it means to be future ready in 2025 and beyond.

Future Ready Schools^® (FRS) helps innovative educators ensure that each student graduates from high school with the agency, passion, and skills to be a productive, compassionate, and responsible citizen.

All4Ed, on the Future Ready Schools page of their website

Resources

The following resources are available from AVID and on AVID Open Access to explore related topics in more depth:

• AI in the K–12 Classroom (article collection)
• Personal and Authentic Learning, with Thomas C. Murray (podcast episode)
• An Innovator’s Mindset: Empowering Students and Educators, with George Couros (podcast episode)
• Supporting Innovation, Opportunity, and Access in Learning, with Julie Faryniarz and Trish Rohr (podcast episode)
• Digital Learning Day 2025 (podcast episode)
• The Future Ready Librarian, with Shannon McClintock Miller (podcast episode)

Empowering Choices

What does it mean for a school to be future ready? According to Thomas Murray, it’s about more than just technology—it’s about designing meaningful learning experiences that prepare students for a rapidly changing world. Schools must be places where students develop the agency, passion, and skills needed to thrive, regardless of their ZIP code.

Throughout the episode, Tom breaks down the Future Ready Framework, a research-based model that helps schools create sustainable, student-centered change. He explores the importance of strategic planning, community partnerships, and workforce readiness while challenging educators to rethink traditional approaches. If we truly want to prepare students for life beyond the classroom, we must move beyond jargon and embrace evidence-based transformation. Join us as we unpack the essential elements of Future Ready Schools and discover how to empower students to live life on their own terms. The following are highlights from this episode:

• About Our Guest: Thomas Murray is the Director of Innovation for Future Ready Schools. He is also a former classroom teacher and building administrator at both the elementary and secondary levels. Tom is the author of Personal and Authentic: Designing Learning Experiences That Impact a Lifetime.
• Future Ready Schools: Future Ready Schools is the practitioner arm of All4Ed, a national education nonprofit. They offer free resources and services to K–12 schools. Tom says, “There’s no catch. We get to do this work because we believe it’s the right work to do.” This includes working with researchers to develop evidence-based practices that support school and district leaders. Tom points out that Future Ready Schools focuses on “giving leaders the resources and the tools that are needed, the frameworks that are needed, and the network that’s needed to be able to support transformation in a really sustainable way.”
• Future Ready Framework: The Future Ready Framework is a research-based structure designed to help guide digital learning visioning, planning, and implementation. The framework is comprised of a collection of interconnected gears, which include curriculum, instruction, and assessment; personalized professional learning; budget and resources; community partnerships; data and privacy; robust infrastructure; use of space and time; and collaborative leadership. These elements are represented as gears because when one part is changed, all the others are impacted.
• Multiple Leadership Strands: There are six different leadership strands—or role-alike programs—that are available, all based on a similar structure and aimed at different audiences: district leaders, principals, technology leaders, instructional coaches, school boards, and librarians.
• Nationwide Use: The Future Ready Framework has been used by over 1,000 schools nationwide. It has also been integrated into six different state-sponsored plans.
• Personal Mission: Tom says, “My personal mission is to help schools create environments that I’d want to send my own children to. That’s my own bottom line.”
• Ongoing Work: Tom points out that it’s important to keep the work going. It’s never done, and he stresses the importance of “this mindset of just continuous improvement.” He adds, “This mindset of . . . ‘Is what we’re doing the best we can do for kids? What are the areas that we’re average, and how do we continue to improve that average?”
• Effective Work: Tom says, “One of the things that we pride ourselves in from Future Ready is really trying to be research- and evidence-based. . . . We look at our practice. What is the research we’re grounding it in?”
• National Career Readiness Work: All4Ed works with both a Republican and a Democratic pollster to gather nonpartisan insights. Through this work, they have found that people generally agree on issues more often than they had expected. However, the words that are used can sometimes lead to misunderstandings. Tom emphasizes the importance of choosing our words carefully to avoid misinterpretations. These survey results can be found on the All4Ed website.
• Free All4Ed Resources: Tom urges listeners to visit the All4Ed website and utilize the resources posted there. You’ll find toolkits, frameworks, podcasts, resources, and poll results. He calls specific attention to the Future Ready Dashboard, where you can find a free self-assessment tool that school and district leaders can use to determine how ready they are to implement technology initiatives and changes. Tom says, “It uses the Future Ready Framework. It’s evidence-based. It’s written by researchers to take a look at: Are districts ready to implement technology? It’s a readiness assessment.” The account is free. Districts own their data, and they get a customized report aligned to the information they inputted into the tool.
• Promoting Workforce Readiness: All4Ed’s new CEO, Amy Loyd, previously oversaw workforce readiness initiatives for the U.S. Department of Education. Tom adds, “What’s amazing is watching and seeing what districts are doing to help prepare kids for an economy that is shifting, a workforce that is shifting.” Part of this work is helping students gain awareness of career opportunities and then understanding what path they need to take to get there. That may be college, it may be a vocational school, or it may be another avenue. Tom says, “Our goal is to allow kids to ultimately live life on their own terms.”
• Hot Topics: Tom thinks that there will be increased discussion about school choice, which will be increasingly driven by administration priorities and the impact of AI. He believes, “The competition for public schools is going to be massive.” He notes the growing popularity of Alpha School as one example of a school using AI to compact traditional learning while shifting more focus to creating businesses and being an entrepreneur. He says, “These micro-type schools will become even more competition for public schools. . . . If we are not keeping up with the times, if we are not creating relevant experiences for our kids, they’re going to go elsewhere.”
• Power of People: Tom believes in the power of people. He says he appreciates people who both love and push him. He adds, “Make sure you’ve got those people in your corner that will lovingly challenge you but also pick you up when needed.”
• Tom’s One Thing: “I’ll leave them with my very first words of Personal and Authentic, my last book, that say, ‘The work is hard, but our kids are worth it.’ The work that you’re doing each and every day is ridiculously challenging, and I see that and recognize that. But the kids that they serve, the children that we serve, the communities that we serve, they’re worth it. And so, just a word of encouragement, especially this time of year, especially as they’re navigating the challenges: Stay true to who you are. Stay true to your core. Keep loving on those kids, and the work is worth it.”