The Thinking Project Institute

“The board reviews the 990 prior to filing with the irs.”

“If and when potential conflicts exist, we ask board members to recuse themselves from any discussion or voting on the matter. When necessary, we seek legal counsel to ensure that we are operating in a manner that ensures conflicts do not create issues.”

“The board looked at information regarding average colorado teachers' salaries, average teachers' benefits, and a salary survey from the employer's council to determine a salary range.”

“Governing and financial documents are available upon request.”

“The thinking project's mission is to bring inquiry to every student, everywhere. Rooted in the process of inquiry-based stress reduction (ibsr), we're exploring how this work-and related, congruent practices-can meaningfully support both students and educators. Our focus is on reducing stress and awakening natural joy, openness, and creativity, especially in the moments that feel most confusing or challenging. We're discovering how the ability to identify and question specific stressful thoughts-and to see with fresh perspective-can be a powerful foundation for lasting change, relevant learning, and deep growth.”

“Framework testing & pilots, continued: we tested five prototype frameworks: try, reflect, try again; think, act, impact; the act triangle (action, context, and thinking); ah i have a presentation; and with and without a thought. During interviews, teachers rated each framework on usability and shared what classroom problems the frameworks might help address. We prioritized piloting frameworks that scored at least a 4 out of 5 and where teachers independently named connections to strained relationships or limited perspective-taking-without being prompted. In fy23, 29 educators engaged with the framework work. Of those, 27 expressed interest in trying a framework, 19 piloted one, and 18 had at least one positive experience. These pilots reached approximately 1,600 students across a range of grade levels and school contexts. We gathered feedback, observed real-world use, and adapted the frameworks based on teacher insight to make them more usable, relevant, and effective. Framework development, continued: this work was part of our broader growth hypothesis testing strategy. After identifying strained relationships and limited perspective-taking as two of the most common challenges teachers faced, we explored whether a handful of simple, structured frameworks could help both teachers and students engage with thinking more expansively. The frameworks were created, evolved, and refined through cycles of classroom testing and teacher feedback. We made ongoing adjustments based on how teachers used them, how they felt about them, and whether they wanted to continue, repeat, or share them.”

“In fy23, we implemented a strategic pivot toward growth hypothesis testing, following a board decision made at the end of the prior fiscal year. We recognized that not understanding how our work meaningfully grows and spreads was one of the biggest challenges to fulfilling our mission. In response, we shifted from developing and delivering schoolwide social- emotional learning programs to testing how our ibsr-based approach could be most effectively and authentically delivered. This change was rooted in key learnings: that mandatory whole-school implementation wasn't successful when some teachers weren't interested or felt additional work was being added to their already full plates; that the time constraints of the school day made it difficult to sustain ibsr as a deeply experiential and repeated practice for all staff; that students were affected by the level of teacher enthusiasm and commitment; and that inquiry cannot be mandated without losing its integrity and openness. To honor the fundamental spirit of our work and mission, and to support meaningful impact, we began working directly with individual educators who were interested in collaborating with us. These relationships became the foundation for growth-focused experiential research into how best to reach and support both teachers and students with authentic ibsr-based practices that they value.”