We get excited every time we meet a school which prioritizes work-based or community-based learning. The philosophy is simple: when students are out in the community, they learn the skills important to the community.
Hillbrook goes beyond that; they are one of the few schools we’ve met which emphasizes, to their students, the impact they can have on their community. Not just what they can learn, but what they can offer. Give, and receive – special stuff.
Hillbrook School runs some of the most thoughtful and robust experiential learning programs around—programs like the eighth-grade Social Impact & Leadership (SIL) capstone, K–8 Reach Beyond Block (RBB), and the high school’s interdisciplinary hex blocks.
Much of this work is led by the Scott Center for Social Entrepreneurship at Hillbrook. At its core, the Scott Center blends academic rigor with purpose-driven work, helping students identify their values, develop empathy, and take informed action. Whether students are developing ventures, collaborating with local nonprofits, or engaging in deep inquiry around social issues, the emphasis is always on authenticity, agency, and reflection.
Within their exceptional programming, Hillbrook faced some long-running challenges:
Hillbrook’s goal was simple, but ambitious: to make learning visible—in real time, from the student’s point of view, and in a way that could be used across grade levels and learning experiences.
They were looking for a student-centered approach that would:
In the spring of 2024, Hillbrook rolled out Unrulr in their eighth-grade SIL program—an interdisciplinary capstone that asks students to design and implement projects rooted in social impact.
Here’s how they did it:
The access to this information is a total godsend— it really gives us a sense of, ‘are we doing the work or not?’
– Mike Peller, Founding Head of Upper School
Unrulr is the best investment we have made as a Center and a school. Embedding documentation and authentic reflection in a student's learning journey is not easy. They resist. They complain. And then they are so proud of their hard work. I was reminded over and over as an educator and social impact leader that it's not the student’s job to know the arc of learning. We must do that work as teachers. I feel so lucky to get to learn from and work with Aaron Schorn and have witnessed the transformative role Unrulr plays in our day-to-day education at Scott Center for Social Entrepreneurship!
– Annie Makela, Founding Director, Scott Center for Social Entrepreneurship, Hillbrook School
Let’s look at the most-tagged COGS—Concepts, Outcomes, Goals, and Skills—to get a picture of Hillbrook’s learning culture.
Most tagged COG: Self Management (Adaptability)
The most tagged COG at Hillbrook isn’t one you’d usually find on a report card—but maybe it should be. Self Management (Adaptability) showed up over 1,300 times, pointing to a school culture that prioritizes emotional regulation, resilience, and flexibility.
Hillbrook students aren’t just learning how to adapt—they’re being placed in environments that require it. Whether navigating the unexpected during their two-week long fall immersive experiences or shifting roles within a group project, students are developing the capacity to stay grounded and adjust when things get messy.
Most tagged COGS: Story, Agency
Through the Scott Center for Social Entrepreneurship, students engage in project-based work centered around making a difference in the world. It’s not surprising, then, that Story and Agency were two of the most tagged COGS.
Story shows us that students aren’t just doing impactful work—they’re thinking critically about the narrative behind it. Who is affected? Why does this matter? What am I learning about myself through this process?
And with Agency not far behind, it’s clear students are leading the charge—not waiting for permission or directions, but identifying issues they care about and taking initiative. That’s not a side effect of the program; that is the program.
Most tagged COGS: Communication, Reflection
The emphasis on Communication—tagged nearly 1,000 times—suggests that Hillbrook students are constantly asked to articulate their ideas, collaborate, and listen. That’s core to their interdisciplinary, real-world learning model.
And with Reflection surfacing frequently through their SIL program (8th grade capstone), it’s clear that students aren’t just doing meaningful project work—they’re taking time to process and make sense of it. The ability to pause, reflect, and integrate what they’ve experienced is treated not as a nice-to-have, but as a crucial part of the learning journey.
Hillbrook wasn’t just trying to improve documentation workflows. They were addressing a deeper question: How do we recognize, support, and celebrate learning that happens outside of traditional academic structures?
Their programs were working—but they needed a way to show that they were working.
Unrulr became the tool that helped students and teachers tell the story of learning—in real time, from the inside out.
Unrulr checked the boxes—but more importantly, it aligned with Hillbrook’s philosophy.
Hillbrook’s rollout was strategic:
Their secret sauce? A strong culture of reflection, supportive leadership, and enough scaffolding to help teachers (and students) succeed.
Unrulr has transformed how Hillbrook tracks and celebrates learning:
Hillbrook has big plans for Unrulr:
Book a demo today and join the movement toward visible, student-centered learning.
