Philosophy Learning and Teaching Organization
Dedicated to empowering young people through philosophy
Programs and results
What we aim to solve
PLATO seeks to address the need to build K-12 students' critical thinking and communication skills, analytic reasoning abilities, self-understanding, and openness to diverse perspectives. We work to empower students to think for themselves, employing an innovative approach to education that helps young people to find their voices, trust their own judgments, engage in collective and open dialogues, and develop the confidence and skills needed to become active and engaged citizens.
Our programs
What are the organization's current programs, how do they measure success, and who do the programs serve?
Philosophy for Educators and Young People
PLATO runs online and in-person classes, workshops, and webinars for educators, families, and students; offers an intensive 10-week online program, Philosophy in Schools; helps schools around the world develop philosophy programs; runs a Philosophers in the Schools program; funds innovative philosophy programs around the United States; publishes two journals; and convenes both a biennial conference and a biennial teaching and learning seminar for teachers.
Where we work
Awards
Excellence & Innovation in Philosophy Programs 2023
American Philosophical Association
External reviews
Videos
Our results
How does this organization measure their results? It's a hard question but an important one.
Number of students enrolled
This metric is no longer tracked.Totals By Year
Type of Metric
Output - describing our activities and reach
Direction of Success
Increasing
Number of organizational partners
This metric is no longer tracked.Totals By Year
Related Program
Philosophy for Educators and Young People
Type of Metric
Other - describing something else
Direction of Success
Increasing
Goals & Strategy
Reports and documents
Download strategic planLearn about the organization's key goals, strategies, capabilities, and progress.
Charting impact
Four powerful questions that require reflection about what really matters - results.
What is the organization aiming to accomplish?
1. Ensure organizational sustainability
2. Broaden and expand PLATO's visibility
3. Refine PLATO's programmatic offerings
What are the organization's key strategies for making this happen?
1. Pursue tactics that will financially strengthen PLATO into the future
Continue to develop a culture of philanthropy that permeates the organization
Diversify revenue streams
Build a strong institutional and individual donor base
Investigate multi-year corporate and government grants
Support the boards transition to a fundraising and governance board
2. Continue to develop stable and strong internal capacity
Focus on opportunities for development and retention of staff, board members, and volunteers
Provide training and support for board members to become organizational ambassadors
Foster future adult and student leadership opportunities
Support the development and growth of regional PLATO communities, building upon already-existing infrastructure and cultivating opportunities for expansion
Continue to hold conferences and other events that draw new attendees and offer them pathways to become involved
3. Work with marketing professionals to refine outreach and marketing strategies to reach people who do not already know about philosophy with young people
4. Create a road map for classroom teachers, graduate students, and faculty about the organizations range of learning opportunities available
5. Refine and expand outreach to those within and outside the field by creating and regularly updating hard copy materials, social media posts, and the website
6. Expand PLATOs media profile and strategy
7. Targeted outreach to schools and teachers
Develop relationships with key curriculum coordinators in school districts
Present at content-specific conferences that are important to teachers and school administrators responsible for curriculum
8. Expand PLATOs grants program to increase the number and expand the diversity of innovative philosophy projects that receive funding
9. Bringing philosophy into K-12 classrooms remains PLATOs central organizational purpose
Use a variety of methods and models, including the philosophers-in-residence program, focusing on public schools, under-resourced schools, and marginalized student communities
Provide more professional learning opportunities and resources for teachers with multiple levels for engagement, including low-cost one-time programs and more extensive training such as the Certificate of Mastery
Guide the philosophy in K-12 classrooms by creating a road map for philosophical pedagogy in elementary, middle, and high schools
Develop more opportunities for philosophy graduate students
10. Ensure that the Philosophy Toolkit continues to grow, maintain its quality, and remain relevant
11. Continue to expand the readership and use of the journals Questions: Philosophy for Young People and Precollege Philosophy and Public Practice (P4)
12. Expand PLATOs intergenerational programs
What are the organization's capabilities for doing this?
What have they accomplished so far and what's next?
How we listen
Seeking feedback from people served makes programs more responsive and effective. Here’s how this organization is listening.
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How is your organization using feedback from the people you serve?
To identify and remedy poor client service experiences, To identify bright spots and enhance positive service experiences, To make fundamental changes to our programs and/or operations, To inform the development of new programs/projects, To identify where we are less inclusive or equitable across demographic groups, To strengthen relationships with the people we serve, To understand people's needs and how we can help them achieve their goals
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Which of the following feedback practices does your organization routinely carry out?
We collect feedback from the people we serve at least annually, We take steps to get feedback from marginalized or under-represented people, We aim to collect feedback from as many people we serve as possible, We take steps to ensure people feel comfortable being honest with us, We look for patterns in feedback based on demographics (e.g., race, age, gender, etc.), We look for patterns in feedback based on people’s interactions with us (e.g., site, frequency of service, etc.), We engage the people who provide feedback in looking for ways we can improve in response, We act on the feedback we receive, We tell the people who gave us feedback how we acted on their feedback, We ask the people who gave us feedback how well they think we responded
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What challenges does the organization face when collecting feedback?
We don't have any major challenges to collecting feedback
Financials
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Operations
The people, governance practices, and partners that make the organization tick.
Connect with nonprofit leaders
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- Analyze a variety of pre-calculated financial metrics
- Access beautifully interactive analysis and comparison tools
- Compare nonprofit financials to similar organizations
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Connect with nonprofit leaders
SubscribeBuild relationships with key people who manage and lead nonprofit organizations with GuideStar Pro. Try a low commitment monthly plan today.
- Analyze a variety of pre-calculated financial metrics
- Access beautifully interactive analysis and comparison tools
- Compare nonprofit financials to similar organizations
Want to see how you can enhance your nonprofit research and unlock more insights? Learn More about GuideStar Pro.
Philosophy Learning and Teaching Organization
Board of directorsas of 01/18/2024
Allison Cohen
Roberta Israeloff
Stephen Miller
Kelly Laas
Deborah Mower
Ariel Sykes
Christiane Wisehart
David Shapiro
Kyle Robertson
Sian Charles-Harris
Laurie Grady
Aaron Yarmel
Board leadership practices
GuideStar worked with BoardSource, the national leader in nonprofit board leadership and governance, to create this section.
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Board orientation and education
Does the board conduct a formal orientation for new board members and require all board members to sign a written agreement regarding their roles, responsibilities, and expectations? Yes -
CEO oversight
Has the board conducted a formal, written assessment of the chief executive within the past year ? Yes -
Ethics and transparency
Have the board and senior staff reviewed the conflict-of-interest policy and completed and signed disclosure statements in the past year? Yes -
Board composition
Does the board ensure an inclusive board member recruitment process that results in diversity of thought and leadership? Yes -
Board performance
Has the board conducted a formal, written self-assessment of its performance within the past three years? No