Dream Bold. Build Different.
BLAQUE KC is partnering with Transcend to develop a community-driven playbook that outlines what schools must offer when they open in Kansas City.
Too often, schools in our community have opened, closed, or been redesigned with limited engagement from diverse stakeholders. This is our opportunity to shift that narrative. This event is about more than rethinking schools—it’s about building trust, elevating the voices of our community, and co-creating a shared vision for what education can and should be.
Together, we will begin shaping a community-inspired vision document that will guide BLAQUE KC’s 2026 school investments—supporting improved student outcomes in existing schools and setting clear community expectations for BLAQUE KC’s investments in new schools and the talent pipeline across our city, including both district and charter networks. This community kickoff marks the beginning of that journey.
Transcend is a national nonprofit that partners with communities to design and test innovative school models. Their work focuses on creating extraordinary, student-centered learning environments that prepare all children to thrive.
In Kansas City, their expertise in design thinking and school transformation supports our effort to build a community-driven playbook for education. With Transcend’s guidance, we are translating local vision into real strategies that reflect the needs of our students, families, and educators.
Together, we are not just imagining better schools—we are building them!
The story of school design in America has always been shaped by struggle, resistance, and the courage of those who demanded better.
Nationally, schools were integrated through the bravery of children like Ruby Bridges, who at just six years old walked into an all-white school in New Orleans, unaware of the magnitude of what her presence would mean. Her quiet strength became a symbol of a movement, but it also revealed how much weight our systems were willing to place on the smallest shoulders.
The landmark case Brown v. Board of Education (1954) legally ended segregation, declaring that separate schools were inherently unequal. But the promise of that ruling has never been fully realized. Desegregation efforts in cities like Kansas City brought federal oversight, forced busing, and deep community tension. In Kansas City, the desegregation case lasted decades and poured millions into infrastructure without transforming academic outcomes for Black students.
What followed was a system patched together but never redesigned. Many of our schools still carry the residue of those decisions—structures and models that don’t reflect the cultures and capacities of the communities they serve.
We are still living in the aftermath.
And we believe it's time to
imagine something new.
RESHAPE SCHOOLS.
SHARE YOUR VISION.
What If We Could Redesign Kansas City’s Schools—Together?
Your voice matters. BLAQUE KC is building a bold, community-led vision for the future of education in Kansas City, and it starts with you.
We’re asking you to answer three simple questions:
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What does a great school look like to you?
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What would make you feel proud to send your child there?
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What needs to change so that every child in Kansas City can thrive?
Share your vision. Shape what’s next. Your ideas will help create a playbook for schools that reflect the brilliance, values, and needs of our communities.
What IF We Centered human
connection as the foundation
of learning?
Imagine schools where every student is seen, every voice is valued, and every dream is nurtured. Where classrooms are rooted in real relationships, small enough to care, and bold enough to challenge. Where mentors don’t just show up—they pour in. Let’s build schools that love our children out loud. Let’s create learning spaces that match their brilliance.
