Contact IDEA





Please enter the word you see in the image below:


IDEA Leadership Team

The founders and leaders of IDEA bring a great deal of experience to this initiative, including starting democratic schools and youth empowerment programs, organizing conferences, publishing articles, working in state education and youth departments, engaging in community organizing, managing non-profit organizations, and connecting to the broader policy world in the fields of education and youth. Most importantly, they bring the skills of pragmatic and systemic sensibility, organizational development, deep respect for young people, and a sense of humility and openness to learning.

Board of Directors and Advisory Board: Chris Balme, Dana Bennis, Melia Dicker, Sarah Hinawi, Justo Mendez, Scott Nine

Meet the Staff

Scott Nine, Executive Director

Location: Portland, Oregon

Scott is the Executive Director of the Village Free School in Portland, Oregon - a leading democratic school in the movement to create systemic change at the grassroots level. A dynamic public speaker, Scott has keynoted on issues of leadership and ethics, and presented on crisis intervention, community organizing, social justice, and personal change at the international, national, and local levels. Scott has a Masters degree in Social Work from Arizona State University and has ten years experience working at two state universities and teaching public school. Scott's skills include program planning, community organizing, financial management, grassroots fundraising, and working with inter and intra personal conflict. He is the father of two kids, ages nine and fifteen months, and is still in love with his partner, Hollie.

Jeanette Miller, Assistant to the Executive Director

Location: Sunnyvale, California

Dana Bennis, Research and Policy Director

Location: Tarrytown, New York

Dana has been deeply involved in the growing network of democratic education practitioners and supporters since 2001, dedicating his time to researching, teaching, and advocating for education that respects young people to be meaningfully involved in their learning. He has taught in democratic, progressive, and conventional school settings and earned a Masters Degree in Education from Vermont College of Union Institute and University. Dana has published essays in various education journals, and collaborates with others locally, nationally, and internationally to advance democratic education. He brings to IDEA his commitment to youth engagement and democratic practice, national and international education connections, and his strengths in research, education theory and analysis, and critically listening to the viewpoints of others. Dana lives in Tarrytown, New York with his partner and fellow educator, Julie Hill.

Melia Dicker, Communications Director

Location: Jackson, Mississippi

Melia is a writer and educator who has worked with students of all ages in the U.S. and abroad. She has a degree in Psychology from Santa Clara University and is an alumna and board member of AmeriCorps' Public Allies. With fellow IDEA board member Chris Balme, Melia co-founded Spark, a nonprofit organization providing youth with leadership development and apprenticeships in their dream jobs. She co-directed Spark for four years, overseeing summer and after-school programs and building community partnerships, and she remains on the Board of Directors. Melia writes a blog called Reschool Yourself, based on her year of retracing her steps through education, from kindergarten through college. She brings to the IDEA team her experience in starting and managing a nonprofit organization, bridging differences between alternative and traditional educators, and using personal narrative to introduce democratic education to mainstream audiences.