Heather Beem, the Founder and CEO of Practical Education Network, is devoted to changing the way in which students learn and are given access to information.

Jill Crowner
Amy Poehler's Smart Girls
3 min readMay 6, 2019

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Heather Beem, the Founder and CEO of Practical Education Network, is devoted to changing the way in which students learn and are given access to information. PEN is a platform which provides teachers with the training and materials needed to give students hands-on learning experiences. In Ghana, where Beem lives, there is a lack of resources for teachers to provide interactive learning experiences. PEN’s teacher training program contains lessons that are relevant to teacher’s local environments and involve a more applicable and immersive approach. Smart Girls had the opportunity to speak with Heather about Practical Education Network and the way in which she is impacting education globally.

Smart Girls: How did you get started in the work you are currently doing?

Heather Beem: While I was a graduate student at MIT, I realized how fortunate I was to be in a place where hands-on education was part of the DNA. I began to ask what it would look like to have this type of learning environment for students in other parts of the world. One thing led to another and now I live in Ghana, where myself and my team are working to make the answer to this question come to life.

SG: Who are you inspired by?

HB: I am fortunate to have some amazing role models around me here in Ghana. I’m inspired, for example, by Lucy Quist, Mensa Otabil, and Patrick Awuah. They each exhibit inspirational leadership and clear vision. Their words have led to tangible action, and the resulting impact in Ghanaian society is visibly transformational.

SG: What is your morning routine?

HB: Every morning I read, meditate on God’s word, and pray. It is the only sustainable source of strength and joy that I’ve found. And it’s necessary. As a leader, I see that my team’s drive is affected by the energy I bring to the table. I need a daily renewal and reminder of the eternal hope I have that drives me towards the vision of equitable, experiential education.

SG: How do you innovate and what problems do you hope to solve?

HB: I’m driven to see experiential education become the normal mode of teaching and learning in classrooms globally. This is what will drive long-term economic growth. We need problem-solvers, scientists, and engineers, and it all stems from how well we can cultivate curiosity and encourage experimentation.

SG: What advice would you give to young girls today?

HB: Don’t worry too much about what others say about what is or isn’t possible.

Heather and PEN are part of this year’s MIT Solve event taking place May 7–9. Solve at MIT is Solve’s annual flagship event bringing together more than 500 prominent global leaders in the business, foundation, nonprofit, and academic sectors, as well as MIT faculty and students. The event will highlight the 30+ incredible tech innovators that were selected in 2018 from a pool of 1,150 applicants as Solver teams, with the objective of forming partnerships to fund, pilot, and advance their solutions to the world’s most pressing problems. Solve at MIT will also bring together MIT experts and cross-sector leaders to discuss and advance solutions to Solve’s 2019 Global Challenges, which are open for applications through July 1, 2019.

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