This is the Future of High School
The Tennessee School Rewriting the Rules of High School
At Elizabethton High School, students wanted more from their education. So they helped rebuild it—class by class, project by project. Their idea: give students real, meaningful work, and they’ll rise to the challenge.
A cold case became a Prime Video series. A robotics club became an international competitor. And an ordinary high school became something else entirely. Elizabethton is reinventing high school—and showing what’s possible for the rest of the country.
Watch the Elizabethton+XQ story
Ten years, one school, and a redesign still unfolding. It took courage to break with tradition—and that risk is paying off for an entire community.
Meet the Students
Elizabethton is a story of students and educators coming together to redefine high school. Every student here is helping write it while building a future of their own.
“This is possible anywhere.”
Elizabethton’s transformation didn’t happen alone. A decade ago, XQ partnered with the school to turn a bold idea into a school-wide redesign—rooted in purpose, community and an audacious vision of learning. Today, that partnership has helped drive rising graduation rates, academic gains across a growing mix of classes, and a model now spreading to schools across Appalachia.
The future of high school is here—don’t miss it.
Join XQ Xtra for real stories, big ideas, and practical tools from classrooms and communities leading the change.
