When Lisa Hess, superintendent of in Berks County, witnessed the impact of Total Experience Learning® on her own son, she was determined to bring the innovative program to her district.
“She wanted that for all the children,” said Karen DeNunzio, director of teaching and learning at Mifflin. Years ago, Hess’s son had Conrad Weiser High School science teacher, Adelle Schade, Ph.D. Schade developed the classroom management methodology, now known as Total Experience Learning (TExpL®), a framework designed to uncover the genius in every learner.
Over time, this methodology not only transformed classrooms and after-school programs at Conrad Weiser, but quickly grew to gain momentum across the County. It became evident that the demand for innovative classroom management techniques would require Total Experience Learning to expand its offerings and serve beyond just one district.
The program’s largest offering today is a four-course graduate certificate program for educators to immerse themselves in the TExpL methodology. Housed at Â鶹´«Ă˝â€™s John R. Post Center at Reading CollegeTowne and provided through the Total Experience Learning Institute, the graduate certificate gives teachers tools and expertise to design their classrooms in a way that drives student agency and removes barriers, ultimately inspiring students to pursue their passion areas, while still aligning to state standards,” said Ellen Albright, executive director of communications and external relations for the institute.
“We’re looking to revolutionize education,” she said. “It’s got to look different, both for educators and students.”
Since 2021, TExpL has impacted more than 40,000 students, certified more than 475 teachers, and served over 15 districts covering 167 school buildings, mostly in Berks County, according to Albright. An unintentional yet impressive outcome is reflected by the twelve patents that have been awarded to students before graduating high school. In 2025-2026, the program has plans to expand into Schuylkill, Lehigh and Philadelphia counties, she added.
Hess was part of the first educator cohort for TExpL, said DeNunzio, also a TExpL adjunct professor at Â鶹´«Ă˝. Now, the practices permeate Mifflin. About 100 teachers and administrators have gone through the certification, with more on a waitlist, DeNunzio said, and at least 50 students have attended TExpL’s Momentum Makers summer camp, which provides robust opportunities for interest-based summer learning.
“From the onset, Governor Mifflin was the standout with its ability to transfer knowledge to practice in the classroom,” she said. “Governor Mifflin made it part of its comprehensive plan. It went from a vision to a measurable goal for the entire district. This is the methodology used in classrooms.”
This academic year[2025–2026], a fifth cohort of teachers will immerse themselves in the coursework. “Governor Mifflin is building capacity very quickly,” DeNunzio said. TExpL teachers are in high demand, she added, with high school students requesting them. “Students want to learn this way.”
Garrett Hyneman, a mechanical engineering freshman at Lehigh University who graduated from Governor Mifflin High School, was able to pursue research on sustainability—a passion of his—through the institute’s After-school Student Research Program. There, he embarked on an ambitious project that explored greener, more cost-effective thermocouple devices used to measure temperature and found a mentor in Tanner Schnovel, TExpL’s director of student programs who helped him with the more advanced physics and electrical engineering concepts. “My purpose,” Hyneman said at the time, “is to make a positive difference in society—and I believe I can start doing that through green energy innovation.”
Meanwhile, a TExpL trained educator using the methodology to lead pre-schoolers to turn their classroom into a florist shop, where they learned about flowers and made bouquets for Mother’s Day through a partnership with a local florist, DeNunzio said. High schoolers focused on entrepreneurship, creating start-ups such as a coffee shop and an upcycle apparel store, she added.
At the district’s Brecknock Elementary School in Denver, Pa., TExpL training inspired librarian Rachel Sebastian to reimagine the library as Sweet Read City. Arranged in baskets by kid-friendly topic (favorite toys, dinosaurs, fun facts), books in the Denver, Pa., school are organized along “streets,” and shelves sport cardboard facades of actual Berks businesses that students researched, learning about the local economy and the importance of community. She also has launched BookBeasts, trading cards aimed at boosting literacy and the use of the library, and a Thanks-for-Giving Parade that celebrates local nonprofits.
“This is a methodology that helps kids take learning beyond the four walls of the classroom and connect to the world through inquiry, through discovery of knowledge and skills,” she said. “They’re involved in real-world projects, solving real-world problems with an innovator’s mindset, an entrepreneur’s mindset.”
In May[2025], her ideas landed her as one of 12 finalists for the Pennsylvania Teacher of the Year award.
“I wanted to bring all the innovative teaching practices to the library,” she said, “and Total Experience Learning helped me to flip the script and do some nontraditional things here.”
As the Total Experience Learning model continues to grow beyond Berks County, educators like Hess, DeNunzio and Sebastian are proving that when students are encouraged to explore their passions, learning transforms from a requirement into a discovery or passion. To find out more about partnering with Â鶹´«Ă˝â€™s Total Experience Learning, please email TExpL@alvernia.edu or visit Â鶹´«Ă˝.edu/Partner to discover more partnership opportunities.
by Lini S. Kadaba
