About 4 Learning.
We’re a school transformation organization informed by 30 years of work in student re-engagement — helping schools end learner disengagement by turning recording studios into interdisciplinary classrooms where real-world production drives belonging, relevance, achievement, and student outcomes.
“Our goal is to get educators mad enough to want more and smart enough to get it in a whole different way.”
Why we exist.
Because disengagement is a systemic problem.
Our work exists to help schools transform what students experience every day — so young people are seen, challenged, supported, and able to build real momentum toward graduation and future pathways.
Our origins.
Studio 4 ⇢ HSRA ⇢ 4 Learning.
4 Learning comes from practice — decades of learning alongside young people who were told school wasn’t for them.
Studio 4 began as a professional recording studio created by David “TC” Ellis. Young artists came to record — but what showed up in the room was bigger than music: talent, ambition, and a deep need for schools that felt relevant, affirming, and real.
That led to the creation of the High School for Recording Arts (HSRA) in 1998 — a public, tuition-free charter school built to re-engage young people who had been pushed out of traditional systems.
4 Learning was created to share what HSRA has proven—supporting schools and educators who want to understand why it works, how it works, and what it takes to implement the model with fidelity across different contexts.
Why the 4 in 4 Learning.
Family. Respect. Community. Education.
The “4” traces back to the origins of Studio 4 — and evolved into four values that have anchored the work through HSRA and beyond.
Family — young people deserve to be known and held
Respect — students are not problems to manage; they are people to build with
Community — learning is relational and collective
Education — rigor matters, especially for students denied it elsewhere
These aren’t slogans. They’re requirements.
“Re-engaging youth in their high school education through their interest and passion for recording arts.”
What makes the School Remix Model work.
School transformation, studio-driven.
A studio can be more than a room with gear. With the right structures, it becomes a school’s engine for transformation — where students create, collaborate, revise, and publish work that is authentic and academically rigorous.
Core elements of the approach include:
Production-centered learning (Creative Learning Productions)
Advisory and culture systems that make students known
Personal learning plans + competency-based progressions
Wraparound supports that remove barriers
Alternative accountability that measures what matters
Career pathways through Business of Music & Media + certifications
How we share the work.
A movement needs infrastructure.
We spread and sustain the School Remix Model through four connected vehicles.
1 | How We Support
Coaching, training, and implementation support — scoped to your context.
2 | The School Remix Network
A national community of practitioners implementing the School Remix approach to school transformation — sharing tools, practices, and proof.
Join the School Remix Network ►
3 | RemixED Conference
Our annual convening where educators, system leaders, researchers, industry partners, and funders come together to strengthen and spread what works.
Explore the RemixED Conference ►
4 | The Hub
A single home for everything we share for free on the internet — publications, podcasts, talks, and open resources.
Our story in the field.
From practice to publication.
The model and its evolution have been documented and shared widely — including through Hip Hop Genius (2011) and Hip-Hop Genius 2.0 (2022), along with publications and public talks that translate lived practice into tools other schools can use.
People.
Built by educators, artists, and organizers.
4 Learning is led by a team rooted in school design, youth culture, recording arts, and positive student engagement practices — alongside partners who believe re-engagement is one of the most important innovation spaces in education.
Increase student motivation and creativity.
If you’re ready to build a school experience students want to be a part of — let’s talk.