A new school-based app, Edefy, recently launched as part of another school choice alternative for parents.
Edefy is an app that connects families to teachers of their choice at nearby host sites, a method known as Pod schooling.
For the past two years, James Bisenius, the founder of Southern California-based Edefy, has been working on the development and software design.
Though it has been tested for the last 15 years, the first public version recently launched this month.
Bisenius told The Center Square he wanted to create something that was affordable and accessible to all families.
“Our goal is to help families access a premium, customized education experience at an affordable cost,” he said. “Cost and compensation adjust automatically for hybrid/part time programs depending on the days per week.”
Edefy is “The Uber of Education,” Corey DeAngelis, a senior fellow at the American Culture Project, wrote on X.
Bisenius explained it is the Airbnb of education space, plus Uber to connect families with teachers.
Edefy was formed because of the monopoly the government had on education, which increased frustration with parents over the public education infrastructure.
”I couldn’t believe the data on tuition inflation and how much was being driven by facilities and administration costs, when teachers are the ones who actually drive outcomes!” Bisenius said.
The cost of Edefy is shaped by supply and demand, but there is a built-in default based on the pay scale for teachers and host sites so parents don’t have to negotiate to get started, according to Bisenius.
For someone in a full-time pod, the cost is comparable to the state’s lowest private education option.
For example, in California, the private school with the lowest tuition cost is Pillars Academy, with a tuition of $1,030.
The ability for teachers to invest personally in students and creating a positive learning environment free from distractions changes the education game.
Edefy can be free in states with school choice funding.
The app is intended for a class of no more than 12 students to allow for personalized instruction.
“I wanted to create a model that put the teacher-student relationship back at the heart of education, and let everyone access a premium level of teacher attention at an affordable cost,” Bisenius said.
Pod schooling can positively affect teachers as well, he said. “Building a marketplace at the individual teacher level will allow teachers to build their profiles and be pursued by families according to their earned reputations.”
The founder hopes Edefy will ultimately improve the quality of education for the masses.
“I’d like them (people) to know that this is just the first version of our platform, but we think it has an opportunity to massively improve education globally,” Bisenius told The Center Square. “This has always felt like a mission too big to carry alone, and I’m looking for the smartest education and technology folks in the world to help drive this vision to fruition.”
The Center Square reached out to the California Department of Education for comment but did not receive a response.
“We haven’t familiarized ourselves this app, so we’re not in a position to comment on it specifically,” the Arizona Education Department told The Center Square.
