a startup intent on changing the way students are taught
At Pensos, we believe that every student should have the opportunity to succeed. In schools today, however, classes focus more on memorization than on building essential skills that will benefit students for the rest of their lives. Skills like critical thinking, problem solving, public speaking, and teamwork are all essential in the modern world.
At Pensos, we work closely with students to develop these skills through a specialized curriculum and expertly designed courses. We are currently focused on under-resourced high school students in the general New York City area and are hoping to expand soon!
2019 - Summer
Pensos is founded
The three co-founders begin discussing how to reform the education system in New York City. A general strategy is formulated and work begins
2020 - March
All resources are devoted to remote learning
We shift our platform to focus on virtual education to help younger students during the early pandemic
2020 - Summer
We partner with teachers to master virtual education
The summer is spent developing short educational videos and supplemental online materials for use in future courses
2021 - March
Curriculum development begins in earnest
Research begins on how to form modern learning techniques into formal pedagogical structures
2021 - Summer
Online courses begin
We run a pilot 5 summer courses for over 40 high school students. Feedback is positive and we view the experiences as a success
2021 - December
We are admitted into the Entrepreneurs challenge
Run by the Berkley Center at Stern School of Business, we are part of 13 teams competing for $100,000 in seed investment
biographies
Meet our instructors!
Alex is studying Physics and Astrophysics at Amherst College
Mark is a high school science teacher at Loyola School in NYC
Thomas is studying Political Science and Economics at NYU
courses
A summer of skills and excitement
Codebreaking
puzzle solving & logic
Students learned basic cryptography and developed problem solving techniques to crack complex logic puzzles and real-world codes. For their final project, they wrote their own code to be solved by other students in the cohort
Songwriting
creativity & music
Students examined the relationship between poetry and song by discussing their favorite music with the class. They will then analyze a slew of different songwriting styles and develop their own song which they will record and present to the class.
Game theory
critical thinking
How do businesses negotiate deals? Why do nations go to war? Students applied analytical thinking to everyday economic interactions and engaged in simulated games to determine optimal strategic outcomes. They cooperated to derive fundamental laws of game theory and formed a small, functioning economy.
ancient civilizations
history & politics
Students learned about the decline of the Roman Republic by taking on the roles of ancient politicians and debating major historical events in their own mock senate to try their hand at managing the collapsing government.
entrepreneurship
public speaking & business
The final class will be a mock shark tank experience where each group will pitch their idea to a panel of special guests and successful real-world entrepreneurs. Parents and family members are welcome and encouraged to join!
Upcoming pitches
Entrepreneurs challenge Semifinalist pitch
As current semifinalists, we will be competing against 12 other teams for a chance at part of a $300k investment in our startup