About | Open Insights

Open Insights

Hosted by

About the Show

Welcome to Open Insights — the podcast where innovation meets practicality in K-12 education. Each episode dives into creative approaches to the challenges schools face today, spotlighting solutions that combine out-of-the-box thinking with real-world feasibility. We’ll explore how data-driven insights can guide innovation, helping schools and educators make informed, impactful decisions that truly transform learning. Whether you're an educator, administrator, or simply passionate about the future of education, we’re here to inspire new ideas and actionable change. Let’s innovate together!

Meet our Hosts

Zach Vander Veen

Zach is a learner, educator, entrepreneur, husband, father, and generally well-rounded geek who finds the world endlessly fascinating. He co-founded Abre and currently serves as its Chief Innovation Officer. He’s worn most hats in K12 education, including history teacher, technology coach, administrator, and director of technology. He loves education and working with the learning community. Zach is a graduate of the University of Michigan, the University of Nebraska, and the good parts of the internet (he frequently gets lost in Wikipedia pages). He’s lived in various parts of the world, including Brazil and Chile. He believes that wanderlust is a character trait that leads to personal and community growth. He’s the proud father of three adopted Colombian children and a strong advocate of adoption, foster care, and international youth exchange. Zach is really into aphorisms and collects them with joy. If you have one that you love, he’d really like you to share it. Never hesitate to drop him a line.

James Stoffer

James Stoffer is the Chief Executive Officer at Abre where he focuses on leading company growth, operations, and talent strategies. He has spent his entire career in the education industry, most recently at DreamBox Learning, successfully leading sales, customer experience, and business operations. Prior to DreamBox he also held leadership positions at Hobsons and MasteryConnect. His passion is helping scale social impact companies focused on improving the lives and futures of students and educators throughout the world. He has an MBA from Xavier University and BS in Marketing from Clemson University. He enjoys traveling, learning, skiing, and coaching team members to achieve their professional goals.