Meghan K. Freeman: From My Living Room to the National Stage
United States — November 09, 2025
Please watch our sneak peak for the Elite Academic Academy All Access with Andy Garcia Premier on Public Television. Coming December 2025
Meghan K. Freeman, the founder of Elite Academic Academy and Co-Founder of Illuminate XR, reflects on the early days of building a school from her living room and the unexpected national recognition that followed. What began as a simple belief that education should honor the human experience has grown into a movement influencing classrooms, districts, and innovative learning partners across the country.
Sometimes the most incredible journeys start in the most humble places. When I first founded Elite Academic Academy in my own home, with a mortgage on the line and a vision for doing education differently, I never imagined how far we’d go. Seeing Elite now recognized on All Access with Andy Garcia, honored as a California Distinguished School and on the state’s honor roll, is a testament to the incredible work our students and educators have done.
In January, when Eddie Mills, the Senior Producer for All Access with Andy Garcia, reached out, it felt like the start of a new chapter. By June, under the talented direction of Nick Santa Croce, the director assigned to our project, we filmed on graduation day. It was the perfect opportunity to capture the heart of Elite’s story.
While I’ve now transitioned to Illuminate XR, I’m incredibly proud of everything we built at Elite. The journey we started there laid the foundation for bringing transformative educational approaches to more districts in the age of AI and XR. Even though I’ve moved on to a new chapter, I will always be a founder at heart, cheering on Elite’s continued success. Watching our story reach a national audience is a powerful reminder that humble beginnings can lead to extraordinary places.
This special feature will premiere in December on public television. As we celebrate how far Elite has come, I invite you to watch a sneak peek posted above. If you’d like to see how Elite is changing how teachers and students approach education, take a look at the Elite X White Paper here.
From one living room dream to a story that’s now reaching living rooms everywhere, this is just the beginning of the extraordinary. More to come…
