In a world where education systems have been slow to respond to social and technological shifts, Mike Ross emerges as a unique blend of technologist, innovator, and social activist. Mike has changed the way people think about blending innovation with impact as the Founder and Executive Director of Future Forward Education. The model is a passion project created by a handful of people with design and engineering roots and a no-holds-barred commitment to solving systemic inequities. They believe they make not just tech or curriculum, but things people love so much that they would fight for the future they want to pass on to those who come after them.
From Los Angeles’ classrooms to national reform discussions, Mike is not only responding to the future but helping make it happen. His path from the tech labs of New England to the heart of social innovation in California is inspiring and instructive, showing what’s possible when purpose is in tune with precision. This is a story of a leader working to develop the educational road-map of tomorrow, one solution at a time.
Roots of the Solid Vision
Mike Ross was born and raised in New England, but had always felt a love or passion for technology. His introduction to the tech world came in high school when he participated in a formal technology program that sparked his interest in the field and paved the way for his future. With strong formative roots in design and engineering already established, Mike’s early influences set him on a course that would eventually lead to a significant shift in our approach to education.
It was only when he moved to Los Angeles that his view of life was broadened. Living in a newly minted land, complete with separate and unequal communities and systems, Mike had come to see the disparities he had never noticed as a child. These eye-opening experiences steered him in a new direction. Never satisfied with applying his expertise in the traditional tech and design spaces, Mike sought to apply his knowledge to solve real-world problems, starting with education.
This was the call that led to the establishment of Future Forward Education in April 2018. It was above and beyond a career change; it was a quest to redefine how knowledge is transmitted, accessed, and utilized, particularly for those who have been underserved.
Engineering a Better Tomorrow
Mike Ross has a professional background in engineering and software development. These fields taught him to be analytical, to break up the big problem into solvable parts, and to engineer solutions that are not just functional but human. This attitude has really shaped how he views education.
He does not think of education as a static entity, but a living system, like a puzzle with moving pieces and pieces at rest; a puzzle with inefficiencies and sour spots needing serious attention. Instead, he moves through the process of educational reform as one would a product design: deconstruct the parts, study the pain points, and rebuild with intent.
The analytical lens he brings from his tech world background enables him to view learning as a dynamic interface ranging between systems and people, and it is this perspective that distinguishes Future Forward Education.
Leading on Level Ground
Mike operates as an Executive Director with a sense of teamwork and enthusiasm. He eschews traditional top-down hierarchies in favor of what he dubs a “horizontal hierarchy.” In that model, collaboration can flourish because team members view themselves as part of a joint mission, rather than as the servants of a leader’s vision.
“I don’t see people as working for me. We work with each other,” Mike emphasizes. This mindset promotes a culture of transparency, joint accountability, and trust. By doing this, he says that every team member can see and feel connected to the mission rather than having it siloed behind multiple ranks of management, promoting alignment throughout the organization.
It’s a radical, if profoundly humane, way to approach leadership. And it’s paying off. The culture of the organization is not just positive, but also durable, an important condition in the fast-moving world of education and technology.
Fueling the Fire to Grow
In a world that’s constantly changing technologically, Mike Ross has an insatiable appetite to learn. In education, healthcare, or entertainment, he is constantly pushing the boundaries of new tools and techniques.
He isn’t content to just read about trends; he also wants to learn, experiment, and create. From pursuing certifications to participating in webinars, Mike treats all new technology like the answer. His love of learning and pursuit of lifelong learning ensure that Future Forward not only stays relevant but also ahead of the curve.
What sets him apart, however, is his love of creation. “There’s nothing more exciting than an empty canvas,” he says. This creative mindset, combined with his technical acumen, allows Mike to innovate boldly, often fusing disciplines in ways others wouldn’t think to.
Climbing Without a Map
It was an uphill climb for Mike when he started afresh in the education industry. Unlike tech, of which he had access to a vast network and years of experience, education was a new and unknown terrain. To do this new assignment justice, Mike dedicated years of study. He needed to know not just the industry, but the people in the communities he wanted to help.
As someone who didn’t experience many of the obstacles that students face today, he identified his blind spots quickly. Rather than presuming solutions, he emphasized listening, learning, and humility. That research continues to this day, and it informs every decision made by Future Forward.
Gratitude Without Distraction
Mike has been recognized over the years for his innovative work, but he refuses to let his head get the best of him. “Awards are nice, but they’re not the reason I do this,” he says.
Recognition, for Mike, is a bonus and a measure that the path he’s walking is having an impact. But at no time does it detract from the mission. His mission is clear – tackling real-life problems with education, technology, and empathy.
The Discipline Behind the Drive
Leading an organization that is so deeply engaged in mentoring and community work is a juggling act. But for Mike, the key is just one discipline: time management.
He tries to keep a task journal each day, with goals for that day, to hold himself to them. Even when surprise incidents occur, he rearranges instead of canceling activities. His dedication to both his work and personal responsibilities can leave him working late nights and weekends, but he believes it’s necessary in order to make real change.
This disciplined framework enables him to maintain one foot on the ground within the community, tutoring students and mentoring emerging leaders, and the other to scale the Future Forward movement.
Education That Works
To Mike Ross, education is not confined to the classroom. He believes it should be a dynamic force that prepares students to solve real-world problems and navigate a volatile job market.
“We need to teach entrepreneurship, independence, and resilience,” he says. He envisions a time when students are not mere test-takers, but builders of careers, communities, and systems.
He also stresses the importance of teaching civic literacy and financial education. “If we want students to survive and thrive in today’s economy, they need to understand the systems that shape it,” Mike says. This philosophy is already influencing Future Forward’s curriculum design and partnerships.
Advice For the Dreamers and Doers
For future leaders hoping to blend tech and purpose, Mike offers golden guidance and shares, “Your vision is your gift. Don’t be afraid of its weight.”
He urges new changemakers to begin by putting pen to paper, even if they only have back-of-an-envelope notions. Those can then be broken down into executable items. The answer to this is to adhere to the company mission, especially when working with technology, and how its implementation can serve for good but also pose a risk if not responsibly handled.
This generation has technology at its fingertips like never before. Mike thinks it should also include unheard-of responsibility.
Tomorrow, Reimagined
Moving forward, Mike hopes that Future Forward Education is not just working with schools but will be changing the system as a whole. He imagines a ‘de-privatized academic entity’ – and the space to innovate on pedagogy and curriculum.
This new model wouldn’t just cover over the existing snags in the system, but it would be based on an entirely different system, where educators and learners interact on a level playing field, fueled by creativity, empathy, and purpose. In this box, Mike is committed to testing the limits of what we call school, who delivers it, and what it makes happen for kids.
Powered by Empathy
While a lot of Mike’s path has been about technical accomplishments and leadership achievements, at its core is nothing more complicated than empathy. He operates under an ethos to understand, uplift, and provide access to traditionally underserved communities.
And that empathy informs the way he leads his team, forges partnerships, and mentors students. It’s not just about fixing schools, it’s about dignity, choice, and opportunity.
The Art of Purposeful Progress
As the world increasingly relies on automation and AI, Mike Ross is demonstrating that the strongest ideas are grounded in good human values. His work doesn’t merely dwell on the frontier of education and technology; it actively reshapes that frontier as two tax deed sales. Every innovation is rooted in equity and community.
What’s sprouting from Future Forward Education is not just an alternative model; it’s a blueprint for rebuilding trust in systems that have left too many people behind for far too long. Mike does not shy away from pushing back on some of the underlying assumptions guiding traditional pedagogy, nor will he settle for change that exists only on paper. In his universe, change must be experienced, tried, and tried again with learners as the drivers.
In many ways, Mike’s process is a reminder that the future is no longer something we wait for. It is something that we design with intention, compassion, and dogged clarity of purpose.
Building the Future, One Idea at a Time
Mike Ross isn’t your average startup founder. He’s a kind of developer who acts as a disruptor. A technologist on a quest to become a teacher. A student of the world who never stopped being a leader.
Through Future Forward Education, he’s not just recalibrating how we learn, but also forcing us to question why we learn. His remarkable journey serves as a powerful reminder that when vision, discipline, empathy, and innovation come together, extraordinary things are possible.
Of course, Mike is a work in progress, but so far, there is something clear that the future of education just got a whole lot brighter.
