Rewiring School Culture: How Neuroscience is Helping Educators Create Lasting Change

K through 12 education has long overlooked neuroscience, the study of the biological, social, and emotional factors that shape perception, learning, memory, behavior, and consciousness.

There are many reasons for this gap, but one stands out: neuroscience is complex, even when you focus only on its application in education. It covers everything from curriculum and pedagogy to nutrition, exercise, sleep, and emotional and psychological well-being. It even plays a role in the development of adaptive learning software, enabling students to learn at their own pace.

To a certain degree, we may assume neuroscience is baked into every educational system. Afterall, educators should understand the importance of nutrition, physical exercise, sleep, social interaction, and emotional development, all of which support healthy brain development and function, as well as a student’s ability and readiness to learn. In practice, the reality is different. Educational systems often give little attention to social or emotional learning, favoring curricula focused mainly on academic assessment and test scores.

Unlike most schools, at MAS Charter School in Albuquerque, New Mexico, the principles of neuroscience are integrated in the form of policies, procedures, and culture. The school provides a free nutritious breakfast and lunch for all students, establishes and enforces policies to create an environment where students feel safe, engages students in fun physical exercise, and adapts its pedagogy to different learning styles. In addition, there are several neuroscience-focused initiatives that set the public charter school apart.

While there’s a growing body of research in learning science and neuroscience, a wide gap still exists between the science and classroom practice. Much of this research never translates into concrete strategies teachers can realistically use in real classrooms with real constraints. As a result, educators are often left to rely on intuition and experience rather than tools that align with how the brain actually learns and changes. 

That gap is exactly what NeuroChangeSolutions seeks to close.

NeuroChangeSolutions at MAS Charter School

Operating in alignment with the principles of Dr. Joe Dispenza’s NeuroChangeSolutions (NCS) since 2023, MAS’ leaders have led to a long-term cultural shift that drives innovation and improvement across the 220-person organization. Since adopting NCS principles (awareness of unconscious patterns, neuroplasticity, heart-brain coherence, and the mind-body connection), team members report functioning with a greater sense of composure, accountability, and collective alignment.

And the data (see below) proves that the use of neuroscience is a foundation for driving positive change without chaos, because it gently and effectively teaches educators how the brain works.

On the student side of the equation, the principles of neuroscience can be found throughout the school, including time dedicated to social-emotional learning, mindfulness, and visibility into the heart-brain connection. For example:

Social Emotional Learning (SEL): In addition to daily classes in traditional academic subjects, MAS students engage in two periods of SEL. These dedicated blocks help students develop self-awareness, emotional regulation, decision-making skills, and healthy relationships.

Evidence from studies in neuroscience shows that emotion and learning are deeply connected. Positive emotions enhance learning, and chronic stress impairs it. Additionally, the release of dopamine in the brain reinforces motivation and engagement, which is why curiosity and a sense of achievement drive retention.

HeartMath: HeartMath is a research-based system that teaches how to balance emotions and thoughts to create a coherent heart-brain connection. It has helped MAS’ students, teachers, and staff understand and control their emotional states, leading to improved learning, behavior, and overall well-being. Using simple yet powerful daily techniques, students, teachers, and staff discover how to:

• Manage stress and anxiety in real time using Heart-Focused Breathing (a simple breathing technique that helps people shift into a calm, focused state)
• Improve focus and concentration for better academic performanc
• Strengthen emotional resilience when faced with challenges
• Boost self-awareness and self-regulation skills using tools to visualize heart rate variability and regulate emotions in real time
• Contribute to a calmer, more positive school environment

Daily Mindfulness: In a recent 10-week pilot study led with Dr. Dispenza and Dr. Peta Stapleton, nearly 900 students ages 4–11 practiced short, age-appropriate meditations. Schools saw higher happiness and school performance in 4- to 8-year-olds, greater emotional awareness in 9- to 11-year-olds, stronger self-regulation across grades, and fewer emotional and behavioral difficulties. At MAS, similar mindfulness training is now underway with the school’s 12th grade students.

Wiring and Firing in New Ways

Kids are wired in a certain way. MAS uses a neuroscience-based approach to help staff and students understand how their brains learn, adapt, and change. The science tells us that every time we think, feel, or act in a certain way, we strengthen a neural pathway. So, if we want different results, regardless of whether those results are in academics, athletics, technical skills, behaviors, or leadership, we have to help people fire and wire in new ways. That means practicing new thoughts, new emotions, and new actions until they become automatic. Lasting change begins with this foundational knowledge.

Pro Tip: A neuroscience-based approach only leads to change when it’s practiced daily. Turn brain science into simple habits, like quick mindset check-ins or reframing setbacks, so new neural pathways strengthen and positive behaviors have time to become the norm.

Lasting improvement in schools or anywhere does not happen through compliance. It happens when people understand why they do what they do and learn to change it from the inside out. This is a skill that should be taught in schools but hasn’t been, and it is transforming our culture in all the right ways.

Monitoring and Evaluating Improvement

Teachers, school administrators, and operational staff deeply appreciate it, not only because it’s engaging professional development, but because it supports the whole person, something that’s easy to lose sight of in schools.

MAS works with Attuned Education Partners to develop a staff-experience survey providing insight on the impact of its neuroscience-related efforts, which has made teachers more aware of how their thoughts influence their attitudes and behaviors. 

Shifting one’s mindset and changing workplace culture is hard work. Over time, the school has increased awareness of how thoughts impact our attitudes and behaviors, which has led to positive changes and closer alignment. In terms of data, MAS has seen the following lifts (improvements) over the course of the past schoolyear (2024–2025):

• Leadership efficacy (the school's leadership team's ability to clearly define goals, cultivate a positive and reflective staff culture, communicate effectively, and drive improvements in instruction and student learning): 9 percent lift
• Sense of belonging (feeling like an integral and respected member of the school community, where the individual is connected, appreciated, and understood, beyond routine professional interactions): 10 percent lift
• Relationships and teamwork (the extent to which adult culture promotes collaboration, meaningful collective contributions, and positive interactions that advance the organization's strategy): 11 percent lift
• Individual Purpose (the extent to which an individual finds meaning, purpose, and inspiration in their work and is motivated to contribute positively): 3 percent lift

Together, the first three metrics indicate that staff are feeling stronger connections and have greater confidence in school leadership. The fourth metric, optimism, reflects how teachers and staff feel that their work matters, that what they do is improving the lives of students and community members in a meaningful way. It’s refreshing to see such a significant boost in optimism in a team charged with teaching some of the most socioeconomically challenged youth in this country.

Adults show up differently, and they also interpret situations differently, which directly affects student outcomes. Having a shared language through the training helps align perspectives and creates more consistent, intentional responses across the school.

A large part of neuroscience boils down to this: Changes in outcomes are driven by changes in thoughts and attitudes. By leveraging the power of neuroscience, administrators, teachers, staff, and students can drive positive change that improves educational outcomes.

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About the Author: JoAnn Mitchell, Ed.S., is Founder and CEO of Mission Achievement and Success Charter School, an award-winning K-12 public charter school in Albuquerque, New Mexico.