Dan Gonzalez | District C

A Reimagined Internship with Dan Gonzalez

Welcome to the Education Equation, a new podcast focused on what the evidence says actually moves the needle in education. In this episode,Jeremy Singer talks with Dan Gonzalez, co-founder and co-CEO of District C, a national nonprofit reimagining the internship experience. Dan's career spans engineering, the classroom, and corporate leadership,

In 2016, Dan and his wife, Ann Jones, launched District C to address a crucial gap between academic learning and the collaborative skills students need for the modern workforce. Their solution, called Teamship, offers a new internship model where student teams solve real-world problems for real businesses.

Referenced in the Episode:

Dan C talking about the "3-point economy" - https://www.districtc.co/point-of-view/

Dan’s Education Book: Savage Inequalities by Jonathan Kozol: https://www.amazon.com/Savage-Inequalities-Children-Americas-Schools/dp/0060974990

Finding Purpose: Dan explains how he found purpose in the "unlikeliest of places"—a crisis at Manhattan Prep—where a team rallied together to protect the company they had built after a major security breach. This experience taught him the importance of a common purpose in professional life.

The Problem with Traditional Education: Dan argues that the education system often prepares "two-point players" for a "three-point economy" by focusing on individual achievement rather than essential collaborative and problem-solving skills. Teamship aims to develop these "three-point skills" that are valued by every employer.

Teamship's Model: The Teamship program involves teams of three to four students who work on a real business problem over four to six weeks. The time commitment for the business partner is intentionally light—just five hours total—with an educator trained by District C serving as the coach. Dan provides examples of typical projects, which fall into categories such as operations, marketing, or human resources.

Challenges of Scaling: The biggest challenge for scaling District C is getting school districts to adopt the program, as it doesn't have an existing "vessel" or a specific class where it easily fits. Dan hopes to solve this by creating a dedicated space for this type of programming within the school day.

This episode is a must-listen for anyone interested in the future of education and workforce development. Dan Gonzalez offers a compelling look at how to bridge the gap between classroom lea