“You were teaching us to be ourselves.” – 10-year-old Student

PURPOSE
Andy Smallman’s core purpose is to help people, particularly young people, notice what matters to them and grow from that awareness.

AT A GLANCE
Develop a deeper sense of belonging while gaining clarity about who you are through Andy’s gentle, affirming mentoring.

FOUNDATIONAL CONCEPTS

• As a human being, you are invited to discover what feels most true for you and to bring your unique gifts into the world.
• Moving toward what you want is often a more life-giving action than moving away from what you don’t want.
• Growth comes from responsive engagement with life, not from seeking fixed answers.
• Living more fully in the present can help open the door to a future that feels meaningful and alive.

ABOUT ANDY
Andy Smallman is the founding director of the Puget Sound Community School, an innovative educational model centered on student strengths and intrinsic motivation. He has spent much of his career exploring how learning, kindness, and personal growth unfold when people are trusted to engage more deeply with themselves and one another. He currently serves as the principal of Spring Academy, a highly personalized one-to-one instructional school in Seattle.

Andy’s mentoring work grows from a larger commitment to kindness and compassion that he has been building since the 1990s. Explore Kind Living, a free library of hundreds of kindness resources, self-paced classes, and reflections. Join the Secret Agent of Compassion, a global community taking small, meaningful actions to make the world a little kinder. Or check out kindnessandy, a blog where he’s regularly posted personal reflections since 2010.

“Andy Smallman is a child whisperer. During ‘the time of Covid,’ Andy is a calm presence and thoughtful teacher who is keeping kids mentally healthy.” – Parent