Pirates, Publishing, and Public Schools – Dave Eggers & 826 Valencia at TED

I had heard of 826 Valencia before, a pirate supply store (images) that acts as a ‘front’ for a one-on-one after school homework tutoring center for local kids. In the video below, Dave Eggers gives a history of the project, from its dismal start to its current success as well as how they came to sell pirate supplies. The tutoring center is in the back rooms of a store that is stocked with everything a pirate might need to sail the seven seas. Standard black eye patches plus pastel ones for evening attire, peg legs, replacement glass eyes, pirate maps, and even parrot food

The tutoring program has been so successful that there are now other ’826 centers’ across the country, each with its own ‘front’. Other 826 projects include:

• 826NYC in Brooklyn features a superhero-themed supply store (images)
• 826 Michigan in Ann Arbor, Michigan is home to a robot supply and repair store (images)
• 826 Seattle hosts a space travel supply company (images)
• 826CHI is the location of The Boring Store, which sells spy supplies (images)
• 826LA has opened The Ecco Park Time Travel Mart (images)
• 826 Boston is home of the Greater Boston Bigfoot Research Institute and specializes in cryptozoology (images)

I will let him tell you more….