Raritan Learning Cooperative helps teenagers live and learn without school. Our staff supports teens as they create personalized educations based on their interests, strengths, and goals.
We offer mentoring and guidance and a safe and comfortable place to work and socialize. In addition, we offer a range of opportunities for learning and growth, including classes that run throughout the day, one-on-one tutorials, and excursions into the wider world. We help our teens find internships, jobs, and volunteer opportunities, and we help them with college admissions and other transitional steps as they move on to their adult lives.
A Learning Community
Raritan Learning Cooperative is a safe and welcoming community of teens and adults.
On any given day, you will find teens, staff and volunteers participating in classes or activities, playing games, talking, laughing, going for walks, or sitting quietly and reading or working on projects.
By having more personal autonomy - while working within the community - teens can practice leadership, communication and collaboration skills in real ways that reflect what they will need later in life.
Our Staff
MaryBeth Healy
I have been working with teens for years, teaching piano and high school science and also providing mentoring through non-profit programs. I’ve always particularly enjoyed helping kids find their way to a career that they feel excited about. I get to do all these things at RLC! Each year I teach a handful of classes; this year's are Make Stuff, Do Something, and Engineering Projects.
In my free time I sing in a choir, make stuff out of things I find in nature, hike and read. I can also be found with my daughter wandering around our little river town.
You can reach me at marybeth@raritanlearningcooperative.org.
Scott Gallagher
I have been teaching reading and writing for 20 years. I like storytelling in all forms, from books to film to my favorite, radio. I love all kinds of music, and dabble in guitar and piano. I have a weekly soul music radio show on WDVR, a local station here in Hunterdon County. I grew up surfing and try to get to the ocean as much as possible.
I have one daughter and in the summer we can be found at the beach, in our vegetable garden, or going to concerts.
At RLC, I lead a number of classes: Short Stories, Weaponry Through History, Psychology of Fairy Tales and Dream Interpretation, Comic Drawing, and Games and Gamemaking.
You can be in touch with me at scott@raritanlearningcooperative.org.
Alison Snieckus
In 2010, when my two sons (now in their thirties, yikes!) were finishing up with homeschooling, I learned about Princeton Learning Cooperative opening that fall. At first I volunteered and was on the board, then in 2012 joined the full-time staff. I moved to working at RLC in 2022. I quite enjoy engaging with young people as they figure out their next steps in life, and supporting them to think broadly about how they might study a topic or broach something that's been hard or discouraging in the past. I lead the Zoology, Pre-Pre-Med, Nature, and Data and Stats classes and support our one-on-one math tutorial program.
In my free time I enjoy exploring wild places, connecting with people around the world engaged with self-directed education programs like RLC, and helping with the Seeing Eye Puppy Raising program—while on staff at PLC I raised Webster, Qadira, Harry, Nigel, and Earl.
To connect, you can email me at at alison@raritanlearningcooperative.org.
RLC's staff members are MaryBeth, Scott, and Alison but it takes many, many more dedicated people to make RLC work. Learn about the rest of the team.