Amazing Educational Resources Supports Educators During COVID-19 Crisis

Humanitarian Social Innovations is excited to welcome Amazing Educational Resources to our community of social entrepreneurs.

When he started a Facebook group in December 2019, Nick Hoover never imagined that his idea — to create a place where educators could easily exchange resources — would become a vital platform just a few months later as the COVID-19 virus swept across the globe.

Hoover, an instructional coach at a Dallas elementary school, said that he initially started the group because he saw the need for teachers to have a way to share resources and help one another. However, as educational facilities all over the United States began shutting down in an effort to stop the spread of the virus, his platform, Amazing Educational Resources, transformed into an essential community for not only teachers, but all parents and caretakers who had to shoulder the added responsibility of teaching children from home.

“My job had shown me that there are a ton of resources available, but teachers, and now parents, need a place to find them. I never imagined that it would turn into what it is now,” Hoover said.

It all began in March, when Hoover shared a Google sheet containing resources that were being offered for free due to the virus. He asked his community to email him any other resources that they were aware of, and he compiled them all in his Facebook group.

“It went viral,” Hoover said. “I was soon receiving thousands of emails, and the Google sheet quickly grew to more than 800 resources. I turned the Google sheet into a website and made it public for everyone.”

It is estimated that the sheet has been shared almost 900,000 times, and 10 million people have viewed it in the last month alone.” –Nick Hoover

How Amazing Educational Resources Helps

“Amazing Educational Resources is on a mission to simplify the process of finding high-quality educational resources for parents and teachers,” Hoover said. “The purpose of the Facebook group is for teachers and parents to share the best resources they have found, as well as insights on those resources. 

“One of the things I am very happy with is that even though the Facebook group has over 130,000 people in it, it still has kept its mission: people post resources that they find or post what they are looking for, and the community helps them find what they need. My hope is that the website gives parents and teachers a place to find what they are looking for without becoming overwhelmed,” he added.

The organization has had to adapt quickly to ever-changing conditions and uncertainty as the United States tackles the pandemic. Starting a website and distilling an overwhelming amount of information into sources that are easy for teachers and parents to access are a few of the challenges that Hoover has had to work through in the span of just over one month.

“The greatest challenge has been building this plane in the sky. Everything has been happening very quickly, so the challenge has been to create something useful and effective as quickly as possible,” he said.

The positive impact of Amazing Educational Resources is just as overwhelming as its sudden growth; Hoover has received an outpouring of gratitude from those who have leaned on the organization in the uncertain weeks following orders to close schools and move learning from classrooms to homes.

“I think the proudest moment from my work is all of the emails I have received from parents and teachers thanking me for the website and the resources. As an educator, I know how overwhelming and stressful this situation has been. If I have been able to help parents and teachers at all during this chaotic time, then it was all worth it.” –Hoover

Humanitarian Social Innovations is pleased to sponsor Amazing Educational Resources in order to maximize its impact.

You can support this group and help keep this resource free for teachers here: