DISCOVER GAP YEAR AND HIGHER EDUCATION ALTERNATIVES FOR CAREER AND TRADES-ORIENTED STUDENTS

The Better Option: A Values-Aligned Blueprint for Post-High School Success

Starting July 8th at 7pm EST

99% of Gen Z is Failing their Post-High School Education and They Don't Care. What's the answer?

That’s not click-bait. That’s data. The system isn’t dying, it’s dead.

Whether you’re the parent of a high schooler or upcoming high school graduate or you’re the student yourself, you need to pay attention

Whether you’re going to college, entering the workforce, or pursuing an alternative, you need to pay attention. 

A college professor of over 30 years just shared shocking data* on the average student in his classroom today: 

  • “Most of our students are functionally illiterate.” 
  • “Their writing skills are at the 8th-grade level.” 
  • “Students are increasingly less capable and less willing to put in the effort…as a result [professors] have had to make their tests easier with fewer hard problems.”
  • “Students routinely just vanish at some point during the semester. They don’t officially drop or withdraw from the course, they simply quit.”
  • “Students routinely get up during a 50 minute class, sometimes just 15 minutes in, and leave the classroom. . .  to look at their phones.”

This isn’t just about college. It’s about the values, motivations, and practices of a generation that are shaping the future of not only education but business, family, and culture as a whole. 

*Source: https://hilariusbookbinder.substack.com/p/the-average-college-student-today, https://hilariusbookbinder.substack.com/p/the-average-college-student-today

"Who Do I Want To Become?"

Who we become is largely determined by who we surround ourselves with. That means the environment and community you choose to spend the next season of your life with is critical for your future. 

And that is what this event is all about: starting with the question, “Who do I want to become?”, evaluating the environment and community of the options in front of you, and deciding your next steps based on that information. 

Through three powerful sessions, we will dive into:

  • Why 99% of College Students are Failing and How to Ensure Your Student Doesn’t Just Succeed, but Thrives Post-High School 
  • A Discussion About the Need for a Better Option in the Post-High School Sphere of Education and Training that Supports Career and Trades Oriented Students
  • Q&A Panel with the 1%: Meet the Parents and Students Who Chose a Better Option and Hear the Best and Worst of Their Experience

Options for education, training, and professional development are all around you. Discover the opportunities that align with your values, preserve your identity, and challenge you to grow academically, relationally, professionally, and spiritually instead of threatening the demise of all four.

Event Session Schedule

Register for the next session today!

Why 99% of College Students are Failing and How to Ensure Your Student Doesn't Just Succeed, but Thrives Post-High School 

Join us for a critical look inside the average college classroom and a deep-dive into the reality of the academic, community, and professional decline of higher education. 

  • Why 99% of college students are failing their classes and losing the security of a professional future that higher education can no longer deliver
  • Alternative ways to secure your student’s future through hands-on training, real world experience, thriving community, relevant education, and a job guarantee that replaces the debt-trap of college into a no-risk investment.
  • Clear, actionable next steps for your student to eliminate decision fatigue, set a clear path forward, and give you confidence in your child’s continued education and training.

Live Podcast Episode: A Discussion About the Need for a Better Option in the Post-High School Sphere of Education and Training that Supports Career and Trades Oriented Students

Join us for a live podcast episode recording! In this session, Jonathan sits down with cohost, David Rethemeyer, for a reflective conversation on Jonathan’s experience in the traditional higher education industry compared to the nontraditional industry, a discussion on the current state of continuing education options, and an analysis of the desperate need for a better option that gives students the community, education, and training they need to thrive. You’ll also get to hear a deep dive into project-based education, how it works in Unbound’s Ascend program, and the difference it’s making for career and trades-oriented students across the country.

  • Get an exclusive inside look at this year’s Ascend Project Showcase and hear directly from students about their projects from this past year.
  • “Meet” successful Ascend students and alumni who are working and thriving in the real world. Discover the kinds of jobs they are working, how they gained access to these opportunities, and how it’s impacted their lives.
  • Find out how your student can experience the same, life-changing project-based education and gain access to professional opportunities that have the potential to shape their careers for years to come.

Meet the 1% - The Parents and Students Who Chose a Better Option

If 99% of college students are failing, where do Ascend students fit in? What’s the *actual* success rate of the Ascend program and what do parents and students have to say about it? Join us alongside the parents and students who are saying no to the dead and broken system of traditional higher education and hear their first-hand experience with the growing, thriving alternative offering them a secure relational, academic, and professional future.

Meet Your Host

Jonathan Brush, CEO of Unbound

Jonathan is the President and CEO of Unbound, co-host of the Be Unbound Podcast, a homeschool graduate, and a homeschool dad of six. He worked for nine years as a Director of Admissions for a private, liberal arts college, and then spent over ten years working in non-traditional higher education. He now gets to work with the world’s best team and the most amazing group of young adults in the history of the world (which is just as awesome as it sounds), and field questions about Rule 4 violations (ask an Unbound student to explain).

Why Attend this Online Event?

Learn from a seasoned expert in the world of traditional and non-traditional higher education with 20+ years of experience helping young adults navigate their next steps after high school.

Gain access to extensive research done on the ROI of a college degree, the true state of the college classroom, and the results of alternative options that universities don’t want you to hear.

As an attendee, gain access to exclusive resources through limited time bonuses.

Copyright 2025 Unbound. All rights reserved.

Ascend Event Recaps

Watch the full event recaps for
APEX, Basecamp, Ridgeline, and Capstone.

Ascend Student Projects

Meet Bryce, Ben, Micaiah, and Abby
and hear about their Ascend projects.

The Ascend Year in Review

Step inside the Ascend program through event recaps,
student interviews, and projects features.