Today we’d like to introduce you to Sarah Frank.
Hi Sarah, can you start by introducing yourself? We’d love to learn more about how you got to where you are today.
Hi, my name is Sarah Frank and I’m an author and entrepreneur. It all started for me when I wrote my first book in fifth grade then rewrote it in middle school.
Once I finished, I wanted to publish it, to share my story and my characters. Some kids laughed; some believed I could do it. I promised myself I’d make it happen. I would get it published, whether it took 10 years or 10,000 rejections. Their doubt became fuel to my fire.
I spent three and a half years re-writing and editing. Every day, I woke up at 7 to edit, revised my manuscript in a binder during school, and then typed the edits at home. Finally, at 14, I signed a book contract. I have since released 2 novels, One Chance and Two Secrets (with Three Quests on the way). I also published a children’s book for kids with anxiety called Cloudy Days.
In my freshman year, after One Chance was released, my elementary school invited me to speak about my journey as an author. Word spread to other schools, and dozens invited me for author visits. I’d been so focused on publishing the book that I’d never dared to dream about the platform that could come with it.
I have now spoken to over 5,000 kids, inspiring them to read, write, and follow their dreams. I remind them I am not the world’s top writer, and that it’s all about hard work. I show them the red notebook, the visualization of my beginning. I know that there’s at least one kid in the audience with their red notebook, a kid who has yet to believe they can become an author, but who hears me and begins to believe.
If I can encourage kids to work towards their dreams, the long hours and rough days become worthwhile for me. While I intend to inspire the kids, they also inspire me in return. Just like with my characters, I see myself in them: their wild imaginations, their big dreams, and their excitement to learn.
Now, my red notebook sits next to my desk. Whenever I am struggling, whenever I am doubting myself or my writing, I look at the weird purple Sharpie ink on the cover, the doodles in the margins, and the tea stain on page 6. More importantly, I see the beginning of my adventure, one bound to be better than anything I could write.
In high school, I embarked on a new adventure: creating Simple Studies, my nonprofit organization. The high school I went to, Blake High School, is a public fine arts magnet school: an explosion of arts and culture. However, it’s also a Title 1 school, meaning the majority of students are at or below the poverty line. I’ve always been lucky enough to afford educational resources but came to realize that students who aren’t so lucky are being compared to students who are. My eyes were opened to education inequity and how cyclical and systematic of an issue it is.
Fast forward to junior year: COVID-19 struck and AP exams moved online. I made extensive study guides for all my exams, and after sending them out to peers, it occurred to me that there should be a platform where anyone could access them. For free. Too many sites add price tags to content, rendering their resources inaccessible to the students who need them most. Thus, Simple Studies was born.
From there, I took to social media to recruit volunteers and spread the word in every way I could. I devoted several hours a day during the pandemic to build it into what I knew it could be. Now, Simple Studies offers >200 original study guides, a blog with advice articles, study buddy matching, college application tips, tutoring, standardized testing resources, mentor matching, and more. All for free. It’s been used by more than half a million students from more than 200 countries over the past few years and that’s a statistic I will always hold close to my heart.
None of this could’ve been done alone: over 800 volunteers from 40 countries and 40 states joined us in fighting education inequity through accessible resources. Working with so many people I otherwise wouldn’t have met has given me the opportunity to work on my leadership, practice teamwork, exercise compassion, and enjoy the satisfaction of our impact. It went from a small local project to an international organization with hard work, long hours, and relentless dedication.
Now, I’m a junior at Brown University and excited to keep doing big things, following what I’m passionate about, and creating the change I so desperately want to see in the world.
We all face challenges, but looking back, would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
I’ve always struggled with spreading myself too thin, but I’ve also learned from doing so that time doesn’t just appear.
You have to make time for the things that you are passionate about and while sometimes that can be hard, I’ve learned how to manage my time effectively.
Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know?
I founded Simple Studies as a junior in high school to combat education inequity through free resources. Students apply to volunteer with the organization and then create and contribute what they can, which helps build their college applications and benefits those who use those resources.
As a student at a Title 1 high school, I saw firsthand how many students lacked the resources to succeed in school. For the past three years, I have continued building the organization. The website has had half a million users from over 175 countries, all using the free resources to succeed in school. The resources range from study guides to practice quizzes to articles.
I am most proud of how many people have used the site as well as how many people have had a hand in creating it. Simple Studies is about educational success, but it’s also about more than that: it’s about the systemic inequalities in the education system that create an unlevel playing field. It’s study guides and quizzes and advice articles –all for free– but it’s also meant to make a point: educational success should not have a price tag.
What would you say has been one of the most important lessons you’ve learned?
One of the biggest lessons I have learned is that leading with trust and compassion first is always a good way to go.
While volunteers in my organization have broken my trust and proved unreliable, the majority have pulled through with their commitments.
In my life, I have always admired authority figures who lead with their hearts and make a point of getting to know those they work with. Leading with love goes a long way for all parties involved.
Contact Info:
- Website: simplestudies.org/links
- Instagram: https://instagram.com/sarah_frank
- Other: https://tiktok.com/@frankadvice
