A Valued Education

Morgan Champion-Dickinson creates faith-based content for the whole family

An educator by trade, Morgan Champion-Dickinson never intended to publish her own magazine. Of course, as they say, life is what happens while you’re busy making other plans.

“I served in private, public and virtual schools as a counselor and actually completed all my hours to do a mental health licensure because I planned on doing face-to-face (children’s) therapy as my career,” Champion-Dickinson said. “But things took a bit of a turn when I realized I wanted to have a wider impact beyond that one caseload of students.”

She left the classroom in 2016 for the Florida Department of Education where she helped implement institutional change, first as a licensure manager and then as the director of postsecondary reciprocal distance education. Then, in 2019, she accepted a position with the education company Pearson, which allowed her to “support and influence the work of school counselors at 45-plus virtual schools across the country.”

Still, despite making the “wider impact” she’d yearned for, she wanted to do more. So, in 2024, she launched Sprouts Kids Magazine, a monthly, Christian-based print periodical.

“I had been thinking about how I could potentially use my expertise to positively impact children and families — I really prayed about that,” Champion-Dickinson said. “When this idea came about, I said, ‘Let me research Christian kids magazines,’ and I found that there were less than five … That gave me hope that this is something families need.”

Each issue of Sprouts contains a Bible story, discussion questions, faith-based lessons, recipes and hands-on games and puzzles. The aim, Champion-Dickinson said, is to provide children with educational, “values-based” content.

“These are all things that I have done or would do with my child or students,” she said. “Even some of the counseling activities I’ve done in small groups or with individual clients have been put into this magazine.”

Sprouts also seeks to promote familial bonding. Champion-Dickinson said parental involvement is crucial to children eight years old and younger, and some of the content in her magazine is designed with this in mind.

“There are some activities that I want parents to do with their kids; they’re fairly easy to implement at home,” Champion-Dickinson said. “You don’t have to drive around to all these different places or have all these supplies — they’re going to involve things you have around the house.

“Hopefully, it’s not a burden but more so a way to connect,” she continued.

When discussing her decision to create a print publication versus a digital one, Champion-Dickinson said it was partly to keep kids offline.

According to the U.S. Surgeon General, nearly 40% of children eight to 12 years old use social media apps — a not-so-surprising figure in the digital age. Though social media can promote connection and community, it has its downsides, too. Anxiety, depression, negative body image and trouble focusing have all been linked to too much screen time. Unfettered access to social media can also lead to the exposure of dangerous or age-inappropriate content.

Magazines, she said, specifically Sprouts, “promote reading and writing and help kids get outside more.” They also allow parents to have more control over the kinds of information their kids have access to. 

“Our tagline at Sprouts is ‘content that parents can trust,’ meaning you’re not going to be surprised by what you find in this magazine,” Champion-Dickinson said. “There’s not going to be a topic covered that maybe you’re not ready for your child to hear.”

Another reason she chose the print route is because kids love mail.

“When I was a kid, I loved getting mail — I felt so important,” Champion-Dickinson said. “So, on the back of every magazine, it says, ‘To our Sprouts friend,’ so they know it’s for them.”

Champion-Dickinson still works for Pearson, and it doesn’t appear she’ll be retiring her educator’s cap anytime soon. But, no matter what the future holds, one thing is certain — she’ll continue using her expertise to teach, create and inspire.