Logan Smalley: Founder of TED-Ed

Logan Smalley is the founding director of TED’s youth and education initiative, TED-Ed—an award-winning website (13 Webby Awards), content format (TED-Ed Animations), and program offering that serves millions of teachers and students throughout the world every day. Through TED-Ed, he has worked to make high-quality educational content accessible to a broad audience by combining expert knowledge with engaging visuals.

Logan Smalley

Before joining TED, Logan Smalley was selected as a TED Fellow for his work as director, editor, and composer of the nonprofit feature-length documentary Darius Goes West. The film follows Darius Weems, a young man with Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy (DMD), on a cross-country journey to raise awareness for the disease and fulfill his dream of having his wheelchair customized on MTV’s Pimp My Ride.

Initially released as a short film on MY HERO, where it won a MY HERO documentary award, Smalley later expanded it into a full-length documentary.

Watch the short film here: Darius Goes West | MY HERO 

Beyond the documentary, Smalley and Weems worked together to raise funds for drug trials that ultimately contributed to the first FDA-approved treatment for DMD. The film received 28 festival awards, including recognition at MY HERO’s 2007 Film Festival, and showcased Smalley’s ability to use storytelling as a tool for advocacy and impact. The project also played a key role in raising awareness of this rare and fatal disease.

Logan and Darius

Smalley is also the founder of CallMeIshmael.com — a participatory literary initiative that was an honoree for the National Book Foundation’s Innovations in Reading Prize in 2015 and has since become a published book. 

Smalley studied both education and film. He holds a BEd in special education from the University of Georgia, and an EdM in technology innovation and education from the Harvard Graduate School of Education and began his career as a special education teacher in his hometown of Athens, Georgia. He currently lives and works in the San Francisco Bay Area.

In 2012, Smalley launched TED-Ed with the goal of producing educational videos that explain complex topics in an accessible way. The platform pairs educators with animators to create short, engaging lessons covering a wide range of subjects. TED-Ed has since become a widely used resource in classrooms and for independent learners, with millions of views on YouTube and an interactive website that supports teachers.

Beyond TED-Ed, Smalley has remained active in the field of education and digital learning. His work focuses on using media to enhance education and reach learners worldwide. By combining storytelling, animation, and expert input, he has contributed to the development of engaging educational content that is widely available and easy to understand.

Logan announced a milestone in early 2025 declaring: I am "proud to have hit the 21,000,000 subscriber mark on YouTube... That many thanks to all of you who follow and support TED-Ed!"

Find out more here: https://ed.ted.com

Watch this video where Logan pays tribute to the important life of his close friend Darius Weems, who passed away two weeks after his 27th birthday.