BrandWise opens 2026 enrollment as Meta settlement pushes social media education into focus

BrandWise has opened advance enrollment for its 2026 Academic Year as a multistate Meta settlement intensifies debate over youth online safety and how states may use potential funding. The Philadelphia-based certification program is pitching social media literacy as a complement to platform guardrails and parental controls.

Why it matters: - The Meta settlement has put youth online safety and social media harms back at the center of state and national attention. - BrandWise is arguing that protection alone is not enough and that students also need education before high school graduation. - States may direct settlement funds toward education, mental health services and other efforts tied to unhealthy social media use.

What happened: - BrandWise opened enrollment for its 2026 Academic Year, which begins October 15. - Advance enrollment costs $87 through October 14, a $50 discount from the standard $137 individual price. - The program is a Social Media Literacy & Wellness Certification based in Philadelphia. - Meta agreed earlier this year to pay nearly $18 billion to settle a multistate lawsuit brought by attorneys general from nearly every U.S. state and territory. - The settlement includes new teen protections, including default time limits, nighttime restrictions and reduced notifications during school hours.

The details: - BrandWise centers its curriculum on three skills: Social Media Literacy, Digital Reputation and Personal Branding. - The program covers algorithms, privacy, digital permanence, misinformation, digital judgment, reputation and personal branding. - Students are taught how algorithms shape what they see, how to spot misinformation, how to protect privacy and how to think before posting. - BrandWise says the curriculum helps students, families and schools navigate the role social media plays in reputation, opportunity and daily decisions. - The organization said the 2026 Academic Year curriculum is completing its annual national accreditation process. - BrandWise was built by a team with nearly a decade of experience in social media literacy, digital reputation, personal branding and digital wellness education. - The organization also offers programs for schools, colleges and organizations. - Enrollment information, free parent resources and advocacy materials are available at itsbrandwise.com.

Between the lines: - BrandWise is trying to broaden the public debate from restricting harmful behavior online to teaching young people how digital platforms work. - The company’s campaign language frames schools and states as key pressure points for making social media education routine before graduation. - State officials have said settlement money could support education programs and other initiatives, but states will decide how funds are spent. - BrandWise said, “Guardrails matter. Parental controls matter. Platform accountability matters. None of it replaces education.” - BrandWise also said, “We taught an entire generation how to use the internet. We never really taught them how to use social media.”

What’s next: - BrandWise is urging parents to use its Ask Your School campaign to find out what social media literacy is taught locally. - The organization’s Ask Your State initiative is aimed at encouraging citizens to press policymakers on whether education will be included as settlement resources are allocated. - The company is positioning the 2026 Academic Year as part of a broader effort to make social media literacy standard before high school graduation.

The bottom line: - BrandWise is seizing on the Meta settlement to make a simple case: if social media is shaping young people’s lives, schools should teach them how to use it wisely before they leave high school.