Transformative Principal

This file is to help us prep for the podcast. If you have something you would like to share in addition to what you filled out on the form: 

Systems that make you do your best, even when you don’t want to.

Please add your bio here: 

Please add questions that we would ask here, and you can add anything that you would like to add as well. 

This is certainly not an exhaustive list, nor will we ask everything that is on here, but will help guide the conversation. 

Our podcast interview is scheduled for: December 4, 2023 in the America/New York time zone. And the link for our meeting is: https://sqdc.st/studio/ZbtK

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Today's episode is super fascinating. Rick Meyer shared his dashboard, and you might want to check out the YouTube video for this episode because it is incredible what he’s doing with teacher data. 

• The power of the data hub
• Very reactive in MTSS to start
• Didn’t know how to do formulas to start
• Data entry comes from Google forms
• Main test scores entered by admin/instructional coach
• Progress monitoring is done by paraprofessionals
• Students enter data
• Teachers don’t put any data in. 
• Daily: Checkin/attendance data
• Weekly: Sonday Phonics Progress monitoring - Color coding based on their MAP Scores. 
• Monthly or as needed: Raider badges & Freckle Intervention program 
• Behavior data - Ownership rooms
• Protecting the data: hLookup Query and other formulas
• Wiping out the old data.
• How to be a transformative principal? Identify what you want to collect! 

About Rick Meyer

Rick Meyer is an elementary principal in Sidney, NE. He has been in education for 19 years, the first 7 as a kindergarten teacher. He then transitioned to a technology coordinator for his district for the next 5 years, where he helped implement technology and taught K-5th grade technology integration. He then moved into administration and is in his 7th year as a principal. Meyer is married to another elementary principal in Sidney and they have two children, a daughter, 16, and a son, 12. He holds a master's degree in administration and is currently working towards his specialist degree to become a superintendent. Meyer has been passionate about technology in education since he entered teaching.

• How she stays at the same place for so long. 
• Relationships
• Street cred and reputation exist, but they don’t know me personally. 
• Each family is a new relationship
• Honesty and transparency
• People don’t always love the news I give them, but they do appreciate the honesty and directness
• Don’t need to sugarcoat things because it doesn’t actually help. 
• Call and connect with new families. 
• Calling to share good news. 
• Our students deserve our A game every day
• Developing teachers when you have a good relationship. 
• Be a good listener, open the door for reflection. 
• Work together, rather than against each other. 
• 90% of teachers want to be here for the right reason. 
• Seeing brilliance
• The meat of your work is not in doing observations. 
• Small moments of walkthroughs are where the growth really happens.
• Keep a sense of humor
• Weird, hard, and funny happens every day. 
• Don’t make rash decisions - Somebody else thought I should make a decision quickly. 
• Don’t let anyone rush your decisions.
• How to be a transformative principal? Think about students you’re worried about and make a phone call to the family. 

Please add your bio here: 

Marianne Lescher is a life-long educator. Her 40 years in public education span Massachusetts and Arizona.  Dr. Lescher started as an elementary and special education teacher and Assistant Principal in Westwood, Massachusetts and eventually moved to Arizona, where she has been in the Kyrene Elementary District for over 26 years.  In Kyrene, Marianne started at the District Office as a Specialist and Director in Curriculum.  Marianne’s heart is with children and families, so she moved to an elementary school and has been a K-5 and K-8 principal for 25 years.  Over these years, Marianne’s schools have achieved the A+ School of Excellence Award from the Arizona Educational Foundation four times and her current school was honored with the National Blue Ribbon School of Excellence Recognition in 2015.  This is the highest honor a school can achieve from the Department of Education in Washington DC.  A highlight of Marianne’s career as a Principal has been her work to envision and bring to life the goal of a K-8 campus for Kyrene Traditional Academy.  Marianne was charged with not only developing and training a staff in new curriculum and instructional strategies, but also to work with architects and construction crews to add two new buildings to campus and overseeing the renovation of the existing school building, all on an active school campus!   With her staff, students and community, Marianne’s school has almost doubled in enrollment and continues to achieve amazing results and has been recognized with numerous awards.  Marianne is a life-long learner as well, and received her undergraduate degrees from Boston College in elementary and special education, her M.Ed. from the University of Massachusetts, Boston and her Ph. D. from Boston College in Educational Research, Measurement and Evaluation. She is a proud Double Eagle from BC!  Marianne continues her own professional development and study through her work with the National Institute for School Leadership (NISL) where she trains and mentors new and aspiring school leaders. She also works closely with the Arizona Educational Foundation in supporting school leaders and is an adjunct with Grand Canyon University.

In this episode, Dr. Erin Bailey joins Jethro Jones to talk about how to engage families in inspiring the joy of reading in children. 

• Making reading backed by research, powered by joy
• Concerns in children’s reading - not teaching it correctly
• Teaching teachers to be culturally responsive
• Train teachers in getting to know their students. 
• Things we should do to teach kids reading: phonological awareness (hearing and manipulating sounds), phonics, vocabulary, fluency (rate, accuracy, expression), and comprehension.
• Typically science of reading stops at the first two.
• There’s no one way to teach reading
• Motivation to read
• Giving children access to books that they own and choose
• Link between motivation and reading, and motivation and comprehension
• Bookmobile, printed, Skybrary
• Getting joy from the experience
• Parents are the primary educators
• You can’t out-teach the culture of the home.
• Teacher PD about family engagement systems
• Family engagement vs. family involvement
• Family engagement is the family system and the school system working together 
• Power of story
• Family Literacy Evening - bring families on board to plan the event, rather than just having the school do everything, involve food, childcare (or activities) for other siblings, and give away books. 
• Outreach is important, reach out to see why people didn’t attend. 
• The location where you have your events is important - where else could you have the event? 
• RIF coordinators getting books to kids during the pandemic.
• How to be a transformative principal? Listen to your families and make a connection. 

About Erin Bailey, Director, Literacy & Content, Reading Is Fundamental

Erin Bailey, Ed.D., joined Reading Is Fundamental in 2021 and currently serves as the Director of Literacy and Content. Her role includes serving as the subject matter expert and developing, curating, and managing content and professional learning for educators and families on literacy. Dr. Bailey has been an educator in U.S. and international classrooms. Her teaching experience spans from PreK-8 including roles as a classroom teacher, literacy specialist, English language learning specialist, and university instructor. Her interests include professional learning for teachers on family and community engagement, instructional strategies for multilingual learners, and literacy instruction. She is interested in the ways that partnering with families and communities, particularly for children from historically marginalized communities, can transform literacy instruction. Additionally, she designs curriculum and professional development for utilizing play-based learning to teach language and literacy to young children.

Dr. Bailey has a robust and interdisciplinary research repertoire including learning through informal spaces such as public gardens, art museums, and social movements. She takes up art processes such as film, photography, and sound mixing to expand approaches to qualitative inquiry. She has presented her work at several major conferences including the American Education Research Association (AERA) and the World Organization for Early Childhood Education (OMEP) and has published in academic journals including Qualitative Inquiry, Journal of Early Childhood Literacy, and Journal of Literacy Research.

In this episode, Matthew Ebert joins Jethro to discuss how to actively and intentionally create the space for educators to be their authentic selves at work and how that impacts a greater school community.

• Ongoing, authentic, and messy
• 1:1 meetings with all the staff.
• Slack as a schoolwide communication tool - How to implement without teachers feeling like they need to be in the 
• Avoid performative care
• 6 staff meetings in one year. 
• Use Slack as you need it - Autonomy
• Power of muting channels
• Hilarious communities
• The power of continuous meetings. 
• All development is personal. (The Personal is Professional)
• Must have holistic approaches to all things. 
• Try, fail, cry, and try again. 
• 6 staff meetings
• The Art of Gathering
• Initiatives came from the teachers, not from the administration. 
• Grades were not an accurate reflection of what kids really could do. 
• Care vs. accountability 
• Schools are not families, they’re teams. 
• How to be a transformative principal? Stop going to meetings and start going to classrooms. 

About Matthew Ebert

Matthew Ebert is a human-centered leader with 20+ years of experience in education, primarily focused on school leadership in urban settings. Matthew's consulting is grounded in his experiences as a teacher, director of academic innovation, academy leader, and a decade of successful leadership as a public charter school principal. 

Throughout his leadership tenure, Matthew has developed teams that exceed expectations, consistently achieving strong results. He is committed to cultivating healthy work and learning environments in which individuals feel seen, heard, and valued. In addition to helping team members consistently attain their personal and professional goals, Matthew has facilitated dramatic and consistent growth in student achievement in both Baltimore and Boston, in metrics focused on academic achievement and school climate. Matthew's leadership is based in the idea that we are all here to take care of one another.

Jethro sits down with David Bryan to talk about how to make school more worthwhile. 

• The difference between public and private schools
• More freedom in a private school to address issues in their schools.
• How to manage high tuition.
• All students paid tuition.
• Why he started New Roads to connect people. 
• The richness of a diverse population leads to amazing environments.
• Schools that are worthwhile are flexible, nimble, and messy. 
• What does the future of education look like? 
• Schools have to invest in those areas where kids are interested.
• Improving the conversation by being together.
• Every human being has been learning from the time they were aware. 
• “Getting Credit” for their learning.
• Kids learning skateboarding tricks. 
• Fan the flames that are there. 
• Grade school teachers 
• David Bolton - Educational Activist
• Curiosity Invited Podcast
• How to be a transformative principal? Pause before you say no. 

About David Bryan

Through a decades-long career in the trade, business, and education spaces, Dr. David Bryan has garnered the skills to be a curious and eager student of many fields. Having taught at middle school, high school, and university levels throughout the United States, Dr. Bryan gained the experience to spearhead his own venture, co-founding  New Roads School, a unique independent school in Southern California that devoted between 40 to 50 percent of its annual budget to need-based financial aid. That allowed New Roads to create a private school population that was ethnically, racially, and socioeconomically diverse.

Bryan served as a faculty member, Founding Head of School, and President from 1995 until his departure in 2013. Following this, he founded his own consulting business and lectured in economics at UC Santa Cruz.

In 2020, Dr. Bryan relocated to rural Wyoming, and for the first time in years found himself outside of the classroom. The podcasting space has been steadily growing, allowing people all over the world to connect. Leveraging the podcasting format and fortified by his “enduring belief that a person can learn a great deal about the world and other people by simply being curious about what folks do”, Dr. Bryan launched his largest “classroom” yet, the CURIOSITY INVITED podcast. 

Between the podcast, participating on several boards, and spending time with his wife, Shelly Graham, exploring the many splendors of Wyoming terrain, his calendar and inbox are both pretty full.

• How to converse with Chatbots using other tools
• Background in ELA teaching
• Thinking of the tool as a reading assistant
• What is a reading assistant?
• Getting an executive summary 
• Get an idea if I should really dive into this idea. 
• Process - find the text, ask what it is, then zoom in, 
• Zoom out as needed
• Hallucinations exist, but they are reduced when the text is there. 
• AI For the rest of us - Augmentation
• How does this make Rod a better learner?
• Focuses my time better and helps me know what I should spend my time on. 
• How leaders talk to one another. 
• Finding a gap in the research - hard to discern the landscape. 
• Reading more scholarly research because I have a tool that helps me know I’m going to get something from it. 
• Science Direct and Google Scholar to find resources.
• Like the autonomy of interacting directly with the source. 
• @rodjnaquin everywhere but check out the substack.

This is a trailer for a new show I just started called A Vision for Learning. In it, we focus on the Apple Vision Pro, AR, VR, XR, AI, and the future of learning. I've already released some great episodes, including two interviews with people who have been using AR in schools for years already!

Click here to subscribe and get my learning-focused review of the Apple Vision Pro this weekend!

If you listen to Transformative Principal, you'll love A Vision for Learning. 

• What we teach and how we teach
• PK-8th grade over a quarter million devoted to students
• Small class sizes, 2 teachers in a class of 20. Started at 85 students
• Incredible amount of individual support
• Transportation is 7% of the budget. 
• Breakfast, lunch, and dinner every day
• Wraparound services
• On-site partnership with Dayton’s Children's Hospital - full-time mental health, doctor, and other services for kids.
• Startup year - be naive about what starting a school entails. 
• Temporary site - Fire marshall
• Working with a local Medicaid provider
• 30% higher in every category than every other child on Medicaid
• Looking at lots of data for whole-child outcomes
• 51% at grade level at the start, and 85% at grade level at the end of the year.
• Not all roses and sunshine
• Screenings for character, mental health, etc. 
• Age 27 goals. 
• How they teach - Tried finding instructional strategies that really moved the needle. 
• Influenced by Hattie’s work - prioritized by effect size.
• Teacher quality matters
• Benjamin Bloom’s Research - Acton Academy
• Using personalized tools in a smart way. 
• Zearn math program - typically used as supplemental
• Thrown the idea out the window
• Mixed-age classrooms. 
• Start teaching at the instructional level, not the age or grade level.
• Personality and character benefits
• Looking at Age 27, and how that reflects in 1 year. 
• Hire in the top 10% of teachers. 

About AJ Stich

Adam J. Stich (A.J.) is the founding principal of The Greater Dayton School.  Prior to starting in this role, he spent nearly seven years as a principal in Chicago Public Schools, where he drove strong outcomes for students and teachers.  You can hear his first interview on Transformative Principal at this link.

In this show we talk about creating a personal operating system, the core four needed to make yourself an amazing human being. You’re going to love this interview. 

• You can’t lead others to do something you’re not willing to do yourself.
• Self-leadership in four core areas. 
• Gap in what 
• Leader who has a deep level of integrity 
• Because of the depth of your own integrity
• You can be better, but a great leader is someone who can find people who are better in their area of expertise. 
• The thing that we are unwilling to do will cause resentment in those we lead. 
• Nobody expects the leader to be better than everyone at everything
• Leaders give people authority and trust to own that part of the organization
• This all starts at home. 
• Servant-hearted leadership is the most powerful leadership. 
• Doing it at home with your family makes it easier to translate to the workplace. 
• The more I hold onto stuff, the more I’m the bottleneck.
• You have to let go in order to grow. 
• Priority and sequence to everything. 
• Get myself on point so I’m on the highest level of capacity to serve the people that matter the most. 
• The family gets what is best first. 
• If I’m on point with my wife and kids, and the family is thriving, that gives me a clarity to work in the workplace. 
• Everything is connected. 
• Relationships healthy
• Struggling everywhere, systems and processes made things better. 
• Checklist Manifesto by Atul Gawande
• You need a system to help you be on point. 
• Core Four - Body, Being, Balance, Business
  • Sweat and Green Smoothie
  • Prayer/meditation and journal
  • Note to wife and children and one act of service
  • Learn something new every day applicable to your career
• More powerful to experience than to explain. 
• So easy to run and hide when things are difficult. 
• Weaponizing your body - making your body the weapon to do the work you need to do. 
• Download your tracker to change your life in 30 days at TheWorldNeedsMen.com

About Franklin Swann

Franklin Swann, an entrepreneur from Tyler, Texas, is the proud owner of Swann Furniture and Design. Beyond the realm of business, he is a loving husband to his beautiful wife, Brooke, and a devoted father to two remarkable children, EF and Camilla. Deeply rooted in his faith, Franklin is a committed follower of Christ, infusing his values into both his personal and professional life.

Franklin is the torchbearer of a remarkable legacy, serving as the fifth-generation owner of Swann's Furniture & Design, a rich 128-year history. His leadership reflects a relentless pursuit of personal growth and development, setting the tone for the continued success of the family business. But Franklin is more than his furniture empire, like all of us. He is a multifaceted individual dedicated to family, faith, and the enduring pursuit of excellence.

You can listen to his podcast at theworldneedsmen.com

Explore more BE Podcast Network shows:

• The Authority Podcast: https://bit.ly/48dhakQ 
• Morning Motivation for Educators: https://bit.ly/42dLGJa
• The Learning Bridge with Richard Gerver: https://bit.ly/3Hw3AgC
• Sideline Sessions: https://bit.ly/3Rp0QGt

• Linking Leaders Podcast - subscribe and listen in your podcast player of choice.
• Small little seeds of ideas 
• Administrator hacks - How they interact
• Building pathways for administrator prep and their early days.
• Content and process of what we provide.
• Connector for administrators
• Mentoring aspiring administrators
• What administrators need are connections with others. 
• Opportunity and process to come together.
• Creating the time to step aside and having people think through a problem of practice
• Lower the temperature - make them feel less stressed. 
• “It mattered that we met because…”
• Every time I’m in front of a group of leaders, I’m able to model something that they can learn too. 
• Center for Leadership and Innovation - Planning summits, step aside, go deep. 
• Rather than frequent check-ins do half day summits
• Play-based learning
• 2nd year around - how do you take on everything but not getting in over your head? 
• Marking where we have had some impact in our state. 
• How to prioritize what you should change. 
• Pulse surveys. 
• Is this valuable to our leaders on a broader scale?
• Networking and building connections. 
• How to be a transformative principal? Push your chair back and just listen. 

About Dr. Alicia Bowman

Dr. Alicia Bowman currently works for the Connecticut Association of Schools, as Associate Executive Director and Director of the Center for Leadership and Innovation. Prior to joining CAS, she spent twenty years serving the Farmington Public Schools at the school and district levels. Alicia was Connecticut’s Elementary Principal of the Year and National Distinguished Principal in 2015. She was featured in a chapter of Lee Teitel’s book School-Based Instructional Rounds, and in NAESP’s Principal Magazine for her work in using collaborative classroom observations and analysis to drive school and district improvement. Alicia is an active adjunct faculty member of UCAPP.

Explore more BE Podcast Network shows:

• The Authority Podcast: https://bit.ly/48dhakQ 
• Morning Motivation for Educators: https://bit.ly/42dLGJa
• The Learning Bridge with Richard Gerver: https://bit.ly/3Hw3AgC
• Sideline Sessions: https://bit.ly/3Rp0QGt

• How the coaching call worked well for Hillary. 
• Female, like-minded folks
• Trying PQ reps has been new
• Working on one saboteur - physically embody that saboteur.
• Constantly on technology and value time away from technology
• Listening to my team and giving them space. 
• Teams focusing on helping her with her saboteur when she divulged what her saboteur is
• How this is helping in her career changes. 
• Loving the challenge of change. 
• Fearful that I wasn’t very good at it, and you’re not until you get some experience and get your feet on the ground. 
• How her leadership is supporting her in a career change.
• Focus to where she wants to live. 
• How job interviews will be impacted by what she’s learning. 
• You need to take care of you first. 
• It takes discipline. 
• You are worthy. Set asi

About Hillary Chapman

Hillary Chapman dreamed of being an educator at age 4 when she would assign homework to her neighborhood friends from her parent’s Readers Digest and National Geographic.  Thanks to her Mom encouraging her to have more recess…Hillary has developed into an international educator and WA state librarian advocate.  As an educator for 28 years, a school librarian for 20 years, and an international educator of 12 years, Hillary has grown roots in SW Washington and found a home in Washougal as the District Librarian TOSA.  However, as the consummate student, Hillary attained her Principal’s Certification from EWU and aspires to grow her career into an Assistant Principal position in sunny California, returning to her husband Jim’s native roots.  But, the uphill climb to administrator has been bumpier than expected.  But, in Hillary’s eyes, it’s truly been a “Bloom where I’m planted” experience.

Family Engagement - 

• Daily practice employing executive functioning skills
• If parents are informed they can help in a more powerful way
• Bringing parents into the process matters
• How do I hone this down into a daily task?
• Alexis Reid Podcast on Resilient Schools
• How to keep from fighting with your kids
• Modeling and routines with kids.
• Physical tactile colored Organized Binder.
• Requires use of skills and practice.
• Predictable learning routines help kids take risks.
• If they get practice, they get opportunities to grow
• Accountability - something that young people learn to do with practice.
• Getting practice with them in a “no-stakes” way. 
• Jethro’s family goal setting page.
• Singular practice on goal setting - goal, sub goal, when and where, see what impacts it is creating
• Then evaluate what you need to adjust to make it happen
• Working on it over time
• Actual implementation is much better than lessons
• The actual implementation for schools and families - where to find everything, asking questions (prompts), 
• Having Routines and modeling makes things very clear for the student. 
• Advice for leaders about executive functioning skills - What would it look like to not teach them, but give them exposure to them through modeling rather than just teaching.

About Mitch Weathers

Mitch Weathers founded Organized Binder out of a need to support struggling students with effective tools. He realized the importance of content-agnostic resources that could benefit students of all abilities. His journey began by embedding essential skills practice into his classroom routine, leading to improved student success and confidence.

Today, Organized Binder is an evidence-based MTSS Tier 1 solution, creating structured, dependable learning environments. It offers content-agnostic tools for goal setting, reflective learning, time management, and more, aligning with UDL principles. Collaborating with diverse educational institutions, Organized Binder empowers students and supports educators in implementing best teaching practices under Mitch Weathers' leadership as the Founder and CEO.

We also talk about Jethro's six week coaching program that is incredibly powerful. Taylor shares her 1-session experience that made her want to go all in for the six week program. If you want a free coaching session like that for yourself, schedule a time here.

• Want to do more to level up and help people
• The saboteur conversation really spoke to me. 
• Identifying what path I do want to go down. 
• Power of the free coaching call. 
• The free coaching session kept Taylor from admiring the problem, and being able to focus on a solution.
• Getting deeper into the root cause of the problem of practice
• How the program helps her find success in current busy times.
• It’s OK to take 2 minutes to take a breather during the day. 
• Heavy, tense training, and now she knows how to do manage it a little better. 
• You don’t have to be isolated or alone doing this work. 
• We should be doing this when things are hard. 
• How this program helps with the really difficult things that are happening in Taylor’s personal life. 
• This is about personal and professional development. 
• Education is about working with humans, so we can’t forget about the human aspect. 
• The challenge of working as the admin in the building with her son in the building. 

About Taylor Davis

After completing college, Taylor Davis embarked on a professional journey as an account executive in marketing/sales. However, a realization struck – inspired by the wisdom of her father, a dedicated teacher and administrator – that a true passion lay in working with children. This revelation led Taylor back to school to pursue a Master’s degree and transition into a fulfilling career as an educator.

The initial teaching years were spent in Georgia, where she dedicated three years to shaping young minds. Subsequently, a return to the home state of Washington extended her teaching career for an additional six years. During this time, the desire to make a broader impact on a larger scale ignited, prompting Taylor, with the support of her father, to pursue administrative credentials. This decision culminated in a role as an elementary Associate Principal in the Lake Washington School District, where she has dedicated the last nine years.

Throughout this period, Taylor encountered the challenges and triumphs of education, navigating a pandemic alongside a myriad of high-needs situations within the school environment. These challenges included addressing behavioral concerns, trauma, and supporting low-income students and families. Taylor found herself in a leadership role twice within seven years, unexpectedly managing the responsibilities of the school due to principals being placed on administrative leave.

Beyond the professional challenges, Taylor faced personal struggles, coping with an abusive relationship while being a new mom. The difficulty of concealing this trauma within the school context, where the same authorities were involved, led Taylor to prioritize professional needs until it became untenable. The onset of the pandemic coincided with a high-conflict divorce from a narcissistic partner, extending over four years. Despite these personal challenges, Taylor remained a committed principal and a full-time single mom to a kindergartner in the school.

This unique blend of professional and personal experiences has given Taylor a distinctive perspective, particularly in understanding the complexities that families and students face, especially those dealing with trauma or poverty. Having emerged on the other side of personal trauma, Taylor is now poised to channel her healing journey into helping others. With an eagerness to utilize her voice for a greater purpose, Taylor is exploring avenues to contribute meaningfully, driven by a sense that there is more she can do to make a positive impact.

In this episode, we talk about self-identifying the challenges we face and asking for help when we need it. We also talk about Jethro's six-week coaching program which is incredibly powerful. Sam shares the 1-session experience that made her want to do the six weeks. If you want a free coaching session like that for yourself, schedule a time here.

• Why Sam was interested in Coaching with Jethro
• Identity tied up in a certain position in a school.
• Struggles: ability to relate to other people following a difficult day. 
• Felt alone as a middle school principal
• Difficult days are especially challenging
• People don’t bring positives to you, they bring problems to you. 
• Don’t have the same opportunities to get support and positive feedback from others. 
• The negative stands out more than the positive. 
• People asking “Are you ok?”
• People were willing to say, “Yes, let’s talk” but she also needed someone outside to say
• The advantage of having a neutral party. 
• Spinning tires on a problem, look at the problem from a human side of it. 
• The outcome was the same, but how she approached it was so much different. 
• Teacher not meeting my expectations - needed to see this person as a human being who was also frustrated and annoyed. 
• How can I help you? What do you need?
• The feedback I’m getting from those being led: more positive things to say, people noticing it. 
• Appreciate how my demeanor has changed in the past few days.
• Internalized a lot of how people perceive me and my school. 
• Just because I was an effective teacher doesn’t mean my way was the best way for this group at this school. 
• How to be a transformative principal? Having a winning mentality that you’re going to win every day, regardless. Allow yourself to have a positive outlook

About Samantha Opperman

Samantha Opperman has 11 years of experience in education. She has served as an English teacher at the secondary and post-secondary level for nine years, an instructional coach at a middle school for one year, and is currently the building principal at Bradshaw Mountain Middle School in Dewey, Arizona.

Opperman is originally from California and moved to Arizona in 2019. She is married to her husband, Daryl, and they have two sons, Luke (5) and Reed (2). Opperman is also in her first year of an educational doctorate program for Leadership and Innovation at Arizona State University.

In this episodes, Kelly interviews Jethro about his Coaching Practice. If you want a free coaching session like that for yourself, schedule a time here.

• The power of mental fitness - starts with self, judgment, and relationships
• jethrojones.com/coach 
• 10 saboteurs and how they show up. 
• Sage powers 
• Mastermind coaching vs. Individual coaching
• Success Mindsets

In this episode, Jethro is joined by JC Pohl, of TeenTruth.net to discuss his new book Rising Above: A Story of Positive School Conflict Resolution

• Background is in film and Rising Above is told in a narrative format
• Monica is modeling the behaviors she’s experiencing
• Conflict is such a negative term. 
• Relate at the human level
• Connect, then collaborate
• Give people a voice in the plan, and let them stay in and move forward
• Be curious, ask questions
• We have to go out of our way to make the face-to-face communications needed.
• Administrators do need to have PR and need to have marketing skills
• Made to Stick by Chip and Dan Heath
• How to partner with parents, rather than dictate to parents
• Not every family is playing with a full deck when it comes to parent involvement - 
• Invite parents into the school more. 
• Scavenger hunt outside of Dallas

About JC Pohl
JC Pohl is an award-winning producer, nationally recognized speaker, and certified counselor who has reached more than 12 million people with his efforts to build school culture and empower student voices. He has produced groundbreaking programs such as TEEN TRUTH and RISING UP, and award-winning content for companies such as Warner Brothers, ESPN, and Disney. He is a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist and can be reached on Facebook and LinkedIn or directly at www.jcpohl.com.

https://teentruth.net/schoolconflict for more info

In today’s episode, we discuss the topic of conflict.  Rob and Seth describe how it keeps principals up at night, but can be harnessed for good when we address conflict instead of avoiding it or getting angry about it.

About Dr. Robert Feirsen
Dr. Robert Feirsen is currently associate professor and coordinator of the Educational Leadership Program at Manhattanville College. Previously, he was assistant professor and chair of the Education Department at New York Institute of Technology. A former SAANYS member,  Dr. Feirsen enjoyed a distinguished career in P-12 schools. As a school building leader in Westchester and Nassau Counties, he served as an elementary school principal, a middle school assistant principal, and a middle school principal. At the central office level, he served as an assistant superintendent for curriculum and instruction, deputy superintendent, and superintendent of schools. Dr. Feirsen taught at the elementary, middle, and high school levels as a social studies and special education teacher in schools in New York City before moving into supervisory roles. Dr. Feirsen holds an Ed.D. from Fordham University.

Dr. Feirsen’s research interests include addressing organizational conflict, the school principal-school counselor relationship, principal and teacher retention, the relationship between psychological ownership and professional learning, college readiness, and the applications of design thinking. His research and other articles have been published in a number of academic journals, as well as Educational Leadership and Education Week. Dr. Feirsen has led workshops at such venues as ASCD, the American School Counselor Association (ASCA), the American Association of Colleges for Teacher Education (AACTE), and the American Educational Research Association (AERA). With Seth Weitzman, he has presented at national and statewide conferences including ASCD, the New York State Council of School Superintendents (NYSCOSS), and the New York Association of Colleges for Teacher Education (NYACTE). Seth Weitzman, he is also the co-author of From Conflict to Collaboration: A School Leader’s Guide to Unleashing Conflict’s Problem-Solving Power and How to Get the Teaching Job You Want.

About Dr. Seth Weitzman

Dr. Seth Weitzman sat in a middle school principal’s chair for 27 years in Nassau and Westchester counties. Leadership positions included co-president of the Mamaroneck administrators’ union, president of the Nassau County, and later, the Westchester County Middle School Principals’ Association, and a New York State Middle Level Liaison (a working group of principals representing every county and BOCES in New York State meeting with NYSED officials). Together with Dr. Robert Feirsen, he is co-author of two books: How to Get the Teaching Job You Want and From Conflict to Collaboration: A School Leader’s Guide to Unleashing Conflict’s Problem Solving Power. He is either author or co-author of a number of articles published in national education journals including Educational Leadership and American Middle Level Education Magazine.

Drs. Feirsen and Weitzman have presented in numerous professional association conferences at the county, state and local levels (e.g. Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development, American Association of School Personnel Administrators, New York State Middle School Association, New York State Association of Teacher Educators) and graduate-level classes (Teachers College, Bank Street College of Education). He is currently a Senior Instructor in the Mercy College Educational Leadership Department. His 40-year education career began teaching elementary school and middle school in Connecticut and New York City. He holds an EdD from Teachers College, Columbia University.

The best way for listeners to reach out to Seth Weitzman and Robert Feirsen: 

• info@teacheredge.net
• sethweitzman@yahoo.com
• robert.feirsen@mville.edu 

Maxwell Roach is the founder of JonAyves Learning Club. He’s toured the world as a musician sharing stages with artists such as Beyoncé and the Rolling Stones, directed operations for a multi-million dollar tech company, created and sold health products into grocery stores, and was the  CEO of a child care organization with over 250 children across 4 centres.

In today’s episode, we discuss the role of tutoring, the negative connotation it can carry with students and families, and how it can fit the current need of addressing post pandemic learning across the world.  His experiences with his own children learning to master the Rubik's cube and Abacus help illustrate the power of harnessing technology and welcoming those outside of the classroom to help achieve the mission of all students learning at high levels.

Max can be reached by going to jonayveslearningclub.com

Dr. John Schembari is an Improvement Coach through which he supports teachers and school leaders by performing on site evaluations, identifying data informed trends, reviewing curriculum/assessment materials, creating improvement plans, coaching individuals one-on-one, developing and delivering group training to educators, and implementing evidence-based instructional strategies that improve teaching practices and increase student learning.

JOHN SCHEMBARI 

Senior Education Executive 

In today’s episode, we discuss everything curriculum.  John shares his answer when teachers say “I’m just going to hurry up and teach all of the curriculum” and  “I’m done with the curriculum work”.  Instead of teaching the curriculum, John explains how we should be focused on student learning, and he describes the importance of curriculum review cycles.  We also explore the role textbooks play and what teachers need if they are going to be tasked with developing their own curriculum and assessments.

Best way for listeners to reach out to John Schembari:

1. 908-442-6636 
2. johnaschembari@msn.com
3. John Schembari | LinkedIn