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Technology has made it possible to work from anywhere in the world and many are taking advantage of technology to combine remote work with travel to become a digital nomad. Life as a digital nomad is appealing to many, offering the opportunity to see the world while earning a living. In this episode, Andrew Murdoch, YouTube Strategist and nomad, joins Erin Hoffer, Professor from the School of Business at NCU, to discuss the benefits and challenges of the nomadic lifestyle.

NCU alumna, Reverand Jacqui Hood Martin, Ph.D., discusses her work with helping individuals and teams establish balance through online training and coaching. Dr. Hood Martin helps people stay open to learning in the face of technology challenges and draws on tools like the DISC assessment for advancing learning and relationships in online education. You can read her blog, Recalibrating!, on the VESC website. Dr. Hood Martin is the owner of a boutique Life Management Firm, J. Hood & Associates, a professional development 501(c)3 public charity. Learn more at www.jhoodandassociates.org. 

This episode brings you Sam Kary, educator and founder of The New EdTech Classroom. Sam describes an inspiring shift in approach for teacher professional development. After serving as a teacher and experiencing the challenges with implementing technology, Sam launched a business to help schools advance the use of EdTech through improved professional development for teachers. The New EdTech Classroom supports teachers to utilize technology more effectively and with greater purpose and confidence. Although this podcast focuses on K12 education, The New EdTech Classroom works with organizations and colleges beyond K12. For more information about this innovative new teacher training platform: www.newedtechclassroom.com/21stcenturyteacher 

https://www.dropbox.com/s/os4s9sjhjuiq5jo/VESAC%20Ep25.mp3?dl=0

To reach The New EdTech Classroom: contact@newedtechclassroom.com 

Living and working in a nomadic lifestyle, digital nomads are people who travel and work from different locations. They are often world travelers who see no geographic boundaries as long as they have reliable Wifi and an appropriate device to complete their work. Rachel Woldoff, urban sociologist, professor, researcher, and educator, and Robert Litchfield, Associate Professor at Washington and Jefferson College, joins Stephanie Menefee, Associate Dean of Students in the School of Business at Northcentral University, to discuss this fast-growing community. Check out Rachel and Rob’s book Digital Nomads: In Search of Freedom, Community, and Meaningful Work in the New Economy.

Join our NCU guests, Shaina Philpot, Sm'neexł / Jerome Jainga, and Dr. Linda Collins, along with educator, film-maker, and author of A Place of Belonging: Community Based Research Documentaries (2021), Dr. Eddie Webb, as they continue their discussion of online learning in higher education.

Today, university students want more than academic degrees; they aim to launch businesses, develop new products, and start social movements. In response, universities are building academic incubators to remain competitive and relevant; to attract and retain entrepreneurial students, faculty, and researchers; and forge connections between industry and academia. The launch of the School of Business Innovation Incubator at Northcentral University has been met with great excitement! In this episode, Melody Rawlings, Director of CAVO chats with Rickard Briggs, Director of Innovation Incubator at NCU, about the incubator's opportunities for students to build a business as they move from campus to workplace.

Join our NCU guests, Shaina Philpot, Sm'neexł / Jerome Jainga, and Dr. Linda Collins, along with educator, film-maker, and author of A Place of Belonging: Community Based Research Documentaries (2021), Dr. Eddie Webb, in this discussion of online learning in higher education.

Are you interested in starting a business you can run online from home? Many people dream about being their own boss but don’t know how to get started. In this episode, Gina Horkey, author of the Make Money series, chats with Rickard Briggs, Director of Innovation Incubator at Northcentral University, about helping everyday people start a free-lance writing and service-based virtual assistant business. Learn more about Gina and her book at horkeyhandbook.com.

The best format for learning and coaching in a remote environment is to offer rich, diverse opportunities. The more opportunities, the better. This allows your people to choose what format works best for them and encourages them to switch between setups to keep things engaging. In this episode, Elizabeth Caulder, President of Phoenix Lifestyle Marketing, joins Dr. Randee Sanders, Associate Dean of Faculty in the School of Business at Northcentral University, to discuss some of the different types of leadership development formats to consider including inspiring video lessons, 1:1 remote coaching sessions, and learning from the experience of others. Learn more about Elizabeth at Phoenix Lifestyle Marketing.

NCU Alumna, Dr. Abby Helbling describes her experience creating a trauma-sensitive online community for elementary students. Dr. Helbling’s research focuses on the transition to kindergarten for children who have experienced trauma. In her work as a teacher, she continues to explore how to create learning environments that can prepare students for their future careers.  

With meeting overload, multiple time zone workforces, frequent location shifting, and increasing schedule flexibility, leaders in virtual organizations need to understand and embrace asynchronous communication. Why is it critical for remote and hybrid leaders to develop async powered teams? In this interview, Tammy Bjelland, Founder and CEO of Workplaceless, joins Deborah Hutchinson, PhD candidate from the School of Business at Northcentral University to answer that question and provide advice for how to get started. 

Remote communication skills have been important to many entrepreneurs and business leaders for some time, but now they are more important than ever. Even if you feel comfortable with virtual meeting platforms and remote communication, it's likely that many people you work with are not. Having a strong understanding of how virtual platforms change our communication behaviors can help you significantly increase the success of remote meetings as well as coaching and training sessions. Lauren Sergy, communication expert and author of UNMUTE! How to Master Virtual Meetings and Reclaim Your Sanity, joins Dr. John Frame, Associate Director of Faculty Support and Development in the School of Business at Northcentral University. Together, they discuss Lauren’s practical insights and strategies for amplifying your impact and improving your clarity, polish, and ability to connect with others when communicating via webcam. You can learn more about Lauren and her book at https://laurensergy.com/unmute

Leaders of virtual teams must build relationships with team members through casual conversations rather than micromanaging. This idea challenges the perception of creating accountability control rather than though building trust. Listen as Dr. Jessica Lowery, School of Business at Northcentral University, chats with Anand Madhavan, Digital Strategy Manager for Gallup, to discuss practices virtual team leaders can use to create a climate of accountability without micromanaging. 

How does a manager hold virtual team members accountable without micromanaging them? In this episode, Dr. Aaron Brown from the School of Business at Northcentral University is joined by Carl Manello, a senior leader for process improvement and program management, who enables virtual teams by ensuring they have clearly established roles, responsibilities, and clear deliverables to guide their work.  Empowering virtual teams through clear expectations results in eagerness to deliver without having someone hover over them. Listen as Aaron and Carl discuss guiding principles for enabling remote teams that include: (1) do what is right for the company; (2) be thoughtful and purposeful in what you do; (3) focus on quality; (4) balance cost, risk, and value; and (5) work for your business partners’ success (customer focus).

It’s no secret that we’re living in disruptive and uncertain times that can leave us feeling distanced from the comfort of things most familiar to us. Emotional intelligence skills are exactly what we need to help us better navigate and thrive in our virtual and physical spaces. Listen as Sylvia Baffour, emotional intelligence expert and author of I Dare You to Care, has an enlightening and thought-provoking conversation with Veronica Hill about ways to embrace change, build inner resilience, and use your more effectively emotions to work for you and not against you. Learn more about Sylvia and her book at: https://sylviaspeaks.com/book/

In this episode, Dr. Jeff Belsky, a professor in the School of Business, discusses essential skills for all managers and supervisors which are covered in his recently released book: The Leadership Toolboxes.

The Greenfield Commonwealth Virtual School is a public school in Massachusetts that any K-12 student can choose to attend. In this school's model, a student's at-home learning coach (e.g., parent, grandparent) is an integral partner in the education process. Director of Special Education, Darlene Thorpe, describes the school's approach to online learning for students with diverse learning needs. GCVS initiated three innovative improvements this year; a new K-5 model with focused areas of support, a 9th-grade academy, and expansion of the school's hybrid approach with a new in-person support center for students and staff.

Is successful online teaching determined by which technology tools you're using? Three award-winning educators, Cindy Green, Jason Wells, and Paula McDougald from Virtual Arkansas, talk about effective strategies for teaching online. Drawing from their experience before and during the pandemic, these expert educators offer recommendations for using an LMS, integrating a flipped-classroom approach, facilitating a Socratic seminar, and other high-quality instructional strategies. Ideas for using tech tools like Canva, Padlet, and Cahoot are also discussed. For more on Padlet, watch VESC's webinar, Padlet Possibilities in the "Tools and Tips" section for K-12 educators, or listen to the VESC podcast, Episode 1: Using Padlet in the Online Classroom and Beyond.

Leaders of remote teams need both hard and soft skills but demonstrating those soft skills must be very intentional given the absence of body cues and language we rely in the physical workplace. In this episode, Dr. Kathy Ritchie in the School of Business at Northcentral University is joined by Kim Shepherd, former CEO of Decision Toolbox, and board member of Working Wardrobes and Habitat for Humanity of Orange County, CA. She is the author of three books; Remote Work (2021)' Get Scrappy - business insights to make your company more agile (2015); The Bite Me School of Management - taking a bite out of conventional thinking (2010). Kim and Kathy discuss practical strategies to develop and demonstrate soft skills to successfully lead a virtual team.

An interview with the Executive Director of the Association of Latino Superintendents & Administrators (ALAS), Dr. Maria Armstrong, about the challenges she has faced leading ALAS during a pandemic, and the vast background she has in education.