Digical Education

Ben Wellbourn is the CEO of Schola, an organization that supports the growth of schools. Ben is an innovator in education and someone I love learning from.

I had the opportunity to converse with AI George Washington through Humy, an AI-powered platform that allows students and teachers to interact with nearly 2,000 historical characters. This is a conversation with Stas Shakirov who is co-founder and CEO.

Jacob Kantor, the DODO of JK K12, cohosted a conversation with me prior to The AI Show at ASU-GSV, which included Fran Rosenberg and Michel Faliski. So we thought we'd discuss what we are discovering about AI, EdTech, and growth in this space as we seek better outcomes for students.

Jaime Bissa is the Director of the Center for Learning and Innovative Pedagogy at Baptist Health Sciences University in Memphis and a founding member of the Human Intelligence Movement. In this conversation we discuss AI, innovation, and pedagogy as we rethink together what learning could look like.

I met Dr. Nina Shah on an MMRF trek through Iceland with myeloma patients, caregivers, doctors, and researchers. She shortly after became my doctor while I did an experimental CarT trial and through the process became a friend. She is currently Global Head of Multiple Myeloma Clinical Development and Strategy at Astrazeneca where she seeks better treatments and ultimately a cure for myeloma patients like me. I hope you enjoy this conversation about innovation and leadership.

The AI Show at ASU-GSV is next week, and I had the opportunity to talk with the co-founder, Fran Rosenberg, and the assistant VP of the AI Show Program, Michel Faliski, about the event's genesis and how to make the most of it. Jacob Kantor, my friend and friend to everyone, joined in for this conversation! Hope to see you in San Diego on April 5-7.  

As March Madness kicks off today, I thought I would post a podcast conversation with my friend Paul Putz. Paul is the author of "Spirit of the Game: American Christianity and Big Time Sports" and is the Director of the Faith and Sports Institute at Baylor University. In this podcast, we talk about Paul's high school coach, leadership lessons from the book, and make some picks for both Final Fours.

Alistair Bullen is an interior designer who is the founder of AB Culture, is a Heartstyles facilitator, and an Executive Coach. In this conversation we talk about Alistair's description of himself as a "cultural architect" and how creative played a role in his professional journey, but also how creativity impacts leadership.

Caitlin Sienkiewicz is the founder of Condie Consulting, and our conversation is about her new book "Building Your Team in your 20s."

Cale McLellan founded In-Houz Consulting, an entrepreneur, a former student, and a thought partner in using AI in learning.

This is a conversation with Tim DeRoche of Available to All on his book "A Fine Line" and the impact of redlining on public schools and high-quality education for each student.

Ben Bajarin is CEO of Creative Strategies and a Principal Analyst in the technology industry. He is also a great friend who got me started on AI, and he has been a thought partner in my usage of AI as an educator. Enjoy the ongoing conversation and what he sees as the next transformation for 2025!

2024 was a slow year on the podcast because of my health, but I had the opportunity to meet some amazing people. In 2025, I hope to share some of those with you and the first is a conversation with the CEO and co-founder of Sora Schools, Garrett Smiley.

Ryan Schachtner is co-founder of Success Beyond Gameday, and I think you'll enjoy the conversation on how they have innovated to help elite athletes think beyond their sport and playing careers.

This was a longer conversation with my friend Mitch Weathers of Organized Binder about his work and book and general thoughts on our professional work.

"Democratizing access to dreams and opportunity" is a line from the Gladeo website that caught my attention as I have gotten to know Michelle and her company, which seeks to help people prepare for the modern workforce and the future of work. Michelle is co-founder and CEO of Gladeo, the Grand Prize winner of the US Department of Education Future Finder Challenge. Check out this short video on their work.

In this conversation with Shaka Mitchell we talk about Education Policy and connect it with his blog and the Massai greeting, "How are the children?" As we see new policies created to empower parents and allow schools to become more distinctive we focus the conversation on the students and their opportunities and outcomes. Shaka Mitchell is Senior Fellow at the American Federation for Children and Political Science Professor at Belmont University.  

Daniel Liebeskind is the founder and CEO of Topia, a platform-as-a-service technology for real time social interaction and spatial video chat inside customizable virtual worlds. From Wall Street to Silicon Valley, Daniel's mission is to foster human connection through technology. Check out his work with Topia!

Will Percy is Executive Vice President at TeamOptix, and he shares in this conversation about how we need to rethink leadership and talent development in our profession and schools.

I had the opportunity to speak with founders and friends, Alexandra Kazilo and Natalia Pereldik of FunExpected along with their Scientific Advisor, Leonid Rybnikov. FunExpected is a math-learning app for 3-6-year-olds that utilizes gameplay to build math understanding and confidence. Check it out!

I love these conversations with Mitch Weathers of Organized Binder and the author of Executive Functions for Every Classroom.

Stephen Carter is the Director of the CHCA Entrepreneurship and Sustainability program and the author of Teaching the Entrepreneurial Mindset.

My friend Thomas Arnett joined me again on the podcast to talk about his new research report FAMILIES ON THE NEW FRONTIER: MAPPING AND MEETING THE GROWING DEMAND FOR UNCONVENTIONAL SCHOOLING. And we talk about New Value Networks, policymaking in Education, and his emerging wonderings about AI in our profession too!

Ben Wellbourn is an education innovator who co-founded Verto Education and check out his new project, Minerva Baccalaureate. 

Paul Matthews is a teacher in Australia and the founder/CEO of MyTeacherAide. This is a continued conversation on what he is discovering from his pilot launch of the Ai partner.

Caitlin Condie is a former teacher, employee at the Department of Education, and current consultant who leads Education MeetUPs as an opportunity for practitioners, school leaders, innovators, and policymakers to connect to solve problems, share stories of success, and catalyze the good work of educators internationally.  Enjoy the conversation and learn more here: https://www.condieconsulting.com/

In this conversation, I get to talk to former Superintendent Pablo Munoz on his new book "The Leaders Algorithm" as he shares his wisdom and experience. Connect with him at Munoz and Company Educational Consultants.

In this conversation, I get to talk with Australian teacher and co-founder of MyTeacherAide, Paul Matthews. Paul shares how he is using AI to increase teacher productivity and wellbeing as we pursue great outcomes for each student.   Sign up to be part of the pilot of MyTeacherAide: https://www.myteacheraide.com/applynow  

I had the opportunity to interview my friend and fellow educator, Laura Barringer, a couple of years ago on her book "A Church Called Tov" and what it might mean for us in our classrooms and schools as educators. This conversation we added her father and New Testament scholar, Scot McKnight, who coauthored "Pivot: The Priorities, Practices, and Powers That Can Transform Your Church into a Tov Culture" which comes out in September.

Shara Hegde serves as Chief Executive Officer for Alpha Public Schools, a K-12 network of charter schools in San Jose, CA, focused on preparing students for college and career. Before assuming the role of CEO, she served as Alpha's Chief Schools Officer, directing the academic program vision and providing coaching and management to several key senior leaders. Prior to joining the Alpha team, Ms. Hegde served as the Founder, Executive Director, and Principal of Cornerstone Academy, a K-8 elementary charter school that is now part of the Alpha network of schools.  Since its opening in 2010, Cornerstone Academy has been amongst the highest performing schools in the city of San Jose and was named a California Distinguished School in 2014 and 2018.

I have a couple of mutual friends in common with Greg who suggested I talk to him about his new book on #Kindness. Greg Atkinson is the Founder and CEO of Worship Impressions, the First Impressions Conference, The Entrepreneurial Church Conference, as well as the Co-Founder of the Social Media Church Conference. Greg is an entrepreneur, bestselling author, speaker, leadership and life coach, consultant, and member of the Forbes Coaching Council and ICCI (International Christian Coaching Institute). Greg is the author of a new book “The Secret Power of Kindness.”

This conversation started around a lunch table in Austin, TX at an event to rethink education, and Juliet introduced me to her work at Bellwether and the idea of Assembly. I love Ed policy and ecosystem thinking, so was naturally drawn to her ideas and work but I had concerns that she patiently let me wonder about aloud. Juliet Squire is a senior partner in the Policy and Evaluation practice area at Bellwether where she has provided policy analysis and advising support to school operators and support organizations, foundations, advocacy groups, and think tanks. Before joining Bellwether, Juliet worked at the New Jersey Department of Education, where she oversaw the state's Race to the Top program and developed strategies for advancing technology-driven innovation. She previously managed school board relationships and new school development for National Heritage Academies.

Chris “Citizen” Stewart is an education activist, writer, speaker, podcaster, and influencer focusing on elevating the policies and practices that show the most promise for ensuring children thrive. He has had the privilege to be the Chief Influencer at brightbeam, a digital advocacy team that amplifies grassroots voices through Ed Post and other digital platforms. He was the founding executive of the African American Leadership Forum, an intergenerational agenda-setting network of Black leaders across several states, which also connected me with accomplished mentors and advisors. Likewise, he has been a Pahara Fellow with the Aspen Institute and was the founder of the Wayfinder Foundation. I heard Chris speak for the first time in 2020, follow the 8 Black Hands podcast regularly, and love the way he consistently introduces himself as a father who lives and breathes education policy. Today's conversation stems from Chris' blog Neither political party has an 'education' message worth hearing.

I met Dr. Matt Pritchard on Twitter because of the hashtag #WanderIntoWonder. Matt is a "curator of wonder" who is a Science Magician and Independent speaker. He shared some of his ideas on this TedX talk that led to some of the questions in this conversation.

Bryan Goodwin is the CEO of McREL International and author of Learning that Sticks: A Brain-based Model for K-12 Instructional Design and Delivery. We talk about this book, but more explicitly about the implications of this for how we might better design schools and our learning environments.

Stephen Carter who is a former guest on the podcast wrote an article called "Fostering Intrepreneurship in Our Schools" that caught my attention that led to this conversation. You can connect with Stephen Carter at his LinkedIn profile.  

Writer, speaker and podcast host Christina Crook has been studying the relationship between joy and technology for over a decade. Whether you're seeking presence, peace, focus or productivity, Christina has shaped tools and teachings to reconnect your habits with your happiness.  With all of the conversations of happiness, well-being, and current mental health issues this was a fun conversation for me to have as Christina is an expert in being mindful about our lives as well as being intentional about the use of technology. Enjoy the conversation, but also check out more JOMO resources at her website.

This is a continuation of a conversation with Thomas Arnett from earlier this fall that talks about educational innovation and the necessity to create new value networks.   Take a read of the report he wrote.

Namita Prasad is a Confidence Educator and in this podcast with my friend Mitch Weathers of Organized Binder we talk with her about her work and her book "The Power of Why Not." 

Happy 2023, and I think this is a great conversation to kick-off the New Year and 2nd Semester of school. Dr. Erik Demeulenaere of Clark University wrote a journal article that intrigued me called Disrupting School Rituals based on a class he co-taught with two other local teachers in Worcester, MA.  I hope this encourages you as you think about this in your classroom and schools and how it might help you reimagine the good (but messy) work that can happen in those spaces.

Ben Bajarin is a great friend, a parent, and a great chef who introduced me to ChatGPT a couple weeks ago. In this conversation I wanted Ben's thoughts on this transformative technology and how we might reframe our thinking about how to best use and steward this technology. Ben has been with Creative Strategies, inc since 2000. He covers consumer technology, personal computing devices, semiconductors, investments, and business strategy. His research has focused on the relationship between humans and technology, seeking to understand what drives their behavior with products and services. He joined Creative Strategies after spending time at Cypress Semiconductor and then founding two startups in the late '90s. He serves on several Industry Analyst advisory councils for leading technology companies. He maintains active engagement with Silicon Valley venture capitalists and startups. He has also given lectures at Stanford Graduate School of Business, Berkley's Haas School of Business, and Harvard Business School. He actively advises investment banks like UBS, JP Morgan, and Morgan Stanley on core industry topics, investment thesis on all the large-cap tech companies. His industry expertise has been referenced in the media by sites like Reuters, Financial Times, NYTimes, Wall St. Journal, Bloomberg, and more. He has published columns for Fast Company, Techcrunch, TIME, and MIT Technology Review.

This Future Ready conversation is with Dean Nicholas who is Head of School at Cincinnati Hills Christian Academy.

Stephen Carter is Director of Entrepreneurship at Cincinnati Hills Christian Academy in Ohio that was part of the Future Ready book/research.

Bill Sterrett serves as Department Chair and Professor of Educational Leadership in Baylor University's School of Education. Before joining Baylor in 2022, Sterrett served as Associate Dean and Professor at the University of North Carolina Wilmington. Prior to Sterrett's 12-year tenure at UNCW, he was a principal and teacher in Charlottesville, Virginia. Some resources mentioned in the podcast: Bill Sterrett's Baylor Faculty page (with additional resources and links): https://soefaculty.baylor.edu/william_sterrett/  Sterrett et al (2022): https://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/EJ1349031.pdf  Sterrett & Imig (2015): http://www.jsedimensions.org/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2015/12/Sterrett-Imig-JSE-Nov-2015-Hope-Issue-PDF.pdf  Sterrett, Imig, & Moore (2014): https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Deborah-Moore-3/publication/281834859_US_Department_of_Education_Green_Ribbon_Schools_Leadership_Insights_and_Implications/links/55fa6f1d08aeba1d9f322eb6/US-Department-of-Education-Green-Ribbon-Schools-Leadership-Insights-and-Implications.pdf 

Kathleen Peercy shares her story of moving from the classroom, to a specialist role, and now to an instructional coach and how it has shaped her love for students, colleagues, and our profession.

Joel Gaines is the Head of School at The City School in Philadelphia.

Jon shares the joy we experienced at Hope Academy and other lessons from the research. Check out his new podcast Just Schools.

David Smith led the Civic Hospitality project, and he invited me to be part of the project team. In this podcast conversation I get to ask him how he got interested in a pedagogy of hospitality, how the fit with the Civics classroom, and some of his reflections on this project. Learn more: https://civichospitality.com/

Lynn Swaner who was a primary researcher and author for this project shares some of the background of this project, some ways to use the book, and questions to ask throughout the journey.

David Hunt is the Education Director for Cardus who was a partner in the production of this research and book.

Traniece Brown-Warrens is a doctoral student at Baylor University and an elementary school principal. Check out her story that leads to some deep wisdom, and enjoy the energy and passion she brings to our profession.