Teaching Learning Leading K-12

Gavin Grift - Emerge: The 5 Most Common Challenges Faced by Middle Leaders and How to Overcome Them. This is episode 762 of Teaching Learning Leading K12, an audio podcast.  Gavin Grift is a globally recognized thought leader in leadership development, renowned for his deep work on the ‘inner game’ of leadership. As the founder and CEO of Grift Education, Gavin has spent decades helping school leaders develop the thinking skills necessary to lead successfully - both individually and in collaborative environments.  He is a champion of strategic reflection, self-awareness, and thinking-based leadership, ensuring that leaders not only achieve success but sustain it in dynamic and complex educational landscapes.  He is the author of nine books, including Emerge, Five Ways of Being, and Collaborative Teams That Work, which have helped leaders worldwide navigate challenges with clarity and confidence. His research-informed approaches are highly sought after, making him one of the leading voices in professional le

Kevin Stoller - Better Learning Podcast - talks with Steve about the 1984 movie: Teachers. This is episode 761 of Teaching Learning Leading K12, an audio podcast. The Better Learning Podcast combines education and entertainment in a fresh, engaging format where guests share their favorite school-related movies. Host Kevin Stoller leads dynamic conversations, exploring memorable scenes, iconic characters, and timeless lessons through award-style categories like “The John Keating Award” for standout teachers and “Realistic or Ridiculous?” to dissect school life portrayals. With humor, analysis, and reflection, each episode celebrates the fun, flaws, and impact of these films while sparking nostalgia and insights. Whether you’re an educator, student, or movie buff, join us to relive the movies that shaped how we see school life, and share your favorites. Teachers is one of my all-time favorite movies. I was in undergraduate school, working on my degree so that I could teach high school history. Mr. Gower is my

Steve Haberlin - Calming Student Stress: Mindfulness, Meditation, and Other Strategies to Reduce Anxiety and Enhance Learning in K-12 Classrooms. This is episode 760 of Teaching Learning Leading K12, an audio podcast. Steve Haberlin, PhD, is an assistant professor of curriculum and instruction in the College of Community Innovation and Education at the University of Central Florida.  Dr. Haberlin’s research focuses on the implementation of mind-body practices, including mindfulness, meditation interventions to address mental health concerns in educational settings and help students unfold their potential.  His research involves studying the impact of brief meditation, including the use of technology-assisted devices, to improve focus and reduce stress and anxiety. A life-long meditator, with more than 25 years’ experience, his work involves facilitating meditation professional development training and workshops for faculty.  Dr. Haberlin is the author of Meditation in the College Classroom: A Pedagogical To

Ben Tanzer - After Hours: Scorsese, Grief and the Grammar of Cinema. This is episode 759 of Teaching Learning Leading K12, an audio podcast. Emmy-award winner Ben Tanzer's acclaimed work includes the novel - The Missing, the short story collection UPSTATE, the science fiction novel Orphans and the essay collections Lost in Space and Be Cool.  Ben is a Story South and Pushcart nominee, a finalist for the Annual National Indie Excellence and Eric Hoffer Book Awards, a winner of the Devil's Kitchen Literary Festival Nonfiction Prose Award and a Midwest Book Award. He also received an Honorable Mention at the Chicago Writers Association Book Awards for Traditional Non-Fiction and a Bronze Medal from the Independent Publisher Book Awards.  He's written for Hemispheres, Punk Planet, Men’s Health, and The Arrow, AARP’s GenX newsletter. He lives in Chicago with his family. Our focus today will be his latest work - After Hours: Scorsese, Grief and the Grammar of Cinema. Powerful writing. Engaging. Thought provoking.

Craig Gehring - MasteryPrep: Helping Students Improve Their SAT & ACT Scores. This is episode 758 of Teaching Learning Leading K12, an audio podcast.   Craig Gehring is the founder and CEO of MasteryPrep.  After he earned perfect scores on the ACT and SAT, Craig started tutoring to help students earn scholarships. He found that most students need more support than what traditional test prep programs provide. That was the genesis of MasteryPrep.  Each year, MasteryPrep partners with over 2,000 schools and school districts to help more than 400,000 students improve their ACT and SAT scores at no cost to the students or their families. MasteryPrep is licensed by ACT, Inc. to use official test questions in its material, and is proud to serve as the Council for Opportunity in Education’s preferred provider of ACT and SAT preparation.  Craig lives in Baton Rouge, Louisiana with his wife and three teenage daughters. Awesome talk! So much to learn! Please share. Thanks for listening! Before you go... You could

Adam Geller - Observation Copilot: Turning Classroom Observation Notes into Feedback for Teachers. This is episode 757 of Teaching Learning Leading K12, an audio podcast. Adam Geller is the Founder & CEO of Edthena which harnesses the power of AI and video coaching to enhance professional learning, boost teacher retention, and improve student outcomes. He started his career in education as a science teacher in St. Louis, Missouri.  Since 2011, Adam has overseen the evolution of Edthena from a paper-based prototype into multiple research-informed platforms for streamlining feedback to teachers:  AI Coach by Edthena, an artificial intelligence-driven solution to guide teachers through coaching cycles.  Edthena VC3, a platform for classroom observation and collaboration using video coaching.  Edthena Organization Libraries, a platform for schools and districts to curate and share best-practice teaching videos. And today, our focus is on their newest tool for educators… Observation Copilot: Observation Co

  Lisa Gitelson - The Fresh Air Fund: Because a Summer Can Last a Lifetime. This is episode 756 of Teaching Learning Leading K12, an audio podcast. Lisa Gitelson is the CEO of The Fresh Air Fund. Each year the nearly 148-year-old nonprofit invites about 3,000 low-income New York City-based children ages 8-18 to spend the summer swimming, rowing, hiking, and stargazing in Fresh Air Fund camps. Throughout Lisa’s career in public service, as an attorney and child welfare advocate, she has been dedicated to addressing the needs of underserved youth.  Prior to joining The Fund, she was Assistant Executive Director/Legal Counsel for The New York Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children (NYSPCC). She is also an Adjunct Professor at Silberman School of Social Work, Hunter College, CUNY, where she teaches the Policy & Practice of Child Welfare.  As Assistant Executive Director/Legal Counsel for NYSPCC, Lisa identified legislation and other public policy issues that impacted the organization’s work and d

Sandra Jin - Bridging the Gap Between AI Optimism and Action Through PD. This is episode 755 of Teaching Learning Leading K12, an audio podcast. Sandra Jin is the Director of Innovation at Leading Educators, driven by her belief in self-determination as a fundamental right for every child. A former teacher inspired by her classroom experiences, she designs programs at the intersection of pedagogy, student agency, and technology. Sandra leads strategic initiatives that integrate AI-enabled practices to foster inclusive, equity-centered education. Her expertise spans national projects, including the AI Schools Collaborative and AI tool building design sprints. She is a 2025 EDSAFE Women in AI fellow. Previously, she led ELA professional learning in district-facing partnerships and coordinated national professional development programs. Sandra brings classroom experience from seven years teaching in Washington, DC. Sandra holds an M.Ed. from George Mason University. She resides in New Hampshire with her husban

Marianne Richmond - If You Were My Daughter: A Memoir of Healing an Unmothered Heart. This is episode 754 of Teaching Learning Leading K12, an audio podcast. Bestselling children's author Marianne Richmond has touched the lives of millions through her children's books that put into the world messages of love and belonging! She is now telling her own story through the release of her memoir, IF YOU WERE MY DAUGHTER, that offers the why behind her life's work and invites people to step into their bravest, brightest self! Our focus today is Marianne’s book - If You Were My Daughter: A Memoir of Healing an Unmothered Heart. Powerful book! Awesome discussion! Thanks for listening! Please share. Before you go... You could help support this podcast by Buying Me A Coffee. Not really buying me something to drink but clicking on the link on my home page at https://stevenmiletto.com for Buy Me a Coffee or by going to this link Buy Me a Coffee. This would allow you to donate to help the show address the costs associated

Laura Lipton - Groups at Work: Strategies and Structures for Professional Learning. This is episode 753 of Teaching Learning Leading K12, an audio podcast. Laura Lipton, EdD, has been a featured speaker at international, national, and state conferences since 1984. She shares her expertise with thousands of educators throughout North America, Central America, Asia, Australia and New Zealand. As an international consultant, her writing, research, and seminars focus on effective and innovative instructional practices and on building professional and organizational capacities for enhanced learning. Laura engages with schools and school districts, designing and conducting workshops on learning-focused instruction, literacy development, and strategies to support beginning teachers. She facilitates organizational adaptivity and learning through training and development in data-driven dialogue, group development, action research, and learning-focused collaborations. Her authored and co-authored publications relate

Ran D. Anbar, MD - The Life Guide for Teens: Harnessing Your Inner Power to be Healthy, Happy, and Confident. This is episode 752 of Teaching Learning Leading K12, an audio podcast. Ran D. Anbar, MD, FAAP, is board certified in both pediatric pulmonology and general pediatrics. He offers counseling and hypnosis services at Center Point Medicine in La Jolla, California, and in Syracuse, New York. Dr. Anbar is the author of the acclaimed Changing Children’s Lives with Hypnosis: A Journey to the Center (Rowman & Littlefield, 2021), as well as a regular columnist for Psychology Today Online. Dr. Anbar is the founder of Center Point Medicine, serving the mission of making mental health care more accessible for children. He lives in La Jolla, California. Our focus today is Dr. Anbar’s book -The Life Guide for Teens: Harnessing Your Inner Power to be Healthy, Happy, and Confident. So much to learn. Awesome conversation. Please share. Thanks for listening! Before you go... You could help support this podcast by

Rev. Kathi Lockwood - Bridging Tough Conversations About Adoption and Addiction. This is episode 751 of Teaching Learning Leading K12, an audio podcast. Rev. Kathi Lockwood, M.Ed., is an Interfaith Minister, Reiki Master, spiritual optimist, and a children’s book author. She is the founder and CEO of the Heart Self Speaks Collective, a virtual home for those on spiritual journeys. In addition to The King and the Monster, she is the author of An Adoption Made in Heaven: Amy Angel Goes Home, a paradigm-shifting story informing children that their journey to their parents was divinely guided. A Christmas Eve Adventure: Finding the Light of the World, is an interfaith narrative illustrating that we all carry the light. She has her master's in art education from Penn State University and is also an ordained Interfaith Minister from One Spirit Learning Alliance in New York City. She was the recipient of the Bob Dorough Award for the Arts, serves on the board of her local YMCA, and has served on the Stroudsburg Bor

David Adams - CEO of The Urban Assembly - Improving the Craft of Teaching with AI. This is episode 750 of Teaching Learning Leading K12, an audio podcast. David is the Chief Executive Officer of The Urban Assembly. He started with the UA in 2014 as the Director of Social-Emotional Learning, where he created the Resilient Scholars Program (RSP), a unique approach to integrating SEL into curriculum and classroom practices across the UA network. RSP has grown into a national program, serving schools and districts in Los Angeles, Houston, Syracuse, and other cities. As the Senior Director of Strategy, David led the expansion of the organization into a model provider of school support, with an emphasis on innovation and equity in public education. In 2022, David was named one of Crain’s 40 Under 40 honorees and in 2021 he received the Champion of Equity Award from the American Consortium for Equity in Education. David sits on the board of CASEL and is an author of The Educator’s Practical Guide to Emotional Inte

Frank Lad is a mathematician, author, and an educator. Perhaps he was destined to have a full career in mathematics and science. His parents met as postdocs at the University of Chicago while working on The Manhattan Project, his mother collaborating with James Franck there. His specialty in mathematical probability took him to France and Italy, where he has worked with followers of Bruno de Finetti’s ideas. Personal travels in India, Africa, Europe, Brazil, and some far East, have allowed him to deeply explore culture, history, and philosophy.   For the past 26 years and currently, Lad has served as a research associate in mathematics and statistics at University of Canterbury in New Zealand, having lectured there previously for ten years. He had started his career teaching economics at the University of Utah, and spent a year in the Special Studies section of the Federal Reserve Board of Governors, Washington, D.C.  He has been a visiting scholar at the State University of New York (Albany) in Mathematics

Toby J. Karten - The ADMIRE Framework for Inclusion: Positive Strategies that Pave the Way for Students of All Abilities. This is episode 748 of Teaching Learning Leading K12, an audio podcast. Toby J. Karten is an experienced educator who has worked in the field of special education since 1976. As an accomplished author and researcher, she has presented successful staff development to local, national, and international audiences. Toby is an adjunct professor and graduate instructor at Monmouth University and the Regional Training Center, which is affiliated with The College of New Jersey, and LaSalle University. She has been a resource teacher, staff developer, adult educator, and inclusion consultant in New York, New Jersey, and Texas schools and in many other districts nationally and globally for students and educators in grades PreK–12 and beyond. Toby has authored several books and resources about inclusion practices, which are currently used for instruction on many college and university campuses and

Barbara R. Blackburn - Rigor Is Not a Four-Letter Word: Strategies for Success, 4th Ed. This is episode 747 of Teaching Learning Leading K12, an audio podcast. Ranked in the Top 20 Global Gurus in Education, Barbara has dedicated her life to raising the level of rigor and motivation for professional educators and students alike. What differentiates Barbara’s over 30 books are her easily executable concrete examples based on decades of experience as a teacher, professor, and consultant. Barbara’s dedication to education was inspired in her early years by her parents, Bob and Rose. Her father’s doctorate and lifetime career as a professor taught her the importance of professional training. Her mother’s career as school secretary shaped Barbara’s appreciation of the effort all staff play in the education of every child. Barbara has taught early childhood, elementary, middle, and high school students and has served as an educational consultant for three publishing companies. She holds a master’s degree in schoo

Jasmine K. Kullar - Training Teacher Leaders in a PLC at Work: A Guide to Cultivating Shared Leadership. This is episode 746 of Teaching Learning Leading K12, an audio podcast. Jasmine K. Kullar, EdD, is a chief school leadership officer overseeing over 100 schools in a large metropolitan school district in Georgia. She is also a faculty member in the College of Professional Studies Educational Leadership Department at a postsecondary institution outside of Atlanta, where she has been involved with the national University Principal Preparation Initiative (UPPI) in redesigning university educational leadership programs. Prior to these roles, Dr. Kullar was an assistant superintendent, and a middle school principal. With over fifteen years of school leadership experience, Dr. Kullar has worked at the elementary, middle, and high school levels in both Canada and the United States. Her journey with professional learning communities (PLCs) began in her first year of teaching, when she attended a PLC workshop and

Jonathan G. Vander Els specializes in supporting teachers and administrators in schools and districts across the country in developing, sustaining, and enhancing structures to support all learners. As a practitioner, Jonathan is able to blend his experience and expertise to meet educators where they are and assist them in developing practical next steps to ensure high levels of learning for students in their school. Formerly, Jonathan was principal of Memorial Elementary School in Sanborn Regional School District in New Hampshire. Under his leadership, Memorial School became a nationally recognized model PLC and competency-based learning elementary environment. Jonathan has an education specialist degree from the University of New Hampshire in educational administration and supervision and is certified as a superintendent, principal, and teacher.   Joshua Ray, EdD, is an educational speaker and author who has led the Professional Learning Communities (PLC) at Work® process at the elementary, secondary, and

Barbara J. Smith - Urgent Care for Educators: Situating Responsibility as a Way to Transform School Cultures. This is episode 744 of Teaching Learning Leading K12, an audio podcast. Barbara Smith is a passionate educator who challenges the boundaries of "sameness" in schools. Smith's background includes over forty years in public, charter, independent and international schools.  Barbara has started three schools and has been a teacher, principal, consultant, trustee, and teacher educator at OISE, McGill and the University of Saskatchewan teaching faculties and graduate schools.  She has published books about school values and economies, teacher retention, assessment tools for learning, her charter school principal story and most recently with Hope Blecher, a book about engaging students as writers. Her next book is called: Students in Responsible Roles: A Powerful Way to Learn and Transform School Culture.  Barbara supports schools committed to improving engaging and purpose-based teaching and learning for a

NL Holmes - Flowers of Evil: Hani's Daughter Mystery Series Book 1. This is episode 743 of Teaching Learning Leading K12.  N.L. Holmes is an award-winning novelist embarking on another significant career phase. Prior to taking up the power of writing and using this pen name, she was an accomplished archaeologist and teacher for 25 years. Early in her career, she served as a nun for two decades. In between, she was an artist and antiques dealer. Yes, she has lived an interesting life and the sum of her experiences informs and inspires her writings today. Born and raised in Fort Worth, Texas, she attended The University of Texas in the honors program but dropped out midway to enter into the antiques business. Two years later, she entered the Discalced Carmelite convent in Texas. She left the convent 20 years later and returned to school to get her B.A. in Classical Studies. Holmes, who earned her doctorate in Classical and Near Eastern Archaeology from Bryn Mawr College despite an offer to attend Princeton, h