Aaron is an award winning social entrepreneur. The author of the Purpose Economy , he is one of the foremost experts on the science of purpose and fulfillment. He founded the Taproot Foundation , the venture-backed Imperative and has recently launched Purpose Mindset . He began his career working in education in Chicago. He authored Fast Company’s ‘Purposeful CEO’ series and has written for or been featured in The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, Bloomberg TV, Newsweek, MIT Management Re...
Mar 28, 2023•50 min•Ep. 112
Dr. Katie Davis is Associate Professor at the University of Washington (UW) and Director of the UW Digital Youth Lab . For nearly 20 years, Katie has been researching and speaking about the impact of digital technologies on young people’s learning, development, and well-being. Katie uses the insights from her research to design positive technology experiences for youth and their families and to provide practical guidance to parents, educators, policymakers, and technology designers. At UW, she m...
Mar 17, 2023•1 hr 7 min•Ep. 111
Olatunde Sobomehin is CEO/co-founder of StreetCode Academy, an organization that offers free tech classes to communities of color. He has taught classes at the Stanford Haas Center and the d.school. Sam Seidel has taught in a variety of settings, from first grade to community college, and directed youth programs for young people affected by incarceration. He now works with several networks of innovative schools, speaks nationally about education issues, and writes for the Husslington Post and ot...
Feb 27, 2023•56 min•Ep. 110
Today, Outschool offers more than 140,000 live online classes to more than 1,000,000 learners in 183 countries worldwide. Outschool is an innovative education platform that offers a variety of engaging, small-group classes online. Unlike traditional classes, Outschool classes give kids the unique opportunity to explore their interests in-depth via interactive, live video by experienced, independent educators. Amir Nathoo is CEO of Outschool, a marketplace for live online classes for K-12 learner...
Feb 06, 2023•55 min•Ep. 109
Scott Witthoft is as an educator, designer, and author. Wielding knowledge from his past life in the practice of forensic structural engineering, he is sought out for his expertise in space design — teaching & speaking widely. As a former Stanford University d.school fellow, Scott is also a co-designer of the d.school ’s space and a co-author of Make Space , a tool for creating collaborative environments. He pursues his life and work with a mix of whimsy and rigor, and brings people along fo...
Jan 17, 2023•1 hr 5 min•Ep. 108
The Center for Scholars and Storytellers works with leading social scientists to develop research insights and tools that are useful for content creators crafting authentic and inclusive stories for youth (ages 2-25). We work with a wide range of organizations from traditional media, tech and gaming, consumer products, and public health and education. When content is created from a research-informed perspective that is authentic and inclusive, it can deliver strong financial returns and support ...
Dec 20, 2022•46 min•Ep. 107
Dr. Margaret Honey joined The New York Hall of Science as president and CEO in November of 2008. Among her current interests at NYSCI is the role of design-based learning in promoting student interest and achievement in STEM subjects. She is widely recognized for her work using digital technologies to support children’s learning across the disciplines of science, mathematics, engineering and technology. Prior to joining NYSCI, she spent 15 years as vice president of the Education Development Cen...
Nov 17, 2022•1 hr 22 min•Ep. 106
Christina Katopodis, PhD , is a Postdoctoral Research Associate and the Associate Director of Transformative Learning in the Humanities, a three-year initiative at the City University of New York (CUNY) supported by the Mellon Foundation. She is the winner of the 2019 Diana Colbert Innovative Teaching Prize and the 2018 Dewey Digital Teaching Award. She has authored or co-authored articles published in ESQ: A Journal of Nineteenth-Century American Literature and Culture , ISLE: Interdisciplinary...
Sep 30, 2022•59 min•Ep. 105
Anurupa's entry point to Education began as a Physics and Math teacher in the Boston Public Schools. For 10+ years since then, Anurupa has led STEM curriculum and teacher preparation across the largest educational systems in the US including the NYC DOE, Boston Public Schools and Success Academy Charter Schools. Through her experience as a district and charter administrator, she found that she did not have the learning tools to deliver the outcomes her leaders and teachers were accountable for, ...
Jul 28, 2022•45 min•Ep. 104
Gael Aitor is the creator and a host of the “Teenager Therapy” podcast, a teen mental health podcast with over 700,000 followers. At 19 years old, he has five years of experience in the podcasting space and is an expert at growing engaged Gen Z audiences on social media. Previous guests of “Teenager Therapy” include Prince Harry and Meghan Markle, Adam Mosseri, and Loren Gray. Aitor is a fellow at On Deck, an educational and accelerator community, and was a contract community specialist at Pearp...
Jul 05, 2022•1 hr 8 min•Ep. 103
Jonathan Finkelstein is founder and CEO of Credly , a leading digital credential service provider which enables organizations to recognize, reward and market skills, competencies and certifications. Previously, as founder of LearningTimes, Jonathan helped mission-driven organizations produce and launch innovative online programs, products and platforms that impacted the lives of millions of learners. Previously, Jonathan was a co-founder and led product strategy at HorizonLive (acquired by Black...
May 31, 2022•55 min•Ep. 102
" Redefining Geek takes a new and surprising look at what it means to be good with technology at a time when technologies are rapidly changing. Based on empirical evidence from a decade-long study with a diverse group of students across the country, Cassidy Puckett shows that being tech-savvy in the digital age isn’t about having a natural ability, but instead is a process of continual learning that requires five simple habits." Cassidy Puckett is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Soci...
Apr 18, 2022•42 min•Ep. 101
Dr. Joel Breakstone directs the Stanford History Education Group (SHEG). He leads the group’s efforts to research, develop, and disseminate free curriculum and assessments. His award-winning research has been covered by outlets ranging from the Washington Post to NPR. Breakstone has conducted professional development workshops for school districts and professional organizations across the country. He received a Ph.D. from the Stanford Graduate School of Education. He previously taught high schoo...
Mar 10, 2022•47 min•Ep. 100
Game-based assessments (GBAs) have been shown to be a powerful context to measure students’ 21st century skills. By eliciting evidence of skills in an embedded, authentic and playful environment, they present the potential for assessments to go beyond measuring outcomes of content knowledge to shed light on thought processes. Yoon Jeon (YJ) Kim is an Assistant Professor of Design, Creative, and Informal Education in the Department of Curriculum and Instruction at UW–Madison. Before joining UW-Ma...
Feb 15, 2022•1 hr 6 min•Ep. 99
David Risher is the CEO and co-founder of Worldreader. After a career as a general manager at Microsoft and an early stage executive at Amazon, David recognized early on how e-readers and digital books could give kids in under-served parts of the world better access to the life-changing experience of reading. Since co-founding Worldreader in 2010, David and the Worldreader team have expanded the organization to have impact in more than 46 countries, delivering high-quality books in 52 languages ...
Jan 11, 2022•47 min•Ep. 98
My favorite conversations are the ones where people whose ideas I admire get comfortable enough in a conversation to share beyond what you might've already heard from them. Jaime's a great example. If you work in or around K12 education chances are you've bumped into Jaime at some point. As a 15+ year Google'r as Chief Education Evangelist, Jaime's keynoted and shared on more stages than I can count. But at this, an important transition for Jaime from a role at Google where he had a hand in laun...
Dec 09, 2021•1 hr 9 min•Ep. 97
Al Kingsley has over 30 years’ experience in the technology sector predominantly with his work on IT Asset Management, educational and Instructional technology and digital safeguarding. He started his career with Barclays Bank then Unilever, working within finance and management accounting before focusing on the early adoption of new IT technologies in the early 90s. For the last 25 years Al has been the Group Managing Director of NetSupport, an international software company developing market-l...
Nov 01, 2021•46 min•Ep. 96
Dr. Jenny Nash US Head, Education Impact, Lego Education Dr. Jenny Nash serves as the Head of Education Impact Team for LEGO Education in the US, where she provides direction and leadership in delivering meaningful education opportunities for students. With previous experiences as a professional development provider and STEM teacher, Jenny is an advocate for hands-on, inquiry-based learning for students and building confidence in teachers to provide this type of learning. Links from the episode:...
Oct 01, 2021•37 min•Ep. 95
We're talking today about the bold risks that innovators in K12 education choose to make toward the goal of educational equity - this time a project from a company called Prisms VR using the tech of virtual reality to make algebra the experience it should be for learners, who when engaging with it through the right context might actually have good cause to consider themselves "math people" in a system that too often inadvertently fosters the math caste system of those who "get it" and those who ...
Sep 17, 2021•1 hr 1 min•Ep. 94
Reel Works matches teens 1:1 with professional filmmaker mentors to tell their stories and have their voices heard. It’s a powerful combination that changes young lives and creates films that have been seen by tens of millions of viewers worldwide. Head to REELWORKS.org, that's R E E L W O R K S . O R G and learn more about how you can support a program that not only helps young people prepare for a life and career off in the future, but might also ensure - through the process of storytelling - ...
Aug 18, 2021•1 hr•Ep. 93
One of the questions that's come up over and over in my conversations about what our country is learning from a year in quarantine is "what's being done in places where connectivity is keeping families from connecting at all?" According a 2019 report from Pew Research Center, 58% of Black adults and 57% of Hispanic adults have a laptop or desktop computer, compared with 82% of white adults, and 66% of Black adults and 61% of Hispanic adults have broadband access at home compared with 79% of whit...
Jul 26, 2021•52 min•Ep. 92
Upperline Code has a mission to train the next generation of computer science leaders and empower students to change their world with code. We aim to transform education by making computer science accessible to all students regardless of race, gender, or income. Above all, we value inclusiveness, curiosity, rigor, collaboration, and quality. "I think you created a culture of mutual learning and respect and demonstrated your commitment to the process over the end goal and that was very empowering...
May 21, 2021•55 min•Ep. 91
Artificial Intelligence (AI) offers immense promise to solve some of the world's biggest problems at scale. But advances come with significant challenges that perpetuate and amplify society's underlying structural inequities. To address this challenge directly, the NYU Center for Responsible AI (R/AI) is designed to be a comprehensive applied research and tool production laboratory for accelerating responsible AI practices that arise from real world collaborations. Julia Stoyanovich Co-Founder &...
Apr 13, 2021•1 hr 4 min•Ep. 90
In this episode, I’ll be speaking to three experts on youth development and screen time who also happen to be parents. First, we’ll hear, Sascha Brodsky. He’s a science and technology journalist, who recently wrote an article for Lifewire called, “Parents Say ‘Yes’ To Screen Time During the Pandemic,” where he talked to several parents and experts - letting them vent their concerns, but also justify their decisions. Two experts featured in the article are also with us for this episode. Lynette O...
Mar 29, 2021•55 min•Ep. 89
Dr. Mimi Ito is a cultural anthropologist, learning scientist, entrepreneur, and an advocate for connected learning—learning that is equity-oriented, centered on youth interest, and socially connected. Her work decodes digital youth culture for parents and educators, offering ways to tap interests and digital media to fuel learning that is engaging, relevant, and socially connected. She is the director of the Connected Learning Lab and Professor in Residence and John D. and Catherine T. MacArthu...
Mar 01, 2021•55 min•Ep. 88
This episode is something a little different. Like many of you, one of the ways I've been keeping sane over the past months has been nesting, both in my physical world and with respect to my work. I recently have been organizing previous episodes' audio, and in so doing, I have some ideas for ways I want to use the process to rekindle ideas that are part of my experience because of this show, and continue to motivate and encourage me as I look forward to new hope and exploration and learning tha...
Feb 04, 2021•29 min•Ep. 87
My conversation today is with Jussie Kajala and Mitch Weisburgh of an AR/VR platform for education called, 3D Bear. I'm also joined by Susan Sclafani, a Library Media Specialist from Long Island, NY, who grounds our conversation in the aspects of her own practice that incorporate AR. Be sure to stick around until after Jussie and MItch, to hear my full conversation with her. Jussi Kajala has a Ph.D. in material physics and a degree from University of Cambridge, UK. Jussi was responsible for deve...
Nov 30, 2020•1 hr 30 min•Ep. 86
You all met Theron Cosgrave and Principal Ally Rocco in episodes 67, and 77. Since October of 2019, I’ve been following this group of educators in California’s central valley as they work to build one of the most innovative middle school models I’ve heard anything about in recent decades. MAD Tech characterizes some of the most important questions in education for me. Here’s just one example in my mind: What does it mean to intersect great learning design with great design for physical spaces in...
Nov 03, 2020•54 min•Ep. 85
Dr. Kevin Miklasz has worked in and around the fields of game design and education for the last 10 years. As a trained scientist, he has a PhD in Biology from Stanford University, but has spent his time gaining a smattering of diverse experiences in education: designing science curriculum, teaching after-school science programs, designing science games, running a science and cooking blog, running game jams for kids, and running professional development for teachers and professional engineers. He...
Oct 02, 2020•59 min•Ep. 84
The Fulfillment Fund works to make college a reality for students growing up in educationally and economically under-resourced communities. To this end, our services build pathways to college , help students navigate educational barriers , create life-changing support networks , and empower future leaders . Joanne Reyes Joanne Reyes is a senior non-profit development professional with more than 16 years of experience. She is currently President at the Fulfillment Fund, a college access and colle...
Sep 11, 2020•1 hr 16 min•Ep. 83
