Teaser: “Hello colleagues and welcome to the Assistant Principal Podcast. I’m your host Frederick Buskey. The goal of this podcast is to Improve the quality of life and leadership for assistant principals. Together we can achieve that by focusing on three things:Escaping the tyranny of the urgentEngaging in strategic behaviors each dayAnd, most importantly, becoming outstanding developers of teacher talent” That’s how I began Episode 1 of APP back on August 26, 2021. It is a bit early to celebra...
Jul 15, 2025•34 min•Ep. 262
Power Quote: “Climate is the emotional state felt within the physical space” Description: I had so much fun recording today’s show. My guest stands tall (literally and figuratively) in the realm of helping school leaders develop positive culture and climate. If you are a regular listener, you know I have my own specific framework on school culture, so stay tuned to the end of the show where I will reflect on commonalities and differences between the approaches. I hope you have as much fun listen...
Jul 08, 2025•53 min•Ep. 261
Power Quote: “ How do you want me to listen?” Description: Today’s guest is someone I consider to be a master at the art of coaching, which is appropriate as she wrote the best-selling book titled The Art of Coaching. I Had Elena Aguilar on the show a little over a year ago and we split the interview into two parts, episodes 204 and 205 (link in the show notes) because it was so rich and packed with powerful thoughts and techniques. This interview with Elena is even more dense – so much so that ...
Jul 01, 2025•25 min•Ep. 260
Link to post on LinkedIn for book giveaway Description: Today’s interview will be a bit different as my guest is coming from four decades of leadership experience in the corporate arena. Despite the different setting, the leadership lessons will sound familiar to you. I think this discussion with someone coming from a different place invites us to reexamine fundamental leadership themes from a slightly different perspective. Sponsor Spot 1: Administrators, you walk through classrooms, take notes...
Jun 24, 2025•54 min•Ep. 259
Power Quote: “Uncover the rock” Description: If you haven’t begun reflecting on the year yet, today’s episode will get you in the mood. I encourage you to pause today’s show frequently – there are a number of moments that deserve some contemplation and pausing to think about what something looks or feels like in your context could be very beneficial. This is such a thoughtful conversation – I found myself feeling both reflective and uplifted by the end. I hope you experience the same feelings. S...
Jun 17, 2025•1 hr 10 min•Ep. 258
Power Quote: “If we want better outcomes for students, we have to create better outcomes for teachers.” Description: I hope this doesn’t sound too egotistical but I LOVE it when a guest echoes my own preaching, especially when that guest is a current school leader. This episode is full of foundational ideas as well as some simple actionable strategies. It’s the kind of show I love to do where two friends dive deep into a central theme of school – growing teachers. Sponsor Spot 1: Before we begin...
Jun 10, 2025•52 min•Ep. 257
Two for the Price of One (!) with Frederick and Darrin Link to the NCMLE Leadership Excellence Network: https://ncmle.org/cohort-home Description: Today’s show is actually two shows in one. I recorded it with my good friend Darrin Peppard at Road to Awesome and we are releasing this episode on his show, Lean Into Leadership, in addition to releasing it here on The Assistant Principal Podcast. Darrin and I are collaborating on a project we reference in the show and thought this would be a fun way...
Jun 03, 2025•1 hr 9 min•Ep. 256
Description: “Sam I am, I do not like green eggs and ham!” Our guest today is not Dr. Seuss, but he does talk a lot about SAM, not the peddler of a strange breakfast, but rather a process for helping instructional leaders reclaim their purpose. Sponsor Spot 1: As a loyal listener to this show, you know I am a big advocate for short, targeted observations, so I’m excited about digiCOACH sponsoring this podcast. digiCOACH makes it easier to follow up on observations with meaningful feedback. I lov...
May 27, 2025•54 min•Ep. 255
SWOT ***Free SWOT and STCC tools available for download here: https://adept-experimenter-3588.kit.com/0cd1576fe5 Teaser: We are half-way through May and hopefully you have begun thinking about next year. A couple weeks ago I took several district leadership teams through a simple process to facilitate conversations around next year. We did two activities – the SWOT analysis and the Stop-Start-Continue-Consider process. These are meant to be high level starters for discussion of priorities. I thi...
May 21, 2025•27 min•Ep. 254
Power Quote: “Somebody has to be able to say “pause!” Description: Have you ever listened to one of those podcasts where the host asks a question, the guest gives an answer and it goes back and forth in a way that feels more like a school lecture than a discussion? This Is not that episode! It’s almost the opposite. It took me 10 minutes to get to the first question. This interview went in directions I hadn’t expected, but each time I began to wonder if we were going down a rabbit hole, I would ...
May 13, 2025•1 hr 5 min•Ep. 253
Power Quote: “If I make them better, that makes me better” Description: Today’s guest is the 2025 NASSP National High School Assistant Principal of the year – how cool is that! This was such a fun interview. You are going to hear Saani talk about a number of things he’s done as an AP and I want you to pay attention to how each thing is interconnected with each other thing. I’ll say more about that in the show summary, but listen for the connections. Sponsor Spot 1: Administrators, you walk throu...
May 06, 2025•57 min•Ep. 252
Power Quote: We are wired to belong Description: You’ll hear me compliment today’s guest on his affirmative presence. He’s the kind of person you want to be around. It was only at the end of the show that I was able to pinpoint why and it is this: he makes me feel seen, valued, and heard. Stay tuned and you’ll find out why this was an “aha” for me. Sponsor Spot 1: I’d like to thank Kaleidoscope Adventures for sponsoring today’s show. Lots of companies can help you organize class trips, but Kalei...
Apr 29, 2025•43 min•Ep. 251
Power Quote: “I’m still learning, but we will figure it out together.” Description: You are going to LOVE today’s show! As with last week, you may want to take notes. Today’s guest, a practicing principal, shared with me that he has been a listener of the show for several years, and you will hear how many of this show’s core themes he echoes and has internalized. This is going to be fun and real! Sponsor Spot 1: Before we get into the main show, I’d like to thank Kaleidoscope Adventures for spon...
Apr 22, 2025•53 min•Ep. 250
Power Quote: You are who you eat lunch with Description: Today’s show is so packed with gold nuggets, you might want to take notes or listen twice. You will hear many of my core themes filtered through a slightly different lens. Our guests are accessible and real, so perk up and hold on! (and ignore the leaf blowers outside my window) Show Intro Sponsor Spot 1: Before we get into the main show, I’d like to thank Kaleidoscope Adventures for sponsoring today’s show. Lots of companies can help you ...
Apr 15, 2025•1 hr 4 min•Ep. 249
Description: How are you? I confess to having mixed emotions about how to respond to this question. On the one hand, I’m having fun in my business and everyone around me is healthy. On the other hand, I have a lot of friends worried about losing their jobs to anti-DEI policies, my favorite national forests are less safe because of ranger firings, and there are people in my community worried about being deported. I felt this similar mix of emotions during COVID. Today, my guest and I will dig int...
Apr 08, 2025•57 min•Ep. 248
Show title and release date: The Motivation Equation Note on Sponsorships: Help cover the cost of producing the podcast Motivate me to produce a better product Give you access to some beneficial services I will work to keep sponsorship ads under 3 minutes total If you are interested, using the affiliate links in the show notes helps the show Teaser: Are students really lazy and unmotivated?When teachers resist implementation of a new initiative, what are they telling you?Any time people aren’t d...
Apr 01, 2025•36 min•Ep. 247
(Teacher) Team Leadership with Dr. Chad Dumas Description: If you’ve been listening to me or following my daily email, you’ve heard me talk about 5-minute coaching, the series of three questions we can ask teachers to help them become more reflective practitioners. The value leaders provide during the process is I creating space by NOT talking. Today’s guest helped me learn how to make 5-minute coaching even more powerful. But that’s not all. Today’s show is packed with practical tips to help yo...
Mar 25, 2025•51 min•Ep. 246
Today I’m digging into some questions I received from participants in my recent GAMSP training on moving from Fires to Fulfillment. Podcast episode 242, released two weeks ago, is an edited audio of the presentation and you can find the full presentation on a hidden website page at frederickbuskey.com/gamsp25. The themes I address in today’s show should be familiar to you, but I think the value add comes from the context. I think by the end you will have more insight into how 5-mc fits into diff...
Mar 18, 2025•26 min•Ep. 245
Today’s show is high energy with lots of thoughts and concepts that will grab your attention and your intention. My guest and I talk a lot about the power you have as a leader to transform your reality, and I want to be clear – it’s tough out there right now, some of us are working in more challenging situations than others, and some of us have fewer opportunities than others. I say that to temper the sense that maybe today’s discussion is a bit too optimistic. I don’t think it is, but I recogni...
Mar 11, 2025•47 min•Ep. 244
#243: Final Questions First with Joe Pettit Description: This is just a short tease for the full interview coming out on March 11th, 2025. I had forgotten to ask Joe the four closing questions, and when I shared that with him, he was kind enough to answer the questions and send me an audio file. I found it so inspiring, I decided to make it a standalone mini-episode. Enjoy! Guest Bio: Please welcome a true pioneer in leadership development and emotional intelligence, Joe Pettit. With over two de...
Mar 07, 2025•7 min•Ep. 243
If you read my daily email, you likely know that my big goal for 2025 is to give 25 keynotes and presentations. On Monday, February 24, I gave my first ever keynote at the Georgia Middle School Principals’ conference – big shoutout to Cheryl Riddle who organized the conference and was so wonderful to work with. I organized this as more of a working session than a straight speech so participants could leave the session with concrete skills and a plan to reclaim their purpose. Today’s episode is a...
Mar 04, 2025•46 min•Ep. 242
Today’s episode is inspired by a book study I did last week with 25 building and district school leaders. The focus of the book study was stage 5 of A School Leader’s Guide to Reclaiming Purpose, which is all about 5-minute coaching. We began with celebration We did 5-minute coaching We reflected in small groups We recapped in a large group We took 15 minutes (!) for our closing circle Participants left feeling grounded, connected, and hopeful. I left wanting to dig more deeply into what happene...
Feb 25, 2025•43 min•Ep. 241
We are in a moment of significant change. There’s a lot of instability and unpredictability and people don’t know what’s going to happen – good, bad, or indifferent. We don’t know what all of the announced or teased policy changes mean or if they are going to take effect. This environment creates a situation where we have lots of turbulence in schools, so today we’re going to unpack what turbulence is, how it fits with the six dimensions model, and start to think a little bit about how as leader...
Feb 18, 2025•19 min•Ep. 240
Description: Today’s guest is Tequila Lamar. The name should be familiar to you because I just featured my first interview with Tequila as the “Greatest Episode of All Time.” And now she’s back and now this episode may be my new favorite of all time. We will of course build on our previous discussion of imposter syndrome, but there is so much more in this episode. It is packed with wisdom, humanity, joy, and love. Today’s show will leave you feeling inspired and optimistic. Guest Bio: Tequila La...
Feb 11, 2025•1 hr 2 min•Ep. 239
| A couple weeks ago in one of my daily emails I asked for people’s experiences, perspectives, and questions about culture. A reader responded: As far as culture , my main frustration is a lack of initiative I notice in some of our adult, professional faculty members... Behaviors like not arriving on time for a duty, being unwilling to contact parents (or reply to parent contacts), and walking past litter on the hallway floor are my frustration. My question is how to make it the norm in our scho...
Feb 04, 2025•32 min•Ep. 238
In May, on episode 199, I had Jamie Brown on the show and he took us through a very simple but effective script for having a restorative conversation with a student. That show was re-aired at the end of December as my favorite show of 2024. After the show, Jamie and I discussed how APs can help new teachers become better at conversation – not just with students, but also with parents. We decided to dedicate an episode to helping you to help your teachers by modeling how to teach your early caree...
Jan 28, 2025•51 min•Ep. 237
236: Culture Questions From Claude Part II Show Description: | Last week I asked Claude AI to give me 12 questions I could answer that would help elaborate on school culture. We answered the first six questions last week and will do the second batch of six this week. I have to say, I was quite impressed by the quality of the questions. As was the case last week, I have not read or prepped for the questions, so we will see if Claude can continue to impress. As a reminder, here was my prompt… …I'd...
Jan 23, 2025•31 min•Ep. 236
235: Culture Questions From Claude Part I Show Description: Two weeks ago, I did a show that described how school culture is a byproduct of the degree of alignment between people, purpose, structures, and resources. High alignment – good culture. Low alignment – poor culture. I also shared in that episode that I have begun working on my next book, A School Leader’s Guide to Reclaiming Culture, so you are going to be getting a heavy dose of podcasts related to building a strong school culture. I ...
Jan 21, 2025•34 min•Ep. 235
#234: Leading an Ethical School with Dr. Nason Lollar Description: Today’s guest has developed a framework and language around professional conduct, which he defines as “my contribution to our culture of learning.” Cool. And what else is cool, is that you will hear, in slightly different terms, some of my core talking points around supporting and growing teachers, being present and listening, and, of course, working in quadrant 2 by managing your priorities, not your time. Guest Bio: Having serv...
Jan 07, 2025•52 min•Ep. 234
#233: Imposter Syndrome (Greatest Episode of All Time) There is a very brief intro to this, my favorite episode of all time! Originally released in May, 2023… Let’s face it, you aren’t cut out for this job. You are in over your head, and soon everyone will discover it! What were you even thinking? You can’t help your teachers grow. You should never have done this, and you will certainly never make it to the next level. Ouch – such terrible thoughts! There is a diagnosis for this kind of negative...
Dec 30, 2024•42 min•Ep. 233
