Dr. William Penuel is Distinguished Professor of Learning Sciences and Human Development in the Institute of Cognitive Science and School of Education at the University of Colorado Boulder. He is co-author of Creating Compassionate Change in School Communities: Leading Together to Address Everyday Suffering in Schools . We talk about: Why does compassion matter for educators? How is compassion different from empathy, kindness, and relationship-building? How school leaders and educators can put c...
Jun 26, 2025•47 min•Ep. 158
Blending memoir, personal essay, local topography, and culture, Alex Poppe’s Breakfast Wine is a frank, human story of pursuing an unconventional life and finding a way home. Alex is a business analyst, turned actor, turned teacher who accepted a teaching position in northern Iraq after a chance encounter with an acclaimed journalist. In this episode, you’ll hear her stories and learn what it was like to teach in conflict and post-conflict zones, including during the COVID-19 pandemic — and you’...
Jun 12, 2025•1 hr 2 min•Ep. 157
Today’s guest, Erik Palmer, is an educational consultant from Denver who focuses on showing teachers practical, engaging ways to teach oral communication skills, and showing educational leaders how to be more effective communicators. He’s the author of several books, including Well Spoken: Teaching Speaking to All Students, 2nd Edition (Routledge). We discuss: Defining modern, effective oral communication today What most teachers struggle with, when it comes to teaching speaking What is uniquely...
Jun 05, 2025•52 min•Ep. 156
To close out May, I'm happy to highlight another Best Of episode with three-time guest Katie Novak. This was our first conversation, about her best-selling book UDL Now! We talked about: “If UDL is the answer, what is the question?” Who should be doing UDL? UDL is best practice: “Teachers are working too hard to not have a greater impact on learners.” Understanding the similarities and differences between UDL and differentiated instruction (DI) — and why teachers should be doing both The three c...
May 31, 2025•49 min
Today’s episode wraps up our four-part series on communication and finding your voice. My guest is Matthew Rolnick. Matt is SVP of Partnerships & Events for The Real American Beer Company and former VP of Strategy & Innovation at Yaymaker. He’s an Amazon bestselling author, speaker, LinkedIn 2023 Top Entrepreneurship Voice, and a Udemy Instructor for 135k students. Matt is author of Find Your Yay . We discuss: Find your voice and grow your brand on social media — who should do it? Defini...
May 29, 2025•43 min•Ep. 155
Today is part 3 of our miniseries on communication. My guest, Michael Davis, works with business owners, entrepreneurs, and business leaders who struggle to effectively give presentations. He helps them increase their confidence, influence, and impact with more impactful presentations every time they stand up and speak. Michael's expertise in communication is rooted in the belief that all business problems stem from communication issues. If your organization aims to improve leadership, team coll...
May 22, 2025•51 min•Ep. 154
This week, we’re continuing our miniseries on finding your voice and increasing your influence as a leader. My guest is Ryan Millar, a Canadian-born, Amsterdam-based coach, story trainer, and communications consultant. All of his work draws heavily on his 25+ years as an improviser. Ryan got his start in Vancouver BC in the late ‘90s with !nstant Theater, and has worked with Boom Chicago and toured Europe teaching and performing at festivals. His latest book, on the art of public speaking, is ca...
May 15, 2025•48 min•Ep. 153
This week, we’re starting a four-episode miniseries on finding your voice and increasing your influence as a leader. My guest to kick it off is Dr. Laura Sicola, a leadership communication and influence expert, and a renowned speaker, former bilingual K-12 teacher and university professor who holds a PhD in educational linguistics from the University of Pennsylvania. With over 20 years of experience, she has coached TED speakers, delivered her own TED talk with over 7 million views, and appeared...
May 08, 2025•47 min•Ep. 152
Miriam Plotinsky is a National Board–certified teacher with additional certification in administration and supervision. She’s currently an instructional specialist with Montgomery County Public Schools in Maryland. She’s the author of several books, including Small but Mighty: How Everyday Habits Add Up to More Manageable and Confident Teaching (ASCD). We talk about: Why Miriam wanted to write a book about "small but mighty" teaching practices Phyllis Fagell said about the book, "Small but Might...
May 01, 2025•34 min•Ep. 151
Episode 150 of The Authority is a special one. I’m joined by Dr. John B. King, Jr., the 10th U.S. Secretary of Education. John is currently the chancellor of the State University of New York (SUNY), the nation’s largest comprehensive system of public higher education. Over the course of his career in public education, he has been a high school social studies teacher, a middle school principal, the first African American and Puerto Rican to serve as New York State Education Commissioner, a colleg...
Apr 16, 2025•45 min•Ep. 150
This week I welcome Amanda Morin and Emily Kircher-Morris to the show. Amanda is a neurodivergent neurodiversity activist, an award-winning author, early childhood specialist, certified teacher, and nationally known speaker, deeply committed to fostering accessible and inclusive environments for neurodivergent individuals. Emily has dedicated her career to transforming how we understand and support neurodivergent minds. As a licensed professional counselor, educator, and thought leader, she brin...
Apr 09, 2025•57 min•Ep. 149
Today’s guest, Tony Frontier, is an award-winning educator who works with teachers and school leaders nationally and internationally to help them prioritize efforts to improve student learning. He’s the author or co-author of several books, including Teaching with Clarity and Five Levers to Improve Learning . We discuss his latest, AI with Intention: Principles and Action Steps for Teachers and School Leaders (ASCD). Hear about: On the topic of AI and education, what is important for educators t...
Apr 02, 2025•55 min•Ep. 148
Brian Butler is an educational consultant, speaker, author, and award-winning former principal who is passionate about nurturing collaborative school cultures that unlock every student’s unlimited potential. In this episode, we discuss two of his books, Every Student Deserves a Gifted Education and Limitless Future . We talk about: Brian's inspiring story What is a gifted education? The necessary mindset shift to plan a gifted education for every student The five shifts/elements to help create a...
Mar 25, 2025•1 hr•Ep. 147
We're pleased this week to highlight another "Best of The Authority" episode. This one is my conversation with Dr. Thomas Guskey, Professor Emeritus in the College of Education at the University of Kentucky. He is known throughout the world for his work on student assessment, grading and reporting, professional learning, and educational research. He's the author/editor of thirty books, including the one we discussed for this episode: Engaging Parents and Families in Grading Reforms . We talked a...
Mar 20, 2025•55 min
Today I welcome Alex Kajitani and Tom Hierck to the show. Alex and Tom are both award-winning educators and bestselling authors, and together they’ve written their latest title You’re a Teacher Now! What’s Next? We talk about: “What have I got myself into?” The question all new teachers ask. Why is this the book for right now? What Alex and Tom would change about the typical experience for new teachers Classroom management, relationship building, effective instruction, self-care — where to start...
Mar 18, 2025•47 min•Ep. 146
Today I'm thrilled to introduce our newest podcast here on the Be Podcast Network, Artificial Intelligence: Real Talk hosted by Eli Marshall Davis. Eli is an Interventionist at Hemphill Elementary in Birmingham, AL, where he sits on the leadership team and chairs the MTSS/Problem Solving Team committee. He is a Ph.D. candidate at the University of South Carolina, focusing on Teaching and Learning, with research interests in social justice, epigenetics, and the transformative potential of AI in e...
Mar 13, 2025•41 min
It’s a pleasure to welcome Dr. Lorraine Radice back to the show. Lorraine is an Assistant Superintendent for Curriculum and Instruction in a public school district in New York and an Associate Assistant Professor at Hofstra University. Prior to her current role, she was a preK-12 Director of Literacy. Lorraine’s book, Leading A Culture of Reading , was a 2023 GOLD Winner for Education in the Foreword INDIES Book of the Year awards. Her new book is Revolving Literacy: How to Connect Relevance and...
Mar 11, 2025•44 min•Ep. 145
Popular guest Dr. Kimberly Nix Berens returns to the show. She’s a scientist-educator, Founder of Fit Learning, and author of Blind Spots: Why students fail and the science that can save them . We’re also joined by Dr. Michael-Joseph Mercanti-Anthony, principal of Antonia Pantoja Preparatory Academy, a public school for students in grades 6-12 in the southwest Bronx. We talk about: Defining the science of learning, and which students and subjects it applies to How instruction designed from the s...
Mar 04, 2025•1 hr•Ep. 144
My guests today are Katie Novak and Ashley Marlow. Katie, an internationally-renowned education consultant, graduate instructor at the University of Pennsylvania Graduate School of Education, and the best-selling author of numerous books, returns to The Authority for the third time. Ashley is an elementary math coach, consultant, and director of operations for All Learners Network. They co-authored the new book Universal Design for Learning in Mathematics Instruction, K-5 . This fun and timely d...
Feb 25, 2025•1 hr 5 min•Ep. 143
For our next "Best Of" episode, I'm excited to republish my conversation with Mitch Weathers, teacher and founder of Organized Binder, Inc. We talked about his book Executive Functions for Every Classroom: Creating Safe and Predictable Learning Environments Grades 3-12 , published by Corwin. Hear our conversation about: Defining executive functions and their importance Signs of executive dysfunction Justin Baeder, The Principal Center, says the book “makes the case for universal classroom routin...
Feb 20, 2025•50 min
Sahil Bloom is an inspirational writer and content creator who reaches millions of people every week through his bi-weekly newsletter, “The Curiosity Chronicle,” and related social media content. Sahil is a successful entrepreneur, owner of SRB Holdings, and the managing partner of SRB Ventures, an early-stage investment fund. His first book, The Five Types of Wealth: A Transformative Guide to Design Your Dream Life , is already a New York Times bestseller. Today it’s a pleasure to have him join...
Feb 18, 2025•44 min•Ep. 142
In this bonus episode, originally recorded for Transformative Principal, Jethro Jones speaks with Eric Sheninger and Nicki Slaugh about their book Personalize: Meeting the Needs of All Learners . Hear about: The power of Quest Academy Retain teachers, retain students - how to keep kids there. Free public school Teenagers weren’t engaged. PD time every Friday Mastery Minutes Beginning of day, tracker system. Choice, voice, tracker data. Curating evidence. Culture Self-pacing route vs. choice boar...
Feb 13, 2025•41 min
Adam Barney is an Energy Coach who has helped hundreds of emerging and executive leaders unlock their goals, build vitality, and strengthen accountability for long-term transformation. With over two decades of experience in leadership positions at companies like Microsoft, Digitas, and Akamai Technologies, Adam brings a wealth of knowledge to his coaching practice. He believes optimism and autonomy empower us to overcome challenges and seize opportunities with confidence and resilience. Today, w...
Feb 11, 2025•37 min•Ep. 141
In this episode, simulcast on The Authority and Sideline Sessions , I speak with Matt Doherty, a nationally recognized motivational speaker, executive coach, and former head coach of the University of North Carolina men’s basketball team. As a starter on the 1982 National Championship team at UNC, with his teammate Michael Jordan, Matt began his leadership journey under the legendary Dean Smith. He went on to be the head coach at Notre Dame and North Carolina, and in 2001 led the team to the ACC...
Feb 04, 2025•54 min•Ep. 140
In this episode, one of our Best of 2024, internationally known authority on educational leadership Michael Fullan joins the show. Michael’s work has influenced countless education leaders at all levels. The former Dean of the Ontario Institute for Studies in Education and Professor Emeritus of the University of Toronto, he is co-leader of the New Pedagogies for Deep Learning global initiative, served as Premier Dalton’s Special Policy Adviser in Ontario from 2003-2013, and received the Order of...
Jan 30, 2025•51 min
My guests today are Dr. Kathy Perez and Dr. Margaret Coughlan. Kathy is a professor emerita at Saint Mary’s College of California. She has extensive teaching experience as a general and special educator, literacy and ESL coach, administrator, and curriculum- and staff-development coordinator. Margaret is a classroom teacher, district leader, researcher, and adjunct faculty at Saint Mary’s College of California. Her professional work includes teaching elementary students, teachers, and graduate s...
Jan 28, 2025•47 min•Ep. 139
I still can't believe it's the year 2025. Can you? But since it is, we can enjoy revisiting some of our top episodes from 2024. Today, I'm sharing my conversation with Lacey Robinson. Lacey is president and CEO of UnboundEd. A former teacher, principal, and professional development specialist who has focused on literacy, equity, and school leadership for more than 25 years, her life’s work aims to enable educators to disrupt systemic inequities in their school districts and classrooms. We talked...
Jan 23, 2025•58 min
Today I’m pleased to speak with Dr. Hayley Watson, a Clinical Psychologist who holds a PhD in school bullying interventions, along with four further degrees in the field of mental health. She has been creating and delivering programs for youth and practitioners across the US, Canada, the UK, and Australia for the past 20 years. Hayley is the founder and CEO of Open Parachute, a Tier 1 K-12 curriculum program that supports the mental health of students, teachers, and parents. We talk about her bo...
Jan 20, 2025•47 min•Ep. 138
Damon Lembi is a two-time bestselling author, the host of The Learn-It-All Podcast, and CEO of Learnit – a live learning platform that has upskilled over 2 million people. He also was a Division-I college baseball player who was drafted to play professionally and draws from this experience to bring an athlete’s perspective to leadership. Through his journey, he has gained invaluable insights into what helps organizations grow, how great leaders learn, and why learn-it-all companies outpace their...
Jan 13, 2025•51 min•Ep. 137
Ryan Steuer is an author, podcaster, and thought leader who specializes in project-based learning. He’s a curious visionary who is a former engineer at a Fortune 50 company and former 8th grade English teacher who now leads Magnify Learning - a PBL professional development company that customizes every PBL training. In this episode, we talk about his book PBL Simplified: 6 Steps to Move Project Based Learning from Idea to Reality . Hear about: What is the case for PBL? Why PBL is timely and rele...
Jan 06, 2025•44 min•Ep. 136
