Join Melissa and her co-host Ty for a special guest on the Scoop! Julia Cunningham is the Director of Rural Engagement in the Office of Communications and Outreach at the U.S. Department of Education. In this role, she is responsible for proactive, thoughtful engagement with rural schools and communities across the country as well as building out a strategy for the Department’s rural initiatives and programming. Prior to this role, Julia was the Deputy Director for State Engagement for The Hunt ...
Jun 12, 2023•40 min
Join Dr. Sadorf as she discusses an issue on rural leaders' minds - housing for school staff in rural communities. She is joined by Superintendent John School of Chino Valley USD in Arizona. Superintendent Scholl outlines the process his district has gone through in the last couple of years to plan for and build ten "tiny homes" for teachers on one of the school campuses. From planning to the RFP process to legal concerns, listen to how one rural district in Arizona is meeting the need in their ...
May 23, 2023•50 min
Join Dr. Sadorf and her Co-Host, Ty White, as they talk to Royd Lee, a Navajo language rural teacher from Tuba City City, Arizona located on the Navajo Nation. Royd is a 2021-22 Ambassador of Excellence for the Arizona Educational Foundation. He is very active with advocacy work for Impact Aid funding for Tribal and rural schools throughout the state. Get to know about this outstanding educator who is doing some amazing things for the students in his tribal rural community. You can find Royd on ...
Mar 21, 2023•28 min
Join Dr. Sadorf and her Co-Host, Ty White, as they talk to Christina Musselman, a First Grade rural teacher from Lake Havasu City, Arizona. Christina was the Mohave County Rural Teacher of the Year Finalist in is the 2021-22 for ARSA. She is a National Board Certified Teacher and coach, an adjunct professor for ASU, and serves as a Borderlands Rural Teacher Caucus member, advocating for rural schools and issues across the state of Arizona! Get to know about this outstanding educator who is doing...
Mar 14, 2023•32 min
Join Dr. Sadorf and her Co-host, Ty White as they have a chance to talk to Elizabeth Colton. Liz is the 2022-23 ARSA Teacher of the Year and teaches Science at Crane Middle School in Yuma, Arizona. She is a STEM teacher, FIRST Coach, Global Innovation Ambassador and a Patent Holder of Aqua Box! Get to know about this outstanding educator who is doing some amazing things for the students in her rural community. You can find Liz on her social media at @ColtonScience - be sure to follow her to keep...
Mar 08, 2023•29 min
The Scoop is excited to kick off the new season with award winning teacher, Ty White! Ty is the 2021-22 ARSA Teacher of the Year, and this past year was recognized for two major awards. He is the 2022-23 National Rural Education Association's Teacher of the Year, and is also the Arizona Teacher of the Year for the Arizona Educational Foundation. Ty is a chemistry teacher at Willcox High School in Cochise County, Arizona. Get to know about this outstanding educator who will be a co-host for a spe...
Feb 27, 2023•36 min
The Rural Scoop has the opportunity to speak to two staunch supporters of rural education about their organizations and the work they are doing, including their upcoming participation at the Rural College Access and Success Summit! Sara White is the Director of Programs for Partners for Education. She has worked the last 25 years in the field of public education as a teacher, counselor and federal grant administrator. Currently she leads four GEAR UP grants and a staff of over 250-strong toward ...
Apr 06, 2022•50 min
The Cultivating Rural Education series of the Rural Scoop features the authors of the book by the same name! Join me and my guest co-host Julie Duffield of the Region 15 Comprehensive Center for West Ed in this special collaboration as we talk to author Dr. Sheneka Williams about Strong Rural Students. We dive into the importance of community partnerships in rural schools, look at how land grant universities can support rural education, and explore how tapping into community assets can create st...
Dec 13, 2021•44 min
The Cultivating Rural Education series of the Rural Scoop features the authors of the book by the same name! Join me and my guest co-host Julie Duffield of the Region 15 Comprehensive Center for West Ed in this special collaboration as we talk to author Dr. Karen Eppley. We take a look at challenges that rural communities face in recruiting and retaining rural teachers, the importance of ensuring rural educators understand rurality in order to be successful, and the role that higher education ca...
Dec 06, 2021•36 min
The Cultivating Rural Education series of the Rural Scoop features the authors of the book by the same name! Join me and my guest co-host Julie Duffield of the Region 15 Comprehensive Center for West Ed in this special collaboration as we talk to author Dr. Jennifer Seelig. We take a look at what rurality means, as well as how asset mapping can be a powerful tool for rural leaders and initiatives. We also talk with Dr. Seelig about teacher recruitment and retention strategies as well as how stat...
Sep 15, 2021•38 min
The Cultivating Rural Education series of the Rural Scoop features the authors of the book by the same name! Join me and my guest co-host Julie Duffield of the Region 15 Comprehensive Center for West Ed in this special collaboration as we talk to author Erin McHenry-Sorber. We dive into the importance of community partnerships in rural schools, look at the way rural leaders can tap into community assets, and explore at how states and entities can come together in a meaningful way to support rura...
Aug 31, 2021•36 min
The Cultivating Rural Education series of the Rural Scoop features the editors and authors of the book by the same name! Join me and my guest co-host Julie Duffield of the Region 15 Comprehensive Center for West Ed in this special collaboration as we talk to editors Sam Redding and Caitlin Howley. We dive into how the book came to be, look at what rural is and isn't, and explore at how states and entities can come together in a meaningful way to support rural education. Look for future episodes ...
Aug 16, 2021•47 min
We continue to investigate the STEM opportunities that are out there for rural students with my guest, Manny Leon, the Assistant Director of the Office of Early Academic Outreach at the University of Arizona! Join is as we talk about the MESA (Mathematics, Engineering, Science Achievement) program, and how the programming can engage your rural students and staff. Now with the opportunity to take the components of MESA virtual, rural students can get involved with the design challenges from anywh...
Aug 09, 2021•37 min
Got STEM? In this edition of the Scoop, we explore all things STEM for rural schools with Cori Araza of Grand Canyon University! She walks me and my first co-host, Jaime Festa-Daigle, through what STEM is, what opportunities exist for our rural teachers and students, and discusses ways for rural leaders to support STEM in their classrooms. As promised in the interview, the show notes can be found at: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1jnMaGkTg4toANxlvKyrbkt-ohzXkl9N055ixqBBAxKY/edit?usp=sharing...
Aug 02, 2021•35 min
Join the Scoop as we listen to a few "Stories From the Rural Schoolhouse" - another episode in our special series this season! Our guest is Amy Barker, Assistant Superintendent of the Mountain Valley Education Consortium located in Shasta County, California! Amy talks about different distance learning models used by her districts in the last year, how parent engagement changed, and ways the school community at large came together to support each other. Don't miss out on getting the Scoop from a ...
Jul 26, 2021•23 min
Join the Scoop as we listen to a few "Stories From the Rural Schoolhouse" - another episode in our special series this season! Our guest is Dr. Helio Brasil, Superintendent of the Keyes Union School District located in Keyes, California! Helio talks about the unique challenges his district faced in the last year with social emotional learning, teacher resiliency, new ways of doing things that they will take into next school year, and some leadership celebrations. Don't miss out on getting the Sc...
Jul 12, 2021•28 min
Join the Scoop as we listen to a few "Stories From the Rural Schoolhouse" - another episode in our special series this season! Our guest is Superintendent Tom O’Malley from the Modoc Joint Unified School District located in Alturas, California! Tom, who was also named the 2021 Binderup Superintendent of the Year for his state, talks about the unique challenges his district faces with distance learning, teacher recruitment, new ways of doing things that they will take into next school year, and s...
Jul 08, 2021•32 min
Join me as I talk with Dr. Andy Smith of Prescott College! Andy has worked in education over 25 years as a teacher, administrator, superintendent, and adjunct professor. He recently took a full time position with Prescott College as the Coordinator for Teacher Education. He shares both his experience in the last year guiding novice teachers through their student teaching experiences, and those of the student teachers creating a new paradigm in pre-service towards the attainment of their certific...
Jun 29, 2021•35 min
Join the Scoop as we listen to a few "Stories From the Rural Schoolhouse" - another episode in our special series this season! Our guest is Superintendent Bill Stiteler from the Mountain Institute CTED District in western Yavapai County, Arizona! Bill talks about reimagining student engagement in a hands-on curriculum that went virtual, what the CTED looks like for next year and some leadership lessons he has learned. Don't miss out on getting the Scoop from a Rural Schoolhouse!
Jun 21, 2021•22 min
Join the Scoop as we listen to a few "Stories From the Rural Schoolhouse" - another episode in our special series this season! Our guest is Principal Kim Schaefer from Whitehorse High School in the San Juan School District located in Montezuma Creek, Utah! Kim talks about how they used school-wide curriculum units to connect and engage with students and families, lessons they will take into next school year, and some leadership lessons she has learned. Don't miss out on getting the Scoop from a ...
Jun 15, 2021•35 min
Join me as I talk with Marie Caldwell of SiskiyouWorks! Marie has worked in education over 25 years as a teacher, principal, and superintendent. During her tenure as an educator she has worked to align public and private partnerships to ensure student success. Through extensive grant writing, she has helped to secure over $8 million for Siskiyou County schools to further career technical education and school to work partnerships. As a founding member of SiskiyouWorks project, she has worked to e...
Jun 07, 2021•34 min
Join the Scoop as we listen to a few "Stories From the Rural Schoolhouse" - another episode in our special series this season! Our guest is Superintendent Kevin Imes from the Southwest Technical Education District in Yuma, Arizona! Kevin talks about reimagining student engagement in a hands-on curriculum that went virtual, what CTE looks like for next year and some leadership lessons he has learned. Don't miss out on getting the Scoop from a Rural Schoolhouse!
Jun 01, 2021•15 min
Come get the Scoop with Mary O’Malley! Mary is the Director of AZ Collaborative Partnerships for ASU Prep Digital, working closely with rural schools, tribal area schools, and opportunity/foster youth. She started her teaching career in Nogales USD and Glendale Union High School District in 1993. Prior to ASU Prep Digital, she worked with multiple education companies, supporting K-12 schools across the U.S. with online and blended learning programs, at-risk learners, ELL teaching strategies, and...
May 25, 2021•23 min
Join the Scoop as we listen to a few "Stories From the Rural Schoolhouse" - another episode in our new series this season! Our guest is Stuart Packard from the Buttonwillow Unified School District in Buttonwillow, California! Stuart talks about the team effort his district made during the last year, some creative ways they are using new fiscal resources, and some leadership lessons he has learned. Don't miss out on getting the Scoop from a Rural Schoolhouse!
May 17, 2021•20 min
Join the Scoop as we listen to a few "Stories From the Rural Schoolhouse" - part of a new series this season! Our guest is Dr. Robert Koerperich from the Holbrook Unified School District in Holbrook, Arizona! Robbie talks about the last year for his schools and community, some lessons learned, and how HUSD is coming back better this fall. Don't miss out on getting the Scoop from a Rural Schoolhouse!
May 11, 2021•27 min
Join us as we welcome Christie Olsen to talk about some work her rural school district is doing around teacher efficacy. Christie shares the structures and protocols they have put in place to develop collective teacher efficacy. It has had some powerful effects on teacher retention in the Lake Havasu Unified School District in Arizona. Christie has worked in the Lake Havasu Unified School District for 29 years, teaching grades 4-6. She is currently a K-6 Academic/Instructional Coach and serves b...
May 03, 2021•32 min
Join me as I get the Scoop with Julie Bacon, Leadership Development Specialist for the Arizona School Boards Association. In her role, Julie works with individual board members to build their leadership capacities and is also responsible for conference planning, customized full board trainings, and presenting to community groups on the role of school boards. She has trained boards in all stages of board development, from a board with new members or superintendent who are looking to establish bes...
Oct 09, 2020•31 min
Join me as I get the Scoop from Dr. Rick Dalton, the CEO and President of CFES Brilliant Pathways. We discuss how his organization is partnering with rural schools in over 40 states and is helping to get students on a path to either college or career. The CFES model, where educators collaborate around essential Core Practices, has led to thousands of students from rural communities reaching their fullest potential. We also talk about the book he has authored on rural school communities around Co...
Sep 08, 2020•45 min
Come get the Scoop as I talk with Superintendent Kim Alexander of Roscoe ISD in Roscoe, Texas. He talks about the reasons for the development of a cutting edge offering for the students of Roscoe who can graduate with an Associates or Bachelors degree while attending school with EDU Nation! Listen as he discusses the variety of apprenticeships, work force partnerships, challenges and successes of the model, and how EDU Nation is scaling up across Texas and nationally! You won't want to miss this...
Apr 11, 2020•47 min
Garnett Burns is currently the Project Director of Enforcement Actions for the Arizona State Board of Education. She has have over 20 years of law enforcement experience working in victim advocacy, narcotics, gang intelligence and internal affairs. She served as the first K9 officer for her agency prior to becoming an Internal Affairs Investigator. She took her law enforcement experience with her to the Arizona Department of Education and restructured the Investigative Unit as the Chief Investig...
Feb 21, 2020•15 min
