The Grow Kinder Podcast

In this episode, host Tia Kim speaks with Justina Schlund, Senior Director of Content and Field Learning at the Collaborative for Academic, Social, and Emotional Learning (CASEL). In her role, Justina leads the translation of CASEL’s learning and expertise into content to deepen and expand social-emotional learning (SEL) knowledge across the education field. Prior to joining CASEL, Justina was the executive director of Chicago Public School’s Office of Social and Emotional Learning, where she led districtwide strategies to promote the social and emotional development of all students. While at CPS, Justina also launched a districtwide initiative to build organizational commitment to addressing issues of race and equity. Justina talks with us about the connections between SEL and diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) work. During the conversation, she addresses some common critiques of SEL in relation to DEI and provides practical recommendations for how educators, schools, and districts can effectively approach SEL and DEI. To learn more about CASEL, visit casel.org. To read more about CASEL’s resources on Transformative SEL as a Lever for Equity and Social Justice, visit casel.org/research/transformative-sel. For more episodes of Grow Kinder, visit GrowKinderPodcast.org. You can rate and follow us on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Soundcloud, or Stitcher—we’d love to hear from you. And to let us know more about you and what you think of the podcast, take our listener survey: https://forms.office.com/Pages/ResponsePage.aspx?id=LWN-Qn3OEkeSrzrKSxjPe1fy2tWnuMpOsq-A9xekDc9UQlNYU05BVU5WVTJPOEQyNzc0Sk0wRjJGWi4u

In this episode, host Shauna McBride speaks with Baionne Coleman, founding partner of the nonprofit Global Majority Consortium and CEO and principal of Rainier Valley Leadership Academy, an anti-racist middle and high school focused on dismantling systemic oppression through scholar leadership. With more than 20 years of experience in education, Baionne is a community leader who works with scholars and families to decolonize education systems and provide a safe and inviting environment for scholars and other educators. In this podcast, Baionne talks about common missteps taken by schools and organizations in approaching diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) and anti-racist work. She also discusses how educators can use social-emotional learning to better align their intentions with the impact of their actions, and how to make amends for any mistakes they make on their journeys to become anti-racist. To learn more about Rainier Valley Leadership Academy, visit myrvla.org. To learn more about Global Majority Consortium, visit globalmajorityconsortium.com. For more episodes of Grow Kinder, visit GrowKinderPodcast.org. You can rate and follow us on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Soundcloud, or Stitcher—we’d love to hear from you. And to let us know more about you and what you think of the podcast, take our listener survey: https://forms.office.com/Pages/ResponsePage.aspx?id=LWN-Qn3OEkeSrzrKSxjPe1fy2tWnuMpOsq-A9xekDc9UQlNYU05BVU5WVTJPOEQyNzc0Sk0wRjJGWi4u

In this episode of Grow Kinder®, co-hosts Andrea Lovanhill and Shauna McBride reflect on all of the changes and challenges of the past year. They talk about how listeners can use lessons from Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.’s foundational text "Where Do We Go from Here: Chaos or Community?" to approach the next school year. Andrea and Shauna also discuss how teacher diversity relates to Dr. King’s concept of “the world house,” the relationship between education and social action, and the pros and cons of teachers either waiting for a DEI program to implement or taking messy action towards equity without one. For more episodes of Grow Kinder, visit GrowKinderPodcast.org. You can rate and follow us on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Soundcloud, or Stitcher—we’d love to hear from you. And to let us know more about you and what you think of the podcast, take our listener survey: https://forms.office.com/Pages/ResponsePage.aspx?id=LWN-Qn3OEkeSrzrKSxjPe1fy2tWnuMpOsq-A9xekDc9UQlNYU05BVU5WVTJPOEQyNzc0Sk0wRjJGWi4u

In this teaser episode, Committee for Children CEO Andrea Lovanhill gives listeners a sneak peek into the upcoming season of Grow Kinder and reveals two new hosts who’ve joined the podcast: Dr. Tia Kim, our VP of Education, Research, and Impact, and Shauna McBride, our VP of PR and Communications. New episodes begin airing next week. Listen, rate, and follow on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, or anywhere podcasts are found. To learn more, visit GrowKinderPodcast.org. And while you’re there, take our listener survey and let us know what you think of the show. We’d love to hear from you! Listener survey: https://forms.office.com/r/2WttRZdfgW

In this episode of Grow Kinder®, we look back on some of the meaningful conversations that helped us through this tumultuous year and some of the moments we grew kinder. We highlight conversations with Angela Duckworth, Dr. Stephanie Hull, Dr. Monique Morris, Rachel Kamb, Anya Kamenetz, Tabatha Rosproy, and Rachel Lovan. To listen to our full conversations with these thought leaders and other experts in education, business, and the arts, visit GrowKinderPodcast.org.

October marks the start of National Bullying Prevention Month and Committee for Children's Captain Compassion® campaign to prevent bullying. Senior Research Scientist Dr. Jasmine Williams joins us on the podcast to talk about the 2020 Captain Compassion campaign, new comic strips that empower kids to stand against racially motivated cyberbullying, and the Secret Decoder Wheel contest to win a one-of-a-kind illustration with Captain Compassion herself. To read the comics, download the Secret Decoder Wheel, and learn more about the campaign, visit CaptainCompassion.org!

The Grow Kinder Podcast will be going on a short hiatus. We'll be back in the Fall with brand new conversations with leaders in education, tech, business, and the arts. Until then, you can listen to past episodes at GrowKinderPodcast.org.

As educators and families across the country get ready for back to school, we're thrilled to share this pre-pandemic conversation with Greg Lucas, from New Visions for Public Schools in New York City. As Deputy Director of School Culture and Climate, Greg oversees social-emotional learning, school safety, and restorative discipline initiatives. Whether students are returning to learning environments with in-person teaching, continuing remote instruction, or learning in a hybrid model, the culture and climate of a school community will be especially important this year. In this episode of Grow Kinder, Greg talks with us about the subtle differences between school culture and school climate, the importance of SEL for adults, and why we should never take kindness for granted.

This back-to-school episode of Grow Kinder features 2020 National Teacher of the Year, Tabatha Rosproy. A teacher with 10 years of experience, Tabatha is the first early childhood educator to be named National Teacher of the Year. She teaches an intergenerational preschool program at Winfield Early Learning Center, which is housed in Cumbernauld Village, a retirement community and nursing home in Winfield, Kansas. In her program, members of the retirement community are daily visitors and volunteers in the children’s classroom. Tabatha speaks with us about how the COVID-19 pandemic has affected her multigenerational classroom, the importance of social-emotional learning for all age levels, and why educators should take every possible opportunity to connect with students and their families during remote instruction this fall. To learn more about Tabatha: https://ntoy.ccsso.org/tabatha-rosproy/ To follow Tabatha’s journey as 2020 National Teacher of the Year, follow her on social media: https://twitter.com/TabathaRosproy https://www.facebook.com/NTOY20 https://www.instagram.com/ntoy2020/ To get a sneak peek into Tabatha’s classroom at Cumbernauld Village before the pandemic, watch this video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mC_xENwbjMQ

On this mini-episode of Grow Kinder (at Home), Andrea and Mia discuss why it’s so hard to ask for help at work, at school, and at home. They also speak about a recent TED talk on the value of allowing mental health days for K–12 students, as well as their own experiences with burnout during their school years. Watch the TED talk here: https://www.ted.com/talks/hailey_hardcastle_why_students_should_have_mental_health_days

This episode of Grow Kinder features a pre-pandemic conversation with Anya Kamenetz, National Public Radio (NPR) education correspondent and a host of the NPR podcast Life Kit. Anya joined NPR in 2014 as part of a new initiative to coordinate on-air and online coverage of learning. A contributor to the New York Times, the Washington Post, New York Magazine, and Slate, Anya is the author of several books, including The Art of Screen Time: How Your Family Can Balance Digital Media and Real Life. With families physically distancing and staying inside, children are engaging in the digital world more and more. Anya talks with us about technology’s effect on social-emotional learning, how her research and reporting influence her own parenting style, and common challenges for young families. To learn more about Anya’s work, visit www.anyakamenetz.net.

In this mini-episode of Grow Kinder (at Home), Andrea and Mia discuss the importance of leaning into discomfort in conversations about race and centering the voices of the black, indigenous and POC communities. They also ask Grow Kinder listeners which experts they would like to hear from in upcoming episodes. Email suggestions to growkinder@cfchildren.org.

This mini-episode of Grow Kinder (at Home) features Committee for Children Director of Research Dr. Sherri Widen, PhD. She talks with us about how she became a character on The Imagine Neighborhood podcast in the midst of the coronavirus pandemic, what it’s like working on a creative project as a researcher, and what parents can do to help bolster kids’ social-emotional skills through summer. To listen to The Imagine Neighborhood and join Dr. Sherri, P!h!D!, on some Daily Adventures, visit ImagineNeighborhood.org.

In this mini-episode of Grow Kinder (at Home), Andrea and Mia discuss what school might look like for kids once classrooms reopen in the fall. They also introduce two guest hosts for this special episode: Colleen Oliver, CEO of Committee for Children, and Jordan Posamentier, director of policy and advocacy at Committee for Children. Colleen and Jordan interview Mike Magee, CEO of Chiefs for Change, a nonprofit bringing the CEOs of our nation’s state departments of education and city school districts together to influence the future of learning in America. A cofounder and former CEO of Rhode Island Mayoral Academies, Mike has a long history of building statewide networks of regional, diverse-by-design public charter schools and has advocated for dramatic changes to state education policy. Mike discusses how superintendents across the nation responded to the COVID-19 pandemic; a brand-new report that provides education leaders with recommendations to prepare for reopening schools this fall; and the role social-emotional learning will play as students transition back to the classroom. To learn more about Chiefs for Change, visit chiefsforchange.org. To hear more from Mike Magee, follow him on Twitter at @mcmageejr. To read the Chiefs for Change report, visit https://chiefsforchange.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/05/CFC-TheReturn_5-13-20.pdf

In this mini-episode of Grow Kinder (at Home), hosts Mia Doces and Andrea Lovanhill discuss the joys and challenges of sheltering in place when many generations are under one roof. They talk about how their families have navigated isolating together over the past two months, whether children can parent their parents, and how they think their family relationships will be altered after the stay-at-home order is lifted.