Leader Chat With Jeff Rose

Our goal with our leader chats is to provide our educational leaders with pragmatic input, advice, and direction that adds to their skillset and perspective. It’s fair to say that we nailed it with this episode due to the work of David Noble and Carol Kauffman. Their book, Real Time Leadership is one we highly suggest you look into right away. When you listen to their wise advice, likely you will understand why. One thing that is great about this discussion, is that their leadership expertise in fact does not only pertain to education. Jeff always aims to make sure our content is well-rounded, so as leaders, we are always trying to look beyond our field to learn and grow. By the way, I am Kris Richard, the producer of this show. If you like our Leader Chats, please rate us or leave a comment. We always appreciate listener feedback and would love to hear from you.

I am Kris Richard, producer of our Leader Chat. I am not a traditional educator, so as I listen to our guests and Jeff talk, I always learn something new. This discussion with Todd Whitaker is DENSE. Clearly School Change is a topic unto itself, but the art and strategy of LEADING it is different. Jeff and Todd were like peas in a pod and could have gone on forever. Blame me or thank me, but I finally had to push them to end the discussion- otherwise, they may have talked all day. You are going to love this episode.

Educational leaders should not ONLY listen to and learn from educators. Districts and schools may be complicated places, but there are also other organizations that are committed to serving our youth that do incredible work. Case in point . . . this week Jeff talks with Jim Clark, the CEO of Boys & Girls Clubs of America. They serve 5,100 centers/locations impacting 4.6 million students! Yeah, you read that right. A massive undertaking and leadership responsibility. You can’t listen to this and NOT learn something about strategy, navigating the complexity of the current times, and servant leadership.

If you have not experienced or heard of our current challenges related to our teacher force, you are either lucky or not paying attention. It’s a significant challenge now and promises to be only more so in the future. In this Leader Chat Jeff engages Dr. Ingersoll who is a leading expert on America’s elementary and secondary teaching force, and a professor in education and sociology at the University of Pennsylvania. Likely, we could not have found a better leader to talk with on this subject. The good news is that leaders can make a difference dealing with this challenge as Ingersoll points out. We know we have avid and first-time listeners. If you are either and have not rated us or left comments for us, PLEASE do so. We want to know what you think! Listen, learn and enjoy!

One thing that is so cool about our Leader Chats is the diversity of those we talk with. We are so fortunate to have access to great leaders that we can all learn from. Jon Hage, CEO of Charter Schools USA, joined us to discuss their vision, hopes, and challenges and all that they have learned along the way. As you will notice, Jon is passionate about the mission of impacting the lives of kids, and his leadership insights can help all of us learn and grow. If you want to be our favorite listener, let us know what you think about our overall Leader Chat show, rate us and leave your comments on your podcast provider. What you think really matters to us! For now, enjoy!

Educational leaders should be in-tune with educational trends . . .  what has happened, what is current, and most importantly- what is around the bend. The dilemma for leaders is time. The lives of educational leaders are so busy, it makes paying attention to educational trends difficult. Kevin Hogan can help. Tracking innovative ideas and trends in education is what Hogan does, and in this Leader Chat, he and Jeff discuss what leaders should or could be paying attention to right now. We hope you listen to and learn from this podcast.

Have you heard of the Seven Mindsets? Jeff Waller’s work spearheaded the movement. It’s been spreading throughout the country for several years, and it has never been more relevant than now. His book, Ridiculously Amazing Schools, builds on everything that he and his team have learned about what leadership characteristics are needed for schools to be amazing. As ‘the Jeffs’ talk, you will be touched and intrigued. Check it out . . . you will see I am not wrong.

Welcome to part two of our chat with Jeff Duncan Andrade. If you have not listened to part one, we invite you to do so. You will thank us later. Jeff’s perspective on equity and his passion for serving all students is powerful. Leaders, and educators, we hope you enjoy!

Mike Schmoker has a way of cutting to the heart of the truth and simultaneously inspiring educators to dream of what’s possible. The fact is, educators can easily get distracted. Schmoker reminds us that if we stay focused on what we already know works, incredible things can happen for students. If you are in any way responsible for leading schools, this is a must listen.

We are so lucky we were able to recruit Dr. Stephen Peters to talk with us. When we did, we had no idea he was a movie star, or at least close to one having been a leader on the documentary ‘American High School.’ Stephen is a wise leader with a rich background as a school and district leader. He and Jeff discuss the need for some future changes and most importantly, what leaders can do to drive the change.

AJ Crabill is likely one of the most knowledgeable leaders on School Board Governance you can find. As you will hear Jeff and AJ discuss, governance is often messy work, but it does not have to be with the right guidance and support. AJ and Jeff unpack what they notice in terms of current trends and spend time talking about what leaders can do to help guide the process relative to what is best for students, schools, and communities. Very relevant stuff!

What a treat. Jeff Duncan-Andrade is a passionate educator, man, and father. He has dedicated himself to serving his community and driving change to a system that, as he describes, is not designed to support all students. The focus and perspective of equity he describes and lives by are clear, and his convictions, regardless of one’s perspective, should be listened to. Jeff and Jeff’s conversation was so good, we had to split this into two parts. We are proud to present “Part 1” of this discussion to you now.

Shane Safir is one of the authors of the very popular book Street Data: A Next-Generation Model for Equity, Pedagogy, and School Transformation. One of our Leadership Circle members recommended to Jeff we feature this inspirational conversation, and we are so glad we did. Street Data is different than so many educational texts and dives into the heart of how we envision and determine what success can look like for students. Any educational leader will learn from this conversation between Jeff and Shane.

There is no doubt about it. Bill Dagett is a DEEEEP thinker and is an expert in pushing us to be the same. He and Jeff lean in on the topic of pursuing a new narrative and model in education to serve students in the future. Bill breaks down elements of our current challenges and fortunately provides some advice on how we can move forward. As one behind the camera, I could tell Jeff and Bill could have talked for hours if we had let them.

Our worries about teacher shortage and a lack of motivation for young professionals to seek a career in teaching are real and it’s shared. In this Leader Chat, Jeff talks with Dr. Denise Spangler, Dean of the College of Education at the University of Georgia. She has led at UGA for many years, and her lens into this problem and the potential for future opportunities for change is something we should all pay attention to.