Better Learning Podcast

Bob Lenz became Executive Director of the Buck Institute for Education (BIE) on June 1, 2015. Before taking the helm at BIE, he was the co-founder of Envision Education and served as its CEO and Chief of Innovation until 2015. Under Bob’s leadership, Envision Education put into practice a highly successful redesign model that has opened a path to college and college retention for underserved urban students at Envision’s three Bay Area arts and technology high schools.

Bob also launched Envision Learning Partners. Envision Learning Partners fulfills the original promise of charter schools to serve as demonstration sites for innovative educational practices to transform the broader public school system. Envision Learning Partners works with schools, districts and networks of schools across the country as they adopt the Envision Schools College and Career Ready Student Performance Assessment System.

He is recognized nationally as a leader in high school redesign, Project Based Learning, 21st century skills education, and performance assessment. The William and Flora Hewlett Foundation has recognized Bob as a Senior Deeper Learning Fellow. He is the author of Transforming Schools: Using Project-Based Learning, Performance Assessment and Common Core Standards, recently published by Jossey-Bass Wiley.

Previously, as a teacher Bob founded Academy X, an award-winning leadership and humanities program at Sir Francis Drake High School in San Anselmo, California. In 1999, Drake High was named one of thirteen New American High Schools by U.S. Secretary of Education Richard Riley. In 2000, the school was featured on the cover of U.S. News & World Report as an example of successful high school reform.

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Jamie Jo Morgan is a wife and a mother to two amazing children, both with special needs. Her older daughter has been through the Gifted and Talented program before, and her younger daughter has Down syndrome and Autism. Jamie Jo's life is filled with excitement, and she uses those experiences to shape herself as a teacher.

Teaching is her PASSION! She has been working in education and in a classroom since 2009. She loves to bring her strong Music and Theatre backgrounds into her classroom every day. She believes learning should be engaging, fun, and exciting. She thinks back to her favorite lessons from her childhood and when she learned most, and she tries to shape her lessons around the things that made those lessons powerful!

What can be said about my classroom? Well, the hands-on assignments and experiments, the strong integration of technology, and the project-based learning that takes place allow our Talented and Gifted students to explore a part of themselves without limits. The possibilities can truly become endless. Her lifetime love of learning, especially with technology, drives her desire to be the best kind of teacher she can be for her students!

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If you are interested in being on the show or know someone who would be a great guest, please connect with Kevin Stoller

Travis Brantingham, Head of School

Taking the reins in 2014, Travis Brantingham has committed himself to establishing and maintaining the highest standards of teaching and learning; developing student leadership, character, and community; and ensuring that Principia School students benefit from a relevant, hands-on, education that equips them to be effective global citizens. Travis holds a BA from Principia College and an MA from Maryville University.

Peter Dry, Dean of Innovation and Academics

Bringing a wealth of international experience. Peter Dry focuses on professional development, equipping Principia’s teaching team with the tools to incorporate student-led discovery and authentic learning with an emphasis on entrepreneurial thinking and intellectual and emotional resilience. Peter holds a BA from the University of Natal, South Africa, and an MA from the University of Southern Queensland, Australia. 

Email: Travis Brantingham [email protected]

          Peter Dry [email protected]

Website: www.principiaschool.org

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If you are interested in being on the show or know someone who would be a great guest, please connect with Kevin Stoller

Sid Bailey is the Director of Leadership Development for the Arizona Charter Schools Association and is astutely aware that all effective schools have an effective leader at the helm. Through the Association’s partner organization, the Center for Student Achievement, Sid provides leadership training for Principals regardless of their level of experience. Leadership development is delivered in many forms including year-long Leadership Institutes, stand-alone trainings, and custom support tailored to the needs of individual leaders. Sid has experience at all levels, starting his career as a teacher, and then working for 14 years at two Valley schools, both recognized nationally for their academic success. Following his principal positions, Sid held district and state level leadership positions in athletics, student conduct transportation, assistant principal development, and leadership training director at the Arizona Department of Education. He is a member of the Northern Arizona University Athletic Hall of Fame (Track and Field) and in 2017 was inducted into the Arizona Interscholastic Athletic Administrators Association Hall of Fame.

Website: azcharters.org

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Mike Cobb is Head of School at All Saints Episcopal School in Tyler, Texas.  Mike is a visionary, charismatic, results-oriented, school leader with a passion for helping students experience cognitive, social, and emotional growth while fostering a school environment that celebrates the joy of learning. Demonstrated success as a classroom teacher, administrator, campus-wide program developer, international speaker, and admissions/enrollment leader.

Email: [email protected]

Twitter: @fundmc01

Website: www.all-saints.org

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If you are interested in being on the show or know someone who would be a great guest, please connect with Kevin Stoller

Abbey Ross has spent the majority of her professional career helping students with learning differences, and building unique programs to ensure their success after school. She is a skilled teacher and administrator who takes the time to get to know her students and their families, and works closely with them to devise a plan for success in the classroom.

Mrs. Ross graduated from University of Oregon with a Bachelor’s Degree in Communications and Political Science. Afterwards, she joined Teach for America, a nationally acclaimed and highly selective teaching program. Mrs. Ross taught 8th grade for two years at Dysart Elementary in El Mirage, Arizona where she developed a comprehensive academic support program for students with learning differences to help them prepare for AIMS testing.

Once her Teach for America commitment was complete, Mrs. Ross began her work at New Way as a junior high teacher. As she focused on the success of her students in school, Mrs. Ross also saw the need for a post-secondary support program for college students with learning differences. She spent two years leading the development and design of the Bridgeway College Success Program, which currently serves Valley students that attend local colleges.

Mrs. Ross became the Executive Director of New Way Academy in 2012. With a campus expansion complete and an increase in enrollment and teachers, Mrs. Ross continues to show her leadership and commitment to providing every opportunity imaginable for students with learning differences.

Mrs. Ross is involved with several non-profits in the Valley and serves on the boards of Arizona’s Parent Education Network (PEN) and Bridgeway College Success Program. She has been involved in Suns Charities 88 and a member of Valley Leadership, Class 37.

Websites mentioned:

New Way Academy

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If you are interested in being on the show or know someone who would be a great guest, please connect with Kevin Stoller

Mike Griffith has worked in the field of school finance policy for the past 19 years with Education Commission of the States, the consulting firm of Augenblick & Myers and the Michigan State Senate. His research has focused on the condition of state budgets, the adequacy and equity of state finance formulas, and promising practices in funding programs for high-need students. Mike is an expert resource to national news media and has been quoted more than 300 times by such outlets as CNN, Education Week, NBC Nightly News, National Public Radio and The New York Times. Mike holds a bachelor’s degree from Michigan State University, a master’s degree in public administration from The Ohio State University and a master’s degree in education management from Trinity College, Dublin, Ireland. 

Websites mentioned:

Education Commission of the States

US Census Education Spending

National Center Education for Statistics (NCES)

National Education Association (NEA) - Rankings and Estimates of School Statistics

Education Week - Quality Counts

Produced by Shoop Media for Kay-Twelve.com

If you are interested in being on the show or know someone who would be a great guest, please connect with Kevin Stoller

Mike Sinclair currently serves as the principal of Brashier Middle College Charter High School in Simpsonville, SC.  He has held this position since 2006 when he opened the school with the charter planning board.  Brashier is located on a satellite campus of Greenville Technical College and serves 440 students in grades 9-12 though the middle College model providing dual enrollment courses.  The student body annual performs within the top 10 high schools in South Carolina and 97%-100% graduate on time each year.

Mike graduated from the University of South Carolina in 1994 with a BA in Psychology and received a M.Ed. from Furman University in Educational Leadership in 2002.  In 2012 he was selected as the SC Charter Principal of the Year, and in 2013, received the prestigious Milken Educator Award.

As a teacher, Mike was positioned to lead many professional development opportunities and was convinced that the quality of the teachers serving students was the key to success.  He left the classroom in 2000 to serve as an Instructional Coach, and was assigned as the principal of a middle school in 2002.  That middle school would change his perspective and passion for serving students.  Why should a middle school principal be able to predict with fairly good accuracy which students would not graduate and which students would attend college?  As a Title I principal from a small textile town without a lot of job opportunities, this did not rest well with him.

Today, Mike works closely with his staff to open opportunities for each of his students while working in state organizations and within state government pathways to challenge the traditional model of education and share his passion that every student is “Worth It”.

Website: Brashier Middle College Charter High School

Email: [email protected]

Twitter: @BMCCHS

Produced by Shoop Media for Kay-Twelve.com

If you are interested in being on the show or know someone who would be a great guest, please connect with Kevin Stoller

Greg Schermbeck is the founder and principal consultant of SchermCo, an education advising and implementation firm.  In October of 2015, he completed the Marshall Memorial Fellowship with the German Marshall Fund.  He previously served as Nashville Prep’s (part of RePublic Schools) Founding Dean of Students, Science Department Chair and Director of Innovation.  Greg began his career as a Teach For America Corps Member teaching High School Science at West Charlotte High School.  He earned his B.A. from the College of Wooster and M.Ed. from Peabody College at Vanderbilt University.

Website: SchermCo.co

Twitter: @SchermCo

Facebook: SchermCo

Instagram: SchermCo

LinkedIn: Greg Schermbeck

Websites mentioned: OST Program Locator

Produced by Shoop Media for Kay-Twelve.com

If you are interested in being on the show or know someone who would be a great guest, please connect with Kevin Stoller

Francis Pina is a Boston native and a 9th and 10th grade mathematics teacher at Charlestown High school. He attended Boston Public Schools his entire K-12 education and earned a BS in Economics from Boston University. After working a few years after his undergrad, he attended Harvard Graduate School of Education to earn his Ed. M in Secondary Mathematics Curriculum and Instruction.

Francis has extensive experience working with students of diverse populations in the city of Boston and strives to implement a creative, engaging, and student-centered math curriculum for his students to achieve great success. Francis previously taught at Codman Academy Public Charter School in Dorchester, MA., was a Lead Teaching Fellow at Year Up Boston and a summer Math Teacher with the Steppingstone Foundation.

Francis is also a member of the Better Math Teaching Network, a community of teachers, researchers and community leaders who collaborate to analyze current research and share ideas to transform math instruction in high school and promote a more student-centered curriculum, and a Teach Plus Policy Fellow for the 2017 - 2018 school year. Currently, Francis is researching the ways and in which video games engage teens and how to transfer those principles to engage students in the high school classroom.

Francis Pina Huffinton Post Article Click Here

Email: [email protected]

Twitter: @franklpina

Website:Coming soon

Produced by Shoop Media for Kay-Twelve.com

If you are interested in being on the show or know someone who would be a great guest, please connect with Kevin Stoller