Better Learning Podcast

In this episode, Nicholas Erickson, Director of Technology Services at Waynesboro School District in South Central Pennsylvania, shares what it's like to be the person responsible for everything with a plug — from pencil sharpeners to AI and robotics. With 18 years in education, 16 of them at Waynesboro, Nick offers a grounded and collaborative perspective on how technology serves as the connective tissue that holds a modern school district together.

Learn More About Kay-Twelve:

Website: https://kay-twelve.com/

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/kay-twelve-com/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/kay_twelve/

Episode 318 of the Better Learning Podcast

Kevin Stoller is the host of the Better Learning Podcast and Co-Founder of Kay-Twelve, a national leader for educational furniture. Learn more about creating better learning environments at www.Kay-Twelve.com.

For more information on our partners:

Association for Learning Environments (A4LE) - https://www.a4le.org/

Education Leaders' Organization - https://www.ed-leaders.org/

Second Class Foundation - https://secondclassfoundation.org/

EDmarket - https://www.edmarket.org/

Catapult @ Penn GSE - https://catapult.gse.upenn.edu/

Want to be a Guest Speaker? Request on our website

In this episode, Wayne Gehris, Chief Financial Officer for the Reading School District, delivers one of the most compelling full-circle stories in this entire PASBO conference series. A proud Reading graduate (class of '93) who attended a high school of 5,000 students before heading to nearby Albright College, Wayne spent 17 years in public accounting before getting a call that would change everything: Reading was on the verge of a state takeover, and a team was being assembled to turn it around. Twelve years later, he's still there — and the work is anything but finished.

Learn More About Kay-Twelve:

Website: https://kay-twelve.com/

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/kay-twelve-com/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/kay_twelve/

Episode 328 of the Better Learning Podcast

Kevin Stoller is the host of the Better Learning Podcast and Co-Founder of Kay-Twelve, a national leader for educational furniture. Learn more about creating better learning environments at www.Kay-Twelve.com.

For more information on our partners:

Association for Learning Environments (A4LE) - https://www.a4le.org/

Education Leaders' Organization - https://www.ed-leaders.org/

Second Class Foundation - https://secondclassfoundation.org/

EDmarket - https://www.edmarket.org/

Catapult @ Penn GSE - https://catapult.gse.upenn.edu/

Want to be a Guest Speaker? Request on our website

In this episode, Siobhan McMahon, Deputy Executive Director of the Association of School Business Officials (ASBO) International, pulls back the curtain on the organization that supports roughly 11,000 school business professionals across North America. She shares how ASBO works behind the scenes — not in classrooms or districts, but providing the tools, resources, professional development, and advocacy that allow school business officials to do their jobs effectively.

Learn More About Kay-Twelve:

Website: https://kay-twelve.com/

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/kay-twelve-com/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/kay_twelve/

Episode 317 of the Better Learning Podcast

Kevin Stoller is the host of the Better Learning Podcast and Co-Founder of Kay-Twelve, a national leader for educational furniture. Learn more about creating better learning environments at www.Kay-Twelve.com.

For more information on our partners:

Association for Learning Environments (A4LE) - https://www.a4le.org/

Education Leaders' Organization - https://www.ed-leaders.org/

Second Class Foundation - https://secondclassfoundation.org/

EDmarket - https://www.edmarket.org/

Catapult @ Penn GSE - https://catapult.gse.upenn.edu/

Want to be a Guest Speaker? Request on our website

In this episode, Lori McCoy, Director of Food Services at Colonial School District in the Philadelphia suburbs, brings a refreshingly different perspective— one focused not on budgets or buildings, but on what students eat, how they eat, and why it matters deeply for learning. A registered dietician with nearly 20 years in the role, Lori oversees food service operations across seven schools serving 5,700 students daily, managing everything from breakfast and lunch programs to catering, vending, kitchen equipment procurement, and staff HR.

Learn More About Kay-Twelve:

Website: https://kay-twelve.com/

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/kay-twelve-com/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/kay_twelve/

Episode 325 of the Better Learning Podcast

Kevin Stoller is the host of the Better Learning Podcast and Co-Founder of Kay-Twelve, a national leader for educational furniture. Learn more about creating better learning environments at www.Kay-Twelve.com.

For more information on our partners:

Association for Learning Environments (A4LE) - https://www.a4le.org/

Education Leaders' Organization - https://www.ed-leaders.org/

Second Class Foundation - https://secondclassfoundation.org/

EDmarket - https://www.edmarket.org/

Catapult @ Penn GSE - https://catapult.gse.upenn.edu/

Want to be a Guest Speaker? Request on our website

In this episode, Sidney Clark, School Business Manager at Shanksville-Stonycreek School District in rural South Central Pennsylvania, offers a heartfelt look at what it means to serve one of the smallest school districts in the state — just 285 pre-K through 12th grade students. He shares how the tight-knit, community-centered environment shapes every financial decision he makes, treating all 285 students as his own kids.

Learn More About Kay-Twelve:

Website: https://kay-twelve.com/

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/kay-twelve-com/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/kay_twelve/

Episode 316 of the Better Learning Podcast

Kevin Stoller is the host of the Better Learning Podcast and Co-Founder of Kay-Twelve, a national leader for educational furniture. Learn more about creating better learning environments at www.Kay-Twelve.com.

For more information on our partners:

Association for Learning Environments (A4LE) - https://www.a4le.org/

Education Leaders' Organization - https://www.ed-leaders.org/

Second Class Foundation - https://secondclassfoundation.org/

EDmarket - https://www.edmarket.org/

Catapult @ Penn GSE - https://catapult.gse.upenn.edu/

Want to be a Guest Speaker? Request on our website

In this episode, Ellen Darlington, Director of Solutions and Customer Success from C&A Scientific, discusses the company's mission to provide affordable, high-quality hands-on STEM learning kits for K–12 students. She makes a compelling case for why physical, tactile learning experiences — like that classic exploding volcano — are irreplaceable, and why the neuroscience clearly supports hands-on engagement over screen-based learning.

Learn More About Kay-Twelve:

Website: https://kay-twelve.com/

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/kay-twelve-com/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/kay_twelve/

Episode 315 of the Better Learning Podcast

Kevin Stoller is the host of the Better Learning Podcast and Co-Founder of Kay-Twelve, a national leader for educational furniture. Learn more about creating better learning environments at www.Kay-Twelve.com.

For more information on our partners:

Association for Learning Environments (A4LE) - https://www.a4le.org/

Education Leaders' Organization - https://www.ed-leaders.org/

Second Class Foundation - https://secondclassfoundation.org/

EDmarket - https://www.edmarket.org/

Catapult @ Penn GSE - https://catapult.gse.upenn.edu/

Want to be a Guest Speaker? Request on our website

In this episode, Scott A. Chappell, Business Administrator at Derry Area School District, brings a deeply personal perspective to school finance — he's a graduate of the very district he now leads. That full-circle story shapes everything about the way Scott approaches his work, from understanding the community's values to feeling a genuine sense of pride and responsibility every time a dollar is spent.

Learn More About Kay-Twelve:

Website: https://kay-twelve.com/

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/kay-twelve-com/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/kay_twelve/

Episode 324 of the Better Learning Podcast

Kevin Stoller is the host of the Better Learning Podcast and Co-Founder of Kay-Twelve, a national leader for educational furniture. Learn more about creating better learning environments at www.Kay-Twelve.com.

For more information on our partners:

Association for Learning Environments (A4LE) - https://www.a4le.org/

Education Leaders' Organization - https://www.ed-leaders.org/

Second Class Foundation - https://secondclassfoundation.org/

EDmarket - https://www.edmarket.org/

Catapult @ Penn GSE - https://catapult.gse.upenn.edu/

Want to be a Guest Speaker? Request on our website

In this episode, Brian Pawling, Director of Business Administration at Radnor Township School District in Delaware County outside Philadelphia, shares his unconventional path from aspiring history teacher to 25-year school business veteran. What started as a first job out of college in the business side of a school district turned into a career he never planned — one that took him from small rural districts with 1,200 students to large suburban districts with over 12,000, and eventually to Radnor, where he oversees finance, facilities, food service, transportation, and virtually all operational functions of the district.

Learn More About Kay-Twelve:

Website: https://kay-twelve.com/

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/kay-twelve-com/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/kay_twelve/

Episode 323 of the Better Learning Podcast

Kevin Stoller is the host of the Better Learning Podcast and Co-Founder of Kay-Twelve, a national leader for educational furniture. Learn more about creating better learning environments at www.Kay-Twelve.com.

For more information on our partners:

Association for Learning Environments (A4LE) - https://www.a4le.org/

Education Leaders' Organization - https://www.ed-leaders.org/

Second Class Foundation - https://secondclassfoundation.org/

EDmarket - https://www.edmarket.org/

Catapult @ Penn GSE - https://catapult.gse.upenn.edu/

Want to be a Guest Speaker? Request on our website

In this episode, Jason McMillen, Director of Business Programs and Services at Appalachia Intermediate Unit 8, shares his unexpected journey from aerospace engineer to school business leader with over 17 years of experience. He explains the role of Pennsylvania's 29 intermediate units, originally created to provide special education services, and how they continue to support school districts across the state.

Learn More About Kay-Twelve:

Website: https://kay-twelve.com/

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/kay-twelve-com/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/kay_twelve/

Episode 314 of the Better Learning Podcast

Kevin Stoller is the host of the Better Learning Podcast and Co-Founder of Kay-Twelve, a national leader for educational furniture. Learn more about creating better learning environments at www.Kay-Twelve.com.

For more information on our partners:

Association for Learning Environments (A4LE) - https://www.a4le.org/

Education Leaders' Organization - https://www.ed-leaders.org/

Second Class Foundation - https://secondclassfoundation.org/

EDmarket - https://www.edmarket.org/

Catapult @ Penn GSE - https://catapult.gse.upenn.edu/

Want to be a Guest Speaker? Request on our website

In this episode, Dr. Marcia Stokes, Chief Financial Officer for Harrisburg School District, brings a truly remarkable breadth of experience to the conversation — having worked in school finance and operations across a Native American reservation in New York, post-Katrina New Orleans, and now one of Pennsylvania's most challenged urban school districts. Her career is a testament to the power of adaptability, mission, and the belief that you don't have to be from a community to fight for it.

Learn More About Kay-Twelve:

Website: https://kay-twelve.com/

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/kay-twelve-com/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/kay_twelve/

Episode 322 of the Better Learning Podcast

Kevin Stoller is the host of the Better Learning Podcast and Co-Founder of Kay-Twelve, a national leader for educational furniture. Learn more about creating better learning environments at www.Kay-Twelve.com.

For more information on our partners:

Association for Learning Environments (A4LE) - https://www.a4le.org/

Education Leaders' Organization - https://www.ed-leaders.org/

Second Class Foundation - https://secondclassfoundation.org/

EDmarket - https://www.edmarket.org/

Catapult @ Penn GSE - https://catapult.gse.upenn.edu/

Want to be a Guest Speaker? Request on our website