Education Evolution

Life is full of surprises, and not all of them are good. But sometimes the challenges we go through are the catalyst for changing our lives and inspiring others to do the same.

That's the case for Jon Acton, this week's podcast guest. After a nearly 30-year career in education, Jon became a school superintendent in March 2020…just days before COVID hit and schools had to make a big left turn. Then a stage 3 cancer diagnosis changed the trajectory of everything for Jon.

Jon and two fellow educators received the same diagnosis within just 10 months of one another, and after one lost his battle, Jon and his cancer warrior friend decided to take action. They founded Broken Shells, which seeks to remind us all that we're all "perfektly imperfekt" and that we should embrace the "why nots" in our lives.

Jon has created something out of adversity and I can see how it will inspire others to do the same. Listen in to this incredible story.

Husband, dad, cancer fighter, author, creator of Broken Shells, former school superintendent, principal, teacher, coach.

• [1:40] - What has led Jon to be a beacon of inspiration
• [3:50] - What is Broken Shells
• [4:15] - Partners to Broken Shells
• [5:50] - Perfectly imperfect life stories - the idea behind broken shells
• [8:45] - We have invisible bubbles around us
• [9:40] - Our whys and our why nots
• [10:55] - When an opportunity arises, ask yourself why or why not
• [11:57] - Don't let the "why not" sphere of time pass you by
• [13:25] - Table of influence
• [15:32] - Would you be at someone's table of influence the way you're living your life
• [16:14] - What's next for Jon
• [18:59] - Turbo Time
• [19:59] - Your impact can influence others
• [21:22] - Jon's Magic Wand
• [23:22] - Maureen's Takeaways

• Broken Shells
• Follow Broken Shells and Jon on Twitter
• Connect with Jon on LinkedIn
• Follow Broken Shells on Facebook
• Email Maureen

• Maureen's TEDx: Changing My Mind to Change Our Schools

• The Education Evolution
• Facebook: Follow Education Evolution
• Twitter: Follow Education Evolution
• LinkedIn: Follow Education Evolution
• EdActive Collective
• Maureen's book: Creating Micro-Schools for Colorful Mismatched Kids

• Micro-school feature on Good Morning America
• The Micro-School Coalition
• Facebook: The Micro-School Coalition
• LEADPrep

There's little worse than being told what you have to do, when you have to do it, and how. And especially when kids are involved, they're pretty good at digging in their heels and refusing. Ask any parent or teacher!

But we're still telling kids what they have to learn, how they have to learn it, and when. We're doing a disservice to them and, frankly, to the teachers who have to follow the prescribed curriculum.

Thank goodness teachers like Tanya King exist. Teachers who are using data and proven strategies to break the mold and truly get students excited about learning. Tanya, an award-winning 6th grade teacher in Washington state, champions the idea of letting go of control and letting students lead their own learning.

And what she's doing works! With kids regularly making two school years' of progress while in her care, they're no longer missing school or checking out mentally because they're bored or uninspired. She takes inspiration to the next level.

Listen in to find out how Tanya is doing it differently!

Tanya King, also known as Mrs. KB, is a 6th-grade teacher in the Edmonds School District. She is in her 22nd year of teaching, holds a BA in Elementary Ed, Special Education K-12, a Masters in Integrating Technology, and is National Board Certified. It is her mission to empower students to become lifelong learners and instill within them a belief they can reach any goal he/she sets for him/herself. By teaching students to believe in themselves and take ownership of their learning, her students know they can tackle any task. Students come to school because they have to; Mrs. KB has created a learner-driven class and kids come because they want to! Her mottos? Be the Captain of your Own Destiny! Live Limitless!

• [1:30] - Award winning teacher
• [1:59] - Extraordinary is "extra ordinary"
• [2:18] - How Tanya became a learner-centered teacher
• [3:10] - Fitting in the box doesn't work as a kid or a teacher
• [3:20] - Lessons from rafting through the Grand Canyon
• [4:22] - What it looks like in Tanya's classroom and the joy of controlled chaos
• [7:52] - Benefits of teachers letting go of control
• [11:03] - Data points that show student growth
• [15:42] - Kids aren't sure how to approach this new environment
• [16:46] - If we're not willing to try to change things, no one will make the change for us
• [17:45] - A few ways to shift away from rows to something more student-driven
• [18:18] - If you don't have a why behind what you're doing, find a different way
• [19:35] - Turbo Time
• [22:26] - The passion Tanya brings to learner-centered classrooms
• [23:05] - The best thing about working with tweens
• [24:43] - Tanya's Magic Wand
• [26:28] - Maureen's Takeaways

• Lynnwood Times article about Tanya's award
• iReady® Assessment
• Email Maureen

• Maureen's TEDx: Changing My Mind to Change Our Schools

• The Education Evolution
• Facebook: Follow Education Evolution
• Twitter: Follow Education Evolution
• LinkedIn: Follow Education Evolution
• EdActive Collective
• Maureen's book: Creating Micro-Schools for Colorful Mismatched Kids

• Micro-school feature on Good Morning America
• The Micro-School Coalition
• Facebook: The Micro-School Coalition
• LEADPrep

The whole point of this podcast is to help education evolve into something that better serves our children. We know that today's model doesn't work; let's inspire some change! I love talking to leaders about how they're making changes and helping to grow the inspiration to beyond their own immediate circle.

This time of year, I like to take time to reflect, express gratitude, and look forward. And this week on the podcast, I'm sharing some of that with you.

As leaders, we need to grow and evolve too; change doesn't happen if we stay where we are. That's why I'm making a big change in 2023, and I'd love your support in continuing to move forward.

Listen in and consider your role in the evolution of education and how you can best use your gifts to continue the process.

• [1:08] - Reflecting on where you are through three lenses
• [1:50] - Become tools for the changes you want to see
• [2:09] - Maureen looking back
• [2:12] - History of nudging at different possibilities
• [3:55] - Waiting to be part of a solution
• [5:51] - Preparing for new growth
• [7:00] - My last year as Head of School
• [8:30] - Breathing in the present moment
• [9:32] - Dividing job into what makes more sense
• [10:45] - What is our heart calling us to stop, start, do more or less of?
• [12:45] - My three asks for you

• LEADPrep Head of School posting
• "An exquisite devotional work with meditations on wonder, hope, love, mystery, and faith": Seasons of Your Heart: Prayers and Reflections by Macrina Wiederkehr

• The Circle of Life: The Heart's Journey through the Seasons by Joyce Rupp & Macrina Wiederkehr

• Tim Ferriss' Past Year Review

• Email Maureen

• Maureen's TEDx: Changing My Mind to Change Our Schools

• The Education Evolution
• Facebook: Follow Education Evolution
• Twitter: Follow Education Evolution
• LinkedIn: Follow Education Evolution
• EdActive Collective
• Maureen's book: Creating Micro-Schools for Colorful Mismatched Kids

• Micro-school feature on Good Morning America
• The Micro-School Coalition
• Facebook: The Micro-School Coalition
• LEADPrep

Helping youth who have dropped out of high school is important, but what if we could prevent the dropouts altogether? That's the idea behind Jobs for America's Graduates (JAG), championed by this week's podcast guest, Ken Smith.

As the president and CEO of this 40-year-old non-profit organization, Ken is working to ensure that America's most vulnerable youth succeed after high school and secure good jobs. And they do that through mentorship and career-focused educational opportunities inside schools.

Attendance has been pointed to by state leaders as the most pressing issue in schools. But it's not about getting students into seats, which is a symptom of a bigger issue. What's missing is connection. And without programs like JAG, we risk losing a big part of our next generation.

JAG has served more than 1.7 million students to date in 39 states and Ken's vision has that impact doubling over the next few years. I'm incredibly impressed with the resources and opportunities that JAG will add in the coming years and I have no doubt that Ken will reach his goal.

Mr. Kenneth M. Smith serves as President and CEO of Jobs for America's Graduates, Inc. (JAG), the nation's largest, most consistently applied model of high school retention and school-to-career transition for high-risk young people of great promise.

In 1979, Mr. Smith worked with Governor Pete du Pont of Delaware on the design of the first statewide test of the JAG Model and has served as President and CEO since its inception. JAG currently serves 75,000 young people annually, in more than 1,450 high schools, middle schools, and out-of-school programs in 39 states. Over 1.4 million youth have been connected to JAG throughout its 40-year history.

The non-profit JAG National Board of Directors is chaired by Governor John Bel Edwards of Louisiana. It includes among its 50 members—fourteen Governors and several executives of major corporations and business and community organizations.

In recognition of his knowledge of national employment and training issues, three Presidents have appointed Mr. Smith to national commissions. He was appointed in 1981 and again in 1983 by President Reagan as Chairman of the National Commission for Employment Policy. Designed to analyze the full range of government policy related to employment, the Commission continues with a $2 million annual appropriation and a 15-member professional staff. Mr. Smith also accepted an appointment by President Reagan to the National Advisory Council on Vocational Education, where he had previously served under appointment by President Ford. President Nixon appointed Mr. Smith as Vice Chairman of the National Advisory Council on the Education of Disadvantaged Children for the period 1973-76.

Mr. Smith is also Chairman and Chief Executive of Strategic Partnerships LLC.

Prior to founding JAG, Mr. Smith served as staff aide to President Nixon (1969-70); as Director of Special Projects for the Distributive Education Clubs of America; and founder and President of 70,0001 Ltd., a nonprofit organization dedicated to helping high school dropouts obtain employment. Thereafter, he served in a new post as Senior Advisor to the Governor of Delaware on all activities related to education at the secondary and postsecondary levels. During this period, he chaired the Commission of the Future of Education in Delaware and was nominated to serve as the Chairman of the Board of Trustees of Delaware Technical College.

Mr. Smith serves as a Trustee of the America's Promise Alliance, founded in 1997 with General Colin Powell as Chairman and chaired today by Alma Powell, is a cross-sector partnership of more than 300 corporations, nonprofits, faith-based organizations and advocacy groups that are passionate about improving lives and changing outcomes for children

• [1:22] - Who is Ken Smith
• [1:50] - Where Ken's story of serving youth started
• [4:35] - The depth and breadth of schools is daunting
• [4:51] - Our present situation now is the most alarming we've ever seen
• [6:48] - A disconnected population at scale
• [7:23] - Attendance is the symptom, not the disease
• [8:25] - Part time work increases motivation in school
• [9:17] - What JAG is and why are so many students a part of it
• [13:22] - Youth need a relationship with a mentor
• [16:15] - How JAG has spread to so many states
• [19:16] - Where JAG is heading
• [23:09] - Turbo Time
• [28:04] - Ken's passion for JAG
• [28:48] - Something good that's come out of COVID
• [30:38] - Ken's Magic Wand
• [33:12] - Maureen's Takeaways

• JAG
• Rita Pierson TED Talk
• Email Maureen

• Maureen's TEDx: Changing My Mind to Change Our Schools

• The Education Evolution
• Facebook: Follow Education Evolution
• Twitter: Follow Education Evolution
• LinkedIn: Follow Education Evolution
• EdActive Collective
• Maureen's book: Creating Micro-Schools for Colorful Mismatched Kids

• Micro-school feature on Good Morning America
• The Micro-School Coalition
• Facebook: The Micro-School Coalition
• LEADPrep

What better way to support young kids to be happy and healthy students than to encourage them to play. Unfortunately, that's not the way we operate in the U.S. Instead, we prioritize test scores and sitting quietly and academically-charged preschools.

It's no wonder that our youth are depressed and unhappy. We're so busy believing the myths about education and children that social media and the media feed us that we aren't looking at the hard facts. That kids are not meant to sit quietly every day. We can't do that as adults…why are we expecting three-year-olds to?

This week on the podcast, author and early childhood education consultant Rae Pica debunks four big myths about early childhood education. You can hear the passion in her voice when she shares examples from teachers she's talked to and classrooms she's visited.

This was such a refreshing conversation from someone who gets it. And I love the tips she shared to help us get active and speak out for the benefit of our kids.

Rae Pica has served as a consultant in early childhood education for more than four decades. The author of 22 books, including her latest, Spark a Revolution in Early Education: Speaking Up for Ourselves and the Children, Rae is also a keynote speaker and online course creator. In her role as a consultant, she has been trusted by such organizations as the Sesame Street Research Department, National Head Start Association, the Chicago Children's Museum, and Nickelodeon's Blue's Clues. Rae is most proud of her fierce defense of childhood.

• [1:36] - Rae's mission for early childhood education
• [2:22] - Children are unhappy and depressed
• [4:26] - Common themes that keep coming up in working with many organizations
• [6:12] - Teachers are required to put worksheets in front of kids rather than teach in a way that respects the kids
• [10:23] - Myths of early childhood education
• [22:06] - Turbo Time
• [24:40] - What people need to know about experiential learning
• [27:41] - Rae's Magic Wand
• [29:51] - Maureen's Takeaways

• Follow Rae on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram
• Spark a Revolution in Early Education: Speaking Up for Ourselves and the Children by Rae Pica
• Smart Moves: Why Learning is All in Your Head by Carla Hannaford
• U.VA. Researchers Find that Kindergarten is the New First Grade
• International Play Association
• How Finland Keeps Kids Focused Through Free Play
• Email Maureen

• Maureen's TEDx: Changing My Mind to Change Our Schools

• The Education Evolution
• Facebook: Follow Education Evolution
• Twitter: Follow Education Evolution
• LinkedIn: Follow Education Evolution
• EdActive Collective
• Maureen's book: Creating Micro-Schools for Colorful Mismatched Kids

• Micro-school feature on Good Morning America
• The Micro-School Coalition
• Facebook: The Micro-School Coalition
• LEADPrep

Imagine being at a school where 80% of the students look like you…but you're the only one like you who is in the honors and advanced classes. That's where this week's guest, Carlon Howard, found himself as he readied to graduate from high school. And that experience put him on the pathway that landed him as a leader and impact-maker in educational equity.

Carlon has a passion for supporting individuals who feel stuck in cultural narratives due to a lack of equity, inclusivity, and diversity in leadership. And his organization, Equity Institute, is taking what they've created and teaching organizations how to develop these initiatives in their own communities.

In this episode, Carlon and I talk about doing the work in the messy gray space, why teacher pathway programs are so valuable, why schools need support outside the traditional education space, and how he built Equity Institute organically from a place of connection and decompressing.

I love Carlon's philosophy of teaching others to do the work, rather than assuming his organization knows the answers for every situation. We need more of this in leadership roles.

Carlon is the Chief Impact Officer and Co-Founder of Equity Institute. In his role, he leads organization-wide strategic and operational planning, ensuring EI's vision is realized through clear prioritization and high-impact operational execution. In addition to helping launch the Equity Institute, he also co-founded re*generation (formerly EduLeaders of Color R.I.). Now an initiative of the Equity Institute, re*generation hosts monthly meetups designed to support education leaders from underrepresented backgrounds.

Before entering his current role with Equity Institute, Carlon was executive director of Breakthrough Providence, served as a City Year AmeriCorps member and Impact Manager, was a classroom teacher, and was a policy fellow for a former Colorado Senator. He graduated from the University of Georgia with undergraduate degrees in criminal justice and political science and completed his graduate degree in education from Rhode Island College. He also earned a graduate certificate in nonprofit management and leadership from the Institute of Nonprofit Practice, in affiliation with Tufts University's Jonathan M. Tisch College of Civic Life. Additionally, he completed formal training as a leadership and performance coach. Outside of his full-time work, Carlon is an adjunct instructor at College Unbound.

• [1:39] - How education transformation began for Carlon
• [3:39] - In an 80% black school, Carlon was the only black male in the honors classes
• [5:09] - A quarter life crisis
• [7:03] - All the world's problems exist in schools but schools don't have the means to solve them
• [7:59] - The origins of the Equity Institute in 2019
• [10:10] - Students weren't being served in a way that made sense
• [10:50] - Helping design and implement innovative solutions to build more diverse, equitable, inclusive, professional learning environments
• [12:35] - What other profession goes home and does more work for free
• [13:22] - TA to BA educator pathway program
• [17:51] - Well-meaning initiatives are challenged by getting into new communities
• [19:40] - Has insights to help others; can be inspiration and accountability
• [20:30] - Things aren't black or white; the real work happens in the gray area
• [21:46] - First steps to take to create to support others in educator pathway
• [25:39] - Turbo Time
• [28:05] - Carlon's passion in equity work
• [31:42] - Carlon's Magic Wand
• [33:40] - Maureen's Takeaways

• Equity Institute
• Connect with Carlon on LinkedIn
• College Unbound
• Talking to Strangers by Malcolm Gladwell
• Deschooling Society by Ivan Illich
• Email Maureen

• Maureen's TEDx: Changing My Mind to Change Our Schools

• The Education Evolution
• Facebook: Follow Education Evolution
• Twitter: Follow Education Evolution
• LinkedIn: Follow Education Evolution
• EdActive Collective
• Maureen's book: Creating Micro-Schools for Colorful Mismatched Kids

• Micro-school feature on Good Morning America
• The Micro-School Coalition
• Facebook: The Micro-School Coalition
• LEADPrep

Our youth are amazing people, who are learning and growing every day. Part of that learning includes figuring out what they enjoy doing and what they're good at. As educators, we get to help them see how their skills and interests can potentially turn into a career.

But not enough of us are doing that, and it can be challenging to find a connection when teenagers and young adults adopt new interests and skills regularly.

This week on the podcast, I'm talking with Dr. Leigh Anne Taylor Knight, executive director and chief operating officer of the DeBruce Foundation. Among other things, the foundation is committed to helping individuals unlock their potential and find career pathways.

The DeBruce Foundation has a free tool that can help individuals of any age identify their abilities and interests and match them with a set of agilities that will allow them to explore careers, identify what education is needed, and so much more.

On this episode, we talk about the foundation's recent research, why employment empowerment needs to be on every educator's radar, and why this is the missing piece in career development and growth.

Dr. Leigh Anne Taylor Knight is a resourceful, innovative leader who currently serves The DeBruce Foundation in Kansas City as Executive Director and Chief Operating Officer. The Foundation's mission is to expand pathways to economic growth and opportunity. It seeks to help people discover what they want to do, and what they're good at doing, to open more career possibilities.

Having served as a K-12 educator, Leigh Anne established a career dedicated to improving how individuals understand themselves and view opportunities to advance in the world of work. She is driven to lead the leveraging of resources across sectors for innovative learning, rigorous research, and community collaboration in order to improve economic development and the quality of life. A teacher at heart, Leigh Anne has also served as a K-12 assistant superintendent, advised learning institutions across the nation, and led a bi-state consortium providing powerful tools for data-driven educational research to inform practice and policy.

After graduating from University of Missouri-Columbia with a Bachelor's degree in Environmental Design and Bachelor's and Master's degrees in Secondary Education, Leigh Anne earned her Education Specialist's degree from the University of Missouri-Kansas City and her doctorate from the University of Kansas in Education Policy and Leadership. Connect with her on LinkedIn and Twitter.

• [2:20] - There's a disconnect between graduating from high school and then starting careers
• [2:49] - How to find a career pathway
• [5:46] - The missing piece in career development and growth
• [6:45] - Learning about talking about experience that starts with a club
• [9:17] - Research that supports the theory of change
• [10:07] - What is employment empowerment
• [12:40] - Individuals with employment empowerment are higher on some career literacy measures
• [14:30] - There's strength in your network network strength
• [15:05] - Career literacy and network strength helps to accelerate employment empowerment
• [16:20] - There are systemic issues that caused people to have barriers in accelerating their employment empowerment and working on them is a long game
• [17:23] - Our schools could get really dialed in about what alumni, parents, and the business community could provide
• [20:53] - 4 of 10 people rate themselves low in both career literacy and network strength
• [21:49] - Career literacy isn't the only thing that we should be working on
• [22:20] - Rethink some of the structures you have in your organization
• [24:58] - Where to get started: Your three bold steps
• [28:35] - Turbo Time
• [30:33] - Improving the quality of life for others
• [31:37] - Leigh Anne's Magic Wand
• [33:19] - Maureen's Takeaways

• DeBruce Foundation
• Agilities by the DeBruce Foundation
• Agile Work Profiler
• Career Explorer Tools
• Follow the DeBruce Foundation on Facebook and Instagram
• Connect with the DeBruce Foundation on LinkedIn and Twitter
• Read the DeBruce Foundation's research on employment empowerment
• Draw Your Future with Agilities
• Episode 2: Inviting Imagination and Our Agilities into Teen Goal Setting with Patti Dobrowolski
• Undistracted: Capture Your Purpose, Rediscover Your Joy by Bob Goff
• Email Maureen

• Maureen's TEDx: Changing My Mind to Change Our Schools

• The Education Evolution
• Facebook: Follow Education Evolution
• Twitter: Follow Education Evolution
• LinkedIn: Follow Education Evolution
• EdActive Collective
• Maureen's book: Creating Micro-Schools for Colorful Mismatched Kids

• Micro-school feature on Good Morning America
• The Micro-School Coalition
• Facebook: The Micro-School Coalition
• LEADPrep

You have to make so many decisions every day as an educator or educational leader. It's overwhelming and enough to drive you to burnout. Add to that the change that happens seemingly every minute in the classroom or the office.

We can't train on how to manage our brains around the constant disruptions and distractions. But you can change how you plan for and react to them.

This week on the podcast, I'm talking with Melina Palmer, a behavioral economist who consults with businesses all over the globe. She's the author of the new book, What Your Customer Wants and Can't Tell you. We explore what your teachers (and students) need and want and why it's so hard to put that into words. We also talk about why the Golden Rule is antiquated and why we need to focus on the Platinum Rule instead.

Melina is the real deal when it comes to behavioral change and there are so many takeaways from this conversation. But don't make the mistake of trying to change everything at once. Instead, tune into some micro-shifts to make long-lasting changes.

Melina Palmer is founder and CEO of The Brainy Business, which provides behavioral economics consulting to businesses of all sizes from around the world. Her podcast, The Brainy Business: Understanding the Psychology of Why People Buy, has downloads in over 160 countries and is used as a resource for teaching applied behavioral economics for many universities and businesses. Melina obtained her bachelor's degree in business administration: marketing and worked in corporate marketing and brand strategy for over a decade before earning her master's in behavioral economics. A proud member of the Global Association of Applied Behavioral Scientists, Melina has contributed research to the Association for Consumer Research, Filene Research Institute, and runs the Behavioral Economics & Business column for Inc Magazine. She teaches applied behavioral economics through the Texas A&M Human Behavior Lab and is the author of two books, What Your Customer Wants and Can't Tell You and What Your Employees Need and Can't Tell You.

• [2:15] - What teachers need but we're not attending to
• [2:40] - Psychology of decision-making
• [3:03] - Change isn't what we think it is
• [4:30] - Every conversation is some sort of change
• [8:02] - Golden Rule and Platinum Rule
• [11:35] - How can we unpack what teachers need or want
• [13:33] - Asking questions shows they're interested and want to know more
• [14:15] - Where can you help take repetitive items and take them off teachers' plates
• [15:52] - Teachers don't go into the profession for the pay
• [17:46] - Change is all about you and has nothing to do with you
• [19:20] - There's value in being empowered to change the way you respond to anything
• [22:38] - What we need to tune into to implement change
• [23:28] - It's not possible to remove bias from your life
• [25:36] - Micro-shift moments: Get a win and keep on going
• [28:36] - Pandemic was spotlight on institution of education
• [30:15] - The way change is presented makes all the difference
• [34:48] - Turbo Time
• [36:55] - What people need to know about interpersonal communication
• [39:37] - Making something more bite sized can you look more knowledgeable
• [40:58] - Melina's Magic Wand
• [42:41] - Maureen's takeaways

• Episode 56: Getting to the Brainy Business of School Change
• Melina's Books
• The Brainy Business Podcast
• Solving Modern Problems with a Stone-Age Brain: Human Evolution and the Seven Fundamental Motives by Dr. Douglas T. Kenrick and David E. Lundberg
• A More Beautiful Question: The Power of Inquiry to Spark Breakthrough Ideas by Warren Berger
• Beautiful Questions in the Classroom: Transforming Classrooms into Cultures of Curiosity and Inquiry by Warren Berger
• Email Maureen

• Maureen's TEDx: Changing My Mind to Change Our Schools

• The Education Evolution
• Facebook: Follow Education Evolution
• Twitter: Follow Education Evolution
• LinkedIn: Follow Education Evolution
• EdActive Collective
• Maureen's book: Creating Micro-Schools for Colorful Mismatched Kids

• Micro-school feature on Good Morning America
• The Micro-School Coalition
• Facebook: The Micro-School Coalition
• LEADPrep

Why do we need to wait for youth to get involved? They're here now and are highly capable of being a part of the dialogue and decision-making. This week on the podcast, we're exploring what that looks like in action from an organization that has been in the trenches for a decade.

Rachel Belin, managing partner and co-founder of Kentucky Student Voice Team works alongside youth to help create an intergenerational dynamic, where youth members are involved in raising their voices and helping others do the same. They're involved in legislative spaces, advocacy, and more with adults as their partners.

Listen in this week to find out how legislators and the public have responded to KSVT in action, what ripple effect the organization has created, how it supports students who wouldn't typically seek out something like KSVT, and so much more.

This conversation left me feeling inspired and hopeful.

Rachel Burg Belin (she/her) is the Managing Partner and, with young people, a co-founder of the Kentucky Student Voice Team.

She has decades of experience by turns as a social studies teacher, media literacy leader, education policy aide, nonprofit development consultant, and commercial radio news director. In the course of this work, she has spearheaded nine different ventures to amplify and elevate the voices of students in civic discourse. With young people as collaborators, she has been the recipient of the Citizen's and Scholars Civic Spring Award, the Kentucky Nonprofit Network Excellence in Public Policy Award, the Pathway 2 Tomorrow Breakthrough in Education Innovation Award, and a George Foster Peabody Award. Rachel holds a BA from Harvard University and an MAT from the University of Rochester.

• [1:52] - Amplifying the voice of youth
• [2:45] - The role of adults is not to get out of the way; it's to build and circulate power
• [4:40] - Unpacking the word democracy
• [5:20] - Young people in public schools can and need to play an important role in shaping those institutions
• [6:25] - Guerrilla social studies: It's hypocrisy to teach democracy in an autocracy
• [6:41] - What Kentucky youth have created
• [10:21] - Response from legislators and public
• [14:50] - Young people are part of the present and don't need to wait until they're of voting age to get involved
• [17:02] - Policy at legislative level isn't everything
• [18:14] - Roadblocks that have come up in this process
• [19:15] - You can't wait for your ducks to be in a row
• [19:34] - Reaching the hardest to reach students
• [25:24] - Concrete steps to amplify the voices of students
• [26:10] - Young people should be in the room where it happens
• [27:10] - Turbo Time
• [29:07] - What people need to know about youth engagement
• [31:59] - Don't wait for permission to get involved
• [33:13] - Rachel's Magic Wand
• [34:30] - Maureen's Takeaways

• Follow Rachel on Twitter
• Connect with Rachel on LinkedIn
• The New Edu - Kentucky Student Voice Team
• Educated by Tara Westover
• Email Maureen

• Maureen's TEDx: Changing My Mind to Change Our Schools

• The Education Evolution
• Facebook: Follow Education Evolution
• Twitter: Follow Education Evolution
• LinkedIn: Follow Education Evolution
• EdActive Collective
• Maureen's book: Creating Micro-Schools for Colorful Mismatched Kids

• Micro-school feature on Good Morning America
• The Micro-School Coalition
• Facebook: The Micro-School Coalition
• LEADPrep