In this episode of the Legend Makers Podcast, host Scott Buell talks with Dr. Jacie Maslyk, a nationally recognized educator, author, and consultant who has spent nearly three decades helping schools transform learning through creativity, collaboration, and hands-on experiences.

Dr. Maslyk shares her journey from classroom teacher to instructional coach, reflecting on the moments that shaped her belief that every student has untapped potential waiting to be discovered. She discusses her books, including STEAM Makers, Connect to Lead, Remaking Literacy, Unlock Creativity, and All In, and how she uses design challenges and makerspaces to bring learning to life.

Key topics include:

• How curiosity drives meaningful learning
• The importance of creativity in schools
• What it takes to design engaging learning spaces
• How hands-on experiences help uncover hidden student potential
• Encouragement for new and future educators

Dr. Maslyk also shares inspiring classroom stories, from students discovering a passion for woodworking to teachers rediscovering joy through simple design challenges.

Links and Resources:

• Website: https://steam-makers.com/
• X (Twitter): @DrJacieMaslyk
• Instagram: @jaciemaslyk
• Bluesky: @jaciemaslyk.bsky.social
• Email: [email protected]

Dr. Maslyk will also appear at FETC in Orlando this January, where she’ll be signing books and connecting with educators.

Listen in to hear how she’s helping schools across the country redesign learning environments that bring back creativity, curiosity, and connection.

In this episode of the Legend Makers Podcast, Scott Buell talks with Trisha Adami, a K–5 Design Thinking teacher from West Chester, Pennsylvania, and the self-published author behind a heartfelt series inspired by her daughter, Snow. Trisha shares Snow’s medical journey and how a simple question—“Do princesses have surgery?”—sparked books that help children facing hospitals and procedures feel seen and brave.

Inside the classroom, Trisha builds an ever-evolving design thinking program that blends SEL, STEM, storytelling, and real-world problem solving. Students code with Ozobots, design in Canva, and craft Cricut-made blankets that become donations for kids at the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia.

Her motto for the year is “Embrace the new.” That mindset shapes her projects and the way she helps students grow from mistakes into makers.

Episode highlights:

• Snow’s story and the origin of Princess of Adeladia
• How picture books can reduce fear for kids navigating surgeries
• Building a K–5 design thinking curriculum that stays current
• Classroom management with structure, warmth, and reflection
• Practical advice for new and future teachers
• Why “Embrace the new” unlocks creativity and courage

Order Snow’s Books Directly from Trisha. Support Snow’s mission and put a signed book in a child’s hands.

• Price: $20 per book when purchased directly from Trisha
• What you get: Signed by Trisha Adami and Snow
• Give-back: For every book purchased, one book is donated to the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia. Trisha has also received requests for donations to Hershey Children’s Hospital in Hershey, PA.
• How to order: Send Trisha a PM on Instagram to @designthinkingteacher

Your direct purchase helps Trisha donate more books to kids and families who need encouragement during hospital stays.

Season 3, Episode 2 of the Legend Makers Podcast features Wendy Albert, Vice President of WiCyS Houston and Founder/CEO of Onyx Cyber. Wendy is a cybersecurity expert, doctoral candidate, and community leader with a mission to expand access to technology and empower underrepresented voices in tech.

In this conversation with host Scott Buell, Wendy shares her journey from defense contracting in Virginia to building a nonprofit in Texas that provides real opportunities in cybersecurity and STEM. She discusses her path through higher education, her dissertation work, and the vision behind Onyx Cyber’s three branches:

• Onyx Academy for training and apprenticeships
• OnyxCon to bring conferences and hands-on experiences like drone and coding simulations to overlooked communities
• Onyx Tech Tots to spark interest in STEM among children as young as five

Wendy also opens up about the personal drive behind her mission. From her father’s military career and her mother’s recovery from a life-threatening aneurysm, to her family’s sacrifices and support, she explains how those experiences shaped her determination to lead and serve.

Listeners will hear how Wendy balances her leadership at WiCyS, her nonprofit work, and her doctoral research. She reflects on entrepreneurship, the challenges of turning vision into reality, and why she believes small, community-focused efforts can build the foundation for lasting change.

If you’re a woman considering a future in tech, or an educator looking for ways to connect students with meaningful STEM opportunities, this episode offers encouragement and practical insights. Wendy’s message is clear: define your own path, stay driven, and lift others as you climb.

Connect with Wendy Albert:

• Instagram: @wendyintech
• LinkedIn: Wendy Albert

Follow and like Drone Legends on X, FaceBook, LinkedIn, TikTok, and YouTube

Season 3 of the Legend Makers Podcast kicks off with a powerful back-to-school episode featuring Kevin Abt, a former agriculture teacher turned career tech evangelist. Kevin is the VP of HR at one of the largest career tech school networks in the country, serving over 18,000 students across four campuses in Southwest Ohio.

In this conversation, Scott and Kevin dive into the real-world shift happening in education—where more and more students are choosing skills over lectures, certification over debt, and careers over waiting.

They cover:

• Why career tech enrollment is booming nationwide
• How Great Oaks connects middle schoolers to career options early
• The launch of new programs in drones, aviation, and electric vehicle tech
• What it's like recruiting industry pros to become teachers
• The “3 E’s” every student needs to find: Enrolled, Employed, or Enlisted
• How trades are becoming the new ticket to entrepreneurship and financial freedom
• Why so many Great Oaks grads are AI-proof—and future-ready

Kevin also shares his personal story, growing up on a farm, falling in love with ag education through FFA, and how teaching career tech flipped the switch for him as a student and an educator.

If you're a parent, teacher, admin, or just someone who cares about where education is going, this episode is a must-listen.

Links: 🛠 Learn more about Great Oaks: https://www.greatoaks.com 🏫 Connect with Kevin Abt on LinkedIn: Kevin's LinkedIn

Follow and like Drone Legends on X, FaceBook, LinkedIn, TikTok, and YouTube

In this episode of Legend Makers, meet Omar Delgado, a former history teacher turned media powerhouse at Christopher Columbus High School in Miami. Omar’s journey from coaching basketball to leading the #1 high school broadcast journalism program in the country is nothing short of epic—and it started with rejection.

When a rival teacher refused to help him, Omar didn’t get discouraged. He got focused. Within a year, he came back and beat her in every competition category. That moment lit a fire—and he’s been building champions ever since.

Omar shares:

• How humility + obsession built a national broadcast powerhouse
• What teachers should stop doing with AI—and what they should start doing today
• Why the myth that “AI will take your job” is rooted in fear, not facts
• How personalized learning powered by AI can change everything for kids
• The secret behind his students’ confidence, character, and post-graduation success
• His own story of discovering a learning disability after college and how technology helped him become a top educator

He also opens up about the programs he’s built, the tech tools that actually work (and which are a waste), and his philosophy on what great education really looks like.

This episode is a must-listen for any educator, school leader, or parent thinking about where learning is headed—and what it takes to lead from the front.

📍Want to connect with Omar? He’s serious when he says he’s here to help. 📧 [email protected]

Books Mentioned:

• The Greatest Salesman in the World by Og Mandino
• Meditations by Marcus Aurelius
• The Daily Laws by Robert Greene
• Founders podcast by David Senra

How does a former baseball coach and school security guard become one of the nation’s leading voices in educational innovation?

In this inspiring episode of the Legend Makers Podcast, Scott sits down with Steve Iglesias, Director of Innovation and Technology at Doral Academy in Doral, Florida. Broadcasting live from his cutting-edge innovation lab, Steve shares his unlikely journey into education, and how a book—Bold by Peter Diamandis—changed the trajectory of his life and career.

What started as a side gig coaching golf eventually led Steve to launch an entire innovation ecosystem that includes programs in robotics, AI, cybersecurity, game design, and biomedical engineering. But Steve’s mission goes deeper than just teaching kids how to code. He’s focused on what he calls “future fluency”—exposing students early to the real technologies, challenges, and possibilities they’ll face in the decades to come.

In this conversation, Steve and Scott dig into why education needs to shift from content delivery to experiential learning, how to close the growing AI gap, and what we can learn from sports, esports, and the startup world about building grit, critical thinking, and purpose.

Steve’s not waiting for a playbook—he’s writing one. If you care about the future of education, this is a must-listen.

In this episode:

• How Steve turned curiosity into a mission
• What’s missing in K–12 education today
• Building real-world pathways for students using emerging tech
• How afterschool programs can ignite career exploration
• Advice for new teachers and changemakers in education

Subscribe now to hear how legends are made—one spark at a time.

In this episode of the Legend Makers Podcast, Scott sits down with Amy Parks, Innovation Lab teacher at Forts Ferry Elementary in North Colonie, New York. Amy shares her journey from gifted education to leading a hands-on, curiosity-driven STEM program — one that’s transforming how young learners experience school.

Together, Scott and Amy talk about the power of unstructured play, the importance of building resilience through trial and error, and why today’s kids need real-world challenges more than ever. They dive into how the pandemic unexpectedly accelerated innovation at her district, leading to the creation of six Innovation Labs, and how these labs are helping students (and teachers!) rediscover the joy of exploration, failure, and growth.

Whether you're a teacher, administrator, or just passionate about the future of education, you’ll walk away inspired by Amy’s vision for sparking lifelong curiosity in students — starting from their very first days in school.

🎧 Listen now to hear how giving kids "wind" early helps them grow stronger for life.

In this episode of the Legend Makers Podcast, we sit down with Mark Edwards, Assistant Superintendent at Reading Community Schools in Ohio, to unpack what it really means to educate the whole child—and why now is the time to reimagine what success looks like in school.

With 22+ years in education, Mark has worn nearly every hat there is: teacher, communicator, curriculum leader, tech manager, HR chief, facilities head—you name it. But at his core, he’s a passionate educator on a mission to restore purpose, joy, and relevance to K-12 learning.

Together, we explore:

• The problem with turning education into a “knowledge delivery” system—and how it robs both teachers and students of joy
• Why curiosity, communication, resilience, and leadership matter more than content in today’s world
• How Reading Schools is embedding career-focused, real-world learning starting in kindergarten
• The bold shift from “get the diploma” to “find your next”
• How soft skills and purpose-driven learning can prepare students for a rapidly evolving workforce
• What Mark tells his own son—and others—about learning, failure, and finding meaning in your work

Mark also shares what excites him about the future: innovation, personalization, and using AI not to replace educators but to free them up to do what they do best—connect, mentor, and inspire.

If you care about shifting from compliance to connection, from content to curiosity, and from burnout to belonging, this is the conversation for you.

Listen now and be reminded why education still holds the power to change everything—when we get it right.

In this inspiring episode of the Legend Makers Podcast, Scott sits down with Patty Maffei, an interventionist and STEM trailblazer at Real Learning Academy in Austin, Texas. Patty didn’t take the traditional path to education—her journey includes a career in banking, raising five kids, and returning to college alongside her son before diving into the classroom.

Patty shares how her love for learning, glam teacher role models from the 80s, and a chance opportunity as a substitute teacher led to a full-blown career pivot. She opens up about:

• Starting her teaching career during the height of the pandemic
• Using parenting skills for classroom management
• Building a STEM program from scratch—including coding, robotics, and drones
• Setting healthy boundaries in a profession that never “clocks out”
• Her optimism for the future of education and why change doesn’t scare her

If you're thinking about becoming a teacher—whether you're 22 or 52—Patty’s story proves it’s never too late to step into your purpose. Tune in for wisdom, real talk, and a serious dose of encouragement.

🛠️ Patty’s mantra: “Try something new. Set fear aside. The only constant is change.”

🎧 Listen now and tag a future educator who needs to hear this!

In this episode of the Legend Makers Podcast, we sit down with Ellie Jensen, a 7th-grade English teacher and TikTok phenom, who’s redefining how educators connect with students and the world.

💡 What’s inside this episode?

✅ The surprising reasons kids stop reading in middle school – and how to reignite their love for books 📖

✅ Classroom management secrets from a 25-year teaching veteran 🔥

✅ Why EVERYONE should have to substitute teach before making decisions about education

✅ The power of mentorship in shaping young teachers’ success 💬

✅ How Ellie’s viral 31M view TikTok post turned her dad’s app into an overnight sensation 📲

From managing a room full of middle schoolers to helping struggling students find their voice, Ellie’s insights are both eye-opening and inspiring for educators, parents, and anyone passionate about learning.

Follow Ellie on TikTok: @EllieMarieTeaches