Sustainable Teaching with Rae Hughart

Amy Storer visits twelve campuses in her district every single month. She comes with one topic. One tool, one tip, one practical thing. And she doesn’t leave until the teachers have actually done it. Not watched a demo. Not taken notes. Done it.

Ruth Poulsen spent 15 years teaching and leading in schools before burnout forced her to step back. Now on sabbatical, she's writing the Regenerative Schools blog on Substack and working on a book about how schools can sustain their people the way a regenerative farm sustains its soil. She and Rae talk digital sunsets, the 40% rest principle, and why saying no to good things is a leadership superpower.

What happens when you stop asking students to fit the classroom and start building the classroom to fit them? Kim Lohse has spent her career in teaching, administration, and innovation leadership answering that question. She joins Rae to talk about future-ready skills, creativity, and what student-centered design actually looks like in practice.

Josh Tovar grew up as a newcomer who didn't speak English, graduated at the bottom of his class, and spent the next thirty years making sure no other kid had to feel invisible. As principal of Memorial Pathway Academy in Garland, Texas, he shares how he builds culture-first leadership for newcomers and non-traditional learners, and why caring has to come before curriculum.

Executive Functioning for Educators with Sue Thompson

In this episode, Rae Hughart sits down with Dr. Jim Masters to explore what it means to build a culture-first leadership framework in schools. They discuss how principals and instructional leaders can create environments where teachers feel supported, empowered, and motivated to stay — and how that translates into real outcomes for students.

There is a version of education that is technically happening but not actually reaching the students in the room. Vanessa Castañeda Gill decided she was done pretending that wasn't happening — and what she did next is a conversation every educator needs to have.

In this episode, Vanessa talks about identity erosion, what it costs students when they don't see themselves in the room, and what it looks like to stop softening yourself as a teacher — and why that act of authenticity changes everything for the students who need mirrors most.

Free resource: The Equity-Centered Classroom Audit — download in BLOG

Subscribe to Sustainable Teaching for new episodes every Friday.

You probably remember the exact moment you decided whether you were a math person or not. Denis Sheeran has spent his career interrupting that story — and he's here to show you what that looks like inside your classroom.

In this episode, Denis shares his framework for building real-world math relevance, the moment you can see a student actually clicking in, and why paying attention to what students talk about before class is the most underused data source in teaching.

Free resource: The Instant Relevance Lesson Audit — download in BLOG

Subscribe to Sustainable Teaching for new episodes every Friday.

Bella Dailey went from marketing intern to confident PE teacher in just four years. She shares how setting boundaries at 4pm, leaning on her tight-knit team, and learning not to sweat the small stuff transformed her approach...

Stephanie Nardi spent 26 years in education before landing as a turnaround principal at a Title 1 middle school in Phoenix — and she'll tell you the most underrated leadership hack is where you put your stuff...