Most schools are spending thousands on professional development that teachers forget in two weeks—while leaving untapped grant money sitting on the table. It doesn’t have to be this way.

In this episode of Teachers Deserve It: Real Talk, Rae Hughart shares a simple, six-step system to make PD funded, effective, and stress-free for school leaders. Learn how to:

• Identify overlooked grants that cover teacher growth

• Build a PD plan your staff actually thanks you for

• Stop apologizing for PD that wastes time and start delivering real value

You don’t need another binder or another late-night planning session—you need a plan that works and funding that supports it.

✨ Download the free playbook: teachersdeserveit.com✨ Take the quiz for a custom funding roadmap: ⁠teachersdeserveit.com

Your teachers deserve PD that makes a difference—and this is where it starts.

The first week of school is chaos... routines aren’t set, emails are piling up, and staff are already exhausted from “one more thing.” Teachers don’t hate PD… they hate wasted time.

In this episode of Teachers Deserve It: Real Talk, Rae Hughart breaks down the 3 things no teacher has time for in Week 1 and how to flip the script with practical tools that save time, reduce stress, and actually work.

You’ll hear how the Teachers Deserve a Great Start Bundle is helping schools launch with clarity:

• Ready-to-use systems for classroom management

• Parent communication tools that cut down chaos

• Para support resources that finally give clear expectations

Plus, Rae shares how the Teachers Deserve It Book Club is the perfect companion - giving staff the chance to start with systems and grow with reflection.

If you’re a teacher, para, or leader heading into back-to-school, this episode is your reminder: you don’t need another binder. You need tools you can use tomorrow morning.

Explore the Great Start Bundle: teachersdeserveit.comJoin the Book Club Course: raehughart.substack.com

Start your year with systems. Grow your year with reflection.

This week we’re pulling back the curtain on one of the simplest—but most powerful—things we do at Teachers Deserve It: designing plug-and-play tools that schools can use instantly to make professional development actually stick. In this episode, Rae shares the backstory of a tool created for one partner school that spread like wildfire when another district grabbed it, screenshot style, and ran with it. You’ll hear how small shifts in clarity can ripple out into smoother transitions, stronger para partnerships, and teachers who actually thank their administrators for PD. Plus, Rae breaks down why giving your staff ready-to-use systems is a sign of respect, not “hand-holding.” If you’ve ever wanted your PD days to spark real results without adding more to your plate, this episode is for you.

In this week’s Teachers Deserve It Podcast, Rae Hughart gets real about the final stretch before back-to-school—and why “waiting” to make a professional development plan isn’t just procrastination, it’s a choice to add stress to your year.

Rae walks through what principals are actually juggling right now—finalizing master schedules, planning institute days, welcoming new staff—and how TDI takes PD off their plates entirely. No late-night slide decks. No scrambling. Just a done-for-you plan that works.

If you’re a school leader, you’ll learn how to get your PD strategy finalized before your coffee gets cold. If you’re a teacher, you’ll see how to advocate for PD that’s worth your time.

Listen now, then subscribe to the Teachers Deserve It Substack for the full breakdown: raehughart.substack.com

Still staring at your PD plan like it might finish itself? This episode is your wake-up call and your shortcut. Rae Hughart kicks off the back-to-school leadership series with real talk about the chaos of August planning—and how to stop it in its tracks. She breaks down the #1 mistake school leaders make when designing professional development, introduces the TDI model that saves time (and sanity), and walks you through how to get a custom PD plan in under 60 seconds.

We’re not here to tweak your slide deck.
We’re here to replace it.

Whether you're craving clarity, need buy-in, or just want to feel confident that PD will actually help your teachers, this episode is your step one.

We’ve made it to Part 6 of our Teacher-Tested Hacks for Smarter Days launch series—and we’re closing strong with educator, author, and coach Kevin J. Butler.

Kevin’s strategy? Use student questions as the blueprint for building better units.

In this final episode, Rae dives into Kevin’s clip and the brilliance behind centering instruction on what students are actually wondering. She reflects on the moments curiosity transformed her classroom—and how agency isn't a buzzword, it’s a blueprint.

If you’ve ever felt boxed in by the pacing guide or stuck teaching content students couldn’t care less about, this one’s for you.

And remember: Kevin is just one of 30+ educators featured in this course. Short clips. Real strategies. Ready when you are.

🎉 The course is live: tdi.thinkific.com/products/courses/Hacks
💸 Use code Hughart2025 for 20% off
📬 Subscribe to the Substack for more: raehughart.substack.com

Part 5 of our Teacher-Tested Hacks for Smarter Days series gets to the heart of it all: your joy.

In this episode, happiness coach and education consultant Kim Strobel shares a mindset shift that can help educators reclaim their identity, energy, and passion. Her message isn’t about toxic positivity—it’s about science-backed strategies for taking back what burnout tried to steal.

Rae reflects on her own journey with mindset, classroom overwhelm, and the power of remembering who you are outside the lesson plan.

This isn’t just about productivity. It’s about remembering you’re a human first—and that joy is part of the job, not a reward for surviving it.

🛒 Grab the course and watch Kim’s clip (plus 30+ others): tdi.thinkific.com/products/courses/Hacks
💸 Use code Hughart2025 for 20% off
📬 Subscribe for more drops like this: raehughart.substack.com

It’s launch day—and Part 4 of our Teacher-Tested Hacks for Smarter Days series is bringing the 🎺 brass and the brilliance.

This episode features award-winning educator, speaker, and musician Mickey Smith Jr., who shares his go-to classroom strategy: the PPQ Method (Passion–Practice–Questions). It’s the kind of strategy that doesn’t just work—it sings.

Mickey shows how inviting students to connect their personal passions to academic practice sparks not only engagement, but identity. Rae dives into how this would’ve changed the game in her own classroom—and how Mickey’s method isn’t just motivational, it’s doable tomorrow.

If you're tired of fluff and ready for practical tools with soul, this one’s for you.

🎧 The full course is now live! 30+ educators. Under 8 minutes each. Classroom-tested. Time-saving. And actually useful.

🛒 Enroll now: tdi.thinkific.com/products/courses/Hacks
💸 Use code Hughart2025 for 20% off
📬 Subscribe to stay in the loop: raehughart.substack.com

Part 3 of our 6-part spotlight series is here—and if you’ve been waiting for the mindset boost that actually hits? This is it.

This episode features Timothy Alexander—better known as TA—an educator, coach, motivational speaker, and inclusion advocate whose story will absolutely stop you in your tracks. His clip, “You Can. You Will. You Must,” isn’t about strategy—it’s about belief. It's the voice in your head that says, “Keep going,” when everything around you says otherwise.

Rae reflects on TA’s emotional message and how his words matter—especially for educators leading others or desperately needing someone to believe in them, too.

🔑 This episode reminds us: You’re not here by accident. And you’re not out of fight.

🎧 Want more? 30+ educators share real tips like this in our new course Teacher-Tested Hacks for Smarter Days—available now in the TDI Learning Hub.

🛒 Enroll: tdi.thinkific.com/products/courses/Hacks
💸 Use code Hughart2025 to save 20%
📬 Subscribe on Substack: raehughart.substack.com

When everything feels loud, fast, and on fire—what if all you needed was one intentional minute?

In Part 2 of our 6-part launch series for Teacher-Tested Hacks for Smarter Days, Rae spotlights contributor Ipek Williamson, a certified mindfulness coach and emotional wellness advocate, whose strategy—The 60-Second Reset—gives educators a calm, powerful way to pause before reacting.

Rae shares her own “react vs. respond” classroom moment (you’ll feel seen), explains why this clip hit so hard, and shows how just one minute can ripple through your entire day.

✨ Preview the full course now: tdi.thinkific.com/products/courses/Hacks
🔑 Use code Hughart2025 to save 20%
📬 Subscribe for more classroom-ready gems: raehughart.substack.com

Need a moment? This episode is your moment.