The Authority Podcast — Expert Insights and Fresh Ideas for Education Leaders

In this episode, we’re bringing you a conversation from Tell Me This, part of the Be Podcast Network. 

In this combined episode, which was originally published in two parts on the Tell Me This feed, hosts Carey Borkoski and Brianne Roos, along with guest Kate McMahon, discuss Susan Cain’s latest book, Bittersweet: How Sorrow and Longing Make Us Whole. Listeners may also be familiar with Cain’s previous #1 New York Times best-seller, Quiet: The Power of Introverts in a World That Can't Stop Talking.

Learn about the book here: https://susancain.net/book/bittersweet 

Tell Me This is a podcast about belonging, what it means, why it matters, and how we cultivate it. Through stories, interviews, academic research, and discussions, the hosts and their guests explore the ideas of belonging and how to develop and grow it in your classrooms, workplaces, and other personal and professional spaces.

Subscribe to Tell Me This:

• Apple: https://apple.co/3XhxHPo 

• Spotify: https://spoti.fi/3o3brMh

• Stitcher: https://bit.ly/43dAhJc

Learn more about today's sponsor, Playworks:

We’re proud to be sponsored by Playworks, a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization with evidence-based practices that help schools improve the health and well-being of children by increasing opportunities for physical activity and safe, meaningful play.

If you’re a school or district leader struggling with the challenge of chronic absenteeism, as so many are across the U.S., you may not realize that structured recess is a research-backed approach to keep kids in school. In fact, a UC Berkeley study of Title I schools found that those partnering with Playworks had significantly lower chronic absenteeism rates. Further, Mathematica research demonstrated that Playworks schools spent 27% less time transitioning from recess back to learning, saving teachers valuable instructional time. 

These results are possible for your students, too. Learn how Playworks can help you improve student-educator relationships, belonging, and attendance by signing up for a quick no-obligation conversation. 

Elizabeth Jorgensen returns as a guest for this episode along with her mom and co-author Nancy to discuss the middle-grade and young adult biography, Gwen Jorgensen: USA’s First Olympic Gold Medal Triathlete, which they wrote in collaboration with Gwen.

Elizabeth, Nancy, and Ross discuss:

• How the book is designed to be used with students in the classroom
• What makes a hero and why kids need heroes
• Gwen’s “hero’s journey” from kid to accountant to gold medalist
• How to reward focused effort while also encouraging well-rounded development
• How Gwen’s early struggles prepared her for success as an adult
• “There is power in what you tell yourself.”
• Learn about your own potential: Practice Core Principles, Emphasize Recovery, Show Gratitude
• Surrounding yourself with the right people

Purchase the book on  Amazon or get a signed copy: https://www.booksco.com/signed-copy-gwen-jorgensen

 
Download a free educator guide: https://download.m-m-sports.com/extras/GwenJorgensen/Teacher_Guide.pdf

For author visits, email [email protected] or [email protected] or visit the authors online at their websites: lizjorgensen.weebly.com and nancyjorgensen.weebly.com. You can also follow both authors on Twitter: @LyzaJo and @NancyJorgensen

Subscribe to The Authority to get more deep-dive interviews with education authors. Visit https://bepodcast.network to learn more about the Be Podcast Network for educators.

About the host

Ross Romano is a co-founder of the Be Podcast Network and CEO of September Strategies LLC, a consulting firm that helps organizations and high-performing leaders in the K-12 education industry communicate their vision and make strategic decisions that lead to long-term success. Connect on Twitter @RossBRomano

Learn more about today's sponsor, Playworks:

We’re proud to be sponsored by Playworks, a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization with evidence-based practices that help schools improve the health and well-being of children by increasing opportunities for physical activity and safe, meaningful play.

If you’re a school or district leader struggling with the challenge of chronic absenteeism, as so many are across the U.S., you may not realize that structured recess is a research-backed approach to keep kids in school. In fact, a UC Berkeley study of Title I schools found that those partnering with Playworks had significantly lower chronic absenteeism rates. Further, Mathematica research demonstrated that Playworks schools spent 27% less time transitioning from recess back to learning, saving teachers valuable instructional time. 

These results are possible for your students, too. Learn how Playworks can help you improve student-educator relationships, belonging, and attendance by signing up for a quick no-obligation conversation. 

Dr. Chris Jones has been an educator in Massachusetts for 22 years. He is author of the book SEEing to Lead and also hosts the SEEing to Lead podcast, right here on the Be Podcast Network. In this episode, we discuss his book, published by Code Breaker, Inc.

Chris and Ross discuss:

●      The problem with education traditions: “One of the biggest problems in education is tradition. One of the biggest traditions is top-down leadership,” says Danny Bauer.

●      SEE = Support, Engage, Empower

●      How Chris realized teachers can’t support, engage and empower students if they’re not feeling their leadership doing the same for them.

●      You don’t become a leader and then realize you need to support others first. You become a leader because you’ve realized this.

●      Empowering vs. Enabling

●      Overcoming the status quo to innovate

SEEing to Lead is published by Code Breaker, Inc. Find it here: https://teamjonesedu.com/book

Subscribe to The Authority to get more deep-dive interviews with education authors. It’s available wherever you get your podcasts. Visit https://bepodcast.network to learn more about the Be Podcast Network for educators.

About today’s guest

Dr. Chris Jones has been an educator in Massachusetts for 22 years. He is currently Principal of Whitman-Hanson Regional High School in Whitman, Mass. and Vice President of the Massachusetts State Administrators Association (MSAA). Chris was named the 2022 Massachusetts School Counselors Associaltion’s (MASCA) Administrator of the Year and is a finalist for the Massachusetts School Administrators Association’s Principal of the Year award.

Subscribe to SEEing to Lead on Apple Podcasts or Spotify.

About the host

Ross Romano is a co-founder of the Be Podcast Network and CEO of September Strategies, a consulting firm that helps organizations and high-performing leaders in the K-12 education industry communicate their vision and make strategic decisions that lead to long-term success. Connect on Twitter @RossBRomano

Learn more about today's sponsor, Playworks:

We’re proud to be sponsored by Playworks, a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization with evidence-based practices that help schools improve the health and well-being of children by increasing opportunities for physical activity and safe, meaningful play.

If you’re a school or district leader struggling with the challenge of chronic absenteeism, as so many are across the U.S., you may not realize that structured recess is a research-backed approach to keep kids in school. In fact, a UC Berkeley study of Title I schools found that those partnering with Playworks had significantly lower chronic absenteeism rates. Further, Mathematica research demonstrated that Playworks schools spent 27% less time transitioning from recess back to learning, saving teachers valuable instructional time. 

These results are possible for your students, too. Learn how Playworks can help you improve student-educator relationships, belonging, and attendance by signing up for a quick no-obligation conversation. 

Today, we welcome the three co-authors of Teaching for Racial Equity: Becoming Interrupters, published by Stenhouse. The book was named as one of three winners in the Best Book for Educators category of the inaugural Excellence in Equity Awards, presented by the American Consortium for Equity in Education.

The discussion includes:

• What it means to be an “interrupter”
• Critical love, critical humility, and critical reflection
• How the authors collaborated and learned from one another
• “Find your people”
• The “a-ha moments” with students
• Examples from the book’s educator contributors that simply illustrate “good teaching,” with respect to engaging students and getting them into the material
• Where readers can begin with the book, based on their prior level of experience with explicit equity work and research
• Our guests’ book recommendations for educators:  Not Light, but Fire by Matthew Kay, Cultivating Genius by Gholdy Muhammad
• Recommendations for students: Stamped by Jason Reynolds and Ibram X. Kendi, The 1619 Project: Born on the Water by Nikole Hannah-Jones and Renée Watson, illustrated by Nikkolas Smith

Teaching for Racial Equity is available from Stenhouse. Find it here: https://bit.ly/3jZN5RV

Subscribe to The Authority to get more deep-dive interviews with education authors. It’s available wherever you get your podcasts. Visit https://bepodcast.network to learn more about the Be Podcast Network for educators.

About today’s guests

Tonya B. Perry is a Professor of Secondary English Education and serves as the Executive Director for GEAR UP Alabama and the Red Mountain Writing Project at the University of Alabama at Birmingham.

Steve Zemelman is a founder of the Illinois Writing Project. He’s helped start innovative small schools in Chicago and promotes student civic engagement there. His most recent book is From Inquiry to Action: Civic Engagement with Project-Based Learning in All Content Areas.

Katy Smith is a Professor of Secondary Education and a Department Chair at Northeastern Illinois University, where she and Steve Zemelman direct the Illinois Writing Project. She has dedicated her career to developing and enacting equitable classroom practices, first as a teacher of high school students and now as a teacher educator.

About the host

Ross Romano is a co-founder of the Be Podcast Network and CEO of September Strategies LLC. He is a leadership development and performance coach for professionals in a range of industries and consults with organizations and high-performing leaders in the K-12 education industry to help communicate their vision and make strategic decisions that lead to long-term success. Connect on Twitter @RossBRomano and LinkedIn

Learn more about today's sponsor, Playworks:

We’re proud to be sponsored by Playworks, a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization with evidence-based practices that help schools improve the health and well-being of children by increasing opportunities for physical activity and safe, meaningful play.

If you’re a school or district leader struggling with the challenge of chronic absenteeism, as so many are across the U.S., you may not realize that structured recess is a research-backed approach to keep kids in school. In fact, a UC Berkeley study of Title I schools found that those partnering with Playworks had significantly lower chronic absenteeism rates. Further, Mathematica research demonstrated that Playworks schools spent 27% less time transitioning from recess back to learning, saving teachers valuable instructional time. 

These results are possible for your students, too. Learn how Playworks can help you improve student-educator relationships, belonging, and attendance by signing up for a quick no-obligation conversation. 

Welcome to a can’t-miss conversation with Principal Baruti Kafele, author of seven best-selling books, including the topic of today’s episode: The Equity & Social Justice Education 50.

The discussion includes:

•  Equity vs. Equality — the strategy vs. the goal and why it matters
•  Does my presence positively alter the trajectory of my students?
•  The personal nature of this work and this book. How Principal Kafele learned to share his story to the benefit of his students.
•  How do I ensure that no student is invisible in my classroom?
•  Becoming credible to your students
•  “I want my readers to be comfortable with being uncomfortable and uncomfortable with being comfortable.”
•  The Big 3: Individuality, Identity, and Voice. Why these are non-negotiables in every classroom.
•  Social justice education — What is it and how do we make it practical?
•  The leader’s role in making equity work resilient

Principal Kafele’s recommendations:

•  Before the Mayflower — Lerone Bennett, Jr.
•  From Slavery to Freedom — John Hope Franklin and Evelyn Brooks Higginbotham
• The Mis-Education of the Negro — Carter G. Woodson
•  Introduction to African Civilizations — John G. Jackson

The Equity & Social Justice Education 50 is available at ascd.org and Amazon. Find it here: https://bit.ly/3YwY2Z5

Subscribe to The Authority to get more deep-dive interviews with education authors. It’s available wherever you get your podcasts. Visit https://bepodcast.network to learn more about the Be Podcast Network for educators.

About our guest

One of the most sought-after school leadership and classroom equity presenters in America, Principal Kafele is impacting America’s schools! He has delivered over 2500 conference and program keynotes, professional development workshops, parenting seminars and student assemblies over his 35 years of public speaking. An expert in the area of “attitude transformation,” Principal Kafele is the leading authority on providing effective classroom and school leadership strategies toward closing what he coined, the "Attitude Gap.” He has authored twelve books, including seven ASCD best-sellers. Follow Principal Kafele online:

•  https://principalkafele.com/
•  Twitter: https://twitter.com/principalkafele
•  Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/principalkafele/
•  Virtual AP Leadership Academy on Facebook:  https://www.facebook.com/VirtualAPLeadershipAcademyWithPrincipalKafele
•  Virtual AP Leadership Academy on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/virtualapleadershipacademy

About the host

Ross Romano is a co-founder of the Be Podcast Network and CEO of September Strategies, a consulting firm that helps organizations and high-performing leaders in the K-12 education industry communicate their vision and make strategic decisions that lead to long-term success. Connect on Twitter @RossBRomano or LinkedIn.

Learn more about today's sponsor, Playworks:

We’re proud to be sponsored by Playworks, a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization with evidence-based practices that help schools improve the health and well-being of children by increasing opportunities for physical activity and safe, meaningful play.

If you’re a school or district leader struggling with the challenge of chronic absenteeism, as so many are across the U.S., you may not realize that structured recess is a research-backed approach to keep kids in school. In fact, a UC Berkeley study of Title I schools found that those partnering with Playworks had significantly lower chronic absenteeism rates. Further, Mathematica research demonstrated that Playworks schools spent 27% less time transitioning from recess back to learning, saving teachers valuable instructional time. 

These results are possible for your students, too. Learn how Playworks can help you improve student-educator relationships, belonging, and attendance by signing up for a quick no-obligation conversation. 

We’re thrilled to welcome international best-selling author and business leader Mark Miller as our guest for this episode of The Authority. 

Mark is Vice President of High Performance Leadership for Chick-Fil-A. He first started at the company as an hourly team member in 1977 and has served in numerous roles along the way. 

Culture Rules: The Leader's Guide to Creating the Ultimate Competitive Advantage is Mark’s 11th book. He currently has over one million books in print in more than twenty-five languages.

Ross and Mark discuss:

• 71% of U.S. leaders believe culture is their #1 most powerful tool to drive performance, but enhancing culture ranks low on their priority list — why the gap?
• First move: decide and declare what you're trying to create. Culture needs to be explicit.
• Leaders animate culture — this is the big idea of the book
• The 3 Culture Rules: Aspire, Amplify, Adapt
•  What does culture mean to your customers?
•  Adapt, not react — how to adapt and what the current in-person vs. remote debate tells us.
• Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella wanted to shift the company from being “know-it-alls” to “learn-it-alls” — what did Mark learn while working on the book?
• The “magic circle” of game design and how it explains culture.
•  What Mark learned about innovation and purpose.
• Measuring culture

Culture Rules is now available for purchase, with a number of bonuses available for individual and bulk orders. Learn about them here: https://www.leadeveryday.com

Subscribe to The Authority to get more deep-dive interviews with education authors. It’s available wherever you get your podcasts. Visit https://bepodcast.network to learn more about the Be Podcast Network for educators.

About our guest

Mark Miller is a business leader, best-selling author, and communicator. Mark started his Chick-fil-A career working as an hourly team member in 1977 and today leads as Vice President of High Performance Leadership.

 He began writing almost twenty years ago, and with over one million books in print in more than twenty-five languages, Mark’s global impact continues to grow. In addition to his writing, Mark enjoys encouraging and equipping leaders. Over the years, he’s traveled to dozens of countries teaching for numerous international organizations.

Married to Donna, his high school sweetheart of forty years, they have two sons, Justin and David, a daughter-in-law Lindsay, and three amazing grandchildren Addie, Logan, and Finn. Connect with Mark:

 ●      https://www.linkedin.com/in/highperformanceleaders/

 ●      https://twitter.com/MarkMillerLeads

About the host

Ross Romano is a co-founder of the Be Podcast Network and CEO of September Strategies, a consulting and coaching firm that helps organizations and high-performing leaders in the K-12 education industry communicate their vision and make strategic decisions that lead to long-term success. Connect on Twitter @RossBRomano or LinkedIn.

Learn more about today's sponsor, Playworks:

We’re proud to be sponsored by Playworks, a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization with evidence-based practices that help schools improve the health and well-being of children by increasing opportunities for physical activity and safe, meaningful play.

If you’re a school or district leader struggling with the challenge of chronic absenteeism, as so many are across the U.S., you may not realize that structured recess is a research-backed approach to keep kids in school. In fact, a UC Berkeley study of Title I schools found that those partnering with Playworks had significantly lower chronic absenteeism rates. Further, Mathematica research demonstrated that Playworks schools spent 27% less time transitioning from recess back to learning, saving teachers valuable instructional time. 

These results are possible for your students, too. Learn how Playworks can help you improve student-educator relationships, belonging, and attendance by signing up for a quick no-obligation conversation. 

In today’s special episode, we welcome all four co-authors of the book Five Practices for Equity-Focused School Leadership, published by ASCD. The book was named as one of three winners in the Best Book for Educators category of the inaugural Excellence in Equity Awards, presented by the American Consortium for Equity in Education.

The discussion includes:

• How this team of authors connected to write the book. 
• What they learned from one another.
• What an equity-focused school looks like.
• How leaders can adopt a transformative approach.
• The most significant challenges school leaders must face.
• The ongoing emotional and intellectual work of equity leadership.
• Developing equity leadership teams.
• Conducting a needs assessment and planning for the long haul.

Five Practices for Equity-Focused School Leadership is available from ASCD. Find it here: https://bit.ly/3RtI00j

Get additional resources from the authors:

• https://www.the5practicesgroup.com/
• https://www.the5practicesgroup.com/five-practices-the-book.html

Subscribe to The Authority to get more deep-dive interviews with education authors. It’s available wherever you get your podcasts. Visit https://bepodcast.network to learn more about the Be Podcast Network for educators.

About today’s guests

Mark Anthony Gooden, PhD, is the Christian Johnson Endeavor Professor in Education Leadership and Chair of the Department of Organization and Leadership at Teachers College, Columbia University. Connect with him on Twitter @GoodenPhD and LinkedIn.

Sharon Radd, Ed.D. is an Associate Professor and Program Director of the MA-Organizational Leadership at St Catherine University; Principal Consultant at ConsciousPraxis; and Senior Partner with The Five Practices Group. Connect with her on Twitter @SharonRadd and LinkedIn.

Gretchen Givens Generett, PhD, is Dean, Noble J. Dick Endowed Chair in Community Outreach, and Professor of Foundations in the School of Education at Duquesne University. Currently she serves as President of the American Educational Studies Association (AESA). Connect with her on Twitter @ggenerett and  LinkedIn.

George Theoharis is a Professor in Educational Leadership and Inclusive Education at Syracuse University. Connect with him on Twitter @ChefGeorgeTheo and  LinkedIn.

About the host

Ross Romano is a co-founder of the Be Podcast Network and CEO of September Strategies LLC. He is a leadership development and performance coach for professionals in a range of industries and consults with organizations and high-performing leaders in the K-12 education industry to help communicate their vision and make strategic decisions that lead to long-term success. Connect on Twitter @RossBRomano and LinkedIn

Learn more about today's sponsor, Playworks:

We’re proud to be sponsored by Playworks, a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization with evidence-based practices that help schools improve the health and well-being of children by increasing opportunities for physical activity and safe, meaningful play.

If you’re a school or district leader struggling with the challenge of chronic absenteeism, as so many are across the U.S., you may not realize that structured recess is a research-backed approach to keep kids in school. In fact, a UC Berkeley study of Title I schools found that those partnering with Playworks had significantly lower chronic absenteeism rates. Further, Mathematica research demonstrated that Playworks schools spent 27% less time transitioning from recess back to learning, saving teachers valuable instructional time. 

These results are possible for your students, too. Learn how Playworks can help you improve student-educator relationships, belonging, and attendance by signing up for a quick no-obligation conversation. 

 Kate Eberle Walker, CEO of teletherapy solution provider Presence, is today’s guests. Kate is an education industry leader with 20+ years of experience in leading, managing, advising, acquiring and investing in education companies. Her book is The Good Boss: Nine Ways Every Manager Can Support Women at Work, published by BenBella Books.

In the interview, Kate and Ross discuss:

•  Stories about successful women often start with a story about a good boss. We hear Kate’s story.
•  Important negative lessons Kate learned from previous bosses.
•  The “9 Rules of the Good Boss.”
•  Why it’s powerful to get a woman’s name right and use it.
•  Being authentic and being someone employees can relate to.
•  Why it’s important to “watch the clock” to be mindful of the demands on female employees.
•  Rule 9: Tell Her That You See Her Potential, including how this relates to the situation in schools. 
•  How do you start to turn things around if you haven’t fostered this type of culture?
•  If someone can read only one chapter of the book, which should it be?

The Good Boss is available here: https://www.kateeberlewalker.com/the-good-boss/

Subscribe to The Authority to get more deep-dive interviews with education authors. It’s available wherever you get your podcasts. Visit https://bepodcast.network to learn more about the Be Podcast Network for educators.

About today’s guest

 Kate Eberle Walker is an education industry leader, author, and working mom with more than 20 years of experience leading high-profile education companies. Among other roles, she was previously CEO of The Princeton Review and since 2019 has been CEO of Presence, where she leads a majority female staff. Presence is a leading provider of teletherapy solutions for children with diverse needs.

Follow Kate on Twitter @eberlewalker or connect on LinkedIn. You can visit her website here: https://www.kateeberlewalker.com

About the host

Ross Romano is a co-founder of the Be Podcast Network and CEO of September Strategies LLC, a consulting firm that helps organizations and high-performing leaders in the K-12 education industry communicate their vision and make strategic decisions that lead to long-term success. Connect on Twitter @RossBRomano

Learn more about today's sponsor, Playworks:

We’re proud to be sponsored by Playworks, a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization with evidence-based practices that help schools improve the health and well-being of children by increasing opportunities for physical activity and safe, meaningful play.

If you’re a school or district leader struggling with the challenge of chronic absenteeism, as so many are across the U.S., you may not realize that structured recess is a research-backed approach to keep kids in school. In fact, a UC Berkeley study of Title I schools found that those partnering with Playworks had significantly lower chronic absenteeism rates. Further, Mathematica research demonstrated that Playworks schools spent 27% less time transitioning from recess back to learning, saving teachers valuable instructional time. 

These results are possible for your students, too. Learn how Playworks can help you improve student-educator relationships, belonging, and attendance by signing up for a quick no-obligation conversation. 

Patrick Harris II, a middle school humanities teacher outside of Detroit, is the guest on this episode of The Authority. His book, published by Heinemann, is The First Five: A Love Letter to Teachers.

The First Five is a memoir with a call-to-action. Patrick writes about his early life and what brought him to the education profession, and outlines the lessons learned in his first five years – as well as insights from other educators.

In the interview, Patrick and Ross discuss:

●      What pushed Patrick to write the book

●      What it’s been like to share his story with others

●      Tackling toxic positivity and being honest about the profession

●      What does it mean to teach in 360 degrees?

●      The difference it makes to have black male teachers

●      Remembering your why. Who needs to know this and why?

●      Do most teachers know the entirety of their why?

●      Patrick’s greatest fear in writing the book

●      What can be done to be more inclusive in recruitment and retention in the profession?

The First Five is published by Heinemann. Find it here: https://bit.ly/3VQcrhC

Subscribe to The Authority to get more deep-dive interviews with education authors. It’s available wherever you get your podcasts. Visit https://bepodcast.network to learn more about the Be Podcast Network for educators.

About today’s guest

Patrick Harris II is a Black queer writer, storyteller, and middle school humanities teacher. He has won multiple national teaching awards for his leadership and innovation in the classroom, including recognitions from NCTE, ASCD, and ILA. Teaching and creating is only part of who Patrick is. He is a big brother, a cat dad, lover of all things horror, a WWE fanatic, and is obsessed with scenic hikes.

Find Patrick on Twitter & Instagram @PresidentPat.

About the host

Ross Romano is a co-founder of the Be Podcast Network and CEO of September Strategies LLC, a consulting firm that helps organizations and high-performing leaders in the K-12 education industry communicate their vision and make strategic decisions that lead to long-term success. Connect on Twitter @RossBRomano

Learn more about today's sponsor, Playworks:

We’re proud to be sponsored by Playworks, a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization with evidence-based practices that help schools improve the health and well-being of children by increasing opportunities for physical activity and safe, meaningful play.

If you’re a school or district leader struggling with the challenge of chronic absenteeism, as so many are across the U.S., you may not realize that structured recess is a research-backed approach to keep kids in school. In fact, a UC Berkeley study of Title I schools found that those partnering with Playworks had significantly lower chronic absenteeism rates. Further, Mathematica research demonstrated that Playworks schools spent 27% less time transitioning from recess back to learning, saving teachers valuable instructional time. 

These results are possible for your students, too. Learn how Playworks can help you improve student-educator relationships, belonging, and attendance by signing up for a quick no-obligation conversation. 

Matthew Taylor joins the show today to discuss his book, The Noble School Leader: The Five-Square Approach to Leading Schools with Emotional Intelligence, published by Jossey-Bass.

Matthew and Ross discuss:

• Whether emotional intelligence is the most important competency of a school leader
• The components of the five-square approach: values, self-awareness, social awareness, self management, and relationship management
• Why it’s important for school leaders to focus on the emotional conditions of learning
• The challenge of transitioning into leadership
• School leaders' greatest challenges today
• The seven self-limiting mindsets
• How school leaders can build a culture of teacher retention

Visit noblestorygroup.com to find out more about the book, The Noble School Leader, and the Five Square Approach to leading schools with emotional intelligence: https://noblestorygroup.com/book

Subscribe to The Authority to get more deep-dive interviews with education authors. Visit https://bepodcast.network to learn more about the Be Podcast Network for educators.

About the guest

Matthew Taylor leads the Noble Story Group, a consulting firm that brings an emotional intelligence-based approach to leadership development in education and non-profit organizations. Matthew recently published The Noble School Leader, a practical guide for school leaders and managers seeking concrete strategies for professional improvement. He has extensive experience teaching in and leading schools, having worked in urban neighborhoods, urban charter, international, private, and magnet schools.

About the host

Ross Romano is a co-founder of the Be Podcast Network and CEO of September Strategies LLC, a consulting firm that helps organizations and high-performing leaders in the K-12 education industry communicate their vision and make strategic decisions that lead to long-term success. Connect on Twitter @RossBRomano

Learn more about today's sponsor, Playworks:

We’re proud to be sponsored by Playworks, a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization with evidence-based practices that help schools improve the health and well-being of children by increasing opportunities for physical activity and safe, meaningful play.

If you’re a school or district leader struggling with the challenge of chronic absenteeism, as so many are across the U.S., you may not realize that structured recess is a research-backed approach to keep kids in school. In fact, a UC Berkeley study of Title I schools found that those partnering with Playworks had significantly lower chronic absenteeism rates. Further, Mathematica research demonstrated that Playworks schools spent 27% less time transitioning from recess back to learning, saving teachers valuable instructional time. 

These results are possible for your students, too. Learn how Playworks can help you improve student-educator relationships, belonging, and attendance by signing up for a quick no-obligation conversation.