The Interview Chair

In this episode, Jimmy shares his insights on the power of self-reflection, modeling, and the role everyone's behavior plays in shaping the culture of an entire system. 

In this engaging interview, Dr. Tiffany Bone shares her inspiring journey through education, leadership challenges, and personal growth. Discover her insights on building effective teams, maintaining work-life balance, and the transformative power of education.

In this heartfelt interview, Amy Harksen shares her journey as a school counselor, leader, and advocate for students and staff. Discover practical strategies for building trust, leading teams, and connecting with families to create a positive school culture.

In this episode, Jimmy sits down with former school Athletic Director Stephen Speck. Whether you are an AD, school leader, or parent of a student athlete, this interview offers meaningful insight to help all of us build a community where our players, performers, parents, coaches, and administrators experience the joy of competition and the benefits that comes from being a part of a team. 

In this episode, Jimmy reflects on challenges that come with leading a school in the last month of the calendar year, causing us sometimes to move quickly and create undercurrents that impact staff morale in negative ways. He also shares his views on hiring, evaluations and reinforces a powerful leadership lesson that every leader needs to remember when dealing with difficult staff decisions.

In this episode, Jimmy calls for educators to lead with empathy, recognizing that students and colleagues often carry unseen pain that influences their behavior. Rather than reacting to actions alone, schools should create a “soft place to land” by building trust, showing compassion, and intentionally supporting both the emotional and academic needs of everyone in the community. By doing so, educators can foster stronger relationships, improve school culture, and help others move forward despite their challenges.

Avoiding tough conversations can turn small issues into major conflicts. In this episode, Jimmy shares practical strategies to help you initiate those conversations and build a culture of open communication and trust.

In this episode, Jimmy reminds decision-makers that the more staff and students who have their “fingerprints on the sculpture” to determine the vision, design, and implementation for the culturized classroom and school, the more likely we are to get the positive results we desire. A positive school culture is the collective responsibility of everyone within the school community.

Most educators feel overwhelmed by challenging behaviors — but what if changing the approach could turn chaos into connection? Dr. Bethany Bilidou, an expert in human behavior and creator of the "Ease the Pain in the Classroom" framework, shares surprising strategies that empower teachers to defuse crises in seconds and build resilience in even the most difficult students.