When The Screen Guardians first walked into Syracuse, Kansas, not everyone clapped. Some parents wondered if this was one more program built to make them feel guilty about screens. One mom assumed we were there to collect data on her kids.

Today, those same parents are among the strongest voices for digital wellness in their community.

In this special episode, host Katie sits down with Ronna, Amy, and Taryn — three Syracuse moms who came in with their arms crossed and stayed to ask hard questions. They talk openly about the guilt they carried, the brain science that finally made it click, the pushback they got at home, and the small changes that stuck: phones out of bedrooms, screens out of car rides, and family dinners where everyone's device goes away — parents included.

They also say the thing most parents are afraid to admit: this is hard, your kid will feel left out, and you'll wonder if you're doing the right thing anyway.

This is what education over restriction actually looks like in a real town, in real homes. Not anti-technology. Pro-child.

• The Screen Guardians K–12 Program — https://thescreenguardians.com/k-12/

• The Parent Portal — https://thescreenguardians.com/parent-portal/

• The Screen Guardians weekly emails - https://thescreenguardians.com/subscribe/

• USD 494 Syracuse, Kansas — Superintendent Paul Larkin, and the district wellness committee

• Kansas State Board of Education — where Taryn and Ronna shared their family stories (see Ep. 33)

• Susan Dunaway, neurotherapist — the brain science presentation on dopamine and the developing brain

• Kevin Chronister, ICAC detective — the digital safety presentation

• Mrs. Plunkett and Ms. Wirtz — the USD 494 teachers who delivered the lessons

A 10-year-old researched screen time for her school project, changed her own habits, and has a hopeful message for parents: it's not too late.

What happens when a kid becomes the screen time expert in her own house?

In this episode of The Screen Guardians Podcast, host Katie sits down with Ali, a fifth grader who chose kids and screen time as her year-long school exhibition project — "Logged In and Tuned Out: The True Impact of Screen Time" — and her dad, Corey. After reading Jonathan Haidt's The Anxious Generation, Ali deleted apps, rethought her own habits, and discovered a message worth sharing: screens aren't all bad, and it's never too late to find balance.

This is a conversation full of hope, not fear — and a beautiful reminder that education, not restriction, is what actually helps kids build a healthy relationship with technology.

Resources & links:

• Read the companion blog: https://thescreenguardians.com/kids-and-screen-time/
• The Anxious Generation by Jonathan Haidt: https://www.anxiousgeneration.com/
• Join the Parent Portal: https://thescreenguardians.com/parent-portal/
• Subscribe to the newsletter: https://thescreenguardians.com/subscribe/

Not anti-technology. Pro-child. You don't have to navigate screen time alone — start where you are, and we'll walk this digital parenting road with you.

🎧 The Screen Guardians Podcast | https://thescreenguardians.com/podcast/

In 2023, the U.S. Surgeon General declared loneliness and isolation a national epidemic — and teenagers are at the center of it. They're the most digitally connected generation in history, and one of the loneliest.

In this episode, host Katie sits down with Ryan Bevins and JP Claxton, the founder and co-founder of Fight Club — a confidential, peer-support organization for teens built on one powerful idea: no one fights alone.

Ryan and JP share how a single group of struggling boys grew into a movement, why the whole model works precisely because "adults get out of the way," and what happens when kids put down their phones and actually talk to each other. We get into the loneliness kids feel the moment the screen shuts off at night, why they're chasing affirmation in all the wrong places, how Fight Club is quietly dismantling the mental health stigma for boys, and the simplest, most hopeful thing every parent can do about it.

If you have a teenager in your life — or love someone who does — this one's worth every minute.

• Fight Club — fightclub-us.com

• Kids TLC — Fight Club's mental health partner providing embedded, licensed therapists

• Galatians 6:2 — "Carry each other's burdens…"

• "Battle for Your Time" — a talk on social media and where our time really goes

• 2023 U.S. Surgeon General advisory on the epidemic of loneliness and isolation

• Explore the Parent Portal: https://thescreenguardians.com/parent-portal/

• Free parent course: https://thescreenguardians.com/kids-digital-health-guide/

• Subscribe to the newsletter: https://thescreenguardians.com/subscribe/

• Read the blog: https://thescreenguardians.com/blog/

If today's conversation resonated, share it with a parent, coach, teacher, or youth pastor who has a teen in their life. You're not alone in this — and neither are our kids.

If you or a teen in your life is struggling, the 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline offers free, confidential support 24/7 — call or text 988.

Practical, no-fear ways to plan a low-screen, high-connection summer.

Summer screen time has a way of creeping up the moment the school-day structure disappears. In Episode 34 of the Screen Guardians Podcast, Katie sits down with mom of three and former labor-and-delivery nurse Janelle Campbell for an honest conversation about planning an intentional summer — without banning screens or scheduling every second.

They get into why device use spikes over the break, how to decide what you actually want summer to feel like, and the small habits that keep the whole house calmer.

In this episode:

• Why rhythm beats a rigid schedule (and how to build one)
• The 15-minute one-on-one habit that curbs sibling fighting
• Janelle's 4-year tradition: going screen-free through the end of June
• "Limits are a tactic, but habits are the goal" — setting screen expectations that stick
• Non-smartphone tools for staying connected: Bark watch, Gabb watch/phone, and the tin can
• Modeling healthy phone use (100% of kids surveyed said their parents struggle to put the phone down)
• Easy wins for hot or rainy days, including free daily bowling

The big takeaway: kids don't need a perfect summer. They need a present parent.

📖 Read the full blog: https://thescreenguardians.com/summer-screen-time-intentional-summer/ 🔗 Grab the family agreement, device guides, and conversation starters inside the Parent Portal: https://thescreenguardians.com/parent-portal/ 💌 Get calm, research-grounded support in your inbox: https://thescreenguardians.com/subscribe/

Not anti-technology. Pro-child.

A rural Kansas district shares what changed in classrooms and homes after going K–12 with The Screen Guardians.

What happens when an entire school district stops talking about screen time and actually does something about it?

In this episode, we hand the mic to the people who went first. Recorded live on May 13, 2026 before the Kansas Department of Education State Board, you'll hear Superintendent Paul Larkin, Elementary Principal Liz Plunkett, and parent Taryn Parks from USD 494 in Syracuse, Kansas share exactly what happened when their community brought The Screen Guardians program into every grade, K–12.

This isn't theory. It's a real district, a real rollout, and real results — told by the educators and parents who lived it.

In this episode:

• Why a one-time assembly doesn't work — and what to do instead
• How Syracuse prepared teachers before teaching a single student
• Winning parent trust through radical transparency
• The surprising way kids became the messengers at home
• Teaching brain science so kids understand dopamine, digital footprints, and the echo chamber
• Pairing education with fewer devices — textbooks, handwriting, and tech-free early grades
• Why collective action beats going it alone

Whether you're a parent, teacher, principal, or board member, this conversation is proof that one community can lead the way.

📌 Bringing this to your school? Learn about the K–12 program: https://thescreenguardians.com/k-12/

📌 For parents: explore the Parent Portal: https://thescreenguardians.com/parent-portal/

📌 New here? Subscribe to the newsletter: https://thescreenguardians.com/subscribe/

Because education is the greatest form of protection.

If you've watched your kid trudge out of school carrying a Chromebook and felt a quiet knot in your stomach — you're not imagining it. Edtech in schools rolled out faster than the brain science behind it, and now the data is catching up.

In this episode, Katie Longhauser walks through how we got here, what's actually happening in kids' developing brains, and the clear next steps families and schools can take without fear, shame, or burning the whole system down.

In this episode:

• How edtech started with good intentions — and where the brain science was missing
• What no one told teachers about dopamine, attention, and a developing prefrontal cortex
• The decade-long pattern in reading, math, and behavior data
• Who funded the early "screens are fine" studies — and why that matters
• 6 questions every parent should ask their school in writing
• How to build a Recovery Plan with your child before they need one
• What schools can do now, starting with their mission statement

Read the full article + FAQs: https://thescreenguardians.com/edtech-in-schools/

Free Parent Course: https://thescreenguardians.com/kids-digital-health-guide/

Parent Portal: https://thescreenguardians.com/parent-portal/

K–12 Program: https://thescreenguardians.com/k-12/

Join the newsletter: https://thescreenguardians.com/subscribe/

This conversation originally aired on the Get Curious Podcast, Ep. 10.

We talk a lot about what screens are doing to kids in the classroom. But here's a question we don't ask enough: who is teaching the teachers?

In this episode, host Katie sits down with Dr. Elizabeth Walter — an assistant professor at Rockhurst University who prepares the next generation of educators, a former English teacher, a mom of two elementary-age kids, and the academic vice president of her children's PTA. She lives this conversation from every angle: the lecture hall, the classroom, the dinner table, and the school board meeting.

Together they unpack what teacher prep does (and doesn't) cover when it comes to technology, why "digital natives" can make a TikTok but can't double-space a document, why bell-to-bell cell phone bans may be one of the best things to happen to teachers in years, and the single most powerful thing a worried parent can do.

Grounded in research, not fear. No shame, no panic — just clear eyes, real hope, and a deep belief that we can do better, because our kids are worth it.

Why prevention has to come before the message ever hits your kid's phone.

What if prevention became the first layer of protection — not the second? In this solo episode of The Screen Guardians Podcast, founder Katie Longhauser walks through why we're so good at responding to harm but not as intentional about preventing it, and what that means for parents trying to figure out how to protect kids online in 2026.

From a Sunday-morning church donation to the World Cup coming to Kansas City, Katie unpacks how the starting line of harm has moved — and why online safety education has to begin before the first message ever lands.

In this episode:

• Why prevention feels invisible (and response feels urgent)
• How the grooming process actually starts online — and why it doesn't feel dangerous at first
• The cultural model we've built (harm → response → recovery) and how to expand it
• What real prevention looks like at the family, school, and community level
• Three small shifts you can make this week to protect your kids online
• How a Recovery Plan changes everything when a digital mistake happens

Mentioned in this episode:

• The Parent Portal — thescreenguardians.com/parent-portal
• Free Parent Course — thescreenguardians.com/kids-digital-health-guide
• The Screen Guardians K–12 Program — thescreenguardians.com/k-12
• Companion blog post: How to Protect Kids Online: Why Prevention Has to Come First

If this episode resonated, share it with another parent, educator, or community leader. When we educate early, communicate often, and lead with intention, we don't just respond to problems — we prevent them.

Not anti-technology. Pro-child.

Subscribe to the newsletter at thescreenguardians.com/subscribe.

You already know the screens are an issue. You feel it in the eye rolls. You feel it in the bedtime battles. You feel it in your own thumb as you scroll one more time before sleep. Raising healthy kids in a digital age isn't about removing devices — it's about raising kids who actually know how to use them. In this episode, clinical psychologist Dr. Shreya Hessler returns to The Screen Guardians podcast with practical, neuroscience-backed strategies you can start tonight — without yelling, shaming, or starting World War III at the dinner table.

You're not alone in this. Let's walk it together.

If you've ever found yourself yelling "put the phone down!" while simultaneously scrolling your own device, you're not alone. Intentional parenting in a digital world is one of the biggest challenges families face today — and most of us are figuring it out as we go.

On a recent episode of The Screen Guardians Podcast, host Katie Longhauser sat down with Kori Bloom — founder of Conscious Not Crazy, author of The Business of Parenting, and a mom of two teenagers — to talk about what it really looks like to lead yourself first as a parent, communicate without fear, and stay connected to your kids in a world full of devices.

This conversation was packed with practical wisdom.