Original Air Date: May 16, 2023

“What keeps me hopeful is our students. Our students and our youth, they’re fearless; they’re committed; they’re open-minded. They have always been the anchor to the work that I do. When they realize that they’ve got adults that care for them and that believe in them, they give it right back. That’s something that I’m really grateful for.”

Ever Forward Club’s Ashanti Branch is joined by Jerome Hunter. Jerome is the co-founder and Chief Academic Officer at Seattle School for Boys. A proponent of healthy masculinity and its importance in an equitable society, Jerome is passionate about supporting young people to dismantle systems of oppression in education and build equitable futures. This conversation is about how we achieve these goals; specifically, it’s about the things we may take for granted when trying to achieve them. A teacher may believe in this mission, but do they know themselves well enough to carry it out and lead a classroom effectively? That’s where the mask comes in…

(3:55) Jerome introduces himself and his work in schools and with boys.

(5:45) Jerome shares the front of his mask - driven, funny, kind.

(8:05) Ashanti shares the front of his mask - dedicated, serious, funny.

(12:25) Ashanti finds the through-line in all of the masks he’s made over the years. Then, he and Jerome discuss what behaviors they are seeing in young boys in 2023.

(23:50) Jerome shares the back of his mask - imposter syndrome, anxious, sad.

(31:45) Ashanti shares the back of his mask - sadness, worry, self-doubt - and he remembers his grandmother.

(37:05) Then, Jerome and Ashanti discuss how teachers, students, and administrators can bring their full selves to school and coexist in a supportive, loving manner.

(51:45) Jerome shares why he got into the field of education and how you can get in touch with him.

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Connect with Jerome Hunter:

Website: seattleschoolforboys.org

Website: jeromeleehunter.com

Instagram: instagram.com/seattleschoolforboys

Instagram: instagram.com/hunterj33

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Join our Skool Community: https://www.skool.com/efc-young-mens-advocates-2345 

Email us questions and comments at [email protected] 

Create your own mask anonymously at https://millionmask.org/ 

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Connect with Ashanti Branch:

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/branchspeaks/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/BranchSpeaks

Twitter: https://twitter.com/BranchSpeaks

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ashantibranch/

Website: https://www.branchspeaks.com/

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Support the podcast and the work of the Ever Forward Club: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/branch-speaks/support 

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Connect with Ever Forward Club:

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/everforwardclub

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/everforwardclub

Twitter: https://twitter.com/everforwardclub

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/the-ever-forward-club/

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#unmaskingwithmaleeducators #millionmaskmovement  #takingoffthemask #totm #doace #UNWME #diaryofaconfusededucator

Original air date: April 30th, 2024

Video Episode: https://youtu.be/-NwPW3-a688

@donofriend  or Donovan Taylor Hall, joins Ashanti Branch, a master educator with 20+ years of experience in schools, to talk about what they are reflecting on as educators and what they’re seeing in the halls of modern-day schools. Donovan is an experienced teacher and positive youth development expert who travels around the country speaking at schools and pushing into classrooms. Learn more about him in ⁠season 1, episode 152⁠.

Topics include: video games, core values, extrinsic/intrinsic motivation, “call-out” vs. “call-in”, “book smart” vs. “street smart”, being a warm demander, and shared humanity amongst teachers and students.

(0:00) Welcome!

(1:30) Donovan and Ashanti introduce themselves.

(4:00) Student behavior, engagement, and distractions

(7:00) Video games and what they teach us about students

(11:00) Making education entertaining

(15:00) Extrinsic vs. intrinsic motivation

(17:00) Core values(25:00) Safe vs. unsafe schools; accountability

(30:00) Warm demander - running out of warm

(34:00) When to “call-out” students, and desire for attention(40:00) “Book smart” vs. “Street smart”

(43:00) Getting teachers more classroom management tools

(45:00) Teachers showing humanity; dropping ego

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Connect with Donovan Taylor Hall:

Website: ⁠www.donovantaylorhall.com

⁠Instagram, TikTok, Youtube: @donofriend

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Create your own mask anonymously at ⁠https://millionmask.org/⁠ 

Email us questions and comments at ⁠[email protected]⁠ 

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Connect with Ashanti Branch:

Instagram: ⁠https://www.instagram.com/branchspeaks/⁠

Facebook: ⁠https://www.facebook.com/BranchSpeaks⁠

Twitter: ⁠https://twitter.com/BranchSpeaks

⁠LinkedIn: ⁠https://www.linkedin.com/in/ashantibranch/⁠

Website: ⁠https://www.branchspeaks.com/⁠

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Support the podcast and the work of the Ever Forward Club: ⁠https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/branch-speaks/support⁠ 

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Connect with Ever Forward Club:

Instagram: ⁠https://www.instagram.com/everforwardclub

⁠Facebook: ⁠https://www.facebook.com/everforwardclub⁠

Twitter: ⁠https://twitter.com/everforwardclub⁠

LinkedIn: ⁠https://www.linkedin.com/company/the-ever-forward-club/⁠

#TakingOff TheMask #millionmaskmovement #youarenotalone #podcast #podcastersofinstagram #pod #podcasts #podcastlife #podcaster #teachersofinstagram #teacherlife #education #educationmatters #educationispower #vulnerability #selfimprovement #mentalhealthawareness #madeonzencastr #vulnerabilityisstrength #mensmentalhealth #menswellness #lessonplan #lessonplanning #teachingmethods #teaching #productivestruggle #highschool #highschoolteacher #socialemotionallearning #middleschool #middleschoolteacher #videogames #corevalues #intrinsicmotivation #intrinsicvalue #booksmart #streetsmart #schoolcommunity #classroommanagement

Congratulations on another school year! As you enjoy the summertime, we have somewhat of a gift for you in anticipation of what's to come... A few things that will transform your classroom and your school in the Fall.

Enjoy your time off (if you're taking it), but keep these three things on the back of your mind.

1. The Young Men’s Conference is going global (1:00)
2. The First Week of School - Brought to you by the Million Mask Movement (5:45)
3. The new season of the podcast launches in the Fall, and there's an archival podcast this Summer (8:30)

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Contribute to our Dance-a-thon fundraiser: https://charity.pledgeit.org/EFC-DanceAThon 

Join our Skool Community: https://www.skool.com/efc-young-mens-advocates-2345 

Email us questions and comments at [email protected] 

Create your own mask anonymously at https://millionmask.org/ 

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Connect with Ashanti Branch:

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/branchspeaks/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/BranchSpeaks

Twitter: https://twitter.com/BranchSpeaks

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ashantibranch/

Website: https://www.branchspeaks.com/

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Support the podcast and the work of the Ever Forward Club: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/branch-speaks/support 

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Connect with Ever Forward Club:

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/everforwardclub

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/everforwardclub

Twitter: https://twitter.com/everforwardclub

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/the-ever-forward-club/

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#unmaskingwithmaleeducators #millionmaskmovement  #takingoffthemask #totm #doace #UNWME #diaryofaconfusededucator

It seems to be that more often in life, we find our selves in that vicious cycle of burning out, then numbing out, only to burnout and numb out even more. It's safe to say this especially applies to teachers.

Even the PhDs of the world, like today's guest, Brendan, find themselves in that cycle. Brendan is a sociologist who specializes in the social-emotional development and well-being of boys and men, and how that intersects with the well-being of others. Brendan has a PhD in Education from the University of Edinburgh, and was formerly a highschool teacher in Vancouver, Canada.

Today, we discuss:

1. How each of us has dealt with (or not dealt with) burnout as we navigate the field of education

2. The challenge of trigger warnings, and how they undermine the courageous and dangerous conversations required to do great teaching

3. How students and teachers alike fall prey to smartphone soothing, and how it affects your classroom

(0:00) Class in session

(2:11) Brendan introduces himself

(5:40) Brendan and Ashanti share their masks, i.e., their teaching personas

(18:00) The guilt we develop from teaching in a wealthy school district

(24:00) Differences between college students and high school students

(27:00) Trigger warnings remove discomfort from good education opportunities

(33:00) Teachers will traumatize students, but it’s more important to know how to repair

(36:45) Smartphone soothing and numbing is dangerous

(44:00) How to find Brendan

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Connect with Brendan Kwiatkowski-Hartman

Website/Newsletter: https://remasculine.com/ 

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/re.masculine/ 

TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@remasculine 

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Contribute to our Dance-a-thon fundraiser: https://charity.pledgeit.org/EFC-DanceAThon 

Join our Skool Community: https://www.skool.com/efc-young-mens-advocates-2345 

Email us questions and comments at [email protected] 

Create your own mask anonymously at https://millionmask.org/ 

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Connect with Ashanti Branch:

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/branchspeaks/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/BranchSpeaks

Twitter: https://twitter.com/BranchSpeaks

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ashantibranch/

Website: https://www.branchspeaks.com/

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Support the podcast and the work of the Ever Forward Club: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/branch-speaks/support 

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Connect with Ever Forward Club:

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/everforwardclub

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/everforwardclub

Twitter: https://twitter.com/everforwardclub

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/the-ever-forward-club/

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#unmaskingwithmaleeducators #millionmaskmovement  #takingoffthemask #totm #doace #UNWME #diaryofaconfusededucator

“If we give our children sound self-love, they will be able to deal with whatever life puts before them.”- bell hooks

Harry Jamerson teaches 5th grade in San Francisco Unified School District, and he shared this quote with us before our conversation. After talking to him, I could tell he truly lives by bell hooks’ words. When it comes to self-love and emotional intellgence, Harry is keen on when to intervene, when to step back, and the PRESENCE required to make the right decision as an educator.

Today, we discuss:

1. The unique levels of fatigue that Black male educators endure

2. How young students are “overexposed and underexplained” to this one major societal issue, and how it affects their behavior

3. The importance of WAITING to intervene, so that young students learn how to process their emotions and big feelings

(0:00) Class in session

(2:16) Harry introduces himself and how he became a teacher

(7:00) How Harry and Ashanti let their students and fellow educators see them, and what they don’t let them see

(14:00) Empathy fatigue and how it affects educators, and especially Black men

(23:00) Overexposed and underexplained: how technology is affecting young students

(33:20) Students who need the most love ask for it in the most unloving ways

(37:50) Twenty-year conversations: technology, interventions, and overwhelming systemic issues in education

(40:45) Letting a student “crash out” at a kickball game

(44:30) Avoid intervening too quickly and allow students to process their emotions

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Connect with Harry Jamerson:

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/harry-jamerson-72b1672b7/ 

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/hellacoolfotos/

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Contribute to our Dance-a-thon fundraiser: https://charity.pledgeit.org/EFC-DanceAThon 

Join our Skool Community: https://www.skool.com/efc-young-mens-advocates-2345 

Email us questions and comments at [email protected] 

Create your own mask anonymously at https://millionmask.org/ 

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Connect with Ashanti Branch:

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/branchspeaks/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/BranchSpeaks

Twitter: https://twitter.com/BranchSpeaks

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ashantibranch/

Website: https://www.branchspeaks.com/

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Support the podcast and the work of the Ever Forward Club: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/branch-speaks/support 

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Connect with Ever Forward Club:

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/everforwardclub

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/everforwardclub

Twitter: https://twitter.com/everforwardclub

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/the-ever-forward-club/

#unmaskingwithmaleeducators #millionmaskmovement #takingoffthemask #totm #doace #UNWME #diaryofaconfusededucator

As an educator in the community, how long is long enough? This past weekend was the Ever Forward Club’s Dance-A-Thon, the latest version of a community event that’s been going on every Memorial Day weekend for the past 21 years straight.

Barely anyone showed up.

Emotions from the day were polarized, to say the least - great connections, poor sense of relevance to the community and young people we are trying to serve. When is it time to turn the page for the sake of your students? And what self-talk was going on in my head the whole time, and how similar is it to the self-talk I’ve been seeing from students around the country?

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(0:00) Class in session

(3:30) Letting go of a 21-year-old community tradition

(14:55) The positive side of our community event and the young men I met

(20:30) Self-talk - what students say to themselves affects their ability to be their best at school

(26:50) Through this work for students and educators, we are going to…

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Contribute to our Dance-a-thon fundraiser: https://charity.pledgeit.org/EFC-DanceAThon 

Join our Skool Community: https://www.skool.com/efc-young-mens-advocates-2345 

Email us questions and comments at [email protected] 

Create your own mask anonymously at https://millionmask.org/ 

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Connect with Ashanti Branch:

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/branchspeaks/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/BranchSpeaks

Twitter: https://twitter.com/BranchSpeaks

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ashantibranch/

Website: https://www.branchspeaks.com/

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Support the podcast and the work of the Ever Forward Club: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/branch-speaks/support 

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Connect with Ever Forward Club:

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/everforwardclub

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/everforwardclub

Twitter: https://twitter.com/everforwardclub

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/the-ever-forward-club/

A rush of memories are flowing through my head. They’ve arrived for one reason in particular - on May 28th, 2025, I’m releasing a book that I’ve been dreaming of writing for 15 years. And though it’s been 15 years, the book is really 21 years in the making - 21 years as an educator.

I’m going to read three passages from different stages of my teaching career - selected because this book release has sparked a these particular memories. The last passage is from the upcoming book, “Diary of a Confused Educator.”

(0:00) Class in session

(1:15) Book announcement, and my experience teaching at a well-resourced school while my heart was still in Oakland

(15:30) First reading - My first day and my first semester ever as a teacher

(20:00) Second reading - The founding document of the Ever Forward Club - inviting students to join a school club

(30:50) Third reading - “The Five Paragraph Essay” - chapter 4 from my new book “Diary of a Confused Educator”

Contribute to our Dance-a-thon fundraiser: https://charity.pledgeit.org/EFC-DanceAThon 

Join our Skool Community: https://www.skool.com/efc-young-mens-advocates-2345 

Email us questions and comments at [email protected] 

Create your own mask anonymously at https://millionmask.org/ 

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Connect with Ashanti Branch:

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/branchspeaks/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/BranchSpeaks

Twitter: https://twitter.com/BranchSpeaks

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ashantibranch/

Website: https://www.branchspeaks.com/

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Support the podcast and the work of the Ever Forward Club: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/branch-speaks/support 

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Connect with Ever Forward Club:

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/everforwardclub

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/everforwardclub

Twitter: https://twitter.com/everforwardclub

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/the-ever-forward-club/

“If I want to be effective in this, I got to know what it feels like to be a body in pain - really - and wrestle with whatever pain is arising from me. Because if I’m not in touch with that, how can I be really anything but a fake for somebody else as they’re going through it?”

Sitting with pain. Getting close to your resentment. All with the goal of helping others. This is the crux of Dr. Bill Penuel’s work, an educator at the University of Colorado, Boulder, and the co-author of a new book, “Creating Compassionate Change in School Communities: Leading Together to Address Everyday Suffering in Schools”. Today, we discuss:

1. How to shift your relationship to pain in order to best serve yourself and your students

2. How educators can put self-compassion into action

3. What does skillful care look like for children who are systemically marginalized?

4. What is an “inside-out” approach to school change?

(0:00) Class in session

(2:00) Bill introduces himself

(3:40) Bill and Ashanti share their teacher personas

(11:20) Applying “contemplative practice” and “meditation” to teaching and education

(12:30) Getting close to your resentment

(17:20) Sitting with your pain and suffering in order to help others

(22:00) Working as a bouncer and what it teaches you about servicing others

(29:00) Finding common humanity, and how it helps navigating difficult situations

(34:50) Critical Care - an important subject in the field of education

(39:00) Deservingness gets in the way of compassion

(41:30) Bill’s approach to helping boys in schools and confirming dignity

(51:00) Bill’s book and where to find it

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Connect with Bill Penuel:

Bill’s book: https://www.colorado.edu/crowninstitute/compassionate-change-schools-book 

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/bill-penuel-8069b5/ 

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/crowninstitutecu 

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/CrownInstituteCU 

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Contribute to our Dance-a-thon fundraiser: https://charity.pledgeit.org/EFC-DanceAThon 

Join our Skool Community: https://www.skool.com/efc-young-mens-advocates-2345 

Email us questions and comments at [email protected] 

Create your own mask anonymously at https://millionmask.org/ 

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Connect with Ashanti Branch:

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/branchspeaks/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/BranchSpeaks

Twitter: https://twitter.com/BranchSpeaks

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ashantibranch/

Website: https://www.branchspeaks.com/

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Support the podcast and the work of the Ever Forward Club: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/branch-speaks/support 

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Connect with Ever Forward Club:

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/everforwardclub

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/everforwardclub

Twitter: https://twitter.com/everforwardclub

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/the-ever-forward-club/

I recently attended RestorED: A Healing Experience for Educators - a collaboration between our nonprofit, the Ever Forward Club, and The Find Design, a nonprofit based in Nashville, Tennessee. During this experience, I made profound connections with great teachers, like Ms. Kayla. She’s been a rock for her students after the school shooting at Antioch H.S., in Nashville. Listen to hear what I took from this experience.

This episode was inspired by my conversation with Justin Haas. Check it out here: https://creators.spotify.com/pod/profile/branch-speaks/episodes/22--For-White-Folks-Who-Teach-in-the-Hood---w-Justin-Haas--Organizer--Educator--Anti-Oppressor-Community-Cultivator-e30vuhr 

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(0:00) Class in session

(1:00) Educator rejuvenation/restoration in Nashville, TN

(4:30) A teacher who lived through a school shooting - Antioch High School

(10:15) Modeling the behavior you desire for your students

(13:00) Math, art, and using talents to cover weaknesses

(19:45) Diary of Confused Educator announcement

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Contribute to our Dance-a-thon fundraiser: https://charity.pledgeit.org/EFC-DanceAThon 

Join our Skool Community: https://www.skool.com/efc-young-mens-advocates-2345 

Email us questions and comments at [email protected] 

Create your own mask anonymously at https://millionmask.org/ 

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Connect with Ashanti Branch:

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/branchspeaks/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/BranchSpeaks

Twitter: https://twitter.com/BranchSpeaks

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ashantibranch/

Website: https://www.branchspeaks.com/

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Support the podcast and the work of the Ever Forward Club: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/branch-speaks/support 

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Connect with Ever Forward Club:

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/everforwardclub

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/everforwardclub

Twitter: https://twitter.com/everforwardclub

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/the-ever-forward-club/

Here's an excellent way to build culture and create buy-in at your school/classroom: rites of passage. What rites of passage are appropriate for your students? What are some values to hone in on as you create rites of passage experiences for your students? What are some outside resources you can point families toward? Listen to find out!

This episode was inspired by my conversation with Jordan Bowman. Check it out here: https://creators.spotify.com/pod/profile/branch-speaks/episodes/14--School-Community-Partnerships-How-Male-Volunteers-and-Mentors-Completely-Change-the-Dynamic-of-a-School---w-Jordan-Bowman--Community-Leader--Executive-Director--Journeymen-e2uecj4 

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(0:00) Class in session

(1:20) What is a rite of passage?

(6:20) Western Adolescence and how it plays out in school

(8:00) Rites of Passage for teachers

(15:00) How these rites of passage are subjective and vary culture to culture

(20:00) Recollecting a beautiful Journeymen Rites of Passage weekend

(23:00) Rites of Passage resources

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Resources:

Warrior Films: https://warriorfilms.org/rites-of-passage/press-kit/

Mentoring: https://www.mentoring.org/take-action/find-a-mentor/

Youth Passageways: https://www.youthpassageways.org/ 

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Contribute to our Dance-a-thon fundraiser: https://charity.pledgeit.org/EFC-DanceAThon 

Join our Skool Community: https://www.skool.com/efc-young-mens-advocates-2345 

Email us questions and comments at [email protected] 

Create your own mask anonymously at https://millionmask.org/ 

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Connect with Ashanti Branch:

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/branchspeaks/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/BranchSpeaks

Twitter: https://twitter.com/BranchSpeaks

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ashantibranch/

Website: https://www.branchspeaks.com/

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Support the podcast and the work of the Ever Forward Club: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/branch-speaks/support 

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Connect with Ever Forward Club:

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/everforwardclub

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/everforwardclub

Twitter: https://twitter.com/everforwardclub

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/the-ever-forward-club/