Let's REINVENT School!

Today’s program is not specifically about special education or Autism, it’s about creating schools that celebrate and value different kinds of minds. The great educator Howard Gardner, the author of Multiple Intelligences, once said that he, “Rues the day someone invented the bell curve,” which suggests that some people are smart, others at not smart, and that most people are in the big middle. Absurd. There are lots of ways to be smart. There are all kinds of minds. We will be joined by two extradentary educators a generation apart in experience but both forward-thinking educators who embrace the notion that all young people can thrive, and have a right to thrive, if they are nurtured, are surrounded by love and support and are accepted and respected for who they are- for their assets, not their so-called deficits.

Dedicating one’s life to serving others is both honorable and challenging. This is particularly true in a world where communitarian values are often at odds with those that define success as what is best for the individual. Today’s program will spotlight the journey of two individuals who have chosen to serve. How did their experiences in school inspire them? What motivates them to continue to serve? Today’s episode features two extraordinary individuals, one running to retain his seat of the Union County Board of Education and another running for a seat on the Board of Education in Mecklenburg County, both in North Carolina. Our focus today is not to provide an opportunity for each to campaign, explain their platform, or make a case for election. Additionally, their participation on Let’s Reinvent School is in no way an endorsement of their candidacy. Rather, we will focus on their own experiences in school and what, in their own lives, continues to inspire them to serve.

In this episode of Let’s Reinvent School we turn to internationally recognized educator, author, and education policy scholar, Professor James Guthrie. We are joined in our third segment by Dr. Robert Goodman, the Executive Director of the New Jersey Center for Teaching and Learning. Together we will identify the structural and systemic challenges that are contributing to our schools not being able to meet the diverse needs of diverse students. Join us for a fascinating and provocative conversation as we ask the question, “What would it take to make schools more effective, more efficient, and more equitable? “

Preparing young people to thrive as adults will take more than school. Success in life is often a result of the experiences young people have outside of school. Mentoring programs, internships, exposure to a variety of career opportunities, mental health services, and financial support can clear a path to a bright future, particularly for those young people who face obstacles. Join us as five nonprofit leaders operating in the “College and Career Readiness” arena, as well as a major funder discuss how to best align and coordinate efforts to increase individual and collective impact. In an era where impact if often determined by what is measurable, we will be asking ourselves how we can best measure what matters.

Join our conversation with the nation's leading expert on Music and Arts Education, Bob Morrison. Given that standardized tests do not measure the Arts, school districts do not have the incentive to provide substantive, comprehensive, and articulated Arts programming in our schools. Why do the Arts matter? The Arts foster creativity, an essential characteristic of intelligent behavior, and success in a complicated, often dangerous world. Bob will help us understand the State of Arts Education in our schools. Always a data-driven professional, he will provide evidence of where the arts are flourishing and where there are gaps. He will also provide information about funding streams and how educators, including administrators, can access additional resources,

Everyone has a story about their experiences in school. Many had to overcome religious or racial prejudice and low expectations, others were bullied because of their sexual orientation or economic status or assigned to classes that did not lead to college. Yet, despite enormous challenges, they prevailed. Today’s Episode? Beyond School: Building a Meaningful Life As many of us know, experiences outside of school frequently shape our lives and help us determine the trajectory of our lives. School does not equal education. One can be schooled and not educated and educated without being schooled. Being schooled does not mean success. Buddha said, “When the student is ready, the teacher will appear.” Our guest today has learned from and sought out many teachers, including his parents. Let’s listen. Let’s hear his story. As we process his journey, we encourage you to reflect on how we can learn from him to school ourselves and build, as he has, a meaningful life.

When it comes to equity vs equality in education, the terms are often used interchangeably. But understanding the distinction between the two is essential for resolving issues faced by disadvantaged students in the classroom. While working towards equity and equality can both do good, equity should be an educator’s end goal. The reason lies in the difference between being fair vs equal. Join us, along with James Ford, Marta Duran, Joanne Jenkins, and Shelly Biby as we identify what is possible in terms of creating equity in our schools and in our communities.

Join Ross and his guests as they take us into their world to help us understand how they overcame obstacles and manifested their best lives. We are proud to point to the success of not only our graduates but so many others in our community. Join us as we unlock the secrets to their success. We want to hear how they navigated a system that was not designed for everyone to succeed. You will be moved and inspired by the stories of each of our guests. You may even discover that their story is your story. So tell your friends to tune in on Thursdays, beginning on October 13, at 11 EST, 8 am PST on Voice America’s Empowerment Channel- or download episodes any time and anywhere you get your podcasts. And we want to hear from you. Please call in to ask a question or to tell us your story. __________________________________________________________________________

Did you know that there are approximately 179,000 young people in NC alone who are being educated in over 112,000 Homeschools? That is a 100% increase from the previous year. In fact, Homeschooling is up all across the country. You might say it is the fastest-growing educational initiative in America right now! Join us as we take a deep dive into the world of homeschooling, through the eyes of four different homeschool parents with four very different reasons.

Season II of Let's Reinvent School will move beyond inputs (programs, policies, and practices) and put a spotlight on outputs- the people whose experiences in school have contributed to who they are as adults. Everyone has their own unique school experience. Some of us have great memories of our years in school, while others had to overcome obstacles to succeed both in school and in life. We want to highlight all your school stories- some funny, some sad, some warm and endearing, and others frustrating or infuriating. All compelling. All real. And all about our individual and collective experiences. What do we hope to learn? We will be looking for themes and shared experiences, both good and bad. We want to be inspired to create the schools that our kids need to thrive in the world in which they will live.

With the current focus on standardized test scores as a measure of success in educational attainment, it is reasonable to believe that there is just no time to foster critical and creative thinking in our young people. Not true. One does not excuse the other. Our school can graduate critical and creative thinkers as well as students who score well on their End of the Year Grades or standardized tests. Join us on this week’s edition of Let’s Reinvent School!” when we focus on strategies that can help prepare our young people for their future and not our past. Today’s graduates are living in a complex, multinational, and multi-logical world. What it means to be “literate’ in 2022 is different from what it meant to be literate in 1950. The stakes have changed. The standards are different. Preparing them for the challenges on their horizon will require teachers and administrators to embrace and intentionally teach critical and creative thinking. It’s possible, important, and timely. We welcome to the program Dr. Sharon Jones, consultant, and director at the Dotte Rose Foundation. We will also be joined by young people who are recent graduates We will ask them if they feel prepared for the challenges ahead and if they believe they are both critical and creative thinkers. As our respondent in segment three, we will be joined by Mr. Omar Parkes, MeckEd’s Director of Career Pathways. Omar will help us answer the question, “What have we learned today?”

In this episode, we focus on what it would take to create schools that are excellent and equitable. We will hear from Cami Anderson, a CEO who is committed to creating a path to a bright future for underserved youth. The conversation includes reactions from Professor James Guthrie. It's provocative, thoughtful, and inspired.

In Manifesting Your Best Life, we seek to unlock the secrets of success. We want to hear how our guest navigated a system that was not designed for everyone to succeed. Research tells us that in many cases, it was one person who turns life around and puts someone on a path to success. Who was it in Federico's life? In your life? ? We want to learn about that person. What made them such an important part of your success? In this episode, we will explore the experiences in and outside of school that had an impact in both positive and negative ways. What role did your family play in helping you navigate the school system? Do you feel like you got an education by going to school, or did your education come about because of something else? Some other experiences? Tune in this Thursday between 11 am and 12 pm EST and 8 am and 9 am PST to learn more and to share your own experiences in school and in life that contributed to your success. Know that the program, along with all episodes of Let's Reinvent School, can be downloaded where ever you get your podcasts.

Mark Twain famously said, Never let school get in the way of an education. We know that young people are always learning and that experiences matter regarding expanding a worldview or increasing opportunity. Greg Jackson is a tireless educator committed to serving young people who face obstacles that limit their access to excellence. Greg will not only discuss his own school experiences, but he will also highlight how, through his nonprofit, Heal Charlotte, he is transforming lives and building a bright future for the community he proudly serves.

Welcome to Let’s Reinvent School- the program that is focused on what is possible, not what’s wrong with our schools. For the past 13 weeks, we have covered a wide range of topics with extraordinary guests who have enlightened, provoked, challenged, and inspired us to do better and to move forward to prepare young people for their future. Thursday, June 9, marks Let’s Reinvent School’s 13th episode. We will return in September to kick off the 2022-23 school year with another 13 episodes. In the Internum, we invite you to enjoy encore presentations of the program every Thursday at 1 pm EST and 10 am PST, on Voice America’s Variety channel. We thought it would be appropriate to end this academic year by looking back to look ahead. We are going to focus on the takeaways and lessons we learned from our guests over the last few months. We will also have a few surprise guests to help us imagine a future where all young people thrive in school and beyond.

Teachers are leaving schools to pursue other interests in droves. In Mecklenburg County, North Carolina over 850 teachers resigned their positions during the last school year. The same is true of principals. In fact, over 50 principals have resigned in Mecklenburg County since August 2021. And superintendents? Once again, using Charlotte Mecklenburg Schools as an example, the district has hired and fired 5 superintendents in the last 10 years. Five in ten years!! That is a lot of listening tours and strategic plans that never get implemented. And it’s not just here- across the United States, educators and leaving the profession to pursue other interests. Who will educate our children? As I have said on this program many times, we are not here to air grievances, or wallow in what is wrong with our schools, rather, we are here explore what’s possible. Join us as a teacher, former principal, and former superintendent help us understand what it will take to recruit and retain the best educators. Our kids deserve nothing less.

Let’s Reinvent School: Stop the Violence NOW! What we can do to make our schools and our communities safe. Remember, we are here to focus on what is possible not what is wrong. Our guest is Mr. Greg Jackson. Greg is the founder and executive director of Heal Charlotte, an organization committed to building a bright future for our youth in Charlotte, North Carolina. Did you know that in two recent academic years, a total of 85 young people died violently in U.S. schools. Seventy-five percent of these incidents involved firearms. A National Institute of Health study recently interviewed 1,219 seventh and 10th graders in Boston and Milwaukee. Forty-two percent of students claimed they could get a gun if they wanted, 28 percent have handled a gun without adult knowledge or supervision, and 17 percent have carried a concealed gun…. Join us as we focus our attention on solutions to this national crisis. When: Thursday, April 21, between 1 pm-2 pm EST, 10 am-11 am PST on Voice America’s Variety Channel. Within a week, this episode, along with all previous episodes will be available for download anywhere you get your podcasts. Or simply go to: https://www.voiceamerica.com/show/4063

Are Community Schools in our Future? Research has shown that Community Schools can be a local engagement strategy that creates and coordinates opportunities with its public school to accelerate student success. It serves as a vehicle for hyper-local decision-making that responds to the unique needs of each community. Today will be exploring how Community Schools can efficiently and effectively utilize resources to advance the well-being of children and their families now and for future generations. To help us better understand Community Schools, their impact, and to get a better understanding of what it would take to bring the concept to life, is our very special guest, Founder of the Charlotte Community Think Tank, Community Organizer, and education advocate, Shamaiye Haynes. You can find Shamaiye’s picture and bio on the Let’s Reinvent School HomePage on Voice America’s Variety Channel.

Led by a fearless leader and advocate for public schools, Dr. Pamela Grundy helped to transform an elementary school in Charlotte NC. Please join the conversation with Pamela as she recounts her experiences. Respondents include members of the Reimiange America PRoject's education subcommittee, Deb Blackwood, Samantha Turner, Kevin Woodson, and Joanne Jenkins.