NYKids Deep Dive

The latest episode of NYKids Deep Dive features Regent Roger Catania, a lifelong educator whose career has spanned teaching, school counseling, and district leadership in New York's North Country. In this conversation, Regent Catania offers an inside look at the New York State Board of Regents—one of the state's most influential, yet often misunderstood, institutions. Established in 1784 ,...

In our latest NYKids Deep Dive episode, we spoke with a group of thoughtful 6th-grade students from Chautauqua Lake Elementary School, one of the positive outlier schools in our study. Students provided important reflections on community, learning, leadership, and technology – reminding us of the power of student voice. Tune in to hear how these students characterize their school experiences and t...

The latest episode of NYKids Deep Dive features Jay Worona, Partner in the Jaspan Schlesinger and Narandran Firm’s Education Law Practice Group and instructor at University at Albany (SUNY) and Teachers College – Columbia University. Jay is also the former General Council and Deputy Director of the New York State School Boards Association which encompasses 700 school districts.   With his extensiv...

How Continuous Improvement Tools Can Transform P-20 Partnerships  with Dr. Matt Missias and Dr. Kristen Wilcox What if the secret to addressing complex problems across the P-12 and higher education pipeline lies in deeper understanding of 1) human experiences and 2) interconnected systems that shape what resources are available and drawn upon.  In our latest podcast episode, Dr. Kristen C. Wilcox...

We are excited to release our very first Deep Dive highlight reel! In this 2-part retrospective series, we are sharing clips from episodes we have released in the past year. We hope you gain new insights and find guests you have not heard from before. In this episode, we feature clips from (in order of appearance): 3:11 - Jason Ryan and Aaron Leo In this episode, NYKids Assistant Director Aaron Le...

This latest blog shares highlights from our Deep Dive podcast episode with Dr. Jenay F. E. Willis from the University of Mississippi !  Dr. Willis is a researcher and scholar practitioner who draws from her own experiences as a Black woman from the Deep South. Her work applies critical lenses to explore the lived experiences of rural Black students and communities as they navigate college access,...

Understanding the Complex Challenges Facing Today's Schools   Education policy faces unprecedented challenges. Teacher shortages plague districts nationwide, and school discipline policies spark heated debates. Meanwhile, funding formulas struggle to address the comprehensive needs of students and educators alike in communities facing different types of challenges.  Dr. Lucy Sorensen joins our lat...

We are delighted to announce a new podcast with Dr. Charles S. Dedrick, one of NYKids’ valued advisory board members. Dr. Dedrick has served as Executive Director of the New York State Council of School Superintendents since July 2016, now in his ninth year leading the professional and advocacy organization that serves over 1,000 educational leaders statewide. Prior to this role, Dedrick brought e...

On this week’s Deep Dive episode , NYKids Research Assistant, Jessie Tobin, interviews Dr. Dawn Anderson-Butcher from Ohio State University (OSU). Dr. Anderson-Butcher is a Professor in the College of Social Work at OSU, and her areas of expertise are positive youth development (PYD) and school-family-community partnerships.   The discussion focuses on school-family-community partnerships in the U...

A new episode of NYKids Deep Dive is ready for you – just in time for the new school year! In this episode, Assistant Director of NYKids Aaron Leo meets with Joseph Otter, the Director of School Community Partnerships in Lansingburgh Central School District.  Joseph Otter’s Biography: In his role as Director of School Community Partnerships, Joseph Otter’s work includes the Trauma Sensitive School...

In this episode, hosts Maria Khan and Aaron Leo sit down with Cindy Gallagher , Director of Government Relations at SAANYS (School Administrators Association of New York State). Together, they explore ongoing initiatives and insights from SAANYS and what they mean for schools and educators in New York.  A Brief Bio of Dr. Gallagher  Dr. Cindy Gallagher leads SAANYS’s member-driven Government Relat...

In this episode, we explore the NYKids Performance Tracker , a powerful tool designed to help educators and policymakers make sense of complex school performance data. But what makes this tracker more than just a dashboard? How can it actually drive better decisions in education?  To help us unpack these questions, we’re joined by:  Doug Fulton  Managing Partner at WISERTrade , Doug brings a uniqu...

This spring we are rolling out a series of episodes in which the NYKids team converses with principals of positive outlier schools that participated in our latest study! The third of these episodes features a discussion with Fillmore Central School superintendent Michael Dodge and Principal Eric Talbot.  In this episode, NYKids Assistant Director Aaron Leo chats with Superintendent Dodge and Princ...

In this podcast, NYKids Graduate Assistant Paul Guay and NYKids Director Kristen C. Wilcox hosted Bob Schneider, Executive Director of the New York State School Boards Association (NYSSBA). NYSSBA is one of NYKids' valued Advisory Board organizations, and Bob provided insights into what NYSSBA is focusing its attention on right now.  School Board Challenges and NYSSBA Priorities  Bob Schneider...

This episode is the second in a series spotlighting leaders and educators in positive outlier schools in our latest study!   In this episode, NYKids Assistant Director Aaron Leo had the privilege of sitting down with members of Crown Point Central School including:   Superintendent Tara Celotti;   Director of Pupil Personnel Services Michelle Dedrick;  English teacher Rachael Charron; and   Senior...

In this podcast, NYKids Director Kristen C. Wilcox and Assistant Director Aaron Leo welcomed members of New York State Education Department Allison Armour-Garb and Nicole Lennon. Armour-Garb and Lennon both serve as leaders for NYSED's Performance-Based Learning and Assessment Networks (or PLAN) Pilot program.   What is the PLAN Pilot program?  Twenty-three schools across the state are taking part...

This spring we are rolling out a series of episodes in which the NYKids team converses with principals of positive outlier schools that participated in our latest study! The first of these episodes features a discussion with LaFayette Jr.-Sr. High School principal, Jason P. Ryan .  In this episode, NYKids Assistant Director Aaron Leo chats with Principal Ryan about all things Artificial Intelligen...

In our second episode, NYKids Research Assistants Jessie Tobin and Paul Guay talk with Dr. Deborah Schussler, professor in the Department of Educational Policy and Leadership at the University of Albany, SUNY about mindfulness and how it’s application can improve the well-being of teachers and students.  Dr. Schussler’s research in the field of mindfulness focuses on the impact of mindfulness-base...

In our first episode, NYKids Assistant Director, Aaron Leo, talks with Dave Little from the Rural Schools Association (RSA) . The conversation covers all things rural including the unique challenges facing rural schools, new policies and programs aimed at improving the educational experiences of rural students, and the important work being done at the RSA.