Rebel Educator®

A former public school educator of 22 years, Will Richardson has spent the last 15 years developing an international reputation as a leading thinker and writer about the intersection of social online learning networks, education, and systemic change. Most recently, Will is a co-founder of The Big Questions Institute which was created to help educators use "fearless inquiry" to make sense of this c...

Ross Wehner is a writer, teacher, and social entrepreneur who is the Founder of World Leadership School, which “partners with K12 schools to reimagine learning and create next-generation leaders.” Ross also co-founded the nonprofit TeachUNITED, which works to transform learning at rural schools around the world. Ross is guided by the question: How can K12 school become the ultimate platform for la...

EdTech Startup Showcase: Physics and engineering teacher Ted Cuevas on reigniting his passion by empowering all learners Today, we’re pleased to share an episode originally recorded for the EdTech Startup Showcase . It’s been my pleasure to host a series of episodes for this show, which spotlights some of the most innovative emerging companies in edtech. Ted Cuevas, a physics and engineering teach...

EdTech Startup Showcase: Instructional specialist Amanda Anthony on empowering parents and differentiating to meet learners' needs Today, we’re pleased to share an episode originally recorded for the EdTech Startup Showcase . It’s been my pleasure to host a series of episodes for this show, which spotlights some of the most innovative emerging companies in EdTech. In this episode, Amanda Anthony,...

Having founded The Flying Seagull Project in 2008, entertainer Ash Perrin has spent the last decade and a half visiting the world's forgotten, pushed out and ignored communities. Ash and The Flying Seagull Project focus on the emotional wellbeing and confidence of children who are enduring situations beyond their control, creating safe and specialized play spaces utilizing music, art, circus, nois...

Dr. Shira Leibowitz is founder and CEO of Discovery Village Childcare Center and Preschool and of REVABILITIES™ Educational Leadership Training Center. She is also a member of the faculty at Northeastern University, teaching and advising doctoral students in education.  Prior to opening Discovery Village and REVABIILITIES™, Dr. Leibowitz served for twenty years as a principal of pre-kindergarten t...

Daniel Sobel is the founder and CEO of Inclusion Expert and leads a team working with over 10,000 schools, offering training and support to professionals working to make education more inclusive. Daniel is the best selling author of ‘Narrowing the Attainment Gap: A Handbook for Schools’ as well as 'Leading on Pastoral Care' and 'The Inclusive Classroom’. He has worked with regional and national go...

Gerard Vargas is the co-founder of the Legacy Mastery Academy, an organization that improves student and educator resilience, wellbeing, performance, and school culture through mindset training in predominantly high need areas.  With 23 years of experience in education, he has taught high school Biology, coached Math and Science teachers, and has helped lead professional development in reading, br...

Mike Flanagan is the CEO of the Mastery Transcript Consortium (MTC), a growing group of high schools creating a digital high school transcript that opens up opportunity for each and every student — from all backgrounds, locations, and types of schools — to have their unique strengths, abilities, interests, and histories fostered, understood, and celebrated.  Mike oversaw the design and development...

Komal Shah is an educational consultant and thought leader on a mission to transform the world through conscious education. After Komal spent five years in the Teach For America program as a middle school educator, she was left wanting more. She wanted more for her own kids and all kids. To pursue this dream, she attended USC Marshall School of Business where she received her MBA. Today she levera...

Bob Lenz is the CEO of PBLWorks, an institute that uses project based learning to increase educational equity and provide learning that students connect with. Bob has spent his life creating project based classrooms for himself and teaching others how to do it. We discuss how project based learning prepares kids, especially black and brown and underprivileged learners, for college success through...

*Bonus Replay* Welcome to Season 3 Rebel Educators! I recently had a conversation about why we chose the name "Rebel Educator" and what it means to me. I wanted to share with you the reason why I started this podcast, what it means to be a Rebel Educator, and what I think we can accomplish when we all challenge the status quo. Thank you for listening and enjoy the season! RESOURCES AND LINKS: Chec...

Join me in celebrating our 100th episode milestone as I reflect on my journey as a disruptor and Rebel Educator. From unexpected beginnings to conversations with inspiring leaders in education, each episode has been a testament to challenging norms and fostering innovation. Tune in to hear all about my experience opening an inclusive, progressive school, the obstacles faced, and the invaluable les...

Manisha is the CEO and Founder of Teach Your Kids.  Teach Your Kids is an exciting new podcast and online community that empowers families to play an active, informed role in their children’s education. It advocates for flexible, customized education that promotes whole child development. Manisha’s journey has been remarkable - apart from educating over 2000 children ages preK-12th grades in three...

Hope Paterson is a global nomad, mother of two and transformation coach. For the past 20 years, she has been working in what she calls the Hope triangle: electrifying pathways for humans of all ages working at the intersection of education, innovation and entrepreneurship. Hope walks alongside people as they move from old to new, supporting them to identify opportunities, and support new ways of m...

Dr. Karen Dudek-Brannan is the founder of Dr. Karen, LLC, a company focused on empowering educators to support language, literacy, executive functioning, and cognitive wellness.  She currently offers professional development focused on helping K-12 teams develop programs and services that support students in the areas of leadership, language, literacy, and executive functioning. Dr. Karen is a lic...

Lizette Valles, M.Ed., is the founder of Ellemercito Academy, a Los Angeles-based microschool, with a focus on project/place-based learning. Her mission is to nurture students who think critically, develop a growth mindset, and demonstrate profound empathy. She is dedicated to reimagining education and implementing trauma-informed approaches in out-of-system school models such as the fast-growing...

Nathaniel Provencio has worked in the public education field since 2001 as a classroom teacher, building administrator and associate superintendent . In 2010, he became the principal of Minnieville Elementary in Prince William County, Virginia. Under his leadership, Minnieville Elementary was recognized as a Virginia Distinguished Title 1 School, became a National Model Professional Learning Commu...

Danielle Nuhfer believes that “well teachers will change the world.” And part of how this change will happen is through educators, school leaders, and school systems finding creative ways to prioritize teacher well-being. Danielle is the author of The Path of the Mindful Teacher which chronicles her own journey of burnout and how she found a mindfulness practice that transformed her from the insid...

Matt Chaussee is the CEO and Co-founder of Be More Colorful, an immersive media and virtual reality production company whose flagship product, CareerViewXR, is being used across the country to help students explore authentic, real-world careers through virtual reality. Be More Colorful is currently a semifinalist for the Yass Prize and Matt is here to share with us about his company’s work and how...

Tom Willis is a former classroom teacher and a prior CEO for Cornerstone, a school system in Detroit. He also believes in the power of lifelong learning.  These beliefs have shaped his primary goal in life: helping others move beyond their self-limiting beliefs so they can reach their God-given potential.     He was fortunate to earn an engineering degree from the University of Michigan and an MBA...

Richard Gerver is a sought-after speaker, bestselling author and world-renowned thinker. His career began in education, first as a teacher and then as a school principal, when he turned the fortunes of a failing school and its pupils around in just two years. Since the success of his first book, focusing on his experience in frontline education, Richard has devoted himself to advancing society’s t...

Hillary Miller has been an educator for over 20 years. Hillary has worked in PK-12 education in most capacities as a teacher and administrator. With a strength-based focus, she has spent her career finding ways to meet the needs of individual and small groups of students, as well as building positive school cultures.  Over the past few years, Hillary has supported school leaders as a consultant ac...

Brian’s first word was money and he’s always been fascinated with the world of investing. He developed Rapunzl as a financial literacy, EdTech tool to revolutionize how we teach students about investing and to provide equitable access to high-quality, project-based learning tools for students across the country.  The world of returns is perched in an ivory tower, inaccessible to most investors. In...

Nicole Kubilus has a serious passion-call it a special interest-for autism advocacy. Diagnosed with autism at two years old, Nicole has pursued various types of autism advocacy work over the last twenty years. Her artwork and poetry focus on celebrating the autistic experience and spreading awareness about ableism (which she uses to promote Understanding Autism). She is a former art educator and c...