Champion Every Voice

In this powerful episode of Champion Every Voice, Jaclyn Wright sits down with Attorney Dondi West, cybersecurity attorney, AI thought leader, and former Navy information warfare officer, for a timely conversation about what schools must do now to prepare students for an AI-driven future. Together, they explore the digital divide, responsible AI adoption, cybersecurity risks, and why AI literacy c...

What does it take to build confident readers? In this episode of Amira’s Champion Every Voice Podcast, host Jaclyn Wright sits down with Louisiana educator and Amira Champion Olevia Griffin to discuss the critical role early literacy plays in shaping student success. Drawing from her experience as a kindergarten and second-grade teacher, Olevia shares how strong foundations in phonemic awareness,...

In this episode of Champion Every Voice, Jaclyn Wright sits down with Dr. Jared Bloom, Superintendent of Franklin Square Schools in New York, international education thought leader, and longtime advocate for technology-enabled, student-centered learning. Dr. Bloom shares how schools can thoughtfully integrate AI and agentic learning while keeping trust, safety, educator judgment, and student agenc...

In this episode of Champion Every Voice , Jaclyn Wright sits down with Joe Siedlecki, Chief Impact Officer at Amira Learning, to discuss what it takes to drive literacy growth at scale. Drawing from his experience at the Texas Education Agency, the Michael & Susan Dell Foundation, and now Amira Learning, Joe shares a clear perspective on the national literacy landscape, the gap between policy...

What does literacy growth look like for multilingual learners—and how does it change the way students see themselves? In this episode of Champion Every Voice, ESL educator Desiree Alvarado shares how intentional instruction, structured routines, and consistent reading practice help students build both oral reading fluency and confidence. Working with 4th and 5th grade multilingual learners, Desire...

What changes when students start to believe in their own voice? In this episode of Champion Every Voice , Louisiana educator Monica Brown shares what happens when literacy growth goes beyond reading scores—and starts to show up in student confidence, communication, and classroom participation. From students who once stayed quiet to those now raising their hands and speaking with clarity, this conv...

What does it really take to improve literacy across a large, diverse school district? In this episode of Amira’s Champion Every Voice Podcast , host Jaclyn Wright sits down with Dr. David Cintron , Superintendent of District 14 in Brooklyn, New York , for a powerful conversation about literacy leadership, instructional coherence, family engagement, and the human-centered role of AI in education. W...

In this episode of Champion Every Voice , Jaclyn Wright sits down with Dr. Erin Hamilton, Amira Impact Director and former state education leader, for a thoughtful conversation about what it really takes to move literacy change from policy into classroom practice. Drawing on her experience at the state, district, and school levels, Erin shares why lasting literacy impact depends on more than good...

Host Jaclyn Brown Wright welcomes educational leadership expert Dr. Christopher Blair, a former superintendent and longtime English teacher now working in educational consulting, to discuss literacy at scale and how AI can support coherence from state policy to classrooms. Blair says leaders’ AI use is often limited to basic tasks like polishing emails, and coherence is still emerging because effe...

In this episode of Champion Every Voice, host Jaclyn Wright talks with Julie Binder, early literacy coach at Washington Elementary (Bay City Public Schools) and an Amira Champion, about how her school turned strong planning into meaningful reading growth. Julie shares how her team approached Amira’s fall rollout with intention—from schoolwide read-alouds and teacher coaching to data-driven groupin...

Join Jaclyn Wright and Ebony Brown in this insightful episode of the 'Champion Every Voice' podcast as they dive into the transformative literacy initiatives in Clayton County. Ebony shares her journey from a kindergarten teacher to a district-level coordinator, highlighting the importance of building strong literacy foundations and the power of instructional support tools like Amira. Discover how...

In this episode of Champion Every Voice , we sit down with Dr. Samantha Bahna and Eileen Freda—two instructional leaders from Washington Borough, NJ—who are using AI not to replace educators, but to empower them. From teacher co-planning and real-time feedback to early reading scaffolds and student voice, they explore how thoughtfully applied AI tools like Amira are helping close opportunity gaps,...

In this episode of Champion Every Voice , we welcome Valerie Maclin, Early Childhood Coordinator, and Gwendolyn Sharp, Reading and Language Arts Supervisor for grades 2–5, from Beaumont ISD in Texas. With decades of experience and deep literacy leadership, they share how their district is leveraging AI to support early reading success—without sacrificing teacher autonomy or student joy. Tune in to...

In this episode of Champion Every Voice , Jaclyn Wright sits down with Amber Spears, a passionate 4th grade ELA teacher from Aldine ISD. Amber shares how she’s using Amira and AI tools to personalize instruction, accelerate fluency, and reignite reading joy—for her students and her own children. She dives into: Building student confidence through oral reading How AI frees up time for meaningful sm...

In this inaugural episode of Champion Every Voice , host Jaclyn Wright sits down with veteran educator and Amira Champion Anna Buggs, a second-grade teacher from Escambia County, Florida. With over 30 years in the classroom, Anna shares how Amira Learning became a game-changing partner in her reading instruction—fueling dramatic fluency growth, supporting individualized interventions, and empoweri...