DA Podcasts

"A vision without alignment lacks coherence," Superintendent Carmen Balgobin says on the latest episode. "It's important to have strong intentionality with your priorities."

Students who participate in robotics programs often excel in STEM engagement, problem-solving abilities, computational thinking, and—in rare cases—team-building on the "Survivor" reality series.

Neil Gupta's mentor scuttled his plans to hold a town hall meeting with teachers when he was a newly hired director in a previous district. 

When Dr. Christopher Meyrick stepped into his first superintendency in 2019, he did not realize he was about to receive a masterclass in crisis management that would define his approach to the next great educational frontier: artificial intelligence.

Superintendent Kelly May-Vollmar details how she reaches everyone in Desert Sands USD with the help of board members, educators, parents and students. 

"People support what they help create," is one of Superintendent Alena Zachery-Ross's favorite leadership phrases. It's how she describes Ypsilanti Community Schools' efforts to elevate student voice and engage learners across grade levels in AI adoption and other new initiatives.

Superintendent Bill Runey shares how he reshaped leadership at the Dighton-Rehoboth Regional School District—and how the relationships you invest in carry you through your hardest moments.  

Edward Aldarelli said the biggest transition he made when he moved up from principal to take the helm of Edison Township Public Schools was becoming the New Jersey's district "head visionary."

In the wake of recent tragic school violence incidents in Colorado and Minnesota, K-12 administrators and district leaders face an urgent imperative: ensuring their emergency response plans and protocols are up to the task of protecting students and staff. This timely podcast revisits and expands upon critical school safety strategies from the “5 P’s” methodology (Planning, Process, Protocol, Prac...

When it comes to creating safe, sustainable, and student-ready schools, capital planning is more than a financial task—it's a leadership priority.  In this podcast, experts in the field will explore why capital planning is foundational for K–12 success, especially as districts face aging infrastructure, evolving learning environments and the spaces that support them, and the need for more stakehol...

The Brain State: 10 Essential Tier 1 Supports for Educators and Students District leaders who promote brain state model-based approaches, like Conscious Discipline and Applied Educational Neuroscience (AEN), in their schools equip educators with the knowledge to properly instill self-regulation and emotional resilience in students. Educators who understand their brain state - or how the brain func...

District leaders are under increasing pressure to support the individual needs of students with disabilities, who comprise approximately 15% of national public school enrollment. One way to help students with special needs is by providing a digital learning environment. One study* revealed that online learning has provided this population with added flexibility and convenience to manage and absorb...

Arming students with the skills to traverse the internet responsibly is education's latest challenge, says these two leaders live from the Future of Education Technology Conference. 

"We oftentimes don't think much about training with adults on social-emotional development, but we're not done growing," says Karen G. Foley, president and CEO of JPA Chicago.

Johnston County Public Schools Superintendent Eric Bracy used ESSER dollars to pay for a high-quality, research-based curriculum. Now, the move is paying off.

Cybersecurity, artificial intelligence and diversity are three of the top issues in K12 IT departments. They are also the big themes at next month's FETC 2025. 

Over the years, Director of Purchasing Gary Kerbow has been tasked with daunting construction projects when helping Hurst Euless Bedford ISD expand. Once, the board of trustees needed a recently acquired building up and running as quickly as possible, but copper thieves had looted the entire infrastructure, requiring extensive rewiring. Another time, Gary had to determine the full scope of repairs...

On the latest episode of District Administration's Talking Out of School podcastI, FETC featured speaker Kimberly Zajac share ideas for using the efficiencies of artificial intelligence to make instruction ever more inclusive.

Today, we're joined by Francie Alexander, senior vice president of efficacy and consulting research at Houghton Mifflin Harcourt (HMH), to discuss the pressures placed on edtech companies to produce results in school districts around the country. She also shares her advice for those in charge of selecting edtech tools for their districts and how to choose the most effective product.

You’ve probably heard about AI's large language models. But what is a "small language model" and why might this fine-tuned version of artificial intelligence work better in K12? 

An incendiary presidential election, compounded by social media and cable news, is pushing us further away. But as superintendents and community leaders, we can bridge the gap, Katy Anthes says.

In this episode, we're by Sasha Rabkin, the chief of program strategy and innovation for the Advanced Education Research and Development Fund, a nonprofit organization dedicated to advancing research and development in K12 education. Today’s discussion is on philanthropy and its role in K12 education initiatives and how leaders can implement more inclusive models of philanthropy while utilizing eq...

Can school district leaders afford not to make media literacy a pillar of their instructional programs? Teaching the subject effectively is key to graduating students who are productive citizens, Superintendent Shari Camhi, says.

Jeremy Anderson walks us through how the National Math and Science Initiative is connecting districts with state and federal programs to close opportunity gaps and increase college access through advanced STEM education. 

Many districts are challenged by outdated, costly and inefficient processes when it comes to the purchasing and procurement of instructional resources, which can frustrate teachers and staff and create significant waste. In this podcast, the recently retired superintendent of the Spring Grove Area School District (Penn.) will discuss how the district found ways to better support teachers and staff...