Ground Control Parenting with Carol Sutton Lewis

Talking to our kids about money is never just about dollars and cents. It brings up our values, our fears, our own childhood experiences, and sometimes even our regrets. In this On the Ground episode, Carol is joined by co-hosts Keisha Sutton-James and Jen Hays Lee for an honest conversation about raising money-smart kids. They talk about building generational wealth while carrying the fear of bac...

You've decided to get a divorce. Now what? When do you tell the kids? How much do you share? What do you say about the other parent? And what if you're already worried you'll get it all wrong? Divorce is one of the most common experiences families go through, and also one of the hardest to talk about with our kids. In this episode Carol sits down with pediatric psychologist and parent coach Dr. An...

How do you raise a child who wants to read? Award-winning educator Alvin Irby has a simple answer, and he found it in a barbershop.  In this episode, Carol talks with the founder of Barbershop Books , the national nonprofit that places books in barbershops and inspires Black boys to read for fun. Alvin's approach: ask Black boys what they like to read, then give them those books. He explains why t...

What can sisterhood teach us about raising children? In the first episode of Ground Control Parenting Book Talk, Carol explores this question with award-winning journalist Deborah Roberts, author of Sisters, Loved and Treasured: Stories of Unbreakable Bonds . One of six sisters, Deborah draws on both her own family and the many women she interviewed to share the honest, sometimes complicated truth...

Boomer, Gen X, Millennial. Three moms, three generations, one question that divides mom group chats: how do you discipline in the age of gentle parenting? In this episode of  GCP: On The Ground, Carol sits down with Keisha and Jen to wrestle with the parenting issue so many of us are living through right now. They move from the research linking spanking to worse outcomes, onto the harder question...

What does it mean to raise children when your family's life is a matter of public record? Maryland's First Lady Dawn Moore knows that tension intimately,  and she's navigating it with clarity, humor, and grace. First Lady Dawn Moore was one of the architects of the historic 2022 campaign that elected her husband, Wes Moore, as Maryland's 63rd governor and the first African American governor in the...

How much screen time is too much? Are some types better than others? And how should our approach change as kids grow from toddlers to teens? This week, Carol sits down with Jasmine Hood Miller, Director of Family Resources and Content Strategy at Common Sense Media and a mom of three boys, to reset the entire screen time conversation. Jasmine's research-backed message: the timer is the wrong measu...

We’re trying something new this season —  and we couldn't have picked a more important topic to start with. Welcome to the debut episode of GCP: On The Ground , a new recurring segment where Carol gathers three generations of moms to dig into the issues we're all talking about (or should be) at the kitchen table. These days your kids' phones may know more about them than you do.  So for this first...

Misty Copeland returns to Ground Control Parenting, and a lot has changed since her last visit. She's taken her final bow with American Ballet Theatre. She's come through a hip replacement. And she's parenting her young son Jackson (who “stole the show” when he joined her on stage at her final performance) while figuring out her next chapter now that ballet is no longer the center of the frame. In...

Season 8 of Ground Control Parenting starts May 13th—and this is our biggest, boldest season yet. This season, we’re bringing you conversations from every angle. You’ll hear from experts, thought leaders, and parents who are tackling big questions: how to help our kids navigate their digital lives, how to support children through divorce, what it means to parent with a futurist mindset in a rapidl...

As Season 7 of Ground Control Parenting comes to a close, join Carol as she hits rewind to reflect on the powerful insights shared by parenting experts and thought leaders across a range of fields. This season, the conversations went beyond what we can do to help and support our children and focused on the how. Carol spoke with leading experts about what it really means to parent with purpose and...

Grace Bastidas knows what families need—because she’s spent her career listening to them. As the founding editor of Parents Latina and the (recently stepped-down) editor-in-chief of Parents—the first woman of color to hold that role in the brand’s 100-year history—Grace has spent years talking to experts, amplifying parent voices, and shaping how we think about raising kids today. Grace joins Caro...

In this powerful episode from the Ground Control Parenting archives, Carol sits down with renowned civil rights leader and legal scholar Sherrilyn Ifill for a deeply meaningful conversation about what it means to parent during times of uncertainty and division. Sherrilyn shares how we can help our children navigate a world filled with misinformation, stay rooted in truth, and build resilience by s...

Why is giving birth still so dangerous for Black women in America? Dr. Uché Blackstock—physician, mother, and bestselling author—returns to the podcast to talk with Carol about the Black maternal health crisis. The U.S. maternal mortality rate is significantly higher than in other high-income countries, and within the U.S., the rate is by far the highest for Black women.  Black mothers are still t...

How do you talk to your child about drugs when you’re not even sure where to begin? In this candid and powerful conversation Carol is joined by two experts, Pat Aussem of the Partnership to End Addiction and Carleah Summers, recovery advocate and founder of Andrea’s House, to talk honestly about how to help our children navigate today’s complex drug landscape. From the dangers of flavored vapes an...

You may have heard of Jack and Jill of America—but do you know how this powerhouse mother's organization shapes Black children into confident, capable leaders? In this episode, Carol talks with Darlene McGee Whittingham, National President, and Tasha B. Penny, National Program Director, about the history, mission, and modern-day relevance of Jack and Jill. They explore what this organization offer...

Summer break shouldn’t mean learning loss. In this episode, Carol talks with award-winning educator Dr. Cicely Woodard about how to help kids avoid the “summer slide”—where they can lose two to three months of progress in math and reading over the summer. Dr. Woodard shares lots of simple ways parents can help kids stay sharp in math and reading throughout the summer months. She and Carol talk abo...

We all want the best healthcare for our children—but for Black parents, this can involve pushing past bias, asking hard questions, and showing up prepared. In this powerful episode, Carol sits down with Dr. Uché Blackstock—emergency physician, health equity champion, and bestselling author of Legacy: A Black Physician Reckons with Racism in Medicine —to talk about how parents can navigate the heal...

Many parents have heard the term neurodivergent, but aren't quite sure what it means—or what to do when their child doesn’t seem to follow the "typical" path. Pediatric psychologist and parent coach Dr. Ann-Louise Lockhart returns to the podcast to help us make sense of it all. Dr. Lockhart explains what neurodivergence is, how to recognize when your child might need support, and why "different" d...

Every parent wants their child to succeed in school—but keeping up with their progress, supporting their learning, and knowing when to step in can feel overwhelming. Former U.S. Secretary of Education John B. King, Jr. returns to the podcast with smart, practical advice to help you feel more confident and prepared to support your child’s academic journey. Whether your child is just starting kinder...

Emily Oster returns to the podcast to answer pregnancy and early parenting questions from Ground Control Parenting listeners!  Emily, an economist known for her data-driven approach to parenting, brings clear, compassionate, and evidence-based guidance to the most common (and confusing) early parenting concerns. She helps parents cut through the noise and make decisions with more confidence and le...

Carol sits down with award-winning journalist, author, and podcaster Michele Norris to discuss how we talk—and often struggle to talk—about race in our homes, our communities, and with our kids.   Michele shares the remarkable story behind her bestselling book, Our Hidden Conversations: What Americans Really Think About Race and Identity, which evolved from a simple invitation for people to share...

Child psychologist and parent coach Dr. Ann-Louise Lockhart returns to the podcast to help us understand emotional intelligence—what it is, why it matters, and how we can nurture it in our kids from an early age. In this powerful and practical conversation, Carol and Dr. Lockhart discuss: The 5 key components of emotional intelligence (EQ) How EQ supports resilience in a world that increasingly de...

Economist and best-selling author Emily Oster joins Carol in part one of a fascinating two-part conversation about how data can reduce parenting stress and help us make smarter, more confident decisions. Emily shares the origins of her data-driven parenting philosophy, why not all research studies are created equal, and how decision trees can bring calm to the chaos. Whether you're brand new to pa...

Welcome to a new season of Ground Control Parenting! This season starts strong with Dr. John B. King, Jr. — former U.S. Secretary of Education under President Obama and current Chancellor of the State University of New York — who joins Carol for a captivating conversation about the power of education. John reveals how education not only shaped his life but saved it — a story he explores in his ins...