The Authority Podcast — Expert Insights and Fresh Ideas for Education Leaders

Today’s guest is likely quite familiar to our audience here. Will Parker is host of Principal Matters: The School Leader's Podcast, with more than 1.5 million downloads to date.  An Oklahoma educator since 1993, Will won a teacher of the year award in 1998, was named Oklahoma Assistant Principal of the Year by the National Association of Secondary Principals in 2012, was principal of a Title I sch...

Today I'm pleased to share an episode from my friend Dr. Karen Dudek-Brannan, a previous guest on The Authority and host of De Facto Leaders, a popular show on the Be Podcast Network. Ever feel like your school is trying all the “right” strategies—social skills groups, planners, behavior charts—but students still struggle with time management, motivation, and peer relationships? You’re not alone—a...

For over 20 years, Tony Chatman has partnered with some of the most successful organizations in the world—including Chase Bank, the U.S. Secret Service, Phillips 66, Clear Channel, and St. Joseph’s Health. He specializes in bridging differences in perspectives, communication styles, and experiences by addressing the universal need we all share: to feel valued and seen. As a scientist and chemical...

Kimberly Spencer is an award-winning high-performance, trauma-informed coach and trainer, Amazon best-selling author, TEDx speaker, and the founder of CrownYourself.com, helping visionary leaders transform their self-limiting stories, build their empire, stand out fearlessly, and make the income and the impact they deserve. Her book is Make Every Podcast Want You: How to be so Radically Interestin...

My guests Charle Peck and Josh Stamper are co-authors of The Language of Behavior: A Framework to Elevate Student Success , winner of the 2025 Firebird Educational Book Award. We talk about: Like our last episode with Dr. Bill Penuel, co-author of Creating Compassionate Change in School Communities, this book also refers to a compassionate approach to school culture and student behavior.  Discussi...

Dr. William Penuel is Distinguished Professor of Learning Sciences and Human Development in the Institute of Cognitive Science and School of Education at the University of Colorado Boulder.  He is co-author of Creating Compassionate Change in School Communities: Leading Together to Address Everyday Suffering in Schools . We talk about: Why does compassion matter for educators? How is compassion di...

Blending memoir, personal essay, local topography, and culture, Alex Poppe’s Breakfast Wine is a frank, human story of pursuing an unconventional life and finding a way home.  Alex is a business analyst, turned actor, turned teacher who accepted a teaching position in northern Iraq after a chance encounter with an acclaimed journalist. In this episode, you’ll hear her stories and learn what it was...

Today’s guest, Erik Palmer, is an educational consultant from Denver who focuses on showing teachers practical, engaging ways to teach oral communication skills, and showing educational leaders how to be more effective communicators. He’s the author of several books, including Well Spoken: Teaching Speaking to All Students, 2nd Edition (Routledge). We discuss: Defining modern, effective oral commu...

To close out May, I'm happy to highlight another Best Of episode with three-time guest Katie Novak. This was our first conversation, about her best-selling book UDL Now! We talked about: “If UDL is the answer, what is the question?” Who should be doing UDL? UDL is best practice: “Teachers are working too hard to not have a greater impact on learners.” Understanding the similarities and differences...

Today’s episode wraps up our four-part series on communication and finding your voice. My guest is Matthew Rolnick. Matt is SVP of Partnerships & Events for The Real American Beer Company and former VP of Strategy & Innovation at Yaymaker. He’s an Amazon bestselling author, speaker, LinkedIn 2023 Top Entrepreneurship Voice, and a Udemy Instructor for 135k students. Matt is author of Find Y...

Today is part 3 of our miniseries on communication. My guest, Michael Davis, works with business owners, entrepreneurs, and business leaders who struggle to effectively give presentations. He helps them increase their confidence, influence, and impact with more impactful presentations every time they stand up and speak. Michael's expertise in communication is rooted in the belief that all business...

This week, we’re continuing our miniseries on finding your voice and increasing your influence as a leader.  My guest is Ryan Millar, a Canadian-born, Amsterdam-based coach, story trainer, and communications consultant.  All of his work draws heavily on his 25+ years as an improviser. Ryan got his start in Vancouver BC in the late ‘90s with !nstant Theater, and has worked with Boom Chicago and tou...

This week, we’re starting a four-episode miniseries on finding your voice and increasing your influence as a leader.  My guest to kick it off is Dr. Laura Sicola, a leadership communication and influence expert, and a renowned speaker, former bilingual K-12 teacher and university professor who holds a PhD in educational linguistics from the University of Pennsylvania. With over 20 years of experie...

Miriam Plotinsky is a National Board–certified teacher with additional certification in administration and supervision. She’s currently an instructional specialist with Montgomery County Public Schools in Maryland. She’s the author of several books, including Small but Mighty: How Everyday Habits Add Up to More Manageable and Confident Teaching (ASCD). We talk about: Why Miriam wanted to write a b...

Episode 150 of The Authority is a special one. I’m joined by Dr. John B. King, Jr., the 10th U.S. Secretary of Education.  John is currently the chancellor of the State University of New York (SUNY), the nation’s largest comprehensive system of public higher education. Over the course of his career in public education, he has been a high school social studies teacher, a middle school principal, th...

This week I welcome Amanda Morin and Emily Kircher-Morris to the show.  Amanda is a neurodivergent neurodiversity activist, an award-winning author, early childhood specialist, certified teacher, and nationally known speaker, deeply committed to fostering accessible and inclusive environments for neurodivergent individuals. Emily has dedicated her career to transforming how we understand and suppo...

Today’s guest, Tony Frontier, is an award-winning educator who works with teachers and school leaders nationally and internationally to help them prioritize efforts to improve student learning. He’s the author or co-author of several books, including Teaching with Clarity and Five Levers to Improve Learning . We discuss his latest, AI with Intention: Principles and Action Steps for Teachers and Sc...

Brian Butler is an educational consultant, speaker, author, and award-winning former principal who is passionate about nurturing collaborative school cultures that unlock every student’s unlimited potential.  In this episode, we discuss two of his books, Every Student Deserves a Gifted Education and Limitless Future . We talk about: Brian's inspiring story What is a gifted education? The necessary...

We're pleased this week to highlight another "Best of The Authority" episode. This one is my conversation with Dr. Thomas Guskey, Professor Emeritus in the College of Education at the University of Kentucky. He is known throughout the world for his work on student assessment, grading and reporting, professional learning, and educational research.  He's the author/editor of thirty books, including...

Today I welcome Alex Kajitani and Tom Hierck to the show. Alex and Tom are both award-winning educators and bestselling authors, and together they’ve written their latest title You’re a Teacher Now! What’s Next? We talk about: “What have I got myself into?” The question all new teachers ask. Why is this the book for right now? What Alex and Tom would change about the typical experience for new tea...

Today I'm thrilled to introduce our newest podcast here on the Be Podcast Network, Artificial Intelligence: Real Talk hosted by Eli Marshall Davis. Eli is an Interventionist at Hemphill Elementary in Birmingham, AL, where he sits on the leadership team and chairs the MTSS/Problem Solving Team committee. He is a Ph. D. candidate at the University of South Carolina, focusing on Teaching and Learning...

It’s a pleasure to welcome Dr. Lorraine Radice back to the show. Lorraine is an Assistant Superintendent for Curriculum and Instruction in a public school district in New York and an Associate Assistant Professor at Hofstra University. Prior to her current role, she was a preK-12 Director of Literacy.  Lorraine’s book, Leading A Culture of Reading , was a 2023 GOLD Winner for Education in the Fore...

Popular guest Dr. Kimberly Nix Berens returns to the show. She’s a scientist-educator, Founder of Fit Learning, and author of Blind Spots: Why students fail and the science that can save them . We’re also joined by Dr. Michael-Joseph Mercanti-Anthony, principal of Antonia Pantoja Preparatory Academy, a public school for students in grades 6-12 in the southwest Bronx.   We talk about: Defining the...

My guests today are Katie Novak and Ashley Marlow.  Katie, an internationally-renowned education consultant, graduate instructor at the University of Pennsylvania Graduate School of Education, and the best-selling author of numerous books, returns to The Authority for the third time. Ashley is an elementary math coach, consultant, and director of operations for All Learners Network. They co-author...

For our next "Best Of" episode, I'm excited to republish my conversation with Mitch Weathers, teacher and founder of Organized Binder, Inc. We talked about his book Executive Functions for Every Classroom: Creating Safe and Predictable Learning Environments Grades 3-12 , published by Corwin.  Hear our conversation about: Defining executive functions and their importance Signs of executive dysfunct...