The Dash

Marlon Lewellyn moved from Kingston, Jamaica to Miami Florida and the first thing his mom did was put him in a good school. It didn’t take long to realize the value of education. As a principal, administrator and recruiter Marlons mission as an educator entrepreneur is to lead from the heart, and treat people right along the way. If you can change someone’s perspective you can change their life. I...

Restorative justice means recognizing the harm that our students have experienced and working to repair it. But students don’t care how much you know until they know how much you care. When school start’s we are so eager to begin instruction when we have to take the time to build relationships with students. We have to find a way for our students who learn differently, walk different and talk diff...

Mental health used to be swept under the rug. But today it’s at the forefront of our society. We have shows and movies that are highlighting mental health, suicidality, and depression in ways that can be both helpful and hurtful. 1 in 5 children has a diagnosable behavior or emotional health disorder. 1 in 10 have a mental illness that don’t receive service but are struggling to succeed in the cla...

It takes a village to raise a child, especially when your child has special needs. Queesha Tillman the Principal of Lloyd Almond Elementary wasn’t interested in education until she saw the support her son was going to need. She moved from social work and case management to teaching Special Education classes. Parents are a big part of your school community, one day they are on the sidelines the nex...

Does the way we prepare teachers effectively meet the needs of students? How does your personal experience connect with your students experience? Traditionally content drives instruction, but what if culture drove instruction. Your personal experience through education and life is a gateway to connect with your students. Even if you have a different experience than your students the appreciation c...

I didn’t realize how important school leaders were, but now that I am a school leader I have to bring it every day. When I’m excited my staff is too, my job is to support them. And when my teachers are excited they set the tone for our kids to achieve at higher levels. - Robert Breyer It’s a trickle down effect. Listen and subscribe now :00 - The Trickle down effect 3:45 - beyond the desk leadersh...

When leadership changes, culture changes too. But it’s a process the last thing your educators want is to be blindsided. James Knight took over Rocky Mount Prep after they didn’t have an administrator for some time! To build the schools accountability and culture back up he took it one step at a time. Finding out where referrals were coming from, putting a consistent behavior structure in place, a...

This K - 12 Charter school in North East North Carolina has built a solid foundation guiding students to receive millions in scholarships. It’s amazing how school leaders impact the classroom. As a Principal the culture you create will determine your school’s success, from test scores to happy teachers. Listen to the Dash Podcast now 4:06 - Working at a Title 1 K 12 Charter School 9:00 - How schoo...

There’s never a separation between advocating for teachers and advocating for students. The conversation about policy and teacher rights is about a better situation for your students. In Brandon Morrison’s case he may be the only black male his students ever see in the classroom. So no matter what’s going on outside of the classroom, that’s a responsibility for your students to deal with. Listen t...

There’s a lot of push and pull in middle school. Students think they are grown, body’s are changing, attitude are through the roof. Marva Tutt is in her 3rd year as a principal, year one was about picking the low hanging fruit, year two campus was challenged to change year three is about becoming a principled principal Listen now to Episode 89 of the Dash Podcast 2:00 - Take time to know your stud...

EP 88 Build strong children or repair broken men with Rheon Gibson As a school leader you develop a unique balance in life. Home plus school takes a lot more than a 9:00 - 5:00. But you’ve got to find the balance to be your best self. Rheon Gibson shifted his career as a Guidance Counselor, to being a school leader. Building relationships with students so we can understand them the way students un...

Having a sense of humor and relationship with the kids is key to middle schools. The middle ages are an opportunity to take a kid in a tough place and develop them before they grow a fixed mindset. There are tons of protocols, systems, and standards but when the teacher cares about the student and the lesson is engaging. Everybody wins. 3:00 - Global studies and language immersion program (Global...

We have a problem with students coming to school and staying engaged. There’s a disconnect between what students are being exposed to and what they need to know to be productive citizens. It’s important to keep digging deep on how to prepare our teachers with the pedagogy and empathy they need to keep students engaged. The goal is to create teachers who have a social justice mindset to understand...

Over the past 100 years education has pretty much stayed the same, in the past 10 years the cost of education has multiplied 2.5x but the value hasn’t increased at the same rates. Are you ready to innovate your classroom, school or district? The challenges are consistent throughout education, missing resources, top talent spread to thin, public will to progress. Bryan Setser Principal of the RPK g...

Why are there so few black educators, in a country with a growing minority population we don’t see the same representation in Education. Lloyd Knight has spent his career as an educator working in some of the toughest neighborhoods turning around some of the longest failing schools. 1:30 - Why are there so few black educators in our country when black men make up such a large part of our country....

Are you leading through the lens of equity? We are allowing students to live below their privilege with an over representation of kids of color in special ed and decrease of minority students in challenging courses. Dr. Lorenzo Hughes is the Senior manager for School support and Equitable Practices for the Anne Arundel County schools in annapolis Maryland and is working to provide professional dev...

When you stand in front of class you bring all of you, and when you don’t believe your student know it. You’ve got to remind yourself that they have no limits and every student can learn. Walter Duncan is the founder of the Quick Key app that’s a teacher tool helping teachers to chanel challenging students star potential. With instant grading, 1:1 device quizzing and google forms grading. 3:10 - I...

What was your experience in education like? For me, it was growing up in different schools, different homes, and different worlds. For an episode of a new podcast ‘War on Recess’ created by Walter Duncan I had a chance to share my story through education. 1:00 - Growing up in different schools 2:30 - Growing up in different worlds 7:00 - Growing up in different homes

Kids need opportunity, nobody gets to choose what they are born into, so it’s up to us to create the opportunity for our next generation. Sherrie Ivey has made a strong commitment to serve her students as one of many early college programs that graduates students in their 5 year program with a High school diploma and Associate degrees. Starting a school is a tall task the Harnett County Early Coll...

Building and restoring students with a troubled background takes consistency, effort, structure and patience. Education is finally changing. Moving past ‘traditional’ lecture’s and into 21st century learning. It’s important to celebrate student success, and more importantly use a system to celebrate students success. One new initiative that’s making a big impact is ‘capturing kids hearts’. Student...

Career & Technology Education has burst into education over the last 5 years. What used to be known as classes for ‘the other kids’ are now one of the greatest advantages every student can receive. Creative, Critical and Innovative thinking. The coolest part is that CATE or CTE isn’t just for high school the South Carolina department of Education is working on expanding exploration to involve 5th...

Don’t expect the summers off, being a teacher means creating opportunities for every student to succeed. Why are you in administration? Education isn’t for everybody! That’s not the case for Dr. Latoia Valentine, she’s in a new role as a middle school Principal, and she’s starting off by building rapport. Sow into your teachers what you want them to sow into your students. Before your students tru...

The Path to graduation, Early college high school Initiative began in 2002 with the funding from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. And they continue to fund this project today. I was surprised to learn the initiative started as a way to provide Underprivileged students an opportunity to get ahead. Today these ECHS programs are all around the country allowing students to graduate high school wit...

District-wide systems are mandated but they aren’t always funded. That’s why administrators are working with multiple hats to provide each school the support they need. It’s a tall task to meet the needs of each school because no two buildings are the same, and education is ever evolving. And this is why educators aren’t worrying about what doesn’t exist rather focusing on giving back. Do you reme...

Challenging Meaningful Significant conversation on how to bridge the gap in education. For two years the Dash has explored how to make pain your platform for purpose. Today we are celebrating educators. I've worked in student affairs and Education consulting for the past four years. And everything is starting to come together. The Dash podcast is an extension of Gammage Consulting group where we a...