unMASKing with Male Educators: Creating Emotionally Safe Classrooms & Schools for Male Students

“It’s been a very challenging time and my way of coping with this adversity has been through humor. I think a lot of people have been using humor as a coping mechanism because it’s a hard time, and you need to be able to laugh about it or see the absurdity in it.” - Arturo Aviña Ever Forward Club’s Ashanti Branch is joined by Arturo Aviña. As a Los Angeles-based theatre teacher, Arturo found his c...

“Life is impermanent. And that doesn’t mean that we’re not important or what we contribute to life is not important. The institutions we create are not going to live forever. But the energy, the way we live - this will live on forever.” - Alfredo Mathew III Ever Forward Club’s Ashanti Branch is joined by Alfredo Mathew III. Alfredo is the co-founder of ESO Ventures, an entrepreneurial support orga...

Original Air Date: May 16, 2023 “What keeps me hopeful is our students. Our students and our youth, they’re fearless; they’re committed; they’re open-minded. They have always been the anchor to the work that I do. When they realize that they’ve got adults that care for them and that believe in them, they give it right back. That’s something that I’m really grateful for.” Ever Forward Club’s Ashant...

Original air date: April 30th, 2024 Video Episode: https://youtu.be/-NwPW3-a688 @donofriend  or Donovan Taylor Hall, joins Ashanti Branch, a master educator with 20+ years of experience in schools, to talk about what they are reflecting on as educators and what they’re seeing in the halls of modern-day schools. Donovan is an experienced teacher and positive youth development expert who travels aro...

Congratulations on another school year! As you enjoy the summertime, we have somewhat of a gift for you in anticipation of what's to come... A few things that will transform your classroom and your school in the Fall. Enjoy your time off (if you're taking it), but keep these three things on the back of your mind. The Young Men’s Conference is going global (1:00) The First Week of School -...

It seems to be that more often in life, we find our selves in that vicious cycle of burning out, then numbing out, only to burnout and numb out even more. It's safe to say this especially applies to teachers. Even the PhDs of the world, like today's guest, Brendan, find themselves in that cycle. Brendan is a sociologist who specializes in the social-emotional development and well-being of boys and...

“If we give our children sound self-love, they will be able to deal with whatever life puts before them.”- bell hooks Harry Jamerson teaches 5th grade in San Francisco Unified School District, and he shared this quote with us before our conversation. After talking to him, I could tell he truly lives by bell hooks’ words. When it comes to self-love and emotional intellgence, Harry is keen on when t...

As an educator in the community, how long is long enough? This past weekend was the Ever Forward Club’s Dance-A-Thon, the latest version of a community event that’s been going on every Memorial Day weekend for the past 21 years straight. Barely anyone showed up. Emotions from the day were polarized, to say the least - great connections, poor sense of relevance to the community and young people we...

A rush of memories are flowing through my head. They’ve arrived for one reason in particular - on May 28th, 2025, I’m releasing a book that I’ve been dreaming of writing for 15 years. And though it’s been 15 years, the book is really 21 years in the making - 21 years as an educator. I’m going to read three passages from different stages of my teaching career - selected because this book release ha...

“If I want to be effective in this, I got to know what it feels like to be a body in pain - really - and wrestle with whatever pain is arising from me. Because if I’m not in touch with that, how can I be really anything but a fake for somebody else as they’re going through it?” Sitting with pain. Getting close to your resentment. All with the goal of helping others. This is the crux of Dr. Bill Pe...

I recently attended RestorED: A Healing Experience for Educators - a collaboration between our nonprofit, the Ever Forward Club, and The Find Design, a nonprofit based in Nashville, Tennessee. During this experience, I made profound connections with great teachers, like Ms. Kayla. She’s been a rock for her students after the school shooting at Antioch H.S., in Nashville. Listen to hear what I took...

Here's an excellent way to build culture and create buy-in at your school/classroom: rites of passage. What rites of passage are appropriate for your students? What are some values to hone in on as you create rites of passage experiences for your students? What are some outside resources you can point families toward? Listen to find out! This episode was inspired by my conversation with Jordan...

It’s all over the news. It’s everywhere in our art. Young boys are a lightning rod in our national conversation. And that puts a lot of pressure on you as an educator. So how do you deal? What kinds of behaviors are you observing in your classroom? And what conversations do you need to be having around your school community? (0:00) Class in session (2:00) Young boys are in the news. What’s going o...

“Nothing personal, it’s just business.” What teachers need to understand is the “business” of school is social capital. So when teachers have a student challenging them, disrespecting them, putting on a show in their classroom… it’s nothing personal. It’s not even about you. Our guest, Dr. Matt Englar-Carlson, a veteran in the public school system, knows a thing or two about navigating these types...

There's a poster that should be in every classroom in America. It's called "The Learning Pit" by James Nottingham. The "adult" version of this concept is called the "Dunning- Kruger" effect. Look them up! In this episode, we break down what it all means and how you can implement it in your classroom. It seriously should be in every classroom. This episode was...

“The kids are watching. The kids see everything. If you can act and model what type of person you want them to be, that’s going to be way better than teaching them about a person you want them to be. If you can be the one who’s vulnerable first, if you can show other emotions, if you can meet them half way emotionally, that may be an opportunity for them to let their guard down, for them to see co...

What do Andrew Tate’s return, Netflix’s “Adolescence”, the film “Manodrome”, and the Department of Education shutdown all have in common? I break it down here - why it’s harder than ever to combat bullying in our school communities - and I provide a fundamental approach that I take. Hopefully all educators can apply this at their school site once they listen to this. This episode was inspired by m...

It still breaks my heart to think about him, which is why I’ve never talked about him on this channel. But it’s time for you to learn about Arturo. He represents everything about why I became a teacher and the lengths we have to go to be a great educator. This episode was inspired by Carlos Moreno and his Leadership Journeys . Check out my conversation with Carlos Moreno, episode 17 . --- (1:20) A...

Staff at the Department of Education were told this: “Don’t come in tomorrow.” There’s a lot of rumors that Donald Trump is make major cuts to the Department of Education in his next round of Executive Orders. Most people don’t know what the Department of Education does, so what’s the big deal? Listen and learn about all the things the department does - that you’ve been taking for granted. I talke...

Donald Trump, Andrew Tate, Jordan Peterson. Truth be told, these are the men that are winning the eyes and ears of young men right now. So what’s it’ like being a male teacher in this atmosphere, and what are some things you can do to combat these antisocial forces? Trevor Slater, a master teacher of 17 years, has some answers to this question. And when Trevor speaks, he’s always taken the time be...

The most important thing about being a teacher is... Something ethereal... Something you can't quite put your finger on. “What is it?” you may ask… Carlos calls it leadership soul. Leadership soul is all about “the important functions love, care and vulnerability play in education leadership and how our society tends to shun these characteristics in leaders.”So how do we tap into this in an ar...

If you’re looking for teaching practices you can implement in your classroom TOMORROW, this is your episode. In fact, just read this passage from our guest’s bio, and see if this sounds familiar: “Early in his career, Roni struggled with the high stresses and demands of teaching, even losing touch with why he wanted to be a teacher in the first place. It was so painful that he finally discovered t...

“Idealistic.” “Pie in the sky.” “Unrealistic.” “Chaotic.” Project-based learning can actually be done pragmatically and effectively. Listen to these stories and guidance from my 20-year career in education, so that you don’t make the same mistakes I did. Check out the conversation that sparked these reflections, episode 12 with Justin Wells . (0:00) Class in session (1:00) Overview of project-base...

Educators, do you ever notice how a volunteer or a community leader can completely change how students behave in your classroom? What if these community volunteers could be an entire ecosystem of support for your young people? That’s what Jordan Bowman and his organization, Journeymen , represent when he and a group of male volunteers enter the school space. Please enjoy Jordan’s insights in this...

I recently read an article and the numbers are appalling. The quotes are heartbreaking. And I can’t get them out of my head. The article is “Why Teachers Quit + What You Can Do Instead” by Devlin Peck. So for today’s episode, I’m going to read some of my favorite excerpts from the article and share my thoughts. Behavior challenges, staffing, the COVID pandemic, discipline, parent relationships, ac...