181. Teaching Kids to be EcoHeroes with Brett “Mr. Eco” Edwards

Will Staton began his career as a high school history teacher, and has worked as a teacher, Dean and administrator in Memphis, New York City and Washington, DC. Most recently, Will worked as an independent nonprofit consultant.Now he is now running for Congress as an independent in central New York, where he lives in Syracuse with his wife and two daughters. In our talk, Will and I discuss his journey from education to politics, and how he wants to improve the public school system. If you care about our education system, you’ll want to tune in.For all links and resources mentioned in this episode, head to the show notes: https://www.educatorforever.com/episode182.

Brett "Mr. Eco" Edwards is the founder and Chief Eco Officer of the Eco Hero show. He created Mr. Eco in college and has brought the brand to life since 2014. He is an environmentalist, an educator, an entrepreneur, a Grammy-voting member, a YouTuber and a philanthropist.Brett and I talk about how he created the Eco Hero show and his climate change activism. He talks about the shows’s growing success and also gives some fantastic tips on how to build a show’s momentum.For all links and resources mentioned in this episode, head to the show notes: https://www.educatorforever.com/episode181.

Brittanie Bates is a curriculum developer, educator, principal and parent, who's redefining what's possible in global online education. As founding academic head and principal of the global online school, Crimson Global Academy's U.S. diploma pathway, she has built an online learning model that proves digital education is a powerful catalyst for breaking down barriers and unleashing student potential worldwide.Brittanie and I talk about her teaching journey, and how she fell into online teaching. She gets into how the Crimson Global Academy started and what led to its success, and provides some great advice for teachers wanting to transition into online teaching.For all links and resources mentioned in this episode, head to the show notes: https://www.educatorforever.com/episode180.

Rob Scheer is the founder and CEO of Comfort Cases, an international nonprofit dedicated to bringing dignity and hope to youth in foster care. His and the organization’s mission is clear: to eliminate the heartbreaking and dehumanizing practice of children being handed a trash bag to carry their belongings when entering the foster care system. Since founding Comfort Cases in 2013, Rob and his team have distributed more than 300,000 backpacks and duffle bags filled with essential and comforting items to youth in every U.S. state, Washington, D.C., Puerto Rico, and the United Kingdom.In this episode, Rob and I discuss Rob’s journey and how he came around to start Comfort Cases. We also get into the importance of education in the lives of foster children and how a teacher’s kindness helped him in a difficult time.For all links and resources mentioned in this episode, head to the show notes: https://www.educatorforever.com/episode179.

Hillary Summerbell is the founder and CEO of Summerbell, a literacy technology company redefining how visual dyslexics engage with text. A fourth-generation Washingtonian and lifelong creative, Hillary brings a designer’s eye and an inventor’s persistence to the world of EdTech. After a career in interior design and entrepreneurship, Hillary built on the academic research of positional arc reading and elevated it through technology, creating Summerbell. Her work has delivered measurable gains in reading fluency and comprehension, transforming an academic idea into a tool used by students, parents, and educators nationwide.Hillary and I talk about her visual dyslexia and how it influenced the creation of Summerbell, which reformats text into an arc for easier comprehension. She gets into the challenges of developing Ed Tech and how teachers can best use Summerbell with AI.For all links and resources mentioned in this episode, head to the show notes: https://www.educatorforever.com/episode178.

Pia Dandiya is a first-generation American educator running for Congress in the district where she was born and raised to fight for kids and expand opportunity for every Floridian. She began her career as a teacher in low-income schools and went on to become one of the youngest high school principals in the country, founding a school where every graduate earned college admission despite most students living below the poverty line. She later served as a White House Fellow working on education and domestic policy and worked at the intersection of technology and education at Apple.Now that she’s running for congress, Pia and I talk about why she ran in the first place and how her experience in education motivates her to work on a national level. We also get into how she wants to fix our education system.For all links and resources mentioned in this episode, head to the show notes: https://www.educatorforever.com/episode177.

Today I’m doing a solo episode! I haven't done a solo podcast episode in a while, but I thought I'd come in and talk to you all about what I'm seeing in the world of curriculum development. I've been working in this field for almost 20 years, which is wild. But I've really seen some shifts and some things that have stayed the same. And so as you think about maybe considering curriculum development as a next career path for you, I want to talk about some of the top skills you need.For all links and resources mentioned in this episode, head to the show notes: https://www.educatorforever.com/episode176.

Mickey Fitch-Collins is a leadership development facilitator, coach and podcast host who turns research into real world impact. With a doctorate in leadership in higher education and a background spanning academia, Ed Tech and corporate learning, she helps organizations unlock the potential of their people, especially their middle managers.In this episode, Mickey told me about how she went from professional bass fisherman to working in higher education to learning and development. She gets deep into her learning and leadership philosophies, and she provides some great advice for those wanting to transition from education to learning and development.For all links and resources mentioned in this episode, head to the show notes: https://www.educatorforever.com/episode175.

Leah Ruesink is an early literacy coach and adjunct professor based in Michigan. She supports K–3 teachers in implementing research-aligned reading instruction and provides science-backed literacy guidance to educators, coaches, and families. Through her work in schools, writing, and online, Leah helps bridge the gap between literacy research and everyday classroom practice.In this episode, Leah and I talk about the importance of early literacy intervention to ensure students stick at the pace they need. We also get into the need for systematic, explicit phonics programs and business owners building their brand. For all links and resources mentioned in this episode, head to the show notes: https://www.educatorforever.com/episode174.

Dr Erin Sponaugle has been teaching for 23 years. She’s a national board certified teacher and a former West Virginia Teacher of the Year. She’s also the author of two children's books and recently published Teachaholic, a book about overcoming teacher burnout based on her own experience. Erin is also the host of the Next Chapter for Teachers podcast.In this episode, we talk to Erin about her educator journey, writing books, most importantly, how teachers can avoid burnout.For all links and resources mentioned in this episode, head to the show notes: https://www.educatorforever.com/episode173.