Charter School Superstars

Latest Episodes:

Ep 56: Parental engagement with Ralph Arza of the Florida Charter School Alliance (recorded from FCSC 2019) Dec 04, 2019

Show notes

This week, we continue our series of CSS episodes live from the 2019 Florida Charter School Conference in Orlando, Florida. Joining us on the program is Ralph Arza, Director of Governmental Affairs for the Florida Charter School Alliance. On this episode, Ralph talks about how charter schools can effectively communicate with parents and make them advocates for the school. Ralph also details various ways to cultivate parental engagement in your school.
You can find out more about his work by visiting https://www.flcharterschool.org/
Host: Ryan Kairalla (@ryankair)
Producer: Ross Ulysse

Ep 55: Building effective governing boards with Debbie Lister of Education Board Partners (recorded from FCSC 2019) Nov 27, 2019

Show notes

This week, we continue our series of CSS episodes live from the 2019 Florida Charter School Conference in Orlando, Florida. Joining us on the program is Debbie Lister, Chief Transformation Officer of Education Board Partners. Education Board Partners is a DC based non-profit organization dedicated to strengthening non-profit boards in education. On this episode, Debbie talks about Education Board Partners and the array of services they provide to help school boards become more effective. Debbie also talks about all the skill sets needed to build a well-rounded board and reflects on the definition of academic success.
You can find out more about his work by visiting http://www.edboards.org/
Host: Ryan Kairalla (@ryankair)
Producer: Ross Ulysse

Ep 54: Providing opportunities for public servants with Ron Burton of Troops to Teachers (recorded from FCSC 2019) Nov 20, 2019

Show notes

This week, we continue our series of CSS episodes from the 2019 Florida Charter School Conference in Orlando, Florida. Joining us on the program is Ron Burton, programing director for Troops to Teachers. Troops to Teachers is a career transition program that helps members of the armed forces began new careers as K-12 instructors--including charter school instructors. On this episode, Ron talks about Troops to Teachers and the support and recruitment services that the program provides.
You can find out more about TTT’s work by visiting http://www.tcc.fl.edu/t2t
Host: Ryan Kairalla (@ryankair)
Producer: Ross Ulysse

Ep 53: Accreditation in public charters with Dianna Weinbaum of Cognia (recorded from FCSC 2019) Nov 13, 2019

Show notes

This week, we continue our CSS episodes from the 2019 Florida Charter School Conference in Orlando. Joining us on the program is Dianna Weinbaum, regional director at Cognia. Cognia is a nonprofit organization that provides certification, accreditation, and improvement services for schools. On this episode, Diana talks about Cognia, the accreditation process, and the support services that her organization provides to charter schools. Dianna also talks about the internal and external stakeholders involved in fostering academic success and continuous improvement at all schools.
You can find out more about her work by visiting http://www.cognia.org/
Host: Ryan Kairalla (@ryankair)
Producer: Ross Ulysse

Ep 52: Insurance coverage for public charters with Andy Jimenez of Egis Insurance (recorded from FCSC 2019) Nov 06, 2019

Show notes

This week is the first of a series of episodes recorded from the exhibit hall of the 2019 Florida Charter School Conference. Joining us this week is Andy Jimenez of Egis Insurance and Risk Advisors. On this episode, Andy talks to Ryan about the unique insurance needs that charter schools have and the categories of coverage that exist to address common liability risks. Tune in!
You can find out more about their work by visiting http://www.egisadvisors.com.
Host: Ryan Kairalla (@ryankair)
Producer: Ross Ulysse

Ep 51: Gardening classes in charters with Cassie Dillman of the School of Arts and Sciences Oct 30, 2019

Show notes

Charter School Superstars is at the Florida Charter School Conference in Orlando! Joining Ryan on this week's show is Cassie Dillman, the Gardening teacher at the School of Arts and Sciences on Thomasville in Tallahassee, Florida. Cassie talks to Ryan about her innovative gardening and cooking program, which is a required course at her charter school and exposes students to a "hands on" approach to student health. Cassie talks about her program's success and gives great advice on how to start a similar program on your own campus. You can find out more about Cassie's work by visiting @cassiethegardener and @the.school.garden on Instagram.
Host: Ryan Kairalla (@ryankair)
Producer: Ross Ulysse

Ep 50: Charter school boards in public education with Mike Mizzoni of BoardOnTrack Oct 23, 2019

Show notes

This week, Ryan sits down with Mike Mizzoni, the chief leadership and governance officer for BoardOnTrack, a Massachusetts-based charter school governance platform that helps charter school nonprofits remain academically strong and organizationally sustainable. In this podcast, Mike talks about the BoardOnTrack platform and identifies the unique governance practices and additional challenges that charter boards encounter. Mike also provides insight on board composition, managing organizational growth, and creating effective relationships with the CEO.
You can find out more about his work by visiting www.boardontrack.com
Host: Ryan Kairalla (@ryankair)
Producer: Ross Ulysse

Ep 49: Comprehensive sexual assault education with Dawn North and Cait Goss of Bright Star Oct 16, 2019

Show notes

This week, Ryan chats with Dawn North and Cait Goss from Bright Star Schools, a LA-based nonprofit that operates seven tuition-free charter schools serving 2,800 students in the communities of West Adams, Koreatown, and the San Fernando Valley. In this podcast, our guests talk about Bright Star’s innovative sexual harassment/assault education curriculum. Our guests identify the positive effects that their programming has had on their students and provides advice for school leaders to start similar programs on their campuses. Tune in!
You can find out more about our guests’ work by visiting http://www.brightstarschools.org/
Host: Ryan Kairalla (@ryankair)
Producer: Ross Ulysse

Ep 48: Incorporating social justice in instruction with Sydney Chaffee 2017 National Teacher of the Year Oct 09, 2019

Show notes

This week, we are honored to welcome Sydney Chaffee, humanities teacher at the Codman Academy Charter Public School in Massachusetts and the 2017 National Teacher of the Year, as our guest on this week’s show. In this podcast, Ms. Chafee talks about the role that social justice should play in instruction. She also identifies practical strategies to reinforce and incorporate effective discussion on social justice in classrooms.
You can find out more about her work by www.sydneychaffee.com.
Host: Ryan Kairalla (@ryankair)
Producer: Ross Ulysse

Ep 47: Principal Rachel Crouch talks about the turnaround of the Perry Street Prep Public Charter School Oct 02, 2019

Show notes

This week, Ryan interviews Rachel Crouch, the K-8 principal of the Perry Street Prep Public Charter School in Washington DC. In this podcast, Rachel talks to Ryan about how Perry Street went from the brink of closure to a Tier 1 school in just a few short years. Rachel provides actionable strategies for school success, including fostering parent engagement the effective use of data. You can find out more about our guest’s work by visiting www.pspdc.org.
Host: Ryan Kairalla (@ryankair)
Producer: Ross Ulysse

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