Stay ConnectedThe CharacterStrong Podcast: Weekly conversations for anyone in education.
CharacterStrong provides an evidence-based, multi-tiered solution to support whole child success. Curricula and trainings that improve behavior, increase safety, and support mental health.
For more information visit our website: characterstrong.com
Dr. Lara Gilpin has been in education for 29 years. Her career with the St. Joseph School District began in 1993 as a P.E./health teacher at Spring Garden Middle School. In addition to teaching, Dr. Gilpin coached basketball and track at SGMS as well as varsity basketball and volleyball at Benton High School in St. Joseph, Missouri. In 1999 she became assistant principal at Robidoux Middle School and later moved to assistant principalship at Truman Middle School in 2001. The following year, Dr. Gilpin became principal of Spring Garden Middle School, where she remains after 18 years as the principal. Dr. Gilpin has spent 24 of her years in education at Spring Garden Middle School in the capacity of a teacher and administrator. She has received a Bachelor's, Master's, and Specialist Degree from Northwest Missouri State University and received her doctorate from Baker University. Dr. Gilpin was named the Northwest MOASSP District Middle School Principal of the Year in both 2017 and 2019. Principal, Spring Garden Middle School
As the recipient of Special Olympics Missouri's 2018 School of Character Award of Merit, Odessa High School values kindness and meaningful inclusion. The school with just over 600 students is in a rural community approximately 30 miles east of Kansas City. Following a year of using Character Strong resources in their student-led lessons in freshman classes, the school is in its first year of school-wide implementation of the Character Strong Advisory Curriculum. The school's student council is recognized as an Honor Council by the Missouri Association of Student Councils. The senior student council members featured on the podcast include President Keiton Johnson and Vice President Makenzie Lewis along with Tyler Hepworth and Lyndsey Roseler. Tyler and Lyndsey are a Special Olympics unified pair who recently represented Character Strong at the Inclusive Youth Leadership Summit held in Chicago. The school utilizes unified pairs to teach Character Strong lessons to freshman classes. The group is active on social media. Follow them @odessar7_stuco on Instagram and Twitter.
Rebecca Mieliwocki is the 2012 National Teacher of the Year and a 23 year veteran middle school English teacher. She is the author of Adventures in Teacher Leadership: Pathways, Strategies, and Inspiration for Every Teacher from ASCD and the founder of Girlfriends for Good. She is currently on special assignment with Burbank Unified School District coordinating new teacher induction and secondary educator development. She is happily married, the mom to a terrific college freshman and an adorable puppy. She loves running, reading, and traveling but not necessarily in that order.
Andy DiDomenico is a nineteen year educational veteran who currently teaches history and leadership at Tappan Zee High School in Orangeburg, NY and coaches sprint football at the United States Military Academy at West Point. His mission is to help foster inclusive school culture by building caring relationships and establishing trusting communities in and out of the classroom. He, his wife Anne and their daughter Mary are proud to be a part of the CharacterStrong family!
Justin has been a teacher, coach and assistant principal for the last 12 years in SW Washington. He is blessed to have married his best friend who challenges and supports him, has birthed their 3 boys, and is his partner in life. Justin believes teachers are the ones that make the magic happen in school buildings and that relationships are the key to their influence in the lives of our children. Justin's mission is to create a Non-Anxious environment where his family, friends, and colleagues feel valued, loved, supported and challenged. He believes in the CharacterStrong Curricula and its use of low burden high impact tools to cultivate a culture of character, develop social-emotional skills, and challenge students, staff, and the community to make kindness normal.
Maurice Dudley is a graduate of Palm Beach Gardens High School 1976. He joined the US Army in Feb 8, 1977 and served 20 years in the Army. Retired June 1997 as a First Sergeant. Maurice did a combat tour in Gulf War (Desert Storm) and was awarded the Army Bronze Star after the war. He started working at Sumner High School Aug 1997 – Presently serves a Campus Safety Officer and Track Coach. Maurice was awarded Coach Of The Year 2018. Maurice's primary role at Sumner High School is to provide a safe environment for education and positive social interaction between multicultural teenagers grades 9 – 12.
Bernette Lindamood is a 22 year classroom veteran teacher that has worked with high school level students and middle school students in Texas and Alaska. Bernette works in the Lewisville Independent School District at DeLay Middle School teaching Teen Leadership and Social Studies. She is a firm believer in teaching students first and content second! Cultivating relationships and modeling kindness, compassion and love are her primary goals in her profession. All kids can learn and all kids need love. Bernette has been married for 29 years and has three grown kiddo's and two amazing grandkids that are her world.
Hans Appel has worked as a counselor in the Richland School District for the past 19 years and at Enterprise Middle School since it opened. He's passionate about school culture, servant leadership, and kindness. In 2018, EMS was awarded the ASCD Whole Child Award for the State of Washington and the Global "Class Act Award" for creating a culture of excellence through kindness, service, and empathy. Additionally, they were selected as a finalist in the 2019 PBIS Film Festival and took top prize in the Community, Parents, and Staff category. In 2018, Hans launched his own blog about School Culture and rolled out a student-led leadership podcast called Award Winning Culture: Hosted by Wildcat Nation, which can be subscribed, listened or reviewed on iTunes Apple Podcasts, Stitcher, Google Play, Spotify, PodBean, and Libsyn. Hans' blogs have appeared on DisruptED TV magazine, CharacterStrong, and PBIS Rewards. He's written social-emotional lessons for CharacterStrong. Furthermore, he has been featured on numerous educational podcasts speaking his brand of school culture into existence. He's been a contributor on two upcoming educational books: " Define Your WHY" and "ALL IN: Taking a Gamble in Education." Currently, he's working on his own book about school culture.
On the day before Thanksgiving 2019, CharacterStrong Co-Founders Houston Kraft & John Norlin reflect on this past year and share a little bit about what they are grateful for, and also give a challenge that reminds us what this holiday is all about. To read the transcription of this episode please visit: https://buff.ly/2KO8zfF
Chuck Moss is in his 23rd year as a professional educator, all but 6 of those years have been at the middle school level. He currently serves as the principal at Dinwiddie Middle School in Dinwiddie County, Virginia and is the Middle School Representative on the Board of Directors of the Virginia Association or Elementary School Principals. Chuck started his career as an 8th grade civics and English teacher, has coached football, wrestling, and soccer and is the PA announcer for the Dinwiddie Generals Varsity Football Team. Through it all, relationships have fueled his passion for education and he is dedicated to transparency and sharing his school's story.
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