Episodes

In his 21 years at Chiefess Kamakahelei Middle School, Kevin Matsunaga has taught over a thousand students how to use cameras and editing software, and how to conduct interviews and tell stories. He emphasizes that the digital media program also teaches students important life skills, like how to work in teams, meet deadlines, communicate effectively and solve problems. “Our goal has never been to produce that next Spielberg,” he says. “It’s always been to just give them opportunities that they ...

Ashley Mika Ito-Macion is an educator at Kanoelani Elementary School in Honolulu and a proud Hawai‘i State Teacher Fellow. She has a passion for helping her colleagues and working to create opportunities for educator growth. Ashley also was recently awarded Teacher of the Year for the Pearl City-Waipahu Complex, which is in Honolulu, Hawai'i! She is also the founder of the Hawaiʻi Distance Learning Forum For the University of Hawai'i at Manoa College of Education Ashley writes: This is one of my...

“Over her years at High Tech High, Laura McBain (now at the Stanford d.School, K12 Lab) did almost every job it was possible to do - teacher, principal, graduate school instructor. She can hold her own in any conversation about policy, standards, school design, school change. But the most important thing about Laura is she is all about FUN! Having it, creating it, sharing it. She never loses sight of the fact that learning has to be fun to be engaging. She wants learners of all ages to have thos...

Dr. Cara Chaudron is a math enthusiast born and raised in Honolulu, Hawai’i. She teaches 6th grade math at the School For Examining Essential Questions of Sustainability, known as SEEQS, a public charter school near and dear to my heart. I have done two previous episodes with SEEQS faculty, including Zoe Ingerson and school founder, Buffy Cushman-Patz. Dr. Chaudron is a shining example of what it means to teach for deeper learning and student engagement. This episode was edited by the talented E...

Since 2015 Emily McCarren has served as Punahou School’s Academy Principal. Punahou is the largest, and one of the oldest private schools in the United States. Originally from Vermont, Emily graduated from Colby College in Maine where she majored in Spanish and Biology. She served as captain of the Alpine ski team and lacrosse team. Emily holds two master’s degrees: Spanish Literature and Educational Leadership. She completed her Ph.D. at the University of Hawaiʻi, where her dissertation examine...

Today my guest is Lipoa Kahaleuahi, innovative educator, deep thinker, champion surfer and the executive director of Ma Ka Hana Ka ‘Ike (also known as Hana Build), a truly remarkable experiential learning program on the island of Maui. In this conversation, Lipoa and I range widely over a number of topics, including the remarkable way her life is a literal representation of the phrase, “it takes a village.” This episode was edited by the talented, Evan Kurohara. Our theme music and musical inter...

Ayana Verdi is an educational leader and mother of two who, with her husband John in 2016, established the Verdi Eco School to provide hands-on educational experiences for children in the historic Eau Gallie Arts District of Melbourne, Florida. The school quickly grew to become the first K-8 urban farm school in the southeastern United States and has now expanded to include high school learners. This episode was edited by the talented Evan Kurohara. Our theme music comes from the vast catalogue ...

In the About section of his amazing resume Chris McNutt, co-founder of the Human Restoration Project and a digital art and design educator from Columbus, Ohio wrote: “I’m obsessed with revolutionizing education to meet the needs of students. Instead of standardized tests and rote learning, why not create equitable, authentic, and relationship-centered experiences where students can flourish? Let students lead their educational pursuits.” “Quiet” is the name of the musical interlude piece for thi...

“The best thing about Denise Karratti is not even all of the things she does, it is the way she does them-with complete openness, grace, warmth, and a collaborative spirit. Denise is grounded in our place and invested in all of the people who contribute to our communities. She is a connector and an innovator, and is going to be an incredible administrator in the near future.” (Kristen Brummel, Hawaiʻi State Teacher Fellows Coordinator) Crimson is the name of the musical interlude piece for this ...

My guest today is Chad Carlson, the Director of Research and Design at One Stone Lab School in Boise Idaho. Chad is one of the most innovative, creative and imaginative educators and education leaders ever to come across my radar screen. To say he, and One Stone Lab School work “outside the box” is a vast understatement. In all ways, Chad and One Stone dispense with boxes and approach students as bundles of joyful potential and promise, as agents of their own lives and futures. This episode was ...

Today, I welcome back to the show Dr. Mark Hines, the Director of Kupu Hou Academy, and the founder of the Mid-Pacific Explorer program at Mid-Pacific Institute in Honolulu, Hawaiʻi. To his friends and colleagues, Mark is a Jedi warrior who uses The Force to help public, private and charter school educators find their inner deeper learning practice. To support this show, please give us a rating and review at your favorite podcast store. Continue reading The post 81. Dr. Mark Hines, the Obi-Wan ...

You have heard the phrase “drinking from a firehose,” right? Well, listeners, you are about to have one of those firehose moments. Fasten your seatbelts because the next hour is going to get pretty crazy. Janelle Field is the PK-12 Teaching and Learning Engagement Coach at Belgrade-Brooten-Elrosa Public Schools located in central Minnesota. When I interviewed her, it was 3 degrees Fahrenheit in her neck of the woods. But inside her schools, the heat was on and the learning was happening, big tim...

In this first episode of 2022, I speak with Hawaiʻi Technology Academy’s (HTA) Shiloh Francis, a remarkable history and government teacher. HTA is a blended learning charter school with seven campuses on four Hawaiʻi islands. Shiloh has leadership roles in two HTA professional development cohorts: The Teacher-Leader Cohort and the Center for Love and Justice Cohort, among many other projects and roles. She is relentlessly focused on student-driven, real world learning. This episode is edited by ...

(This is a re-release of my episode number 69 with Mid-Pacific Institute’s, Dr. Edna Hussey.) Dr. Edna Hussey is a passionate and dedicated educator committed to the advancement of an educated citizenry, children’s rights to quality learning AND the professionalism of teachers. Mention Dr. Hussey’s name anywhere in Hawaiʻi and you will get mad respect and admiration. Folks say she operates at a different level, which I am sure she would humbly reject. She KNOWS what school could be because she h...

My guest today is Darciann Baker, a faculty member at the Kamehameha Schools Hawaiʻi campus. Darciann is a Native Hawaiian woman, born and raised in Hawaiʻi. Her entire career has been dedicated to the perpetuation of the Hawaiian language. It is an endeavor she has held close to her heart ever since she found her Hawaiian identity when she was 15 years old. (The special oli, the Hawaiian chant that blesses this episode was written and performed by Kalei ‘A’arona Lorenzo, my guest’s high school ...

Speaking of a thousand points of light, my guest today is the deeply insightful, Dr. Julie Mowrer, Acting Director of the Center for Community Engagement at the University of Hawaiʻi at Hilo. Dr. Mowrer is also the Director of the English Language Institute (ELI), also at the University of Hawaiʻi at Hilo and the founder of the Bonner Leadership Program. Continue reading The post 77. The Deepest Meanings of Language and Community, with Dr. Julie Mowrer appeared first on @WSCBPodcast.

Speaking of a thousand points of light, my guest today is Wes Adkins, a math teacher at James Campbell High School in Ewa Beach, the largest school in all of Hawai‘i. He proudly works in an inclusion classroom, promotes self-paced learning environments, and implements project based learning assessments. Nipsey Hustle and Vector90 inspired him to work in STEM education and teach students the skills for locally minded entrepreneurship. A first generation college graduate and a film buff all his li...

Dr. Tammy Jones is a Project Coordinator for PLACES Hawaiʻi at the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa, supporting teachers on the Waiʻanae Coast to develop place-based curricula. She is also the curriculum developer and co-facilitator of Try Think, a program run in the state correctional facilities and sponsored by the Hawaiʻi Council for the Humanities. Dr. Jones has worked closely with Dr. Thomas Jackson and the Uehiro Academy for Philosophy and Ethics in Education to promote Philosophy for Childr...

I have wanted Kevin Matsunaga on my podcast for a long, long time. Kevin never imagined he would follow in his father’s footsteps and become a teacher. He found his calling as the digital media teacher, coach and guide at Chiefess Kamakahelei Middle School on the island of Kauaʻi, and his students have won too many national video competitions to count. In 2007, the Hawai’i Department of Education recognized Kevin with a Kauaʻi District Teacher of the Year award. The impact he has had on kids in ...

A college football defensive end and a philosopher meet at a bar. The defensive end asks, “What’s the meaning of life?” The philosopher replies, “Missed tackles, my friend. To many missed tackles.” Dr. Chad Miller is a former NCAA football star, our 2012 Hawaiʻi State Teacher of the Year, a National Board Certified teacher, and currently a Specialist at the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa’s Institute for Teacher Education. Dr. Miller also serves as the Director of Teacher Development at the Unive...

It’s hard to rank all the things I love about Russell Motter – history teacher, lover of great music, epic thespian, good cook, creative innovator, Atlanta Braves and Falcons fan, among others – but the fact he mixes a mean Sazerac, my favorite cocktail, sits at the top of the list. Russell and I taught together in the history department at ‘Iolani School from 2010 to 2014. When I say taught together, I mean it literally. We team-taught US History, merging our two classes into one very cool sect...

Lianna Lam is an educator and leader passionate about community and public schools who views both as places to seed and cultivate Aloha! Lianna holds an environmental engineering degree from University of California at Davis and a Masters in Education from the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa. She has worked as an engineer, science teacher, sustainability coordinator and as a STEM Coordinator. Currently she is leading Kaimuki Middle School on a marvelous journey towards student-driven learning thr...

My guest for this first episode of our 3rd season is Dr. Edna Hussey, a passionate and dedicated educator committed to the advancement of an educated citizenry, children’s rights to quality learning AND the professionalism of teachers. Mention Dr. Hussey’s name anywhere in Hawaiʻi and you will get mad respect and admiration. Continue reading The post 69. Reading The World, with Dr. Edna Hussey appeared first on @WSCBPodcast.

What does it mean to be the daylight for someone? Erin Medeiros is an epic educator at Kanuikapono Learning Center, a K–12 Hawaiian-culture-focused school in Anahola on the island of Kauaʻi in Hawaiʻi. Erin seeks renewal in literature and hiking, biking, or playing at the beach with her educator husband, Jonathon and their two daughters. She views teaching as a deeply creative profession and encourages her students to develop their attention to the past and present, to observe and question life....