The CharacterStrong Podcast

Emily Rose is a school Counselor at Greenwood Elementary School in River Falls, Wisconsin. Greenwood Elementary is a State and National School of Character. This is Emily's 6th year as a school counselor and she has been at her current position for 5 years. You can follow Emily on Instagram at: @coffeefueledcounselor

Mike Flynn is the director of Mathematics Leadership Programs at Mount Holyoke College. He runs the Master of Arts in Teaching Mathematics program and creates a wide variety of professional learning for educators looking to become leaders in mathematics education. Mike was one of the first educators to use Zoom back in 2013 to design interactive online learning experiences and has been perfecting the format ever since. Presently, Mike is supporting teachers and school districts around the world in creating engaging online learning experiences for students. Visit Distance Learning Support to learn more about Mike's work in this area. Mike also travels to schools around the country to work with teachers, coaches, and administrators. His expertise on developing people's mathematical content knowledge and supporting systemic change help make these big shifts much easier for staff, students, and parents. Click here to learn more about Mike's work in this area. Mike is also the author of Beyond Answers: Exploring Mathematical Practices with Young Children.

As a former disengaged student himself, Jeromie grew up in low income and diverse communities where he has felt under-served in his own education. After years of hating school, and failing to see the relevance in education, he is now dedicated to keep any student from having a similar negative educational experience. Now a National Board Certified Teacher with 16 years of experience, Jeromie is an expert on instilling and igniting the love of learning. He's committed to creating a positive classroom climate where every learner is motivated, inspired, and engaged. He shares his successfully proven ideas and act ivies on his website and in collaborative workshops, including: lessons, activities, read-a-louds, videos, printables, posters, and more

Fredricka Hunter has worked as an Elementary School Counselor for the last 6 years in Racine, WI. She is a woman with a heart of servanthood that stems from her love of Christ. She is the wife of her high school sweetheart of nearly 20 years; a mother to four daughters: two of whom she birthed and two whom were given to her as added blessings. She's a Nana to five beautiful little people who she loves more than life itself. Although, she's an educator by profession; it's not just a career choice for her- she believes it's her PURPOSE! It is her belief that she was called to serve children and families; although every day is different, she embraces every challenge and is the loudest cheerleader for every victory! Those sentiments aren't only applicable to her students but towards their entire village: parents/guardians, teachers, administrators, social workers; anyone who is fundamentally essential to her students being their best self "Teamwork works make the Dreamwork!" is a saying that she quotes daily. Fredricka's greatest asset is her heart and the passion she has for children that oozes out during every interaction with her. She's honest, thought provoking, challenging of others and herself. It is her fundamental belief that genuine relationships are the foundation upon which all SEL work must be built upon; the work isn't easy but she believes it's beyond WORTH IT!

Welcome to SEASON 3! John & Houston reflect on what has been going on with CharacterStrong this past year, a few of the things that they are excited about, and they preview some of the things to look forward to in Season 3 of the podcast.

Matthew Moyer is an elementary school principal with over 17 years of experience in administration, and over 23 years of experience in education. In addition to his job as principal, he is a Nationally Distinguished Principal, Pennsylvania Principal of the Year, Author, National Speaker, Adjunct Professor, and staff developer with Thom Stecher and Associates. Matt started his career as a 5th-grade teacher in the Spring-Ford Area School District. He earned a Masters degree and Principal's certificate. He then spent 3 years as an assistant principal at Schuylkill Valley Elementary School in Leesport, Pennsylvania. From there he moved to his current position as principal of Rupert Elementary School in the Pottstown School District. He is in his 15th year as principal of Rupert, and absolutely loves it. He recently completed his course work for his letter of eligibility to be a superintendent. For the last ten years he has been the district's safety coordinator and certified CPI Nonviolent Crisis Intervention trainer. He has served numerous roles and on a variety of committees during his time in the Pottstown School District.

George is an educator, non-profit leader, and public policy advocate who is committed to the academic, social, emotional, and physical development of our youth and their families. He started his service career as a teacher's aide and worked his way up to becoming a certified teacher in the state of Texas and the state of Mississippi. As an urban educator, seeing parents not armed with basic education policy information, recognizing needed system changes in education, and his son's autism diagnosis, led George to seek opportunities in youth/family advocacy and public policy. An example of his advocacy is his service as board president of the only family run organization, in the state of Mississippi, that supports families who are raising children with mental health and behavioral challenges. This organization serves families all over the state of Mississippi. George has also shown leadership in the public policy arena. He effectively advocated for a bill that was written and introduced in the House of Representative as HB 490 during the 2020 legislative session. HB 490 is a bill that addressed the issue that 50% of children, diagnosed with autism, tend to wander away from their safe space. George received a bachelor's degree from the University of Southern Mississippi and is currently pursuing a Master's degree from the New Life Fellowship School of Ministry. He is also a graduate of the Mississippi Black Leadership Institute and the National Education Association's Teacher Leadership Institute. Last but not least, George is a member of Phi Beta Sigma Fraternity, Inc. He resides in the Jackson, MS area. To learn more about Families as Allies visit - https://www.faams.org

Maddie Bogart just finished her first year teaching third grade in Everett, Washington. Maddie has degrees in Elementary Education and Teaching English as a Second Language from Central Washington University. In 2017 she was selected as one of Good Housekeeping Magazine's "Everyday Heroes". She is currently working on her M.S. in Curriculum and Instruction and is an intern this summer at CharacterStrong.

Dan Wolfe is going into his 23rd year as an educator in Pasco County, Florida. He is currently the Assistant Principal at Cotee River Elementary. Over his career Dan has held multiple roles as a K-5 teacher, Math Instructional Coach, District Curriculum Specialist K-12 and administrator. He is currently on our District's SEL committee which has written K-12 SEL standards for the county. Dan was selected as the 2011-2012 Teacher of the Year for Pasco County and currently writes a blog called Our Moral Compass and produces a podcast by the same name. Most recently Dan completed writing his first book called Our Moral Compass: Not All Who Wander Are Lost that he hopes to get published soon.

Jessica Zeller is an Associate Professor of Dance in the School for Classical & Contemporary Dance at Texas Christian University. She holds a Ph.D. in Dance Studies and an MFA in Dance from The Ohio State University, and she is the author of Shapes of American Ballet: Teachers and Training before Balanchine (Oxford University Press, 2016), which unearths the work of several European and Russian ballet pedagogues during the early twentieth century. Her current research brings ballet and dance studies into conversation with progressive, feminist pedagogies. Zeller received the TCU Deans' Teaching Award in 2018 and was part of the Scholar-in-Residence Program in the Department of Dance at Temple University last year. She currently serves as President-Elect of CORPS de Ballet, International, and sits on the review board of the Journal of Dance Education. You can follow Jessica's blog at: https://www.jessicazeller.net