Episodes

The Hidden Power of Relational Intelligence in Building High-Performing Teams with Dr. Jennifer Brown

Episode 34 · June 25, 2026 · 48:46

Relational intelligence may be the one advantage humans keep as AI gets smarter, and Dr. Jennifer Brown has spent 25 years proving it builds stronger teams. A regional superintendent...

Stop Reimagining School, Start Building Better Ones: Why Intentionally Diverse Schools Are an Antidote with Ashley Heard

Episode 33 · June 18, 2026 · 46:50

Ashley Heard has spent eight years making the case for intentionally diverse charter schools, and she is more convinced than ever that they matter right now.In this episode of The St...

Stop Chasing Innovation in Education: Why Relationships and Retention Are What Actually Work with Erik Greenberg

Episode 32 · June 11, 2026 · 52:23

Education leader Erik Greenberg never planned to work in schools. Now, as CEO of Academies of Math and Science, he argues that the answer to America's education problem is not innova...

From Classroom to Movement: How Dominique Lee is Reshaping Education

Episode 31 · June 4, 2026 · 53:46

From classroom teacher to founder of a cradle to career movement, Dominique Lee built the BRICK Education Network in Newark to do what schools alone never could: support a child and ...

Make the Exception the Rule: Why Strong School Boards Decide Who Gets Opportunity, with Ethan Ashley

Episode 30 · May 28, 2026 · 48:45

Ethan Ashley got handcuffed at a police precinct at age six for stealing a pack of gum. He went on to finish high school at sixteen, earn a law degree from Howard by twenty-two, win ...

Proving Schools Can Get Better at Scale: Doubling Teacher Planning Time and Leading on Equity with Catherine Suitor

Episode 29 · May 21, 2026 · 58:47

Catherine Suitor has spent two decades proving that schools can get better at scale, and she has the data to back it up. As Executive Director of the Alliance College-Ready Public Sc...

Belonging Is Not a Side Issue: The Charter School Coalition That Can Still Say "Diversity" with Sonia Park

Episode 28 · May 14, 2026 · 54:31

Charter school leader Sonia Park spent her childhood as one of the only kids of color in suburban Philadelphia schools, then watched her own son experience the same othering thirty y...

Vision Is Not Enough: How a CEO and COO Scale a National Nonprofit Together - with Vincent Marigna and Alex Serna

Episode 27 · May 7, 2026 · 44:59

Scaling a 48-year-old national nonprofit takes more than vision. It takes a CEO and COO who trust each other enough to move fast in ambiguity.In this episode of The Stronger Podcast,...

Succession Is A Verb: Why Building Leaders Who Outlast You Is The Real CEO Job - With Marcia Aaron

Episode 26 · April 30, 2026 · 49:35

Marcia Aaron leads Charter School Growth Fund's investments across Texas, Arizona, Idaho, and Utah, and before that, she spent thirteen years building KIPP SoCal Public Schools from ...

Nothing Goes to Waste Unless You Decide It Does: Cradle to Career Work, Coalition Building, and Spartanburg's Long Game with Keisha Gray

Episode 25 · April 23, 2026 · 50:12

Keisha Gray sits down with Mike Montoya to make the case that cross sector collaboration is not a value statement, it is a muscle communities build out of necessity. And that operati...

Stop Grinding and Start Sustaining: What Education Leaders Actually Need to Last with Vanessa Rodriguez

Episode 24 · April 16, 2026 · 49:29

Vanessa Rodriguez, Executive Vice President of People at the Pahara Institute at Lone Rock, has spent her career building systems that give young people a fair shot, from District 79...

We’re Preparing Kids for the Wrong World: Economic Mobility, Coalition Building, and the Long Game in Public Education with Dr. David W. James

Episode 23 · April 9, 2026 · 52:17

Former Akron Public Schools superintendent Dr. David W. James never planned to work in education. He started at NASA, moved into environmental consulting, and ended up leading a scho...

Schools as Love Letters: Identity, Boldness, and the False Binaries Holding Education Back with Tricia Noyola

Episode 22 · April 2, 2026 · 46:12

Tricia Noyola is a charter school leader, Regional Superintendent at the KIPP Foundation, and former CEO of Rocky Mountain Prep who builds schools as love letters to the communities ...

Stop Chasing the New: How Consistency Builds Charter Schools That Last with Scott Hindman

Episode 21 · March 26, 2026 · 49:17

Charter school leader Scott Hindman went from minor league baseball to investment banking to building one of New Mexico's most impactful public education networks. The lesson he keep...

What Curiosity Teaches Us About Leading Schools — with Joanna Belcher

Episode 20 · March 19, 2026 · 50:14

From teaching fourth grade in Compton to founding a KIPP elementary school in Newark, Joanna Belcher has spent her career building schools and supporting leaders who believe every st...

Finding Opportunity Through Relationships: From Immigrant Roots to Talent Leadership with Ron Rapatalo

Episode 19 · March 12, 2026 · 51:12

What happens when the path your family imagined for you isn’t the one you’re meant to follow? From being the son of Filipino immigrants in Brooklyn to a leader shaping talent and soc...

From Helicopters to Schools: Leadership Lessons from James Willcox

Episode 18 · March 5, 2026 · 55:27

From Army Blackhawk pilot to transformative education leader, James Willcox shares how a life grounded in service and family shaped his path to reshaping K-12 education nationwide. F...

From Immigrant Roots to Leading a Charter Network Through Complexity with Shara Hegde

Episode 17 · February 26, 2026 · 44:01

From Boston to East San Jose, Shara Hegde shares her journey from Ivy League graduate to CEO of Alpha Public Schools and what it takes to lead charter schools through political and o...

Breaking the Mobility Trap: Aligning Partners Around Cradle-to-Career Outcomes – with Bill Crim

Episode 16 · February 19, 2026 · 55:17

What if the promise that each generation will do better than the last is slipping away?In this episode of The Stronger Podcast, Mike Montoya talks with Bill Crim, CEO of United Way o...

From Lifelong Immigrant to Education CEO: Leading With Compassion for Multilingual Learners – with Dr. Daniel Velasco

Episode 15 · February 12, 2026 · 54:53

From lifelong immigrant to education equity leader, Daniel Velasco shares how identity, resilience, and compassion shaped his journey to becoming President and CEO of Ensemble Learni...