Episodes

It’s the chicken before the egg dilemma of career advancement. How does a person gain experience while not in the role they seek when aspiring up the proverbial career ladder? In today’s episode featuring Adam Cottos, we tack...

Today, I wanted to bring on someone to help us reflect and refocus on what is important in our profession. As we are being challenged each day, it is so vital that we discover our “why”. Why do we work with students and Why d...

Have you ever learned what not to do as a leader by experiencing a toxic working environment or encountering constant negative communication? This week’s guest, LaVonne Roth, shares how her negative experience in the business...

In a recent study, 3000 employers were asked, what is the #1 skill they were seeking in their future employees? I know for myself, my mind went straight to hard work, content knowledge, and honesty, which are all important ch...

Have you ever started a difficult leadership task and felt alone, inadequate or unworthy? This week’s guests, Jeff Zoul and Jimmy Casas, share how through their connection with other educators and leaders, they were able to g...

As a leader, have you ever found yourself feeling attacked when a colleague is providing critical feedback? This month’s aspiring leader, Alana Gilliam, shares how she struggles to feel comfortable and confident in crucial co...

In this 15th Aspire Mailbag episode, Jeff Gargas, Lindsay Titus, and I answer questions on different leadership topics provided by the listeners. Please join us for this episode as we answer questions and discuss how to build...

Have you ever been in a situation where you needed guidance in your leadership journey? In this episode of Aspire to RISE, Sarah Johnson and Joshua Stamper share their vision of the show and how coaching helped them face thei...

Have you ever acted differently in a new leadership position because you thought you had to present a certain persona? This week’s guests, Latrese Younger, shares how she realized authenticity with her staff was the key to bu...

What is the driving force to improve the culture of your building and move your school toward success? This week’s guests, Emily Paschall, shares how she makes connections to help every student, parent, and colleague achieve ...

In this 14th Aspire Mailbag episode, Jeff Gargas and I answer questions on different leadership topics provided by the listeners. Please join us for this episode as we answer questions and discuss how to be transparent as a l...

Every day, educators across the country give students their very best. Often, many teachers feel overwhelmed, stressed out, underpaid, and unheard. This week’s guests, Adam Welcome and Rae Hughart, share how teachers and educ...

On this podcast, we have talked about mentorship before and the importance of seeking coaching. However, sometimes there are people in our lives that are extremely persistent even when we aren’t looking for it. So, have you e...

In this bonus episode Sarah Johnson shares how leaders can positively cope with stress, rediscover their passion and find safety in coaching. Tweet This Follow Sarah Johnson: Twitter: Sarah on Twitter Website: Sarah's Website...

Have you ever had a student or a teacher tell you that they are not creative? This week’s guest, Dr. Jacie Maslyk, shares how she instills creativity in her district and how her STEAM programs inspire the students to read and...

In this 13th Aspire Mailbag episode, Jeff Gargas, special guest Rae Hughart and I answer questions on different leadership topics provided by the listeners. Please join us for this episode as we answer questions and discuss p...

When you lead, are you giving positivity or negativity to those around you? I’m excited to have Taylor Armstrong on the podcast to share his story on how being a negative person affected his job and the people surrounding him...

How important is it to be connected to other educators outside of your building? This week’s guest, Kristen Nan, shares how she almost walked away from teaching and how she took a gamble on education, which led her to an amaz...

If I asked you, tell me a time you sat down with a leader and felt immediate inspiration and growth? What and who would you describe? Well, for me, this occurred during this interview on multiple occasions as I had the great ...

In this 12th Aspire Mailbag episode, Jeff Gargas and I answer questions on different leadership topics provided by the listeners. Please join us for this episode as Jeff and I answer questions on preparing for changes in plan...

On your campus or in your district, how do you allow students to lead? After reflecting on this question myself, I realized that I needed to learn more about this topic so I found a great resource to gain more student leaders...

Have you ever started a career and quickly realized it wasn’t what you anticipated? This week’s guest, Dr. Danny Brassell, shares how his career as a political journalist was short lived and the reason it propelled him to tu...

Often, as a leader, we are met with difficult barriers and problems that create stress and fear. This week’s guest, Justin Belt, shares his message on how leaders can slay our doubts, take the necessary actions and find crea...