Episode 74 | From Parapro to Teacher with Dr. Matthew Flippen

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Across the United States, more
than 1.2 million

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paraprofessionals show up for
students every day, tutoring,

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supporting instruction, managing
behaviors, doing whatever's

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needed.
And here's what most people

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don't realize.
So many of them want to become

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teachers.
They have the passion, they have

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the experience, they have the
calling.

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What they don't have is a clear,
affordable, accessible pathway

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to make it happen.
Until now.

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Our guest today has changed the
game.

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Doctor Matthew Flippen is the
founder and President of

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Graceland University, an
accredited, affordable online

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institution dedicated to
empowering paraprofessionals and

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support staff to become degree
holding certified teachers and

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national leader in education
innovation.

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Doctor Flippen has guided
districts across the country in

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transforming overlooked talent
into high impact educators.

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Today, we're diving into how
Graceland University is creating

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opportunity, reshaping the
teacher pipeline, and honoring

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the people who have been doing
the work all along.

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Let's get into it.
Well, hello, Matthew.

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I am very honored to have you on
the show today.

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What I would like to do is to
start off with one of my

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favorite questions and that is
tell me your story.

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Tell me a little bit about your
background, who you are, what

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makes you tick.
Tell us about it.

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Sure, sure.
I have a few ticks.

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But I'll tell you what.
Yeah, no, it's great to be with

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you, Brandy.
And I just love the work work

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that you're doing.
And so honored that that we get

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to have this time together to
talk about, Talk about hope.

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You know, my, my story is, you
know, starts really with just

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having a, a really an
entrepreneurial bent.

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I have a background in in
business and have really worked

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the last 20 years or so really
to just use the entrepreneurial

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gifts that God's given me in a
way that blesses those that are

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in hard places.
And, you know, part of that

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journey.
And some of the most formative

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events that happened for me, you
know, include when my wife and I

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adopted our twin sons from
Ethiopia when they were babies.

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You know, they're grown now, but
but, you know, raising them and

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having them as part of our
family is huge blessing for us

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and really connected us into an
aspect of our culture that I

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probably wouldn't have known as
much, you know, if we didn't

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have sons that were African,
right?

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And, And so getting to be with
their friends and seeing some of

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the struggles that their friends
were facing, this expanded our

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understanding of this, you know,
the challenges that especially

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that young boys have in, in our,
in our culture today.

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And, and so, you know, that's
been a, that's been a huge

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aspect of that.
Of course, you know, the, you

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know, following that, I had the
opportunity in, in 2010 to go to

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the country of Haiti and work
there for almost 8 years.

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And well, I tell you, you know,
for people that have not

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travelled outside of the US,
when you get the opportunity to

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go to a developing country, or
in Haiti's case, a a very

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struggling third world country,
you know, it really just opened

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your eyes about, you know, first
how grateful we, you know, are

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to live in the United States,
just have been born here where,

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you know, we just have lots of
opportunities.

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And you know, the other thing
too, is, you know, being in

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Haiti for that long and seeing
some principles play out about

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how do you actually really help
people move to a place of, of

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flourishing, right?
And that of, of thriving.

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And, and what I saw there was
that, you know, we really need

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to be providing economic
advancement opportunities, you

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know, for the poor, right?
Because if we help people, you

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know, if the teacher man to fish
or give him a fish, right?

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That principle when you really
think about like how do you

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scale help in a way that can
impact, you know, 10s of

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thousands, It really has to be
through upskilling in some way.

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And so I saw that in Haiti was
we were working in this

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construction materials company
and just, you know, providing

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100 jobs that then they would
take their paychecks and support

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20 people in their community.
And it's really amazing to see

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what would happen.
And so when I got to come back

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to the US and started looking
at, you know, are there ways

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that the principles that I
learned of being in Haiti, you

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know, are there ways that they
could help challenges here?

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And then seeing that there's
this huge, you know, staffing

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challenge for, you know, the,
the school, our school systems,

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right?
I'd say our public school

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systems, but all, all systems in
education right now are

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struggling to find enough
qualified teachers.

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And so, you know, I looked at
that problem with this lens of

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like, wow, if we could find
people that we could upskill

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into certified teachers, degree
certified teachers, you know,

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and if those people happen to be
the working poor or single moms,

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you know, wouldn't that be a
great way to address this issue?

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And So what a gift it was to
realize that there are so many

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paraprofessionals, teachers,
assistants, support staff,

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right?
You know, just

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paraprofessionals.
There's 1.2 million in our

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country.
And so being able to like build

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Graceland University around
their needs has been a huge

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blessing.
And I'm still in formation

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personally, right?
And but it's been just a huge

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blessing gift to get to be, you
know, involved in that effort.

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Yeah, that is amazing.
Your story, really.

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Gosh, there's so much there,
Matthew.

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And, you know, starting out with
the adoption of your sons,

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that's such a fascinating
experience to me.

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I was raised in rural, small
town Illinois, very homogeneous.

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And something that I've always
wanted to do is to do that

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missions work and, and to go to
other countries and, and to do

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the things that you you spoke
about, because I do think that

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we can learn a lot from going
overseas and really seeing how

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blessed we are in the United
States.

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A mutual friend of ours, Doctor
Toby Travis, you connected me

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with him when we spoke last, I
believe.

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And he was recently on my
podcast and he talks about the

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work he does with schools in
developing countries.

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And it really changes your
mindset when you see the

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abundance that we have here, but
the scarcity mindset that many

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of the individuals in the United
States haves.

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And then overseas, you see what
scarcity really looks like.

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And when you go overseas and
you've been to Haiti and to

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Ethiopia and different countries
like that, do you find that

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individuals and those developing
nations do?

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Are they able to develop that
abundance mindset?

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Oh, yeah, That's a, you know,
that's a great question.

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I mean, you know, if you've
grown up in an environment where

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scarcity, we would view it as
scarce.

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But from your perspective
growing up there, this is just

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life, right?
And you know, one of my first

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trips to Haiti was just, I mean,
my very first trip was only 8

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days after the earthquake had
happened there where, you know,

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250,000 people were killed
instantly.

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And I mean, half of everyone
had, you know, had lost someone,

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right?
And, and I remember being so

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struck by attending a worship
service right in the middle of

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this of just the authentic
joyful worship that really

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struck me like, you know, you
guys just lost everything.

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And yet here you are, you know,
worshiping God in this just

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unbelievable way.
And, and you know, and I went on

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to just notice that, you know,
children in those in countries,

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they laugh and play.
I mean, their, their toys are

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simple, but they are, they are
having fun.

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I mean, they're, they're not
well fed, right?

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They're all undernourished, but
they, they still thrive in as

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best they, as best they can.
And so, you know, I think that

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the, the mindset is really back
to where does your hope come

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from, right.
And you know, are you in healthy

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relationships, right?
Or are mom and dad around you

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have a community that knows you
and is invested in your success?

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And, you know, and I, I see that
parents in any country, any

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culture, any status, they want
their children to do well and

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they will, and they will really
always sacrifice for their kids

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to, to have better
opportunities, you know, that

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they had.
And I think that's true in in

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our country for the most part,
and in, you know, in almost any

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country in the world.
Yeah, and you and I have in

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common the fact that we're both
faith driven leaders as well.

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And you know, the Word tells us
that to live is Christ and to

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die is gain.
And I think when we can have

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that mindset, we can get through
any challenge because we have

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that hope in a relationship with
Jesus Christ and that hope of an

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eternal home.
This home is temporary, but we

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have that hope of an eternal
home.

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And if we know that that's where
our high, our hope lies.

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But you know, I also talk about
hope in terms of a system of

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hope.
And you know, that's kind of

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where that mindset piece or that
optimistic outlook comes from.

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And with your optimism, where,
where do you derive your your

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mindset and your optimism?
What really colors your

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perspective on life?
Yes, yeah.

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And it I mean, it definitely is
my relationship with Jesus.

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It's the start of that.
And but you know, I think

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there's, I think there are, I'll
call them like long term hope,

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like where will I go when I die?
There's that level of hope.

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And then there is a then there
is a hope in the day-to-day,

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right, That you know, that God
will direct my steps and my

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path, that he will give me
favor, that he will work

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challenges for my good and that
if the doors close, another will

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be open.
So there's a lot of ways that I

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take that into the day-to-day
because there are day-to-day

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struggles that are real and
hard, you know, the loss of a

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loved one.
And, and so how do we make sense

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of that?
And, and for me, it comes in

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this hope, this hope that there
is a plan that is for my good.

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And in that I'm going to walk
into that, whether it's a hard

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day or a, you know, a high on a
mountain or a, or a valley.

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Yeah, for sure.
And I think, you know, Brandy,

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it's part of what we have really
intentionally tried to do with

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the design of like our
undergraduate program in

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education, right?
It's built for

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paraprofessionals.
But you know, we found that that

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the population of
paraprofessionals for the most

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part, carries a lot of fear
because of because of the hard

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life that they've had, right?
And circumstances not of their

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own fault in many cases have
just really beat them up.

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And so, you know, it, it was
very intentional the way we

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thought about, you know, if
you're going to overcome fear,

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right, You the best way to do
that is with hope, right?

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But, but hope also has to be
very practical, like you said,

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has to be a system, right?
So it starts with, you know, how

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hard is the application process,
right?

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Well, in our case, you know, it
takes like 7 minutes and it's

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free, right?
You know, and, and seven minutes

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to get all the way through to
enrollment, right?

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Not step one of 10.
And so, you know, and why do we

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do that?
Well, we, we know there's many

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of our students are single
working moms.

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How much time do they have?
They got about 7 minutes, right?

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So you know, and then when you
go through what are the first

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couple of courses look like, how
do you rebuild confidence?

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You know that 45% of our
students had really hard high

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school experiences and So what
was going on in their personal

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lives limited their learning
opportunities.

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So we want, we know that they
need remediation, but no one

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wants to hear you need
remediation.

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That's not dignifying or
encouraging, right?

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So we design it into our
curriculum, but we don't talk

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about it from that standpoint.
We want people to feel

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empowered.
So if we've got to rebuild your

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basic math skills, well then
let's frame it as, hey, you're

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going to teach elementary kids.
So let's start with elementary

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math, how to teach elementary
math.

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And you know, and again, that's
a system where we, you know,

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I'll do a survey when I talk to
groups of paraprofessionals and

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I'll say, you know, how many of
you are confident in your math

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skills?
You know, no hands go up, right?

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But how many of you can build
relationships with any child?

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All the hands go up and I go,
really, that is the number one

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ingredient of a great, a great
teacher.

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So they come to us with no math
confidence, basically.

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But after a couple of courses we
say, how's your math confidence?

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Oh, they're like, I've gotten
A's in my classes because we're

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very intentional about the
design so that they would build

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confidence.
Because confidence, you know,

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your confidence to experiences
increases your level of hope.

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Right, right.
Yeah.

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And I, I love what you said
about empowering them.

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You know, there are so many
scriptures in the Bible that

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tell us to be encouragers.
It the Bible instructs us to

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help those that are poor and
they are broken hearted.

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There's there's passages in
Psalms.

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I think of Psalms 147 three who
says he heals the broken hearted

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and he binds up their wounds.
The promises that we have in the

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word of God are vast.
And I think what you've done is

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you've taken those promises and
that hope and you've put it in

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action at Graceland University
and you are giving these

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individuals A pathway to have a
better future, to find that hope

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in the hard times and despite of
the hard times and to have a

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better future.
Now I will tell you there, and

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00:16:12,840 --> 00:16:15,520
I'm sure you've heard this and
I'm sure you've addressed this

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00:16:15,520 --> 00:16:22,200
in the past, but there are those
educators who feel like these

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00:16:22,240 --> 00:16:28,240
alternative programs are or
these non traditional programs

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00:16:30,360 --> 00:16:37,880
are not as rigorous and they are
not equipping individuals to be

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00:16:37,880 --> 00:16:42,160
the kind of educators that we
need in today's schools.

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What would you say to those
individuals, Matthew?

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00:16:45,200 --> 00:16:47,080
Yes.
Well, I would say that that is

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true, right, in, in most cases.
But I would also argue that

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00:16:51,600 --> 00:16:55,760
traditional higher education is
also not equipping when you look

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00:16:55,760 --> 00:16:58,960
at the stickiness of the
graduates, right.

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00:16:59,120 --> 00:17:02,160
What is the, what is the
turnover in the first couple

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00:17:02,160 --> 00:17:06,440
years, whether it's, you know,
from Texas A&M University where

258
00:17:06,440 --> 00:17:09,640
I graduated undergrad or others,
right?

259
00:17:09,640 --> 00:17:12,079
It's the statistics are not, are
not very good.

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00:17:12,560 --> 00:17:16,119
And so, you know, when we looked
at and I actually got to do a

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00:17:16,119 --> 00:17:21,599
decent amount of my dissertation
research on why is the turnover

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00:17:21,800 --> 00:17:26,160
problem still an issue?
Because we've been researching

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00:17:26,160 --> 00:17:31,080
this for, like, 40 years, right?
And all kinds of things have

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00:17:31,080 --> 00:17:35,120
been tried.
And I mean, things that we're

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00:17:35,120 --> 00:17:39,240
recycling ideas were some of us
not Graceland, but others are

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00:17:39,240 --> 00:17:44,320
recycling right now, even
promising that, you know, it'll

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00:17:44,320 --> 00:17:48,520
fix the issue.
But, you know, children have a

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00:17:48,520 --> 00:17:51,000
lot of needs today.
Yeah.

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00:17:51,280 --> 00:17:55,280
And, you know, what's the best
way to predict if someone is

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going to be a career educator?
And so, you know, there's a lot

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00:18:01,240 --> 00:18:04,320
of debate over that, but I would
actually say, well, it's if

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they've worked with kids for
five years or more and they

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still want to do it right.
And most people would say, oh,

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00:18:09,760 --> 00:18:11,760
well, sure, yeah, if you've done
the role.

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00:18:12,440 --> 00:18:15,200
Well, that's why we love the
paraprofessional teacher

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00:18:15,200 --> 00:18:18,480
assistant because they have an
average six years of experience.

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00:18:19,200 --> 00:18:22,040
They've done it for $12.00 an
hour or less.

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00:18:22,280 --> 00:18:24,600
Yeah.
And so, you know, for us, it's

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like, you know, they've checked
the heart and the grit box.

280
00:18:29,360 --> 00:18:32,720
And so if you take this, I have
heart and I have grit.

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00:18:33,480 --> 00:18:36,920
I'm here for impact, right?
I'm not here for the money.

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00:18:38,000 --> 00:18:42,680
My why is like real high.
My ability to relate to the hard

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00:18:42,680 --> 00:18:45,200
stories of the children in the
classroom.

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00:18:45,400 --> 00:18:47,480
Man, I, I, I lived that hard
story.

285
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So yes, I can do that.
So then what are you missing or

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00:18:51,160 --> 00:18:54,120
you're missing content and
pedagogy?

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00:18:54,280 --> 00:18:57,920
Well then we should be able to
teach you that, right?

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00:18:58,040 --> 00:19:01,960
And because you can apply what
you learn instantly, because

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00:19:01,960 --> 00:19:05,480
you're already working in a
school, the ability for you to

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00:19:05,480 --> 00:19:11,560
be kind of in residency while
you're in a four year degree

291
00:19:11,560 --> 00:19:16,160
program, there's really no
better way to prepare an

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00:19:16,160 --> 00:19:19,240
educator than that.
You know, because they're

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00:19:19,240 --> 00:19:21,040
already working as a
paraprofessional, they're

294
00:19:21,040 --> 00:19:23,160
already used to the salary and
all that.

295
00:19:23,160 --> 00:19:28,800
Then there's not a need to add
on a real expensive, you know,

296
00:19:28,880 --> 00:19:32,400
grand or supplement or
residency, you know, typical

297
00:19:32,400 --> 00:19:36,200
kind of residency program.
But you know, people do ask us

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00:19:36,200 --> 00:19:38,840
like, well, is Graceland a good
program?

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00:19:40,000 --> 00:19:41,640
I'm like, well, how do you
define good?

300
00:19:41,680 --> 00:19:47,040
It's always my response.
And they're like graduation

301
00:19:47,040 --> 00:19:50,640
rates or placement rates like,
hey, that is great.

302
00:19:51,160 --> 00:19:55,840
So because of our intentional
design, you know, our retention

303
00:19:55,840 --> 00:20:02,160
rates are 92% right now.
That is impressive if we were

304
00:20:02,160 --> 00:20:05,720
just taking on traditional
students.

305
00:20:05,720 --> 00:20:09,240
But the fact that the majority
of our students are low income

306
00:20:09,240 --> 00:20:12,400
single moms with significant
trauma in their background and

307
00:20:12,400 --> 00:20:16,880
we have 92% retention rates.
There must be something very

308
00:20:16,880 --> 00:20:20,720
special about our design.
Now, some would say, well, maybe

309
00:20:20,720 --> 00:20:24,080
you just made it real easy.
I'm like, well, if it was too

310
00:20:24,080 --> 00:20:25,960
easy, they wouldn't be
successful in their

311
00:20:25,960 --> 00:20:29,560
certification exams.
So what's our pass rate on our

312
00:20:29,560 --> 00:20:32,880
certification exams?
Almost 100%.

313
00:20:33,680 --> 00:20:36,640
Well, how can that be?
Well, because we structure and

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00:20:36,640 --> 00:20:41,240
require preparation for exams.
We sequence the preparation of

315
00:20:41,240 --> 00:20:44,600
those exams very intentionally.
So again, we're back to building

316
00:20:44,600 --> 00:20:48,520
confidence and skill success go
on to the go on to the next one.

317
00:20:49,320 --> 00:20:51,880
So the last measure I would say
is like what's your placement

318
00:20:51,880 --> 00:20:53,960
rates?
And like, well, on this one,

319
00:20:53,960 --> 00:20:58,480
we've we've hedged a little bit
because we recruit people

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00:20:58,480 --> 00:21:03,680
through school districts that
say, I got great people that

321
00:21:03,680 --> 00:21:06,160
want to be teachers, but they
they don't have a path.

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00:21:06,400 --> 00:21:08,320
We're like, well, hey, Graceland
can help them with that.

323
00:21:08,320 --> 00:21:10,840
So you nominate them.
You know, Brandy, you go into

324
00:21:10,840 --> 00:21:14,200
your school system, you tell us
which paraprofessionals you want

325
00:21:14,200 --> 00:21:17,400
to become teachers.
We will upskill them.

326
00:21:18,000 --> 00:21:20,400
And then what happens?
Do you think when they graduate

327
00:21:21,080 --> 00:21:22,120
you hire them?
That's.

328
00:21:22,520 --> 00:21:23,640
Right.
Right.

329
00:21:23,760 --> 00:21:27,720
And so we had 100% placement
rates of our first graduating

330
00:21:27,760 --> 00:21:33,080
class, which again, you know, is
a little unusual.

331
00:21:33,560 --> 00:21:36,120
Yeah, but that is really the
model.

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00:21:36,120 --> 00:21:40,120
The model is meant to say, hey,
school leaders, you've got great

333
00:21:40,120 --> 00:21:44,400
people, you know who they are,
send them to us for $100 a

334
00:21:44,400 --> 00:21:46,800
month.
We will upskill them into degree

335
00:21:46,800 --> 00:21:49,760
certified teachers and they're
going to come right back in your

336
00:21:49,760 --> 00:21:53,680
system and continue to be the
educator that you saw.

337
00:21:53,680 --> 00:21:56,520
And This is why you recommended
them to us.

338
00:21:56,800 --> 00:21:59,560
So it's really, it's really a
beautiful system that really

339
00:21:59,560 --> 00:22:03,280
leans on encouragement in the
process.

340
00:22:04,240 --> 00:22:08,680
You know, any encouragement is
a, is an expression of hope

341
00:22:09,320 --> 00:22:13,520
really, right.
You know, So it's really, really

342
00:22:13,520 --> 00:22:15,600
fun to get to be part of part of
this.

343
00:22:15,920 --> 00:22:18,760
Yeah, it.
You know, I love what you said

344
00:22:18,760 --> 00:22:22,040
about the fact that your
students come to you with the

345
00:22:22,040 --> 00:22:27,400
heart and the grit, and then
Graceland University gives them

346
00:22:27,400 --> 00:22:31,400
the hope of becoming a teacher
of a better future.

347
00:22:32,000 --> 00:22:37,080
I during my superintendency, I
can think of several people that

348
00:22:37,080 --> 00:22:41,280
were paraprofessionals that
wanted a pathway to become a

349
00:22:41,280 --> 00:22:43,600
teacher, but there were so many
obstacles.

350
00:22:44,200 --> 00:22:47,160
Sure.
Time, the the money, those are

351
00:22:47,160 --> 00:22:51,400
the two biggest factors that
they continued to fight against

352
00:22:51,400 --> 00:22:57,680
with the obstacles.
And this is a a very practical

353
00:22:58,840 --> 00:23:03,680
and simplified way for these
paraprofessionals to have hope

354
00:23:03,720 --> 00:23:07,120
in becoming what they want to
become, which is a teacher in

355
00:23:07,120 --> 00:23:10,600
many instances.
Great, great work on that.

356
00:23:10,840 --> 00:23:16,480
Now I'm wondering, as you are
thinking back over your life,

357
00:23:16,480 --> 00:23:20,120
you've talked about your
students having trauma and

358
00:23:20,120 --> 00:23:22,520
having difficulties.
And I do believe by the way,

359
00:23:22,520 --> 00:23:26,840
that that helps them relate to
the most difficult students and

360
00:23:26,840 --> 00:23:30,360
to build relationships with them
because they they've been where

361
00:23:30,440 --> 00:23:34,320
where those students are,
they've walked that same path

362
00:23:34,320 --> 00:23:37,400
that those students are walking.
So they have really strong

363
00:23:37,400 --> 00:23:40,840
connections with them, which
makes them even better teachers.

364
00:23:41,160 --> 00:23:45,960
But for you, do you have any
defining moments, maybe a time

365
00:23:45,960 --> 00:23:49,680
that you faced a significant
challenge or an obstacle, and

366
00:23:49,680 --> 00:23:54,480
how you overcame that adversity?
Oh, sure, I have lots.

367
00:23:54,480 --> 00:23:56,760
I have obstacles I had to jump
over this morning.

368
00:23:58,720 --> 00:24:02,600
But I wouldn't say all of those
are character shaping in in some

369
00:24:02,600 --> 00:24:04,600
ways.
Yeah.

370
00:24:04,600 --> 00:24:06,800
I mean, that's a that's a that's
a great question, Brandon.

371
00:24:06,800 --> 00:24:11,520
You know, I think, I think part
of, you know, what has helped

372
00:24:11,520 --> 00:24:15,680
shape, you know, me and in many
ways, you know, one, I married

373
00:24:15,680 --> 00:24:17,400
my high school sweetheart,
right?

374
00:24:17,880 --> 00:24:21,680
So we got married at 19 and
we're on year 34 right now.

375
00:24:22,200 --> 00:24:26,680
And, you know, growing up
together and raising our, you

376
00:24:26,680 --> 00:24:29,880
know, we have four children, so
2 biological children and then

377
00:24:29,880 --> 00:24:32,640
the twins that we adopted about
10 years later.

378
00:24:33,040 --> 00:24:37,160
And that experience has been
extremely formative, you know,

379
00:24:37,200 --> 00:24:41,200
and for for me.
And so in so many ways on the on

380
00:24:41,200 --> 00:24:46,600
the, the hard side, you know, my
parents divorced when I was in

381
00:24:46,600 --> 00:24:50,800
high school, when I was a
freshman sophomore year during

382
00:24:50,800 --> 00:24:53,320
that time period.
And that was a really hard

383
00:24:53,400 --> 00:24:59,480
season.
And, and so my mom had not been

384
00:24:59,480 --> 00:25:03,080
an educator, but thought that
she would be able to provide for

385
00:25:03,400 --> 00:25:06,640
herself if she got her teaching
certification.

386
00:25:07,400 --> 00:25:11,440
And, and actually part of what
we do with Graceland, I

387
00:25:11,440 --> 00:25:15,480
definitely keep her in mind
because she was only able to

388
00:25:15,480 --> 00:25:19,840
teach her about a year.
She loves children and she

389
00:25:19,840 --> 00:25:22,720
thought junior high would be the
right age group.

390
00:25:22,800 --> 00:25:25,640
It wasn't.
And she should have gone with

391
00:25:25,640 --> 00:25:30,120
the little kids and, and she
wasn't successful.

392
00:25:30,120 --> 00:25:34,240
And it was really hard just to
see her go from a failed

393
00:25:34,240 --> 00:25:40,040
marriage to a failed first
attempt career a year later.

394
00:25:40,600 --> 00:25:44,960
Now, thankfully she was able to
become a legal assistant and was

395
00:25:44,960 --> 00:25:48,080
had a had a great, great career
after that.

396
00:25:48,560 --> 00:25:51,480
But there were some design
elements where I'm like, yeah,

397
00:25:51,480 --> 00:25:54,280
we can fix that because I don't
want somebody to have the

398
00:25:54,280 --> 00:25:56,760
experience that my that my mom
had.

399
00:25:57,160 --> 00:26:00,960
A lot of our students are single
parents, you know, and I don't,

400
00:26:00,960 --> 00:26:04,160
I don't want them to have any
way that they can fail if

401
00:26:04,160 --> 00:26:08,680
they'll do the work right.
And and so that that was

402
00:26:08,680 --> 00:26:14,760
extremely informative for me
about how we've designed

403
00:26:14,840 --> 00:26:18,080
elements of Graceland.
Yeah, and that early story.

404
00:26:18,080 --> 00:26:20,640
How old were you, Matthew, when
your parents divorced?

405
00:26:21,160 --> 00:26:25,480
1515, yeah.
Yeah, you and I have a lot in

406
00:26:25,480 --> 00:26:27,080
common.
I married my high school

407
00:26:27,080 --> 00:26:29,840
sweetheart.
We're at 33 years.

408
00:26:30,000 --> 00:26:32,800
Goodness, that is a long time to
be married.

409
00:26:34,440 --> 00:26:39,200
But I, you know, one of my first
define and why I started Spark

410
00:26:39,200 --> 00:26:42,800
Hope Edu was because of the
death of my brother when I was

411
00:26:42,800 --> 00:26:45,600
15.
So we have a lot in common.

412
00:26:45,600 --> 00:26:50,200
And I think that those early
experiences really shape who we

413
00:26:50,200 --> 00:26:53,400
become.
And as you said before, God will

414
00:26:53,400 --> 00:26:59,360
use all things for the good of
those who love the Lord and are

415
00:26:59,360 --> 00:27:01,320
called in accordance to his
purpose.

416
00:27:01,720 --> 00:27:08,120
And it, it's a powerful truth.
It's just a simple truth.

417
00:27:08,160 --> 00:27:11,880
And you have taken that
experience and you have created

418
00:27:11,880 --> 00:27:18,080
something beautiful where you
are fostering an environment

419
00:27:18,080 --> 00:27:22,160
where people can build
confidence and connection and

420
00:27:22,160 --> 00:27:26,200
courage to go out in the world
and to make a bigger impact.

421
00:27:26,640 --> 00:27:29,080
And you're doing it all for the
glory of God.

422
00:27:29,960 --> 00:27:32,600
Yes, exactly.
Yeah, definitely, definitely.

423
00:27:32,600 --> 00:27:36,080
The whole thing, it is really a
beautiful thing, and I know that

424
00:27:36,080 --> 00:27:40,560
you have some stories of hope,
fuel, leadership, some stories

425
00:27:40,880 --> 00:27:46,240
that maybe you could share with
the audience from what you're

426
00:27:46,240 --> 00:27:50,960
doing in the mission field.
Yes, yeah, yes.

427
00:27:51,280 --> 00:27:53,440
Well, education is a mission
field, right?

428
00:27:54,520 --> 00:27:59,520
I mean, and yeah, you know, so
now that we've got this

429
00:27:59,920 --> 00:28:02,400
undergraduate program
established and we're we're

430
00:28:02,400 --> 00:28:05,760
growing our enrollment there
rapidly, You know, we know that

431
00:28:05,760 --> 00:28:10,400
one of the big contributing
factors to staff turnover is

432
00:28:10,400 --> 00:28:14,200
campus culture.
And campus culture is most

433
00:28:14,200 --> 00:28:17,760
impacted by the campus leader.
And so we thought, you know, if

434
00:28:17,760 --> 00:28:22,200
we're really going to address
this staffing challenge and

435
00:28:22,200 --> 00:28:25,360
turnover, which, you know,
ultimately effects student

436
00:28:25,360 --> 00:28:28,800
outcomes, right, we're really
going to address that.

437
00:28:28,800 --> 00:28:34,200
Then we've got to prepare campus
leaders that are highly

438
00:28:34,200 --> 00:28:36,520
effective.
In fact, we'd say they need to

439
00:28:36,520 --> 00:28:42,440
be transformational.
And so I had a thesis, an idea

440
00:28:43,560 --> 00:28:47,800
after visiting with a certain
number of a significant number

441
00:28:47,800 --> 00:28:52,120
of, of campus leaders that
there's a model of, I'll call it

442
00:28:52,120 --> 00:28:59,280
servant leadership that leaders
implement that can rapidly turn

443
00:28:59,280 --> 00:29:02,920
around campuses that are very
broken.

444
00:29:03,600 --> 00:29:08,120
And, and so we actually started
and we're about 3/4 of the way

445
00:29:08,120 --> 00:29:11,120
building a master's in
transformational education

446
00:29:11,120 --> 00:29:14,760
leadership.
It's specifically designed to

447
00:29:14,760 --> 00:29:18,280
empower future principals,
campus principals with the

448
00:29:18,280 --> 00:29:23,000
skills to to rapidly turn around
schools.

449
00:29:23,600 --> 00:29:28,160
And so it's very interesting.
I probably wouldn't surprise

450
00:29:28,160 --> 00:29:31,200
you, Brandy, because you're a
transformational leader that,

451
00:29:31,480 --> 00:29:34,960
you know, as I've interviewed,
you know, I mean, it will be

452
00:29:34,960 --> 00:29:38,480
ultimately 100 liters.
They follow a pretty similar

453
00:29:38,480 --> 00:29:41,160
pattern.
And I can tell you about Amber

454
00:29:41,160 --> 00:29:43,720
Shields as one that I got to
interview last week.

455
00:29:44,720 --> 00:29:51,040
You know, she started with at an
early childhood center that had

456
00:29:51,040 --> 00:29:56,800
been led by an A loving leader,
a caring leader who had been

457
00:29:56,800 --> 00:29:59,600
there for a long time.
And over that long period of

458
00:29:59,600 --> 00:30:03,160
time, children, you know, have
changed over time.

459
00:30:03,160 --> 00:30:05,960
And the strategies had gotten a
little stale.

460
00:30:05,960 --> 00:30:09,880
And so performance had slipped.
Culture had slipped.

461
00:30:09,960 --> 00:30:12,960
And so Amber comes in as her
first principalship.

462
00:30:13,240 --> 00:30:18,760
She's young, she's excited, not
respected, right.

463
00:30:19,000 --> 00:30:24,160
Culture was rough on her and,
and, you know, they'd lost the

464
00:30:24,160 --> 00:30:26,360
principal they loved that had
hired all the staff.

465
00:30:26,360 --> 00:30:30,360
And here she comes in and, and
she sees, you know, there are

466
00:30:30,360 --> 00:30:32,320
things that have got to change.
But.

467
00:30:32,520 --> 00:30:38,080
But the first thing that she did
was that she took each staff

468
00:30:38,080 --> 00:30:43,440
member and had them meet her off
campus at a coffee shop just to

469
00:30:43,440 --> 00:30:44,880
get to know them.
Yeah.

470
00:30:46,440 --> 00:30:51,320
And this pattern of taking time
to get to know each individual

471
00:30:51,600 --> 00:30:56,480
person on your team is so
important as a foundation

472
00:30:57,200 --> 00:30:59,640
because they got to see who she
was.

473
00:30:59,680 --> 00:31:04,080
And she's a very, very smart,
very loving, very authentic

474
00:31:04,840 --> 00:31:08,480
leader.
And so over the 1st 90 days, she

475
00:31:08,480 --> 00:31:11,960
got to meet with all the staff.
She got to really hear their

476
00:31:11,960 --> 00:31:15,440
ideas on hey, what what would
make this better?

477
00:31:16,000 --> 00:31:20,200
She paired them to do some
reflection, trying to increase

478
00:31:20,280 --> 00:31:23,840
everyone's self-awareness about
where are gaps.

479
00:31:25,080 --> 00:31:28,400
And this basically follows a
process of she she built

480
00:31:28,400 --> 00:31:31,920
relationships by listening right
and learning.

481
00:31:31,960 --> 00:31:37,040
They learned together like what
needs to be the interventions,

482
00:31:37,040 --> 00:31:38,720
the new things that we
implement.

483
00:31:39,120 --> 00:31:42,720
And then they set in place some,
some, you know, I'll call them

484
00:31:42,720 --> 00:31:44,640
easy wins.
Right.

485
00:31:44,920 --> 00:31:48,360
Where they could start
celebrating success, you know,

486
00:31:48,360 --> 00:31:51,360
as you, so you've built trust
through relationships, but now

487
00:31:51,360 --> 00:31:53,680
you need to have some action,
right?

488
00:31:53,800 --> 00:31:57,040
And so you then you see some
quick wins and some results and

489
00:31:57,040 --> 00:31:58,880
you get to celebrate those as a
team.

490
00:31:59,280 --> 00:32:02,920
Now you're building more trust.
Your skeptics are getting to

491
00:32:02,920 --> 00:32:07,680
observe you and they're like,
OK, maybe this is maybe this

492
00:32:07,680 --> 00:32:10,960
person is for real.
And over a two year period of

493
00:32:10,960 --> 00:32:14,960
time, they dramatically turn
turned the campus around.

494
00:32:14,960 --> 00:32:18,840
Numbers went up in all areas.
Staff turnover went, you know,

495
00:32:18,840 --> 00:32:23,120
down to, you know, almost zero.
And and that pattern, which I'll

496
00:32:23,120 --> 00:32:29,480
call kind of borrowing this from
one of my guests, but listening,

497
00:32:29,480 --> 00:32:34,440
learning and then responding or
implementing out of that

498
00:32:34,440 --> 00:32:40,760
foundation can really lead to
great, great transformation.

499
00:32:40,960 --> 00:32:43,400
Yeah.
Oh, yeah, completely agree.

500
00:32:43,400 --> 00:32:47,520
And it's so smart to start with
the relationships because that

501
00:32:47,840 --> 00:32:51,040
is what truly matters.
And I think sometimes in

502
00:32:51,040 --> 00:32:54,760
education, and I have been
guilty of this in full

503
00:32:54,760 --> 00:33:01,680
transparency, you get so focused
on the tasks and the things that

504
00:33:01,680 --> 00:33:06,520
need to be done, the compliance,
the the requirements that the

505
00:33:06,520 --> 00:33:10,960
state puts forth and the list
goes on and on and on and on.

506
00:33:11,840 --> 00:33:17,320
But if we can focus consistently
on the relationships, I think

507
00:33:17,480 --> 00:33:20,560
that is is what's going to drive
that meaningful change.

508
00:33:20,560 --> 00:33:25,120
Because what people are seeing
is that as a leader, you have

509
00:33:25,120 --> 00:33:29,760
vision and people need to see
that vision and that value

510
00:33:29,760 --> 00:33:32,200
alignment.
And then the mission of the

511
00:33:32,200 --> 00:33:36,320
organization and your mission as
an individual helps you to walk

512
00:33:36,320 --> 00:33:40,000
that out day by day.
And the more you do what you say

513
00:33:40,000 --> 00:33:44,600
you're going to do, the the
clearer you are with

514
00:33:45,240 --> 00:33:48,920
communicating what it is that
you believe that you're going to

515
00:33:48,920 --> 00:33:50,120
do.
And when you keep those

516
00:33:50,120 --> 00:33:52,720
commitments, you're going to
build that trust.

517
00:33:52,720 --> 00:33:57,920
So it always goes back to the
relationships every single time.

518
00:33:58,600 --> 00:34:01,680
Yes, yeah, absolutely.
And the same is true with

519
00:34:01,680 --> 00:34:05,520
building support in the
community among parents, You

520
00:34:05,520 --> 00:34:09,199
know, so, so important to really
care about people.

521
00:34:09,199 --> 00:34:13,040
And I and I would say that if
you are in a leadership position

522
00:34:13,600 --> 00:34:16,880
and you don't care about people,
you really need to do something

523
00:34:16,880 --> 00:34:19,639
else, right.
I mean, education is a people

524
00:34:19,639 --> 00:34:20,960
business.
For.

525
00:34:20,960 --> 00:34:24,239
Sure.
And I think many people, most

526
00:34:24,239 --> 00:34:27,280
people actually, they get into
education because they do love

527
00:34:27,280 --> 00:34:29,159
people.
They care about people, they

528
00:34:29,159 --> 00:34:35,360
want to grow people.
But I also know that

529
00:34:35,719 --> 00:34:39,159
distractions get in the way.
And if you are in a season,

530
00:34:39,520 --> 00:34:42,080
whoever's listening to this
program right now, if you're in

531
00:34:42,080 --> 00:34:46,520
a season right now and you don't
feel connected to your people,

532
00:34:46,679 --> 00:34:50,880
you're not loving your people
for whatever reason, press

533
00:34:50,880 --> 00:34:54,679
pause.
Take a step back and invest in

534
00:34:54,679 --> 00:34:57,720
yourself.
Do something to recharge your

535
00:34:57,720 --> 00:35:02,640
battery and to reconnect with
your values and your vision and

536
00:35:02,640 --> 00:35:05,560
your mission in life and in
leadership.

537
00:35:06,520 --> 00:35:11,040
And get back to that place where
you love not only the people in

538
00:35:11,040 --> 00:35:14,680
the organization, but find some
passion projects, some things

539
00:35:14,680 --> 00:35:18,480
that energize you and light you
up in your day-to-day.

540
00:35:18,920 --> 00:35:22,920
And so that's the perfect segue,
Matthew, for you to tell us what

541
00:35:22,920 --> 00:35:25,640
is lighting you up right now.
What's your passion project?

542
00:35:27,160 --> 00:35:30,760
Oh, I've, I've tend to stay
pretty passionate about what I,

543
00:35:30,760 --> 00:35:36,640
you know, I get to work on.
Yeah, you know, the, you know, I

544
00:35:36,640 --> 00:35:40,680
just finished releasing a new, a
book when with your talent

545
00:35:40,680 --> 00:35:46,240
pipeline and, and which is
really just sharing the, the

546
00:35:46,480 --> 00:35:49,400
pillars needed to effectively
grow your own.

547
00:35:50,200 --> 00:35:54,760
And that's been well received
and hit the number one list,

548
00:35:55,040 --> 00:35:58,400
which, which, which was, you
know, very humbling.

549
00:35:59,840 --> 00:36:03,120
This new master's in leadership
program, I'm very intimately

550
00:36:03,120 --> 00:36:05,800
involved in and helping with
each course development.

551
00:36:05,800 --> 00:36:09,280
It's, it's allowing me to
interview these great leaders

552
00:36:09,280 --> 00:36:12,800
and capture their stories that
will all be integrated as case

553
00:36:12,800 --> 00:36:18,680
studies into this program.
And then those are getting also

554
00:36:18,960 --> 00:36:22,000
added into a new book that I'm
working on.

555
00:36:22,000 --> 00:36:28,920
That's the the the trust first
leader, which will, which will

556
00:36:28,920 --> 00:36:34,480
be a playbook in a sense on how
we as campus leaders or any kind

557
00:36:34,480 --> 00:36:39,320
of leader really can start to
build those foundational

558
00:36:39,320 --> 00:36:41,480
relationships.
And it'll probably won't get

559
00:36:41,480 --> 00:36:43,400
released till April or May next
year.

560
00:36:43,400 --> 00:36:46,240
But very, very excited about
that.

561
00:36:46,720 --> 00:36:49,840
I mean, my number one passion
project is playing with my

562
00:36:49,840 --> 00:36:51,080
grandkids.
Oh yeah.

563
00:36:51,880 --> 00:36:54,160
But I can't do that and get paid
so all.

564
00:36:54,640 --> 00:36:56,760
Right, I completely understand
that passion.

565
00:36:56,800 --> 00:37:03,200
We have that problem as well.
So for you right now, tell me

566
00:37:03,200 --> 00:37:05,720
what's giving you hope in the
world right now.

567
00:37:07,440 --> 00:37:13,320
Oh, there's, there are, there is
a movement going on right now.

568
00:37:13,320 --> 00:37:19,040
I really see, you know, there
I've had friends reach out and

569
00:37:19,040 --> 00:37:22,040
just talk about their, their
renewed hope, their renewed

570
00:37:22,040 --> 00:37:27,040
faith.
And there's a lot of hard things

571
00:37:27,040 --> 00:37:34,120
going on in the world, but this
spirit of hopefulness is moving

572
00:37:34,120 --> 00:37:37,000
in the in a really in a really
powerful way.

573
00:37:38,560 --> 00:37:42,560
I'd also say that down in the
like the very micro level that

574
00:37:43,000 --> 00:37:50,560
watching my twin sons be 18 year
old independent young men who

575
00:37:50,560 --> 00:37:56,480
are very faithful, very moral
and how they invest in

576
00:37:56,480 --> 00:38:00,160
relationships gives me
incredible amount of amount of

577
00:38:00,160 --> 00:38:04,240
hope.
And so, you know, I'd say both,

578
00:38:04,240 --> 00:38:06,760
both sides of that are are true
for me right now.

579
00:38:07,360 --> 00:38:11,320
At the time of this recording,
Matthew, I have just released a

580
00:38:11,320 --> 00:38:15,160
spotlight on the Macoupin County
CEO program.

581
00:38:15,160 --> 00:38:18,080
So it's a group of students who
are in kind of an

582
00:38:18,080 --> 00:38:22,120
entrepreneurial program.
Really the focus of the program

583
00:38:22,120 --> 00:38:24,720
is helping them develop life
skills.

584
00:38:24,920 --> 00:38:27,680
Some of them will become
business owners, others will

585
00:38:27,680 --> 00:38:32,000
not, but they're learning about
things like self-awareness and

586
00:38:32,000 --> 00:38:35,880
relationship skills and building
their networks, just to name a

587
00:38:35,880 --> 00:38:37,920
few of the skills they're
learning this program.

588
00:38:37,920 --> 00:38:39,960
That's great.
And so through the Lead with

589
00:38:39,960 --> 00:38:43,280
Hope podcast, I have chosen to
spotlight that program for the

590
00:38:43,280 --> 00:38:46,760
entire month of November.
So if you're listening to this

591
00:38:46,760 --> 00:38:50,080
and you did not catch that, I
want to encourage you to go back

592
00:38:50,080 --> 00:38:54,160
and to listen.
I've spotlighted the program.

593
00:38:54,160 --> 00:38:58,440
I have interviewed the former
director of the program,

594
00:38:58,440 --> 00:39:02,640
students both present and former
students.

595
00:39:02,960 --> 00:39:06,600
And like you, Matthew, the kids
are giving me hope as well.

596
00:39:07,080 --> 00:39:12,000
As a volunteer in that program,
you know, they are wise beyond

597
00:39:12,000 --> 00:39:16,120
their years.
And I do see that renewed sense

598
00:39:16,120 --> 00:39:21,120
of faith in this generation of
students and that that does

599
00:39:21,120 --> 00:39:24,000
shine.
A bright weekend of hope for our

600
00:39:24,000 --> 00:39:26,520
future for sure.
Yes, absolutely.

601
00:39:26,800 --> 00:39:28,520
I love that you're doing that.
Yeah.

602
00:39:28,760 --> 00:39:33,720
So you have a lot going on.
And just as a brief recap, you

603
00:39:33,720 --> 00:39:39,800
know, you've talked about just
giving hope to those students

604
00:39:39,880 --> 00:39:42,360
who want to go from
paraprofessional to teacher.

605
00:39:42,640 --> 00:39:45,960
So if somebody is listening
today and they might want to do

606
00:39:45,960 --> 00:39:49,200
a Grow Your Own program for
their school or their district,

607
00:39:49,360 --> 00:39:50,840
how would they be in contact
with you?

608
00:39:52,120 --> 00:39:56,960
Yeah, I mean definitely through
our website gracelandlynn.edu, I

609
00:39:56,960 --> 00:40:01,920
could e-mail info@graceland.edu
and one of our team will help

610
00:40:02,080 --> 00:40:05,480
help them do that.
You know the programs that one

611
00:40:05,480 --> 00:40:08,640
of the things that we felt like
was very important in our design

612
00:40:08,640 --> 00:40:12,400
was that the programs not cost
to districts anything.

613
00:40:12,400 --> 00:40:17,600
District resources are already,
you know, thin and so.

614
00:40:18,800 --> 00:40:23,240
When we built tuition that it's
only $100 a month in most cases

615
00:40:23,240 --> 00:40:25,960
for the, you know, majority of
our students, it's really meant

616
00:40:25,960 --> 00:40:30,600
for the student to invest in
their own future at a price that

617
00:40:30,600 --> 00:40:33,800
they that they can afford.
So yeah, love to help anybody

618
00:40:34,200 --> 00:40:38,480
that's interested in that.
Amazing program, completely

619
00:40:38,480 --> 00:40:41,840
affordable, and I will link your
contact information in the show

620
00:40:41,840 --> 00:40:44,840
notes.
So if you're interested, get in

621
00:40:44,840 --> 00:40:47,480
touch with Matthew and he will
help you out.

622
00:40:47,800 --> 00:40:51,960
And Matthew today I am honored
to have had this conversation

623
00:40:51,960 --> 00:40:53,720
with you.
So thank you for being on the

624
00:40:53,720 --> 00:40:57,200
show and let's stay in touch.
OK.

625
00:40:57,280 --> 00:40:58,560
Sounds great.
Thanks so much.

626
00:41:05,080 --> 00:41:08,400
Thank you so much for tuning in
to today's episode of Lead with

627
00:41:08,400 --> 00:41:12,040
Hope, where we believe that
leadership rooted in habits,

628
00:41:12,360 --> 00:41:16,720
optimistic mindset, purpose, and
excellence can truly change the

629
00:41:16,720 --> 00:41:19,480
world.
I'd love to ask you for a small

630
00:41:19,480 --> 00:41:23,080
favor that makes a big impact.
Help me spread hope.

631
00:41:23,600 --> 00:41:26,920
Share this episode with a friend
or a colleague who could use a

632
00:41:26,920 --> 00:41:30,280
little encouragement today.
And if this conversation

633
00:41:30,280 --> 00:41:34,080
inspired you, please take a
moment to head over and give the

634
00:41:34,080 --> 00:41:37,720
show a five star rating.
It helps others find us and

635
00:41:37,720 --> 00:41:39,800
keeps the message of hope
growing strong.

636
00:41:39,800 --> 00:41:44,880
I'm also excited to share
something new with you, the Hope

637
00:41:44,880 --> 00:41:48,520
Fueled Kickstart.
This is a powerful short term,

638
00:41:48,600 --> 00:41:52,680
one-on-one coaching experience
designed to help leaders like

639
00:41:52,680 --> 00:41:57,600
you reclaim your vision, reset
your mindset, and reignite your

640
00:41:57,600 --> 00:42:00,040
purpose so you can lead with
hope again.

641
00:42:00,760 --> 00:42:03,680
You'll learn more about the
Kickstart program, just click

642
00:42:03,680 --> 00:42:07,960
the link in the show notes.
Until next time, remember the

643
00:42:07,960 --> 00:42:10,560
world needs your leadership and
change starts with you.

644
00:42:11,000 --> 00:42:15,400
Fuel your life with hope,
embrace your purpose, and shine

645
00:42:15,400 --> 00:42:16,640
your light for others.