Episodes

Michelle Osterhoudt is a wife, mother, and 24-year educator and community leader. Active in civil rights work within her community, Michelle serves as the President of the Oneonta Area NAACP. Michelle has also served on the Commission on Community Relations and Human Rights for the City of Oneonta and was the first African American Council member for the city of Oneonta serving the 4th Ward. She continues to lead through a social justice lens, ensuring equity and access for students. Currently, ...

This episode is sponsored by Peer Driven PD - Visit peerdrivenpd.com and request a quote. Tell them the Leaning into Leadership podcast sent you, and they’ll give you a free trial access so you can check out all of their content and decide for yourself and 10% off your first year’s subscription. Dr. Lute Croy is finishing up his 20th year in public education. In that time, he has worked as a teacher, coach, instructional coach, and administrator. He has a bachelor’s degree in history and psychol...

Book your Two-day High Performance Leadership Teams Retreat by emailing darrin@roadtoawesome.net Grab your copy of Darrin's FREE e-book Walk in Your Purpose May is a very special month here on the Leaning into Leadership podcast. The entire month is dedicated to aspiring, new, and rising leaders. Whether you're a leader moving from the classroom into their first position or a seasoned administrator jumping into the next role, we have something for you! In this episode, I'm talking about teacher...

This episode is sponsored by Peer Driven PD - Visit peerdrivenpd.com and request a quote. Tell them the Leaning into Leadership podcast sent you, and they’ll give you a free trial access so you can check out all of their content and decide for yourself and 10% off your first year’s subscription. Adam Stolzer is the principal of Burwell High School (NE). He is a proud graduate of Platteview High School, Wayne State College, and the University of Nebraska at Kearney. Adam taught and coached high s...

This episode is sponsored by Peer Driven PD - Visit peerdrivenpd.com and request a quote. Tell them the Leaning into Leadership podcast sent you, and they’ll give you a free trial access so you can check out all of their content and decide for yourself and 10% off your first year’s subscription. May is a very special month here on the Leaning into Leadership podcast. The entire month is dedicated to aspiring, new, and rising leaders. Whether you're a leader moving from the classroom into their f...

Elijah Carbajal is a teacher who followed in the footsteps of teachers in his family. He has served as an educator in the state of New Mexico since 2014 and is currently a Title I Reading Interventionist. Along with being the host of The Shut Up and Teach Podcast, he is the author of the book A Place They Love. Elijah works hard to make school and his classroom a place that students love! He loves to spend time with his wife, Tracey, and his cat, Nala. Check out Elijah's book, A Place They Love...

This episode is sponsored by Peer Driven PD - Visit peerdrivenpd.com and request a quote. Tell them the Leaning into Leadership podcast sent you, and they’ll give you a free trial access so you can check out all of their content and decide for yourself and 10% off your first year’s subscription. Get your copy of I'm Autistic and I'm Awesome here Jed Dearybury began his education career in 2001. He was featured in GQ Magazine as Male Leader of the Year, met President Obama as the South Carolina h...

Crystal Frommert, M.Ed, has over 20 years of experience as an educator, mostly in middle school. Crystal has taught math in public, parochial, and international schools. In addition to math, she has taught computer science and social justice. Beyond teaching, she has served as an instructional coach, school board member, adjunct college instructor, technology coordinator, and assistant head of middle school. She has presented at local, national, and international educational conferences on topic...

This episode is sponsored by Peer Driven PD - Visit peerdrivenpd.com and request a quote. Tell them the Leaning into Leadership podcast sent you, and they’ll give you a free trial access so you can check out all of their content and decide for yourself and 10% off your first year’s subscription. My guest is Angela Maiers: Leader. Visionary. Entrepreneur. Disruptor. Change Maker. Angela Maiers embodies each of these descriptors with passion, commitment, and fierce determination. She has been crea...

Check out When Calling Parents Isn't Your Calling by Crystal Frommert from Road to Awesome publishing. Andrew Marotta is an energetic and enthusiastic leader who has put his positive imprint on his beloved Port Jervis HS, in Port Jervis, NY. With the release of his first book, The School Leader: Surviving and Thriving, Andrew is expanding his impact on the educational leadership community. Andrew is the author of four books, most recently completing Dads, Leaders, & Father Figures. In his pers...

Elizabeth Dampf is the director of professional learning at Round Lake Area Schools 116 in the Chicago area. She holds master’s and bachelor’s degrees in English from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, as well as a Master of Arts in School Improvement Leadership from Olivet Nazarene University. She has worked in education for thirteen years. Here are link to the articles on martyr mentality, quiet quitting, and imposter syndrome in school leadership Check out all of Elizabeth's wor...

Dr. Phil Campbell, known to his students and staff as PC, is a veteran educator with a passion for loving kids and motivating educators. His goal is to assist schools in becoming the best learning environment they can possibly be for students to learn and for teachers to teach. His philosophy to accomplish this is simple: put relationships first, genuinely love and protect one another, and create a sense of family within your school setting. With educational experience as a teacher, coach, athle...

Maria Barrera is the founder of Clayful, a company on a mission to help kids build the skills and resilience to tackle anything that comes their way. Clayful is saving some pilot spots for the Leading into Leadership Podcast community! To learn more go to clayful.co/leadership. Throughout her career in education, technology, and human resources, she has always been focused on solving big problems in complex systems. Now, she is tackling the biggest problem of all - the mental health crisis. Ma...

Want PD that's like a Master Class for Teachers? Connect with Peer Driven PD at Connect with Peer Driven PD at https://peerdrivenpd.com/ to learn more. Make sure you tell them the Leaning into Leadership podcast sent you and get your FREE trial access! Aaron Keith Hawkins is an author, motivational leadership and success keynote speaker, and personal performance mentor. He's an internationally recognized podcast host, and has been featured as a subject matter expert on dozens of podcasts, radio ...

Michelle Osterhoudt is a wife, mother, and 24-year educator and community leader. Active in civil rights work within her community, Michelle serves as the Vice President of the Oneonta Area NAACP. Michelle has also served on the Commission on Community Relations and Human Rights for the City of Oneonta and was the first African American Council member for the city of Oneonta serving the 4th Ward. A project Michelle is most proud of is her Collaboration with Glimmerglass Festival in Cooperstown a...

Brian T. Miller is a husband, father of five, reader, writer, blogger, public speaker, podcaster, and proud principal of Chief Joseph Elementary. Samwise Gamge is his hero. Check out Brian's Schurtz & Ties podcast here Connect with Brian: Website: Millerbrian.com Facebook: Brian T. Miller Twitter: @Miller_brian_ or @SchurtzandTies TikTok: miller_brian_ Get your autographed copy of Road to Awesome: The Journey of a Leader here Book Darrin to speak at your school or conference contact us here Gr...

Welcome to a special mid-week episode of Leaning into Leadership. I was once an aspiring administrator and know how challenging the job search process can be. As someone who believes so strongly in supporting and coaching early career leaders, I think these mid-week episodes (and yes, there will be more) can have a great impact on those just starting or getting ready to start a career in leadership. On this episode, I will share three tips for aspiring leaders to consider. Think about the oppo...

Jamin Heppell is the a co-creator and leadership coach of Mountains and Marathons, which is a revolutionary leadership development company that focuses on holistic transformation and completes each program with an epic physical challenge, such as running a marathon or climbing a mountain in iconic locations around the world. Jamin’s clients have included senior executives of Fortune 500 companies, leaders of international non-profits, founders of multi-million dollar start-ups, leaders in Netwo...

Hal Bowman can see the future, and he is determined to do all he can to change it for the better, one life at a time. He is certain that schools are the key to a better world down the road. “Every school can be a phenomenal school” is his mantra, and it shows in his actions. Most days, you are likely to find him with his shirtsleeves rolled up and doing at least one thing to make it so. He is constantly mulling over the possibilities while designing programs, road maps, and materials to help mak...

Mark Herschberg is the author of The Career Toolkit: Essential Skills for Success That No One Taught You and creator of the Brain Bump app. From tracking criminals and terrorists on the dark web to creating marketplaces and new authentication systems, Mark has spent his career launching and developing new ventures at startups and Fortune 500s and in academia, with over a dozen patents to his name. He helped to start the Undergraduate Practice Opportunities Program, dubbed MIT’s “career success a...

Thomas Annunziata is the Director of Student Activities at Freedom High School in Woodbridge, Virginia. Mr. Annunziata is a 3-time Teacher of the Year and recent addition to the Freedom Eagles Administration team. In the short time since accepting the role as Freedom’s Activities Director in August , Mr. Annunziata has brought Wrestling, Swim, Golf, and Baseball back to the school expanding the opportunities available to the students. He continues to look for ways to increase opportunities for s...

John VanDusen is currently an 8th grade U.S. History teacher in Kingsford, Michigan where he also enjoys coaching football and being involved in his church along with his wife and son. John served as a military police and infantry platoon leader in Baghdad, Iraq. When he returned, he began his teaching and coaching career while continuing with the military. He is also an instructor in the Army reserves where he teaches Army Majors masters level courses as part of their professional military educ...

Jen Rafferty is an educator, author, and international public speaker, who started as a middle school music teacher for 15 years in Central New York. She is known for bringing her energy, humor and expertise in her presentations while inspiring educators to stay connected to their "why." Jen is a certified Emotional Intelligence Practitioner and is currently pursuing her Ph.D. in Educational Psychology. Since its inception, the Empowered Educator has reached teachers and school leaders all over...

Robert Jordan is the CEO of InterimExecs, which matches top executives with companies around the world. Based on research with thousands of leaders and companies, he and Olivia Wagner wrote Right Leader Right Time: Discover Your Leadership Style for a Winning Career and Company, and have launched the FABS Leadership Assessment, a free assessment at RightLeader.com designed to help leaders and organizations perform better. Jordan also authored How They Did It: Billion Dollar Insights from the Hea...