Best Postsecondary Success Podcasts (2025)

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Strengthening Schools Through Community Collaboration 30:48

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3d ago30:48

30:48

In this episode, James Ellout, Vice President of Community Impact at United Way of Northeast Floridajoins Dr. Robert Balfanz to talk about how community organizations can partner with schools to increase student success. Four years after the height of the pandemic, schools are still facing high rates of absenteeism, declining academic achievement, …

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Harnessing Youth Power: The Girls Inc. Story 31:01

2M ago31:01

31:01

Girls in our nation’s urban areas—and in communities across the county—face significant challenges on the path to academic achievement and adult success. That’s why the work of Girls Inc. of Chicago is so inspiring. Since 1865, Girls Inc. has harnessed the power of youth helping youth, and they are redefining what support can look like. Each year, …

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S2:E13 | Ariana Boyd: From Rockdale to UGA – A Future Scientist on Purpose-Driven Leadership 1:09:01

4M ago1:09:01

1:09:01

In this episode of the Keystone Instruction Podcast, we're joined by Ariana Boyd, a recent graduate of Rockdale County High School and the Magnet School for Science and Technology. Ariana is preparing to begin her studies in Cellular Biology at the University of Georgia, and she's already making waves as a student leader with a heart for service an…

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S2 E12: Passion, Purpose & Public Service: The Journey of Aubrey Jordan-Yarbrough 54:14

4M ago54:14

54:14

🎙️ Coach D Wants to Know – Class of 2025 Super Senior Series Passion, Purpose & Public Service: The Journey of Aubrey Jordan-Yarbrough In this inspiring episode of the Coach D Wants to Know podcast, we spotlight Aubrey Jordan-Yarbrough, an accomplished graduate of DeKalb School of the Arts. A visual artist, violinist, and dynamic student leader, Au…

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S2E11: The Super Senior Series – Featuring Destiny Sutton 1:06:15

5M ago1:06:15

1:06:15

🎙️ Coach D Wants to Know: The Super Senior Series – Featuring Destiny Sutton In this powerful episode of Coach D Wants to Know, meet Destiny Sutton, a creative force and recent graduate who is headed to Spelman College to major in Documentary Filmmaking, with plans to minor in Entrepreneurial Innovation. Destiny is a singer, songwriter, dancer, poe…

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S2E10: The Super Senior Series – Featuring Tylek Jones 1:17:43

5M ago1:17:43

1:17:43

🎙️ Coach D Wants to Know: The Super Senior Series – Featuring Tylek Jones In this inspiring episode of Coach D Wants to Know, we sit down with Tylek Jones, a recent graduate of Lithonia High School and a proud incoming freshman at Savannah State University, where he will major in Music Education. Tylek opens up about his journey through high school…

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Bridging the Gap: Postsecondary Guidance for Every Student 23:24

5M ago23:24

23:24

What does it really take to help all students plan for what’s next after high school? In this episode of Designing Education, Dr. Robert Balfanz speaks with Andy Schmitz, senior managing director of system impact at OneGoal, a national nonprofit dedicated to helping students navigate their postsecondary journeys. The discussion also explores how im…

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S2E9: Mindset, Money, and Mission: Nyanna Langford's Youth Biz Blueprint 34:19

5M ago34:19

34:19

In this powerful episode, we sit down with Nyanna Langford—Educator, Author, Speaker, and Founder of Business Owners of Tomorrow. With a mission to equip youth ages 9–18 with the tools to launch and run successful businesses, Nyanna shares the mindset shifts, money habits, and purpose-driven principles she teaches the next generation of entrepreneu…

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Healing Begins with Belief | Shift Your Mindset with Jerecia Lee 1:18:05

6M ago1:18:05

1:18:05

In this powerful episode of Coach D Wants to Know, we sit down with licensed mental health advocate Jerecia Lee to explore the deep connection between belief, mindset, and healing. Jerecia shares personal insights and professional wisdom on how transforming our inner dialogue can unlock the path to true mental wellness. Whether you're on a healing …

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Helping Teens Find Their Path: Advice for Parents + Empowering Peer Support After High School 1:07:58

6M ago1:07:58

1:07:58

Are you a parent unsure of how to guide your high schooler through the next steps? Or maybe you're a student wondering how to encourage your friends to explore their future? In this episode, we sit down with Lindsey Hutchins, Head Counselor at the College and Career Academy, to unpack: ✅ What parents should be asking their teens ✅ How to support st…

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Beyond the Classroom: Education That Prepares for Adult Success 32:57

6M ago32:57

32:57

Season 4 of the Designing Education Podcast kicks off with Shawn Morris, Executive Director of the Mark Armijo Academy located in the South Valley of Albuquerque, New Mexico. This episode explores how the Mark Armijo Academy is helping students take ownership of their futures through internships and work-based learning. The conversation touches on …

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Raising Self-Efficacy and Making Education Relatable with Ian Barrett 1:21:05

6M ago1:21:05

1:21:05

In this episode of Coach D Wants to Know, Coach D is joined by Ian Barrett, Program Manager at College AIM, Inc., to explore the importance of empowering students through self-efficacy, leadership, and making education relatable. Ian shares how his work with AmeriCorps members is helping students in 9th to 11th grade explore postsecondary pathways …

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Are We Truly Preparing Students for the Future? | Coach D Wants to Know 🎙️🔬📚 1:42:27

7M ago1:42:27

1:42:27

In this episode of Coach D Wants to Know, I sit down with Chuqq Elbaram, Founder of COGSTEM, to dive into the critical gaps in STEM education and how we can better prepare students for college and careers. We discuss: ✅ The rise of microschools and their impact on education ✅ The need for stronger instructional leadership in Math, CTAE, and Science…

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S2:E2 Rethinking Postsecondary Success: Equity & Teacher Shortages w/ Dr. Edwina Perrin 1:09:39

7M ago1:09:39

1:09:39

In this episode of Coach D Wants to Know, I sit down with Dr. Perrin, District Mathematics Coordinator for Spartanburg District Seven, to dive into the real challenges and opportunities in education today. We're talking: ✅ Equity gaps in schools & how to address them ✅ The teacher shortage crisis & what we can do ✅ Why postsecondary success isn't j…

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S2 EP 1: From Student to School Leader with Shay Smith 50:09

7M ago50:09

50:09

In this powerful episode of Coach D Wants to Know, I sit down with Shay Smith, my former student who is now making an impact as an assistant principal! 🚀 We dive into: ✅ Her journey from student to school leader ✅ The power of mentorship in shaping careers ✅ Her vision for the future of education 🎓 This conversation is a reminder that when we inves…

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🎙️ Coach D Wants to Know is BACK! 🚀 5:58

7M ago5:58

5:58

The conversations that educators need are happening right here. 🏫🔥 Why are teachers burning out? What can school leaders do differently? How do we create real change in education? In this relaunch episode, we're diving into the hard-hitting topics that affect teachers, school administrators, and the entire education system. No sugarcoating—just rea…

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Rethinking High School for the 21st Century with Paolo DeMaria 38:29

9M ago38:29

38:29

In the season finale of Designing Education and our yearlong exploration of student success systems, we sit down with Paolo DeMaria, president and CEO of the National Association of State Boards of Education (NASBE), to explore how we can transform our nation’s high schools to meet the needs and opportunities of the 21st century and how student suc…

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Pathways to Success: Rethinking High School and Beyond 34:32

11M ago34:32

34:32

In episode seven of Designing Education, Tim Knowles, president of the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching, joins Dr. Robert Balfanz for a thought-provoking discussion about the evolving role of American high schools. This episode examines the urgent need to redesign high school education to meet the demands of today’s world, focusi…

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Breaking Down Barriers: How Student Success Systems Transform Support in Schools 39:11

12M ago39:11

39:11

In episode six, we welcome Jenny Scala, Managing Director at the American Institutes for Research. Jenny shares insights into how student success systems can help schools break down silos in student support, making it easier to use resources efficiently and deliver integrated, timely support for every student. We explore the inner workings of these…

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Empowering and Learning from Rural Schools: Innovative Solutions for Student Success 26:41

1y ago26:41

26:41

In this episode, we welcome Taylor McCabe-Juhnke, Executive Director of the Rural Schools Collaborative, to discuss the work they are doing to bring student success systems to rural schools across the nation. With one in four of our nation's students attending rural schools, it's crucial that these often-overlooked communities are included in natio…

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Fostering Connected School Communities: Creating Inclusive Pathways to Success 17:08

1y ago17:08

17:08

In this special episode of Designing Education, we're thrilled to welcome Krys Payne as our guest host. Krys is the Executive Director of the UChicago Network for College Success (NCS) and brings nearly 30 years of experience in education to her role. At NCS, Krys leads a team dedicated to equipping educators with evidence-based practices and resea…

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Diving Deep into the Four Components of a Student Success System 28:08

1+ y ago28:08

28:08

In the third episode of season three, Tara Madden, Chief Program Officer of Talent Development Secondary, joins Dr. Robert Balfanz to discuss the four essential components of a student success system: a focus on building relationships; holistic data and predictive indicators; a response system informed by students, teachers, and families; and a sha…

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Providing Students the Support they Need in Post-Pandemic Times 30:30

1+ y ago30:30

30:30

In the second episode of season three, Patricia Balana, Managing Director of the GRAD Partnership, joins Dr. Robert Balfanz to discuss how and why nine organizations came together to form the GRAD Partnership. The coalition is a national initiative that partners with communities to implement high-quality student success systems so that schools are …

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Building Success Systems for Students with Learning Disabilities 36:14

1+ y ago36:14

36:14

In the first episode of our third season, Dr. Saashya Rodrigo, Principal Researcher from the National Center for Learning Disabilities (NCLD), joins Dr. Balfanz to discuss the work NCLD is doing to ensure that students with disabilities feel a strong sense of agency, belonging, and connectedness and receive the support they need. She explains NCLD’…

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Designing Education Season 3 Trailer 1:30

1+ y ago1:30

1:30

Season three of Designing Education, a podcast hosted by Robert Balfanz, director of the Everyone Graduates Center at Johns Hopkins University, is about to begin! This season’s series will focus on exploring student success systems, the next generation of early warning, on-track, and multi-tiered system of supports, which aim to integrate and incre…

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A Place Where Everyone Wants to Be 30:04

2y ago30:04

30:04

In Season 2, Episode 8, Sofia Russo, Principal of High School for Media and Communications located in the Washington Heights neighborhood of New York City joins Robert Balfanz for a conversation about what is possible when school leaders, teachers, students, families and community members are given opportunities to engage in school redesign. With j…

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S2 Ep7: Graduation Requirements Leading to a Pathway for Each Student 30:18

2y ago30:18

30:18

In Season 2, episode 7 Graham Wood, Director of the Office of Graduate Success, at the Ohio Department of Education and Workforce joins Robert Balfanz for a conversation about how high school graduation requirements and the very design of high schools can be re-imagined so that all students graduate high school on a pathway to adult success. The gr…

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Let's Talk About Sex Ed: Examining Its Place and Purpose in Higher Education 22:36

2y ago22:36

22:36

About This Episode: In many parts of the U.S., comprehensive sex education is startlingly absent. With only 16 states mandating contraception education, 34 states focusing primarily on abstinence, and 13 states lacking age-appropriate and evidence-based standards, the current landscape of sex education is fragmented. This disparity becomes even sta…

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Weighted Judgments: The Unspoken Bias in Higher Ed 23:38

2y ago23:38

23:38

About This Episode: In this enlightening episode, we dive deep into an often-silent challenge faced by plus-sized students in the realm of higher education. Despite more than two-thirds of adults in the US being over a size 14, there exists an underlying bias against students based on their body size, overshadowing their academic achievements. From…

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Season2, Ep6: Designing an Education System That Works for All Students 35:54

2+ y ago35:54

35:54

Celebrating its one-year anniversary, the National Partnership for Student Success (NPSS), a partnership between the U.S. Department of Education, AmeriCorps, and the Johns Hopkins Everyone Graduates Center, was launched following a call to action from the Biden-Harris Administration for more Americans to serve as tutors, mentors, college/career ad…

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S2, Ep5: Reimagining Seat Time and the Traditional School Bell Schedule, Part 2 27:55

2+ y ago27:55

27:55

In this episode, Robert Balfanz continues the conversation with New Hampshire’s Extended Learning Opportunity Network’s Kerrie Alley-Violette and Sean Peschel, two on-the-ground educators working to make “learning anywhere, anytime” real. At the time when the sources and locations of knowledge and training have multiplied exponentially, innovative …

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Beyond the Degree: Discovering Unexpected Careers 19:35

2+ y ago19:35

19:35

About This Episode: In this episode we uncover the surprising ways a degree can serve us throughout our careers. Our esteemed guests, all accomplished alumni from various fields, share their personal experiences of how their education has equipped them with lifelong adaptive skills that have proven invaluable in unexpected ways. Discover how social…

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S2 Ep4: Reimagining Seat Time and the Traditional School Bell Schedule, Part 1 26:19

2+ y ago26:19

26:19

When teams of educators, students, and community members across the nation work to redesign high schools, one thing that repeatedly stands in the way is the school schedule and the need to meet seat time requirements. There is no better example of how the 20th Century designed high school no longer works in the 21st century than seat time. It is ba…

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ChatGPT: Pushing the Boundaries of Higher Education 23:05

2+ y ago23:05

23:05

ChatGPT is the latest in the rapidly growing realm of AI programming. The program understands and responds to human language, which has been shown to be beneficial in assisting students in higher education by providing personalized support and resources and creating interactive learning experiences. However, the darkside to AI programs such as Chat…

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S2 Ep3: Equalizing Opportunities to Learn 36:53

2+ y ago36:53

36:53

As a species, humans are smart, adaptive, and resilient. We all have the capacity to think, create, and contribute to society at a high level. What stands between this shared capacity and everyone realizing its full potential is the opportunity to learn. This is where human shortcomings come in … including greed, power, fear, racism, and othering. …

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Beyond Borders: Unpacking the Black Study Abroad Experience 22:18

2+ y ago22:18

22:18

About This Episode: Of the 160,000 American students who studied abroad, in the 2019-2020 academic year, only 5.5 percent were Black. Although the percentage of Black students who travel abroad was slowly increasing, the impact of COVID-19 lowered the percentages - yet another example of how the Black community was disparately affected by the pande…

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Reassessing the Impact of Affirmative Action in Higher Education 22:35

2+ y ago22:35

22:35

About This Episode: Instituted by executive order in 1965, affirmative action is a race-conscious policy that aims to address discrimination and provide equal access to education and jobs. Since its inception, organizations have opposed its implementation arguing that it is unfair, unnecessary, and unconstitutional and today, it is once again under…

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S2 Ep2: Chronic Absenteeism and Keys to Reengaging Students 44:26

2+ y ago44:26

44:26

The evidence is clear. Students need to attend school on a regular basis to succeed. If the purpose of school is to help students learn and development, then being there is important. Until quite recently, however, we did not regularly measure the extent to which the students enrolled in a school were attending on a regular basis. Until 2017 or so,…

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S2 Ep1: The Necessity of Supportive Relationships 33:35

3y ago33:35

33:35

As we kick off season two of the Designing Education podcast during National Mentoring Month, Bob Balfanz is joined by Tim Wills, Chief Impact Officer for MENTOR, the leading organization in the nation working to scale high-quality mentoring in and out of school. Positive relationships enable trust, which enables cooperation, and collective and eng…

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Embracing the Importance of Activism in Higher Education 25:26

3y ago25:26

25:26

About This Episode: Activism in higher education has a long history going back to the 1930s, starting with opposition to the military, racial discrimination, and support for labor unions. Nowadays, on-campus activism is widespread and research shows that student activism can disrupt taken-for-granted norms by providing more context to campus leader…

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S1 Ep11: The New ABCs: Drawing on Street and Institutional Data to Scale Effective Student Supports 43:53

3y ago43:53

43:53

Traditionally, schools have been designed around a set of standard practices and expectations. When students do not fully benefit from these practices or conform to the expectations, schools either add on supports or establish consequences to try to modify behaviors and outcomes. Over the past 15 years, researchers, school officials, and school tea…

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Examining The Stop WOKE Act and The Threat to Academic Freedom in Higher Education 25:07

3y ago25:07

25:07

LAbout This Episode: In April 2022, Florida Governor Ron DeSantis signed House Bill 7, also known as the “Stop the Wrongs to Our Kids and Employees Act” or the “Stop WOKE act”. This bill prohibits teaching certain concepts related to race and sexual orientation in schools. This is just one legislative act across the country that attempts to limit a…

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S1 Ep10: A Six-State Collaboration Reimagines Today’s High School Experience 44:16

3y ago44:16

44:16

The public high school is a uniquely American invention, and our public high schools have played a powerful role in the development of our nation. The challenge is that in today’s world, a high school diploma alone is not enough to usher young people immediately into a middle-class, life-supporting existence. Further, public high schools must take …

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Refocusing Basic Needs (Part 2): Can Policy Fix the Higher Ed Housing Crisis? 21:07

3y ago21:07

21:07

About This Episode: According to the Census Bureau, California’s population grew three times more in the last ten years than available housing units. As enrollment at the University of California and California State University systems increased, the statewide housing shortage has made it challenging for campuses to address the situation. State pol…

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#ChangemakersMI: Advocacy & Voting 30:20

3y ago30:20

30:20

In this episode, we talk about the importance of raising the voices of those with lived experience in foster care, housing insecurity, and refugee status via advocacy and voting!By Fostering Success Michigan

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S1 Ep9: Building an Ecosystem of Care 44:04

3y ago44:04

44:04

In this episode, Robert Balfanz is joined by Susanne Diggs-Wilborn, Vice President for College Success for Achieve Atlanta. Our nation's public education system has always sought to prepare and enable each generation to be ready to succeed in the world. To be on a pathway to adult success requires not only a high school diploma, but some postsecond…

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Refocusing Basic Needs: The Student Housing Crisis in Higher Education 23:45

3y ago23:45

23:45

About This Episode: The current housing crisis for students cannot be ignored. A survey conducted in 2019 found on-campus that most students in California have experienced some type of housing insecurity with the highest risk being students from marginalized communities. The traditional on campus basic needs centers are not enough to help the stude…

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S1 Ep8: Expanding the Village: School-Community Partnerships That Multiply Student Supports 31:23

3y ago31:23

31:23

In this episode, Ashley Seiler, Chief Partnership Officer at Big Brothers Big Sisters of Eastern Missouri, joins Robert Balfanz for a discussion about how BBBS created an ecosystem of over 100 community partners, three school districts, and 18 schools that serves over 10,000 students in a range of critical supports both in and out of school. We oft…

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S1 Ep7: Nobody Asked Me: A Campaign Illuminating the Voices & Experiences of Students and Their Families 34:48

3+ y ago34:48

34:48

In this episode, Dr. Richard Lofton, assistant professor at the Johns Hopkins School of Education and leader of the Nobody Asked Me Campaign, joins Dr. Balfanz to discuss the Campaign and how it sheds light on the experiences of students and families in Baltimore City. When we think about designing education to meet the needs of the 21st century an…

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S1 Ep6: Students at the Center: Linking Learning to Life for All 38:01

3+ y ago38:01

38:01

Throughout most of the twentieth century, high schools were seen as the end of formal public education. After high school, some students went to college, mainly those interested in the professions—medicine, law, architecture, engineering, and so on—but most went right to work or started a family. There were some vocational courses offered in high s…