Teach Like A Rock Star Podcast

Kim Strobel is transforming education and helping teachers bring creativity, innovation, excitement, and achievement back into the classroom. She’s an education consultant, well-versed in best-practice strategies. But she’s also a teacher, so she knows what it takes to implement real change—and that a lot of professional development fails to deliver. That’s why her workshops and other teacher training opportunities focus on reinvigorating teachers’ purpose and passion, empowering them to step back into their classrooms with confidence and courage.

JON KONEN is a father, husband, K-6 elementary principal, and freelance writer in Great Falls, Montana. He has taught most all grade levels K-6, and has been a K-12 principal of a rural school. As a 5th grade teacher in 2010, he won the Presidential Award for Elementary Math and Science Teaching (PAEMST). As a principal, his school won the 2012 Blue Ribbon Award. In 2018, he won the National Distinguished Principal Award (NDP). He is the author of two guides, An Educator's Guide to Combat Bullying & Bully Prevention and Teacher Evaluation: A Transition Guide to Exemplary Performance. He has authored a children's picture book that will be released in February, 2019 titled, Benjamin's Visit to Principal's Reads' Office…Again!

Hi! My name is NIKKI HEIMAN and I’m a former special education teacher, now in educational leadership, and I provide professional development and support schools in achieving their goals for kids. I’m also a mother of 3 kids, one of whom was blessed with an extra 21st chromosome. Having him changed my life, I just did’t know it right away. I’m passionate about supporting all kids, including students with disabilities in reaching their full potential, which includes work in local advocacy, impacting public policy at the state and federal government levels as well as individual mindsets.

CHUCK DERTINGER is ridiculously passionate about helping people live healthy, fit, and happy lives. Sure, he definitely has all the degrees, credentials, and certifications: Honors Degree in Business Masters Degree in Science - Exercise Physiology CSCS Credential Precision Nutrition Certified But, more important than that, he has thousands of clients who have revolutionized their exercise and nutrition habits; lost weight; got in shape; and, feel great about the way they look and feel. Originally from Canada, Chuck now lives in Texas with his wife, Alexandra, and any number of stray dogs they might be fostering at the time. Visit Chuck Online: LeanBodyCoaching.com

I've known Suzi Mitchell for just about 2 decades. Of all the educators I've met across the country, she's one of my favorites. Suzi currently serves as the CTE Director at Hays Consolidated Independent School District. Hays CISD provides a wide range of Career and Technical Education (CTE) courses designed to provide students with the skills needed to enter today’s workforce. Hays CISD provides students with rigorous and relevant instruction to help them succeed in our high-demand, high-skilled working environment of the 21st century. Students apply their academic skills along with their technical skills in the CTE classrooms. Career and Technical Education can provide students with a chance to explore various career options and provide them with enhanced earning potential while continuing their education. Many of our courses are articulated with Austin Community College which means students can earn college credit while in high school at no cost to the student.

Dr. Toni Hull is Principal of the Mesilla Valley Leadership Academy and Lynn Community Middle School in Las Cruces, New Mexico. She has 25 years of experience as an educator in NY and NM, including teaching science for 17 years, coaching teachers for 7 years and serving as an administrator for the last 4 years. Dr. Hull is a Teacher Ambassador Fellow for the US Department of Education and Woodrow Wilson MBA Fellow. She is also Assistant Professor of educational leadership for New Mexico State University.

JEFF SPRINGER, an educator for 31 years, is the founder of the G.O.A.L. TEAM (GETTING OTHERS TO ACHIEVE HIGHER LEVELS). The G.O.A.L. TEAM is a program directed at helping high school students and adults maximize their personal leadership potential. In 2008, Jeff began a new ministry called “Suit Up Ministries” and is available to speak in person to various organizations. Jeff attended Abilene Christian University where he played on the 1977 National Championship Football team, received his Bachelor of Arts in Teaching from Sam Houston State University and obtained his Masters of Sports Administration from the United States Sports Academy. Jeff, a former Texas High School Head Football Coach and eleven year veteran of the classroom, is presently the Principal at The Magnolia High School, a North Houston area High School. Jeff also serves as the Men’s Minister and Discipleship Coach at a church in Northeast Houston, as well. Springer, who resides in Magnolia, Texas, has been married for 32 years and has two chi

Elizabeth Anastasopoulos’ drive to understand the true function of food/nutrition in the body began in 2011. For two years, she participated as a figure competitor in the OCB. While she was successful on the stage both years, she found that the style of prep her coach used left her feeling weak, fatigued, and overly moody. She also experienced a shocking thirty-pound rebound shortly after her first set of shows. As a result, not only did she struggle to get lean the following year, her coach used more extreme methods to get her stage ready. It was after this second difficult prep that Elizabeth felt there had to be a better way to get ready for the stage. She decided she needed to take her health into her own hands and truly understand how food fueled the body by pursuing her certification as a NASM Fitness Nutrition Specialist (FNS). What she learned during her studies disturbed her, as she discovered the way she had been fed during the two years of prep could have had detrimental affects to her metabolism.

TRINA MOORE is starting her 24th year teaching and still gets revved about the process of building a classroom culture. She was the 2010 Region 6 Teacher of the Year, has worked with PBS Student Reporting Labs, and has taught everything from sci-fi literature to drama to AV production. Trina likes to think she “gets it” when it comes to working with high school kids – mostly. She also feels REALLY awkward writing about herself in the third person.

KHALIAH GUILLORY is on a quest to fuel her passion and fulfill her purpose. At the core, she is a Performance Productivity Expert, Lover of Humanity, and Philanthropist. These are a few words that describe her contribution to the universe. Buoyed by her passion to inspire others by means of speaking, Khaliah founded KOG & Company (KOG) in 2015. KOG, is a people empowerment platform built to encourage the masses to operate outside of their fears and summon up the unmitigated gall to courageously pursue their purpose and passions in life. As Khaliah uses her voice for life-transformation success, her most thought provoking talks are “Unleash Your Dopeness™, “Diversity Deposits”, and “Mogul in Training”. Khaliah’s expertise and vast experiences as a leader working for Fortune 500 companies have awarded her Houston’s Next Generation of Leaders Award. This award recognizes professionals who demonstrate leadership within their communities. She graduated from the University of Central Florida, Nicholson School o

MATT FOSTER is an educator, writer, content creator, and educational entrepreneur. As the Co-founder of TeamTom Education, LLC., he publishes “Insanely Innovative Leadership Ideas” at mafost.com and serves as the Learning Engineer at SpiralWarmUps.com. Matt is a lifelong learner and educator with elementary teaching experience and k-12 administrative experience. Matt is a dad, a family man, and a lover of the great outdoors.

Dr. Dayna Smith has been an educator for 23 years. She currently serves as Director of Special Programs for Orangefield ISD.

Tristan Tarpley is the founder of Tarpley Holdings, which includes Market(r), Influenc(r), and Produc(r). According to Tristan, "When growth-stage businesses look for marketing (product development, advertising, positioning, branding, etc), they typically do 1 of 3 things: Build it in house from day one. They pool so many resources insourcing that they then don’t have the gas to put into the car, so to speak. They hire their friend that “does marketing.” They hire an agency. Agencies are kind of like Tylenol. Tylenol is great for its particular use case, but not for all use cases. And you don’t want to take too much Tylenol. My businesses enable a 4th option: Playing the role of the vertically-integrated doctor, pharmacy, and radiology department to diagnose, prescribe, and monitor and optimize—at a fraction of the cost."

Jason Yeaman is the principal at Vidor Middle School in Vidor ISD. In his own words: "I love being in the education field, being able to watch students be successful or influence a child in a positive manner makes my day. I enjoy watching my daughter dance and play softball. I love to see her succeed, I love to see her smile!  I have been in education my whole career, I started at the Junior High level and pretty much stayed there until I got in administration. I have coached a variety of sports, I have a passion for Special Olympics and the Unified Sports portion of that program. I love to see those kids smile and enjoy playing the games they love with others."

Coach Josh Smalley, a hometown kid from Bridge City, realized his dream of coaching when he accepted the freshman coaching position at his high school alma mater in 1999, shortly after graduating from college.  He would eventually accept his first head coaching position at nearby Orangefield in the late school year of 2012. “Coaching young kids is the best profession this side of heaven I can think of,” says Smalley, who is entering his second full season as head football coach and athletic director at Orangefield. “Working with young kids and seeing them grow as players and also outside the classroom is an awesome thing.”

Emanuelee "Outspoken Bean” is a performance poet, writer, compassionate mentor, electric entertainer, and an educator. Bean travels the country performing his original works and inspiring creative minds. Bean is a military brat but, calls San Antonio, Texas home and since high school Bean has been producing shows and performing continuously. That work ethic has taken him to Trinidad to Miami to South Dakota to Off-Broadway New York City and across the vast Houston Metropolitan where he inspires people from all walks of life to find and claim their voice. He is a 2011 Texas Poet Laureate nominee, ranked 9th in the Individual World Poetry Slam 2013, ranked 2nd in collaborative poetry at Group Piece Finals 2013 and, is ranked 11th at National Poetry Slam 2014 (both with Houston VIP). He started performing spoken-word in 2005. In his senior year at Prairie View A&M, Bean founded and coached the University’s first poetry slam team. In their first year, they won the title in their region and grabbed the 8t

JAIME CUNNINGHAM, originally from the thriving metropolis of Ottawa, Illinois, currently serves the students and families of Spring Independent School District as a Youth Service Specialist with Harris County Community Youth Services in Harris County, Texas. During our time together, you’ll hear Jaime say, “Well, I’m not a teacher.” But, I’ve worked with Jaime for years and I can tell you she is definitely a teacher. No, she may not have a traditional classroom and be responsible for teaching a particular content area, but of thousands upon thousands of educators I’ve met and worked with over the years, she’s at the top of the list. She’s one of the best. Listen in as we reminisce about “the good ol’ days,” chat about kids, teaching, and changing lives.

JEFF SPRINGER, an educator for 31 years, is the founder of the G.O.A.L. TEAM (GETTING OTHERS TO ACHIEVE HIGHER LEVELS). The G.O.A.L. TEAM is a program directed at helping high school students and adults maximize their personal leadership potential. In 2008, Jeff began a new ministry called “Suit Up Ministries” and is available to speak in person to various organizations. Jeff attended Abilene Christian University where he played on the 1977 National Championship Football team, received his Bachelor of Arts in Teaching from Sam Houston State University and obtained his Masters of Sports Administration from the United States Sports Academy. Jeff, a former Texas High School Head Football Coach and eleven year veteran of the classroom, is presently the Principal at The Magnolia High School, a North Houston area High School. Jeff also serves as the Men’s Minister and Discipleship Coach at a church in Northeast Houston, as well. Springer, who resides in Magnolia, Texas, has been married for 32 years and has two chi

Cameron Pratto is a founding member, senior coach and executive director of Urban Movement. Always a mover, Cameron's longest trained discipline throughout the years has been with Yoga. Having stumbled upon Parkour in mid-2008, the energy and purpose he soon discovered after training with some of the founders of the discipline (Chau Belle, Laurent Piemontesi and Yann Hnautra) became the catalyst for starting Urban Movement with some friends in 2011. He also eventually got to know some of the coaches at Parkour Generations (Dan Edwardes, Chris Rowat and Annty Marais), attended and hosted several of their workshops and certifications. Followed by also training with and learning from the founders of the MovNat Natural Movement Fitness system (Erwan LeCorre and Vic Verdier), Cameron now thrives in a movement lifestyle. He's always training, traveling, teaching and nurturing Urban Movement. Cameron is ADAPT Level 1 certified and has a dispensation from Parkour Generations to qualify other Level 1 coaches. He's als

Mario Bye is currently the principal at Rudder High School in Bryan ISD.