Educational Leadership with Principal JL
Principal JL is an educational leader who explores various topics facing educational leaders today! The Mission of this podcast is to inform and inspire other Educational Leaders on how to be their best for their Schools by honing their skills and talents so they may impact their teachers, staff members, students, parents/guardians, and community members positively for their School District! Come with a Growth Mindset as we journey through Educational Leadership!
Episodes
71 episodes
Episode 70: School Leadership, Culture, Social Media, and Comedy: How Nick Holtvluwer Builds Trust, Teams, and Impact
A lot of leaders feel pressure to be polished, serious, and unshakable. I do not buy that, and neither does Nick Holtvluwer, Principal of Mammoth Heights Elementary in Parker, Colorado, who somehow manages to lead a school for a decade, build a...
Episode 69: Principals’ Perspectives: Hiring Teachers, Staffing Shortages & Real Talk on School Leadership
Thirteen hires by April. Internal transfers that “go over like a turd in a punch bowl.” Schools trying to keep construction, CNA, phlebotomy, and dual enrollment alive while staffing gets tighter. If you’re leading a building right now, you kno...
Episode 68: How Principals and School Leaders Grow: Educational Leadership Lessons from Dr. TJ Vari and Dr. Joe Jones
Your leadership isn’t defined by your intentions, it’s defined by what your week actually looks like. We sit down with Dr. Joseph Jones, superintendent of Newcastle County Vocational and Technical School District, and Dr. TJ Vari, former deputy...
Episode 67: Principal Baruti Kafele on Transformational School Leadership, Turnaround Strategies & Instructional Leadership
Some schools don’t need a new program, they need a leader whose voice actually lands. I sit down with Principal Baruti Kafele, a nationally recognized turnaround principal, author, and longtime educator, to unpack what transformational educatio...
Episode 66: Trust and Inspire Leadership in Schools: How to Move Beyond Command and Control
If leadership feels like you’re carrying the whole school alone, the problem might not be your work ethic. It might be the model you’re using. We get real about how easy it is for principals and school leaders to slip into command and control l...
Episode 65: How Principals Can Hire Great Teachers in a Shortage: Recruiting, Retaining, and Building a Teacher Pipeline (2026)
Hiring in education isn’t just “hard” right now, it’s faster, noisier, and far less forgiving than it used to be. If you’re still waiting to collect a perfect candidate pool before you act, you’re probably watching your best applicants accept o...
Episode 64: How to Build a Real PLC Culture: Dr. Chad Dumas on Collaboration, the 4 PLC Questions, and Guaranteed Learning
What if the reason your PLCs feel flat is because they’re treated like a calendar event, not a culture? We sit down with Dr. Chad Dumas, former music teacher, principal, director of learning, author, and Solution Tree PLC at Work associate, to ...
Episode 63: Assistant Principal Leadership Playbook with Dr. Sonia Matthew: Equity, School Systems & Student Achievement
A single line can change a career: “You’re not just an assistant principal.” Dr. Sonia Matthew joins us to show what that looks like when reflection, equity, and well-built systems collide to keep students in classrooms and learning at high lev...
Episode 62: 2025 Pennsylvania Principal of the Year Laura Tobias on Restorative Leadership, Culture, and Student Engagement
What if a high school could heal and improve at the same time? Principal Laura Tobias, 2025 Pennsylvania Principal of the Year, shares how she led a 2,400‑student campus through crisis into a culture defined by love, restorative practices, and ...
Episode 61: Stop Eating Our Own: How Educator Language Shapes School Culture and the Future of Teaching
What happens when the stories educators tell about their work turn into the strongest recruiter, or the loudest warning, about our profession? We dive into Stop Eating Our Own by Robert Hinchliffe and Shawna Quenneville and unpack how a single ...
Episode 60: School Culture Over Programs: Robert Hinchliffe on Principal Leadership That Actually Works
What if the fastest way to better scores isn’t another program, but a stronger culture? We sit down with Las Vegas principal and author Robert Hinchliffe to unpack how trust, clear systems, and teacher autonomy transform schools into places kid...
Episode 59: Leading as a Learner: Dr. Jess Quinter on MTSS, School Culture, and Principal Leadership
What does it take to lead a single school so well that your influence reaches across a district, and into state and national conversations? We sat down with Dr. Jess Quinter, Principal of Park Forest Elementary in Pennsylvania and NAESP Zone 2 ...
Episode 58: Dr. Danny Steele on Becoming an Instructional Leader: How Principals Reclaim Time, Support Staff, and Strengthen School Culture
Feeling stretched thin by the demands of school leadership yet determined to move learning forward? We sit down with Dr. Danny Steele; teacher, AP, principal, and author of The Instructional Leader in You; to unpack the practical mindset shifts...
Episode 57: Nebraska Education Advocacy: How the 2026 Legislative Session Will Impact Schools with Dr. Mike Dulaney & Tim Heckenlively
Laws that feel distant in a statehouse become very real in a classroom. We sit down with Dr. Mike Dulaney of the Nebraska Council of School Administrators and consultant Tim Heckenlively to map what the new legislative session actually means fo...
Episode 56: Lindsey Allen’s Leadership Journey: How a Principal Scaled Influence, Protected Teacher Time, and Boosted Student Achievement
A school changes course when leadership starts by listening and then protects what matters most: time, clarity, and opportunity. We sit down with Lindsey Allen, Georgia’s 2025 Principal of the Year and principal of Walnut Grove High School, to ...
Episode 55: Year-In-Review 2025 (Part 2): Leadership Lessons From 12 School Leaders
Ready for a fast, no-fluff leadership reset that actually translates? In this 2025 Year in Review, we highlight twelve standout leaders and the single move from each that shifted trust, culture, and learning in real schools.You’ll hear h...
Episode 54: Year-In-Review 2025 (Part 1): Leadership Lessons From 14 School Leaders
This episode distills one powerful insight from each of our standout guests this year, practical moves you can use the moment you’re back in the building. From consistency and clarity to purpose, recognition, and sustainable habits, these strat...
Episode 53: You Don't Have to Leave to Lead: Dr. Chris Jochum's Leadership Journey
What if the most powerful leaders in a school aren’t the ones with the titles? We sit down with Dr. Chris Jochum department chair, coach, and author of You Don’t Have To Leave To Lead, to unpack how everyday teachers can move culture, improve l...
Episode 52: The Principal’s Playbook: Building Trust, Retaining Teachers, and Driving Change (Unfiltered)
Culture is not a poster on the wall, it’s the engine that determines whether any strategy, policy, or program actually works. We walk through a practical, field-tested playbook for principals who want to build trust, retain great teachers, and ...
Episode 51: Leading with Laser Focus: Dr. James Lane's Educational Leadership Journey
A trumpet, a baton, and a blueprint for real school change. James Lane went from touring musician to teacher, principal, superintendent, state chief, and ultimately a senior leader at the U.S. Department of Education and he never lost sight of ...
Episode 50: From Disillusionment to Momentum: What I Know Now, I Wish I Knew Then: Find the Joy, Break the Silos, Build the Network.
A single question changed the way we lead: what do we know now that we wish we knew then? From the emotional roller coaster of a school year to the small habits that keep us grounded, we unpack practical moves that help educators stay energized...
Episode 49: Proud Principal: Tony Cattani's Leadership Journey
Doors closed, minds open or the other way around? Our conversation with NASSP’s 2025 National Principal of the Year, Tony Cattani, pulls back the curtain on how a large high school built a culture where teachers learn from teachers every single...
Episode 48: I Choose to Stay: Dr. Salome Thomas-EL’s Journey from the Chessboard to the Classroom to Leadership!
A single question from a group of students rerouted a career—and sparked a movement. That’s how Dr. Salome Thomas-EL, widely known as Principal EL, went from TV production to a life in education, using chess to teach math, identity, and grit wh...
Episode 47: What They Don’t Tell You About Being a Principal: Leadership, Isolation, and the Power of Community
The principal’s chair looks different from the inside. We pull back the curtain on the quiet costs of leadership—why accountability requires real boundaries, why the job can feel isolating even in a busy building, and how to replace that isolat...
Episode 46: Listen First, Lead with Heart: Principal Shannon Seale’s Journey from Classroom to School Leader
What if the strongest leadership move is to listen first, decide second, and never micromanage? That’s the tought line of our conversation with Principal Shannon Seale, who went from high school social studies to leading a pre-K–2 campus, witho...
