The Better Leaders Better Schools Podcast with Daniel Bauer
The BETTER LEADERS BETTER SCHOOLS podcast is in the TOP 0.5% most downloaded shows of over 2 million podcasts across the world. The BLBS show was created for RUCKUS MAKERS in education -- those out-of-the-box school leaders making change happen. Launched in 2015, this category-defining podcast in educational leadership has helped over 1 MILLION leaders LEVEL UP. Each week host DANIEL BAUER has a conversation with a leadership expert and invites you to listen in. Turn your commute, chores, or workout into professional development and then GO MAKE A RUCKUS! BLBS is the #1 downloaded podcast for school leaders.
Episodes
🎯 The Ruckus Report
Quick take: What if you could deliver six weeks of learning in a single hour? Simon Strong did exactly that — and the results are challenging everything we think we know about teaching, memory, and curriculum.
🤝 Meet Your Fellow Ruckus Maker
Simon Strong is the founder of Download Learning, a UK-based company partnering with schools and organizations to dramatically accelerate learning by seq...
🎯 The Ruckus Report
Quick take: What happens when two rival schools — with decades of “us vs. them” history — are forced to become one? Derek Cantrell didn’t just merge Alleghany and Covington into a single high school. He built a “Better Together” culture while weaving in AI tools that are reshaping instruction and leadership. This episode is a blueprint for rethinking school culture in the age of disruption.
🤝 Meet...
Quick take:
What happens when a leader ditches ego, prioritizes relationships, and treats students like real-world innovators? Jeremy Quals proves you can turn around struggling schools and create one of the most exciting entrepreneurial programs in the country.
🤝 Meet Your Fellow Ruckus Maker
Dr. Jeremy Qualls is the Executive Director of the Entrepreneurship and Innovation Center (EIC) and College, Career, and Technical...
The Ruckus Report.
Quick take:
What if the secret to becoming a more effective school leader was … leaving school? Joe Clausi, known as the Traveling Principal, shares how stepping out of the building helped him step into his purpose.
Meet Your Fellow Ruckus Maker
Joe Clausi, aka The Traveling Principal, is reimagining what it means to lead schools by exploring the world — and himself ...
The Ruckus Report
Quick take: If you're facing pushback on your bold school vision, this episode is your playbook for flipping critics into raving fans. Learn how one principal shifted the narrative — and built massive community support in the process.
Meet Your Fellow Ruckus Maker
Dr. Christopher Jones is a high school principal, leadership author, and host of the Seeing to Lead podcast. He helps educators shift ...
What started as a frustrating Sunday afternoon mistake in a tiny Chicago apartment turned into a million-download podcast that changed everything.
Join 5,000+ Ruckus Makers who want to Do School Different 👉 https://ruckusmakers.news/subscribe
Ten years ago, I almost quit before I even started. I lost my first interview recording and nearly gave up on the whole podcasting dream.
Instead, I chose myself and launched anyway. Now the ...
🎯 The Ruckus Report
Quick take:
If you're still blocking ChatGPT, you're playing the wrong game. In this episode, William Grube of Groovy Education shows how to turn AI from a perceived threat into a daily teaching advantage — one that saves teachers time, levels up rigor, and makes cheating irrelevant.
🤝 Meet Your Fellow Ruckus Maker
William Grube is the founder of Groovy Education, a consultancy and training f...
The Ruckus Report
Quick take: From pushing a broom to leading the boardroom — Dr. Chris Jackson's journey from custodian to principal at his own alma mater proves that grit, humility, and authentic community connection matter more than pedigree when transforming schools.
The Ruckus Report
Quick take: Two beards, two red hats, one mission to blow up education's broken boundaries. Mitch Weathers reveals why saying "no" to district busywork and "yes" to what actually moves the needle isn't rebellion — it's leadership.
Meet Your Fellow Ruckus Ma...
The Ruckus Report
Quick take: The most dangerous myth in school leadership is that problems will eventually stop. Jennifer Schwanke reveals how embracing challenges and shifting from "trustworthy" to "tru...
The Ruckus Report
Quick take: Student voice isn't just nice to have—it's the missing ingredient in creating schools worth showing up for. Casey Wright proves that when you design with students instead of around them, everything from panini lines to classroom layouts becomes a catalyst for engagement.
Meet Your Fellow Ruckus Maker
Casey Wright has served as an educational leader in Illinois high school d...
Most principals feel like they're doing everything right — but something still feels wrong. That’s not a personal failure. It’s proof you’re playing someone else’s game. In this episode, Danny Bauer invites school leaders to stop following broken rules and start authoring their own.
Breaking Down the Old Rules 🔨
Key Insight #1
What’s broken: School leaders can’t name the rules of the game they’re...
The Ruckus Report
Quick take: When 21 kids are on your roster but only 3 show up on time, you don't quit — you reinvent how learning works. Rob Barnett's journey from near-burnout to building a model that reaches 100,000+ educators proves that ditching whole-class instruction might be the best thing you can do for student achievement.
Meet Your...
The Ruckus Report
Quick take: Most school leaders are waiting for someone else's permission to create the change they know their students need. Will Parker destroys that myth and reveals the #1 barrier standing between you and transformati...
Jethro Jones on Breaking the Robot Principal Playbook
The Ruckus Report
Quick take: Most school leaders are trained to lead like emotionless robots. But students aren't spreadsheets and staff don't need a boss with a checklist — they ...
The Ruckus Report
Quick take: The biggest legal risk most districts face isn't a headline-grabbing lawsuit — it's the hidden gap between the accommodations they promise and the ones students actually receive. Sam Feeney built a tool that collapses this compliance gap to 10 seconds and a single click.
Meet Your Fellow Ruckus Maker
Sam Feeney has been an educator for twenty-five years as an English teacher, counselo...
Mitch Weathers on Breaking the Bottleneck Leadership Trap
The Ruckus Report
Quick take: Most principals think they're the chief problem solver—but that mindset is actually what's breaking their schools. When you're the go-to for every fire, you're not leading, you're enabling dependence.
Meet Your Fellow Ruckus Maker
Mitch became a gifted teacher because he was a mediocre student. Mitch rarely felt comf...
The Ruckus Report
Quick take: The "lone wolf" leader is a toxic myth that's burning out school administrators and failing students. Veronica Holyoke proves that transformational leadership happens in community, not isolation — and one hour a week can change everything.
Meet Your Fellow Ruckus Maker
Veronica Holyoke is a 25-year education veteran and Utah's 2024 Assi...
The Ruckus Report Quick take: Most districts are dumping water into leaky buckets while wondering why they can't fill them. Nate Eklund shows us why we've been solving the wrong problem — and how "punching the shark" creates the workplace conditions that make educators want to stay.
Meet Your Fellow Ruckus Maker Nate Eklund is the founder and CEO of Vital Network, a national organization foc...
The Ruckus Report Quick take: If your school has beautiful values painted on the walls but nobody's living them, you're running a theater, not a school. Jimmy Casas exposes the brutal difference between what we say and what we do.
Meet Your Fellow Ruckus Maker Jimmy Casas has been an educator for over 30 years, serving twenty-two years as a school leader. Under his leadership, his school was...
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