The Out of the Trenches Podcast

Dr. Cynthia Rapaido, a highly accomplished educator, holds an Ed.D. in International and Multicultural Education and an M.A. in Educational Administration from the University of San Francisco. She earned her B.S. in Applied Arts and Sciences Biology from San Diego State University. With over 30 years of experience in K–12 education, she has served as a high school principal, assistant principal, and teacher, gaining a comprehensive...

Sarah Wysocki is a longtime educator, child advocate, author, and mom, living in Annandale, Virginia. She is a lifelong learner who has a Bachelor of Science in health psychology, a master's in teaching, and a post-graduate certificate in TESOL. Sarah is driven to support the growth and development of the whole child, with a special interest in social and emotional well-being. When she's not busy sparking the love of learning in he...

Christopher J. Jochum, Ph.D. currently serves as Professor and Chair of the Department of Teacher Education at Fort Hays State University (FHSU) where he leads a large teacher preparation program, serving on-campus and virtual students across the country. Jochum’s previous professional appointments include the University of Nebraska at Kearney as an Associate Professor of Foreign Language Education and Spanish, the University of Ce...

Alyssa Gallagher is the Head of BTS Spark, America (West & Central), Speaker & Facilitator in Leadership Development, Multipliers, Design Thinking and co-author of MESSY Leadership. She is a passionate and experienced education leader, author, speaker, and consultant. She has over 20 years of leadership experience in various educational settings, from district administration to non-profit management. She is currently the He...

Matt Sherrill is a Regional Educational Technology Coordinator for the Learning Technology Center, serving Illinois’ East Central region. Always an early adopter, Matt is passionate about utilizing technology to drive impactful learning and supporting fellow educators as they grow fluent in new tech. An educator with 15 years of classroom experience, Matt previously worked as an ELA teacher and department chair in McLean County Uni...

Brenda Yoho is the author of Lead with Two Rules: Feeling Good and Feeling Safe. Her career in public education spanned more than 25 years, as a teacher, elementary principal, middle school principal, and director. She provides encouragement and leadership advice. As an educational consultant with over two decades of experience in the education sector, she partners with the Illinois Principals Association to support K-12 principals...

Tom Pesce is an international speaker, educator, emcee, and motivational entertainer. His long client list includes companies such NASA, Amazon, Google, NBC, Nasdaq, Formula 1, and more. He’s been a 4th & 6th teacher for 20 yrs. Tom has toured as a headliner for Princess Cruises and regularly works with professional sports teams and Fortune 500 companies around the world. Recently named “Entertainer of the Year” and honored by ...

Zach Groshell, PhD is a highly distinguished teacher, instructional coach, and education consultant. Zach is based in Seattle, WA and works with schools nationwide and internationally to develop high quality instruction based on the science of how kids learn. Zach hosts the podcast, Progressively Incorrect.

Find Zach online: Twitter, Threads, BlueSky (@mrzachg) @scienceofmath He has a FB group. Visit his blog, www.educationrickshaw...

Dr. Jim Marshall author of Right from the Start: The Essential Guide to Implementing School Initiatives Professor of Educational Leadership at San Diego State University, where he serves as the Senior Director for the Ed.D. program in PK-12 School Leadership. Dr. James Marshall’s life-long work lies at the intersection of people and the organizations in which they work—and optimizing the synergy that fertile convergence holds. His ...

Dr. Christopher Culver is a proud product of Oklahoma education and has served educational communities since 2013 as a classroom teacher, secondary principal, and most recently as a cabinet-level administrator. Dr. Culver is a product of a divorced family and split time between Tulsa & Wyandotte, OK and Fayetteville, NC during his childhood. Currently, Dr. Culver serves as a consultant with expertise in kindness, culture and un...

Special episode: Spotlight on Master Scheduling

Dr. Laurie Barron is the superintendent of the Evergreen School District in Kalispell, Montana, and was named 2021 Montana Superintendent of the Year. She has been a high school English teacher and coach, a middle school assistant principal, a middle school principal, and a part-time assistant professor. A National Board–certified teacher, she was 2012 Georgia Principal of the Year an...

Dr. Debbie Zacarian is known for her expertise in strengths-based leadership, policy analysis, instructional practices, and partnerships with culturally and linguistically diverse student and family populations. With over three decades of combined experience as a district administrator, university faculty member, and educational service agency leader, she founded Zacarian & Associates and has been providing consulting and profe...

Joe Davis is the author of The Generous Leader: 7 Ways to Give of Yourself for Everyone’s Gain. Joe is a Managing Director and Senior Partner at the Boston Consulting Group. He is a former Head of BCG in North America and member of the firm’s Executive Committee. He oversaw BCG’s operations in the US, Canada and Mexico and was recognized as one of the Top 25 Consultants of the year in 2011. He has 4 children and 8 grandchildren. Bo...

Rick Hess is a scholar, author, and educator. Pens “Rick Hess Straight Up” for Education Week and “Old School with Rick Hess” for Education Next. Senior contributor to Forbes, executive editor of Education Next, contributing editor to National Review, and author of books including A Search for Common Ground and The Great School Rethink. Dr. Hess started his career as a high school social studies teacher. He has taught at the Univer...

For over 20 years as a school principal, educator, author, and coach, Rob Owen has seen the deep impact that stress and burnout have on teachers. After a life-changing car accident at 17, Rob found healing through  Tai Chi and Qigong, practices that became central to both his personal and professional life. Now, he shares these mindful practices through Move 2 Focus, helping educators and students—especially those with ADHD and anx...

 Dr. Shelby Kretz is the creator of Little Justice Leaders, an organization that provides social justice education resources for educators and families. Shelby earned her Ph.D. in Education from UCLA, and her research explores social justice education at the elementary school level. Over the past decade, Shelby has worked with thousands of parents, teachers, and school leaders to bring social justice education to elementary aged ki...

Scotty Aemis is passionate about helping parents navigate childhood trauma. After he and his wife adopted two children, they found themselves learning everything they could about helping their children thrive. Everything that felt instinctively “right” was actually not helpful for children trying to heal from trauma. That set him on a journey to develop his PSR (Positive Safe Relationships) Approach toparenting. It’s helpful for al...