This week on The Good Life EDU Podcast, Dr. Michael Dulaney and Kyle McGowan of NCSA join Jack Moles of NRCSA to share their insights regarding LB705, which has moved to final reading in the Nebraska legislature. This episode explains several of the 20+ measures included in LB705 and explores the potential impact of each across the education landscape in the state.
To learn more about Legislative Bill 705, access: Nebraska Legislature – LB705
Podcast: Play in new window | Download
This week the ESUCC’s Executive Director Dr. Kraig Lofquist takes over as the host of The Good Life EDU Podcast to interview our usual host, Andrew Easton! Andrew will be keynoting this summer’s Future Ready Nebraska Conference, sharing his message from his recently released book, Empowered to Choose: A Practical Guide to Personalized Learning. This episode previews Andrew’s various sessions that will be featured at this FREE hybrid professional learning event!
To register for the Future Ready Nebraska Conference (free to in-person and virtual attendees), visit nefutureready.com
To connect with Andrew Easton, visit andrewdeaston.com
Listeners can contact Dr. Lofquist at klofquist@esucc.org
Podcast: Play in new window | Download
In Nebraska, there are so many efforts being made to support teaching and learning in the area of science that we decided to record an episode that showcases the plethora of professional learning and resources available to educators this summer and into the 2023-24 school year! Dianah Steinbrink of ESU 10 and Kristen Slechta of ESU 9 join the pod as representatives of our statewide ESU science cadre to connect listeners with fun educational opportunities to learn and grow together!
Here’s the link to all the resources and registration sites shared in this episode.
All Things SCIENCE in NE – Google Docs
Podcast: Play in new window | Download
This week features the first of three episodes dedicated to previewing featured speakers at this year’s Future Ready Nebraska Conference. Tom Bober will present on June 12th, speaking from his role as a school librarian and as a former teacher in residence at the Library of Congress. Tom joins The Good Life EDU Podcast and shares some of his experiences along with insights regarding primary sources and news literacy.
For more information and to register, visit Nebraska Future Ready Conference – In-Person and Virtual (nefutureready.com)
Podcast: Play in new window | Download
ESU 3’s team of mental health leaders (Jen Pollock, Sarah Eades Hamilton, Ashlee Houy, and Avery Fleck) join The Good Life EDU podcast this week to share their work under the SAMHSA mental health grant that was awarded to Nebraska Region 6/ESU 3. The grant funds their unique and innovative approach to supporting student mental health in the rural schools in their region, and their collective hope is that this effort can be a model others adopt and build upon across the country. US Secretary of Education, Dr. Miguel Cardona, recently visited ESU 3 to learn more about this effort, and now our listeners can learn all about it as well!
To learn more about the School Mental Health Services at ESU 3, access: smhs.esu3.org/home
To learn more about Grants for the Expansion and Sustainability of Comprehensive Community Mental Health Services for Children with Serious Emotional Disturbances, access: Grants | SAMHSA
Podcast: Play in new window | Download
This week, Martha Bruckner, the Executive Director of the Metropolitan Omaha Education Consortium, joins The Good Life EDU to share the history and present work of this unique organization. MOEC’s membership is comprised of Omaha-area educators from public schools, higher ed institutions, and service agencies who are collectively committed to enhancing public education through collaborative efforts that support school, teaching, learning, and kids.
To learn more about MOEC, access their website at: Metropolitan Omaha Educational Consortium | University of Nebraska Omaha (unomaha.edu)
Podcast: Play in new window | Download
Matt Miller joins The Good Life EDU Podcast this week to share his insights and learning from the development of his new book, AI for Educators. The episode advocates that listeners actively seek out conversations about the impact of artificial intelligence on education, as this is a topic that is rapidly evolving. Matt asks educators to see their work through the lens of what he calls their “tomorrow glasses” to acknowledge that our students will be learning and working in an AI-infused environment. So, naturally, this episode explores the implications of that reality.
For those interested in extending their learning and diving deeper into AI, check out these resources from Matt Miller…
Podcast: Play in new window | Download
This week, we are joined by Dr. Amy Rhone, NDE’s Administrator and State Director for the Office of Special Education, to chat about the department’s focus on inclusion practices and how that work aligns with the coherence efforts going on in our state. Dr. Rhone is an inspirational leader who has a big heart for the work that she and others have the opportunity to elevate throughout Nebraska, and that aspect of her character truly shines as she shares about the guidance, pilot groups, and other resources that have been developed to support implementation in Nebraska schools.
For more on NDE’s Journey to Inclusion effort, visit – Journey to Inclusion – Nebraska Department of Education.
Podcast: Play in new window | Download
This week on The Good Life EDU Podcast, we asked Shelby Aaberg (Scottsbluff HS), Heidi Rethmeier (ESU 8), and Trever Reeh (Westside HS) to join us for a conversation on Nebraska’s new data literacy standards in mathematics. The episode captures everything from the origin story of these standards to how math departments and math teachers might approach embedding them into current coursework. We were also grateful to learn more about the upcoming mathematics conference hosted by the Nebraska Association of Teachers of Mathematics (NATM) along with the myriad of other resources shared that are relevant to professionals in their work in this area.
Visit the NATM site for more info and to register for the conference at https://www.natmathematics.org/
Additional resources referenced in the episode include…
Podcast: Play in new window | Download
This week on The Good Life EDU podcast, we are joined by Jaime Donally, an expert at the forefront of augmented and virtual reality in education. Every March, Jaime dedicates herself to blogging daily about the latest and greatest AR/VR tools as part of her #31DaysofARVRinEDU effort.
On the pod, she shares a number of the tools, sites, and software highlighted in those blog posts, paying special attention to the impact that generative AI is having on the tech available in that space. Near the end of the conversation, she also speaks to the heightened role digital citizenship plays in a world with AGI.
You can learn more about AR/VR from Jaime Donally’s blog.
During the episode, Jaime references training and guidance under the Digital Citizenship Institute by Dr. Marialice Curran.
Podcast: Play in new window | Download