A Conversation with Elissa Malespina on School Librarians, A Future Ready Nebraska Conference Preview

The Good Life EDU podcast is back again this week with yet another preview from a Future Ready Nebraska Conference featured speaker! Award-winning school librarian and school board member, Elissa Malespina, joins us to share her insights on the important role school librarians play in supporting learning and school culture.

Register for the in-person or virtual experience at the Future Ready Nebraska Conference, visit link here: (nefutureready.com)

The NDE SEED Team on Educator Evaluations

In this episode, Kim Snyder and Ryan Ricenbaw of the NDE SEED Team invite school attorney and education advocate Bobby Truhe to join them for a discussion on teacher and principal evaluation practices. This conversation encourages a mindset shift when it comes to evaluation, emphasizing educator support and development over mere compliance to a prescribed checklist of basic standards.

A Conversation with John Spencer on Choice and Voice, A Future Ready Nebraska Conference Preview

In this episode, educator, author, and speaker John Spencer joins us to preview his upcoming keynote message and afternoon workshop that he will deliver at this year’s Future Ready Nebraska Conference on June 13th and 14th, 2022. John shares on the topic of choice and voice along with advocating for frameworks such as project-based learning and genius hour.

If you’re interested in participating in the Future Ready Nebraska Conference, you can register to join in-person or remotely at https://nefutureready.com/

For additional info, resources, blogs, and more from John Spencer check out https://spencerauthor.com/blog/

The NDE SEED Team on the Upcoming Educator Effectiveness Summit

This episode is the third of five pods we are hosting with the NDE SEED Team on their work with the Nebraska Teacher and Principal Performance Standards (NTPPS). Julie Downing, Kim Snyder, and Ryan Ricenbaw join us this week to discuss the upcoming Educator Effectiveness Summit on June 16 & 17, 2022.

Special Services in Support of Student Mental Health

In this episode, we feature ESU 9’s efforts to support the mental health and wellness of the students in their region through their special services, specifically discussing their LIMHP and LMHP supports. Joe Haney, the Director of Special Services at ESU 9, along with Liesel Hogan, a licensed independent mental health practitioner at ESU 9, speak to their experiences serving and supporting schools in this critical area of education.

An Education-Centered Recap of Nebraska’s 2022 Legislative Session

In this week’s episode, Dr. John Skretta, administrator of ESU 6 and all-around ed advocate in our state, joins the show to provide a detailed summary of the education-related legislation that was passed into law during the 2022 session in Nebraska.

For information specific to each bill, you can follow the timestamps associated with each in the notes below.

Legislative Bill #: Time in the Episode

LB 852: 20:18

LB 1112: 22:25

LB 1143 & 1146: 27:45

LB 1034: 29:52

LB 1218: 32:14

LB 945: 35:47

LR 374: 38:51

LR 397: 40:40

LR 401: 41:10

Personalized Professional Learning, Engagement, and Games in EDU

What a fun episode this week as Alison Smith of ESU 16 and Mellissa Donohoe of Mullen Public Schools joined us to share their story of how our ESUs support professional learning in Nebraska with personalized professional learning. In this episode, Mellissa explains how she capitalized upon her PLC’s learning and implemented strategies that enhanced engagement, learner motivation, and the culture in her business class.

The NDE SEED Team on Teacher Retention and Recruitment

In this episode, Julie Downing and Kim Snyder of the NDE SEED Team discuss how school leaders can take action to retain teachers and recruit the best new hires by fostering for their staff a sense of belonging, having a voice, feeling supported, and receiving excellent professional development. Julie and Kim speak from their lens as a part of the educator effectiveness team, a group charged with developing the teacher and principal standards in Nebraska.

To learn more about the NDE SEED Team and/or to contact its members directly, please visit https://cdn.education.ne.gov/wp-content/uploads/2021/08/Educator-Effectiveness.Utilizing-Supporting-Educator-Effectiveness-through-Development-S.E.E.D.-to-Grow-Systems.pdf

The NDE SEED Team on the Educator Effectiveness Lens and Cognitive Coaching

This week, Julie Downing of ESU 13 kicks off a five-part pod series that communicates the various aspects of the NDE SEED Team’s work. In this episode, she is joined by Kellen Conroy, our SDA chair from ESU 1, and Brooke Kavan of ESU 7. Together, they share how our ESU staff developers are able to integrate the educator effectiveness lens into their conversations and cognitive coaching when those individuals meet with and support schools and teachers in their respective regions of Nebraska.

The Multi-Tiered System of Supports (MTSS) in Education

ESU 3’s Aaron Bredenkamp joins The Good Life EDU this week for a conversation on the MTSS work being done in region 3 and across the state of Nebraska. This is an insightful and fun conversation that explores how the MTSS umbrella can unify a school or district and its various initiatives under a mindset of continuous improvement across all facets that support learner growth and achievement.

NeMTSS Framework Website Link