What if we looked at failure not as a flaw—but as fuel for innovation? In this inspiring episode of Voices for Excellence, Dr. Michael Conner sits down with Roxanna Villaseñor, former superintendent and CEO of Universal Leadership and Associates, to explore what it truly means to lead with intention and hope in an uncertain and rapidly evolving educational landscape.

With a career spanning the classroom, central office, and systems-level leadership, Roxanna brings a rare blend of instructional depth and strategic foresight to the conversation. Together, she and Dr. Conner dig into the necessary cultural and mindset shifts leaders must embrace to meet the needs of Generation Alpha and Generation Beta—students coming of age in a world defined by diversity, digital access, and deep disruption.

From redefining failure as innovation to aligning technology with wisdom, Roxanna challenges us to ask: Are we bold enough to design systems that truly reflect the strengths and needs of today’s learners? She shares powerful insights on multilingual education, universal design for learning, mental health as a non-negotiable, and the importance of honoring voices that have historically been overlooked.

What You’ll Learn:

1. Bold Leadership Mindsets: Why Gen Z and Alpha demand new models rooted in hope, empowerment, and social responsibility.
2. Data + Humanity: How to use timely data to reflect values, not just measure outcomes—and why AI can become a surprising ally.
3. Failure as Feedback: Why organizations must reframe failure as a path to innovation, growth, and resiliency.
4. Global Citizenship: Why preparing students for the future requires SEL, environmental literacy, and real-world collaboration.
5. Systems with Soul: Practical shifts in scheduling, MTSS, and leadership development that center students and families at every step.

In a time when education is too often driven by politics or fear of change, this conversation reminds us of what’s possible when leaders make equal opportunity their compass and excellence their standard. Dr. Conner and Roxanna invite us to rise up, think bigger, and reimagine what thriving can look like for every student—especially in a world that won’t wait.

Subscribe and share to continue driving the future of education for all.

What happens when a school district refuses to operate in silos—and instead imagines an ecosystem that truly wraps around every learner, every family, and every community member? In this inspiring episode of Voices for Excellence, Dr. Michael Conner sits down with visionary educator and community leader Jody Bloyer, Deputy Superintendent of Racine Unified School District in Wisconsin.

A former teacher and principal, Jody brings a deep commitment to equity, innovation, and the power of collective care. Under her leadership, Racine has become a model for integrated, community-driven education systems. From launching community connector teams and restorative practices alongside law enforcement, to building pathways that connect classroom learning to real-world careers, Jody is designing a student experience rooted in relevance, belonging, and joy.

Together, Dr. Conner and Jody explore what it means to lead with both urgency and grace in a rapidly evolving educational landscape—especially post-COVID, where Generation Alpha students are entering schools with radically different learner profiles, social-emotional needs, and expectations for how learning happens.

You’ll learn:

•  Bold strategies to shift from siloed services to layered systems of support
• Why social-emotional learning is academic learning—and must be treated as such
• What “safe in the try” means for creating cultures of experimentation and risk-taking in schools
• How to better align instruction to match Gen Z and Gen Alpha’s learner attributes
• The power of authentic community partnerships that hold students at the center
• Why 22nd-century education demands a redefinition of both success and school itself

At the heart of this episode is a challenge to disrupt convention—while staying grounded in collective purpose. From grace and belief to commitment and joy, Jody reminds us what’s possible when educators truly embrace innovation as a communal act of love and progress.

Subscribe and share to continue driving the future of education for all.

What happens when educational leadership is grounded in the wisdom of community, driven by emotion as much as intellect, and unflinchingly committed to equity? This week on Voices for Excellence, Dr. Michael Conner sits down with Dr. Brenda Garcia Castro—assistant principal at Century Community Charter School in Inglewood, California, and adjunct professor at Pepperdine University—for a deeply human and intellectually rigorous conversation that bridges systemic transformation with personal journey.

A proud bilingual leader, researcher, immigrant mother, and rising scholar with both an EdD and a PhD in progress, Dr. Garcia Castro offers a visionary blueprint for what it means to lead from love, data, and intentionality all at once. Her groundbreaking conceptual model, the Optimal Partnership for Thriving Integration, reframes how schools engage immigrant families—not as passive recipients of services but as empowered, trusted, and essential collaborators in education.

Together, she and Dr. Conner explore how schools can evolve their culture—not just structurally but emotionally—to build durable ecosystems of access, trust, and healing for students and their families. At the center of this journey: authenticity, radical listening, and a commitment to meeting families exactly where they are, while preparing all students, especially Generation Alpha and Beta, for an unknown but exciting future shaped by AI and workforce transformation.

What you’ll learn from this episode:

•  Bold leadership means leaning into discomfort to serve a greater purpose.
•  Support for families is system design—not an afterthought.
•  Immigrant families want access, growth, and connection—so how are we listening?
• Trust and relationships are the real curriculum of school leadership.
•  Culture isn’t declared—it’s co-constructed through presence and modeling.
• AI + workforce prep begins by demystifying tech and amplifying student voice.

Dr. Brenda Garcia Castro reminds us: the future of equitable education is personal, purposeful, and possible—when we meet it with heart and rigor. This episode is a stirring reminder that education systems can, and must, be designed for all to thrive. It’s time to redefine success not just by test scores, but by the depth of belonging, access, and opportunity each child experiences.

Subscribe and share to continue driving the future of education for all.

What does it mean to be a parent in the age of AI?

On this episode of Voices for Excellence, Dr. Michael Conner is joined by Kunal Dalal, a visionary educator, founder of AI Parentology, and one of today’s most important thinkers shaping the intersection of artificial intelligence and learning. With roots in both classroom teaching and education innovation, Kunal is not just exploring how AI can transform education—he’s modeling it in deeply human and personal ways.

From building micro-schools inspired by his own child’s learning to facilitating rich, AI-infused family experiences that teach solidarity, creativity, and agency, Kunal is rewriting the narrative of what education—at home and in schools—can be. Dr. Conner and Kunal unpack how AI can serve not as a replacement for human connection, but as a mirror and catalyst for more meaningful, culturally responsive, and student-centered learning.

This expansive, joyful conversation looks beyond compliance-driven systems to explore how schools can reimagine themselves as laboratories of self-efficacy, equity, and innovation—while also holding space for the very real fears and complexities this moment brings.

What you’ll learn in this episode:

• Bold leadership isn’t top-down—it’s about followership and listening to the true architects of the future: students.
• Why embracing AI means leaning into uncertainty, creativity, and co-agency—not replicating factory models of the past.
• How micro-schools can ignite community-based innovation that’s student-designed, culturally grounded, and deeply personal.
• How algorithmic reflections force us to confront the systemic gaps, silences, and prejudices embedded in our society—and how we must respond.
• The power of AI to co-create with children—using dreams, art, questions, and storytelling to spark curiosity, identity, and connection.
• What developers and education leaders must consider now to ensure AI tools are trained on diverse, humanizing data that truly reflects Generation Alpha & Beta.

Kunal’s concept of the “AI Parentologist” isn’t just a title—it’s an evolving framework for how families, educators, and developers can intentionally design a more just, joyful future. And it’s a future Dr. Conner continues to lead toward through bold inquiry, system-level transformation, and equity-centered design.

Subscribe and share to continue driving the future of education for all.

What if the true measure of school success isn't just test scores—but the full humanity and future readiness of every learner?

On this episode of Voices for Excellence, Dr. Michael Conner sits down with Dr. Tonia Causey-Bush, a transformational instructional leader and Assistant Superintendent of Educational Services at Banning Unified School District in California. Renowned for her vision, humility, and unapologetic commitment to equity, Dr. Causey-Bush is helping to redesign what student success looks like—grounded in community, innovation, and future-ready learning.

Together, Dr. Conner and Dr. Causey-Bush explore how portrait models—like Banning’s “Portrait of a Learner”—aren’t just glossy graphics. They’re living blueprints for systems change, guiding how leadership development, instructional coherence, and human-centered learning come alive in every classroom. Dr. Causey-Bush shares how Banning has evolved their competencies over time, deeply aligning them with teachers, students, and community voices—and why this work must outlast any one leader.

They also take on the disruptive realities of AI, its rapid emergence into K-12 systems, and how equity-minded leaders can embrace innovation without losing sight of ethical use, critical thinking, and authentic student agency. Most powerfully, Dr. Causey-Bush reminds us that sustaining innovation begins with humility—and that true leadership means being a perpetual student of the profession.

What You’ll Learn in This Episode:

• Why environment matters: Shaping classrooms and systems with the right emotional and academic “soil” for students to grow.
• How systemic succession builds futures: Creating district-wide frameworks that evolve with time and leadership.
• Human-centered AI: Embracing innovation through an equity lens without losing the essence of critical thinking.
• Data as dialogue: Using assessment not as punishment but as a window into student needs and instructional alignment.
• Instructional leadership at all levels: Shifting mindset so every educator—especially teachers—is an instructional leader.

Dr. Causey-Bush’s reflections are a powerful call to action: to stay flexible in our approaches, credible in our work, and always humble in the face of what students truly need. Through her leadership and Dr. Conner’s mission-driven platform, this conversation urges us to reimagine systems that don’t just serve some, but inspire all.

Subscribe and share to continue driving the future of education for all.

In this thought-provoking episode of Voices for Excellence, Dr. Michael Conner sits down with Rebecca Bultsma — international AI ethics researcher, Chief Innovation Officer, and co-host of AmpED to 11 — to explore what it really means to lead in the age of artificial intelligence.

From Kendrick Lamar lyrics to ethical paradoxes, this conversation moves from AI strategy and governance to the human heartbeat of education. Rebecca unpacks her belief that “ethics is the seatbelt of AI strategy”—a grounding metaphor for how innovation must move fast, but never without responsibility.

Together, Dr. Conner and Rebecca dive into:

• How ethics and strategy intersect in real-world decision-making, from boardrooms to classrooms.
• The VIBE Framework (Visible, Intentional, Beneficial, Earned) — Rebecca’s approach to ensuring AI use in schools stays transparent and trustworthy.
• The coming wave of frontier models like GPT-5, Claude 4.1, and Grok 4 — and what they mean for leaders, teachers, and students.
• How AI agents could transform personalized learning and potentially repurpose traditional schools into community-based learning hubs.
• Why the next decade demands permission-to-fail leadership — cultures that value experimentation, iteration, and vulnerability over perfection.
• And how the learners of tomorrow — Generation Alpha and soon Generation Beta — will thrive by staying curious, unimpressed, and unapologetically human.

Rebecca challenges listeners to imagine a future where education isn’t confined to classrooms, grades, or standardized tests, but exists as a network of personalized experiences, guided by ethical innovation and human connection.

This is more than a conversation about technology — it’s a blueprint for human-centered transformation in the age of AI.

In this episode of Voices for Excellence, Dr. Michael Conner sits down with one of education’s most innovative and heartfelt leaders, Superintendent Glenn Robbins. Together, they explore what it means to lead with authenticity, courage, and compassion in the ever-evolving landscape of education.

From redefining school culture through relationships and student voice, to building genuine community partnerships and integrating AI with purpose, Glenn shares how his district has become a living ecosystem of learning, leadership, and innovation.

Listeners will walk away inspired by practical strategies for creating psychological safety, embracing creativity, and leading with calm in the midst of chaos. This is an episode for anyone striving to prepare Generation Alpha and Generation Beta for a world that demands agility, empathy, and relentless curiosity.

Austin ISD is rewriting the playbook on equity in advanced academics. In this Back to School edition of Voices for Excellence, Dr. Michael Conner is joined by Cody Pruitt, Blake Haygood, and Tony Castilleja of Riverside Insights to explore how the district is leveraging the CogAT to expand opportunity and disrupt traditional measures of achievement.

Together, they unpack how Austin ISD is redefining giftedness, creating new pathways into AP and IB programs, and ensuring underrepresented and multilingual learners are recognized for their true abilities. From breaking down systemic barriers to reimagining identification practices, the conversation highlights how culture, mindset, and access are being reshaped in ways that elevate both student confidence and academic success.

With practical insights and bold vision, this episode showcases what it means to center access and opportunity, embrace strength-based learning, and build systems that prepare every student—not just a select few—to thrive in the AC (After COVID) stage of education.