Only 23% of K-12 educators in America are male, a gender gap that has serious ramifications for male students - who often face DISPROPORTIONATE disciplinary action.
This podcast is for male educators who want to embody a necessary change in schools, via healthy social-emotional outcomes. Come away with actionable lesson plans, relatable stories, and a renewed purpose.
The US Surgeon General says the mental health of our youth is the "crisis of our time." Male educators are uniquely positioned to address this - because real men teach.
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#2 | Ban Phones from Classrooms? Attention Spans, Teachers, & How to Redesign Schools to Reach 21st Century Students - w/ Jerome Hunter
Season 2 · Episode 2
Wednesday, November 13, 2024 • Duration 57:26
Here’s a dirty little secret: Every educator, even the master teachers, are struggling to keep their students attentive and engaged. And research shows our male students are paying the heaviest price for it.
In the era of the smartphone, how do we combat decreased attention spans? Design.
In this episode, we cover
How to redesign schools to keep pace with a rapidly changing world
How teachers can create enough excitement to match the dopamine hits students are getting from their phones
Some restorative justice practices you can implement in your school
What helicopter parents and phones in schools have in common
Techniques Jerome uses with Black and brown male students that can be applied to all students - now that students are carrying more anxiety than ever before
(0:00) Class in session
(1:50) Get to know Jerome’s teacher mask
(13:40) Phone addiction and dopamine
(17:25) Relationships, and restorative justice/restorative practices in schools
(25:30) Design, architecture, spaces, and reimagining classrooms
(34:00) Academic Stamina/Should we ban phone usage in schools and classrooms?
(46:15) Helicopter parents
(50:30) Techniques Jerome uses with Black and brown male students in the classroom that can be applied to all students
Trailer - Unmasking Male Educators: Creating Emotionally Safe Classrooms & Schools for Male Students
Season 2
Thursday, November 7, 2024 • Duration 00:43
Only 23% of K-12 educators in America are male. As a male at your school site, it gets lonely. And just think about the ramifications of this gender gap for your male students - walking the halls daily, acting out, and experiencing disproportionate levels of discipline - male students who just want to feel understood. Sound familiar?
This is a show for male educators - male educators who want to be more understood by their community and want to create emotionally safe classrooms and schools for the next generation of male students.
Listeners leave this show equipped with tangible, actionable lesson plans and techniques to engage their male students; nourished by stories and experiences from male teachers and educators at their school sites; and fired up to improve students’ learning and well-being with the sense that, as a male educator, they are not alone.
As US Surgeon General Vivek Murthy noted, the mental health of our young people is the “crisis of our time.” As more and more of our young boys fill this void with extreme thoughts and ideas - ideas from the likes of Andrew Tate, Jordan Peterson, etc. - we, as male educators, are uniquely positioned to stop this dangerous trajectory our students are on. Because real men teach.
205. Education Monthly #5: New Theories on Teen Mental Health, Self-Determination, and Lessons from Miyazaki Films (Re-Release)
Tuesday, August 6, 2024 • Duration 50:35
This episode originally aired on June 25, 2024.
Donofriend, or Donovan Taylor Hall, joins Ashanti Branch, a master educator with 20+ years of experience in schools, to talk about what they are reflecting on as educators and what they’re seeing in the halls of modern-day schools. Donovan is an experienced teacher and positive youth development expert who travels around the country speaking at schools and pushing into classrooms. Learn more about him in episode 152.
Topics include: an Edutopia video reaction, self-determination theory, participation trophies, teen mental health, building a sense of independence and resilience in students and teens, self-reliance, autonomy, Avatar: The Last Airbender, Miyazaki, Halloween, grit, stick-to-itiveness, Do Hard Things by Steve Magness, helicopter parents, and stranger danger
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(0:00) Welcome and Edutopia video
(4:00) Donovan and Ashanti introduce themselves.
(6:00) Self-determination theory, helicopter parents, losing ability to build community, and Halloween
(15:00) The participation trophy origin story, and valuing “productive struggle”
(19:30) Miyazaki and Avatar, and what we can learn about youth wellness/mentorship from these films
(25:00) Mentoring with curiosity instead of mentoring to “fix and solve” immediately
(26:00) Allowing students to sit with silence and discomfort
(29:00) Offering children advice instead of telling them what to do
(32:30) Emotional language and articulating feelings/needs clearly - for both young people and adults
(45:30) Final thoughts on providing room to explore and being transparent, vulnerable, and curious as an educator/parent/mentor
E116. White Allyship - with Jason Biehl, Antiracist Educator, History Teacher, & Writer
Wednesday, November 23, 2022 • Duration 01:00:32
“White folks need to realize that something’s been done to us - that we’re raced. Like, we’re not actually white… We were Polish, we were German, we were Irish. We’ve lost that ethnicity we’ve lost that culture, and our legacy is taking it from other folks, right? I still have work to do on exploring my own family… We actually have more ability to research our people and find them, and yet we still don’t do the work. Why is that? ‘Cause we’re afraid of what we’re gonna find.” - Jason Biehl
Ever Forward Club’s Ashanti Branch is joined by Jason Biehl. Jason is an antiracist educator, born and raised in Washington, D.C., with over 20 years of experience working in education with youth from diverse backgrounds. In 2017, he founded Change The Narrative, and he works collaboratively as an educational consultant to further racial equity within organizations and schools. Jason is a truly radical thinker, who clearly puts a high priority on his self-awareness and humility. We’re excited for you to gain his perspective on fighting racism :)
(8:15) Jason introduces himself, his work on the frontiers of antiracism, and a turning point in his life.
(14:00) Ashanti shares the front of his mask - serious, hard-working, caring - and how being overly caring can lead to being hurt.
(18:05) Jason shares the front of his mask - playful/humor, outgoing/optimist, steady/reliable - then, he and Ashanti critique our standard email salutations.
(22:25) Ashanti shares the back of his mask - worried, heavy, what’s next - and shares some family matters that have been on his mind lately.
(26:25) Jason shares the back of his mask - scared, sad/grieving, self-doubt - and how these things apply both to his country and his inner self.
(32:50) Jason reflects on how difficult it was within his college culture when he switched his major to African American Studies.
(37:40) Ashanti and Jason continue discussing white allyship.
(41:30) Then, they discuss how men’s work stands in solidarity with other marginalized groups by exploring the cognitive dissonance of masculinity.
E115. Modern Day Straitjackets - with Dax-Devlon Ross, Author, Equity Strategist, Speaker, and Social Entrepreneur
Wednesday, November 16, 2022 • Duration 56:07
“One of my deep beliefs and convictions is that we live in a society where people are hyper-focused on getting their point across and having their point of view heard and seen. And therefore they do not develop the muscle and/or ability to provide people the same space and latitude that they want for themselves. So I’ve taken it upon myself to be someone who stands in that gap, who sits in that gap, who holds the tension of [that gap].” - Dax-Devlon Ross
Ever Forward Club’s Ashanti Branch is joined by Dax-Devlon Ross. Dax is the author of six books, and his journalism has been featured in Time, The Guardian, The New York Times, Virginia Quarterly Review, Nonprofit Quarterly, The Washington Post Magazine, and other national publications. A New York City teaching fellow turned non-profit executive, Dax is now a principal at the social impact consultancies Dax-Dev and Third Settlements, both of which focus on designing disruptive strategies to generate equity in workplaces and education spaces alike. Dax speaks with great conviction, and we are excited for you to experience this as he and Ashanti discuss their masks, the importance of friendship, and navigating the pitfalls of the dominant culture.
(5:45) Ashanti and Dax say hello. Then, Dax introduces himself, his name, his writing, and how he works to make sure every human being can thrive.
(12:50) After Ashanti shares how he felt guilt whenever he got good grades, Dax some of the class guilt he held onto while he was growing up.
(19:10) Ashanti and Dax make their masks together.
(24:30) Ashanti shares the front of his mask - serious, dedicated, others before self - and how unsure he feels about putting others before himself.
(27:15) Dax shares the front of his mask - intellect, family man/provider, bridge builder - and the roles he wants to play as a writer, a relative, and a worker.
(32:15) Ashanti shares the back of his mask - tired, self-doubt, worrier vs. warrior - and he and Dax discuss how hard it is to extricate themselves from the scarcity mindset/dominant culture.
(36:30) Dax shares the back of his mask - a longing for connection and friendship, anxiety over financial future, anxiety over physical and mental decline.
E114. Mama’s Boys and Traffic Cones - with Jim Young, Coach, Author, Comedian, & Speaker
Wednesday, November 9, 2022 • Duration 55:03
“It’s like having orange street cones there. You see ‘em. You know they’re there, but you can blow past them and it’s not going to stop you. That was my story ten years ago... I had to say it’s not about some external circumstance. It’s about what am I choosing.” - Jim Young, on chasing self-worth through work
Ever Forward Club’s Ashanti Branch is joined by Jim Young. In addition to being a wildflower collector that loves working in his garden, Jim is a men's burnout coach, an improv comedian, an author, a speaker, and a facilitator. Jim’s overarching mission is to explore “expansive intimacy” - a way of being that allows us to connect deeply with people across all realms of our life. In this conversation, Jim and Ashanti find a lot in common, namely, their mama’s boy mentalities, there struggle with setting boundaries with their work life, and their belief that, as Jim puts it, “life is best when shared intimately”.
(7:20) Jim introduces himself and what makes him the master of dad jokes.
(10:20) Jim shares the front of his mask - calm, funny, helpful - and breaks down the corresponding image he drew.
(13:05) Ashanti shares the front of his mask - funny, caring, hard-working (busy) - and finds common ground in Jim’s writing on burnout. Then, he and Jim discuss men’s relationship with the act of caring.
(21:15) Jim shares the back of his mask - insecure, wannabe mama’s boy, critic - and runs through all the thoughts that are firing through his mind as he navigates himself and the world.
(25:35) Ashanti shares the back of his mask - Am I Enough, Worried, “I need a vacation”. He breaks down how he feels overloaded as a leader and what it felt like once he began to unload. Then, Jim relates to Ashanti’s sentiments with one key word: spaciousness.
(36:05) Jim and Ashanti discuss the natural guardrails of life and how easy it is to blow through them in unhealthy ways.
(43:50) Ashanti takes the time to appreciate his nephew, redefine success, and breaks down the five F’s.
(48:50) Jim shares a final message for the audience. Then, he shares how you can get in touch with him.
E113. TOTM Face to Face #9: What Goes Unsaid - with Mohandas & Selim
Tuesday, November 1, 2022 • Duration 42:56
“I think that - something I think we should just say and admit in life - is that the large majority of your day you can’t expect to be experiencing happiness. Happiness has to be something that’s abnormal otherwise it wouldn’t be real… I have a very busy schedule, and I feel like I’m always trying to get something. I’m kind of always trying to be happy - and you should always try to be happy - but I think we don’t say you’re not going to be happy a lot of the time… And it’s just normal.” - Selim
This TOTM Face to Face conversation is between Mohandas and Selim. Mohandas is the Ever Forward Club’s Youth Host, whom you can get to know more about in episode 83. Selim is Mohandas’s friend since childhood, currently a freshman and UC Santa Cruz and an excellent competitive ultimate frisbee player. By playing the card game "Ever Forward Club: The Adventure", Mohandas and Selim have a chance to reminisce on their friendship and reflect on how they project themselves to the world.
(7:00) Selim and Mohandas check in with each other.
(9:00) Then Selim and Mohandas begin answering questions from the Ever Forward Club: The Adventure card game.
(9:30) Question 1: Who is someone you are currently missing?
(12:50) Question 2: What is a characteristic about yourself that you don’t talk about much? Selim shares a little bit about his artistic side, and Mohandas talks about how he holds the “wild child” in.
(17:05) Question 3: Have you ever told someone that you loved them and didn’t mean it? If so, why?
(18:30) Question 4: What are you most afraid of?
(20:30) Question 5: What are some things that you feel that you wish you could say out loud? Selim and Mohandas discuss the temporary nature of happiness.
(25:30) Question 6: What is a dream that you’ve let go of?
(29:25) Question 7: What is a lie that you tell yourself about yourself that you need to stop telling?
(31:30) Question 8: Describe a time when you changed your mind about something that you once strongly believed.
E112. Living in Truth and Honesty - with Marcelo Peterlini, Educator, Programing Director - Latin American Leadership Academy
Tuesday, October 25, 2022 • Duration 56:42
“I’ve been seeking truth in life more and more. For such a long time, I felt like my truth wasn’t accepted in spaces or whenever I even tried to speak truth that was denied, in a sense. And for me, it has been a liberation of really being able to just live in truth and honesty - of what really matters to me and my own feelings and internal life.” - Marcelo Peterlini
Ever Forward Club’s Ashanti Branch is joined by Marcelo Peterlini. Marcelo is from São Paulo, Brazil, and is currently working as the Programming Director at Latin American Leadership Academy, where he is devoting his life to building a youth leadership community in Latin America that can evoke the best of humanity. One of Marcelo’s mentees, Breno, was, in fact, the guest on the very first episode of this podcast. But, as the podcast comes full circle, Marcelo and Ashanti have a conversation that embraces the fact that life is a bit messier - and never as clean as the perfect circle we want it to be. Enjoy the episode!
(1:15) Ashanti’s introduction.
(5:30) Marcelo introduces himself and why he considers himself a “heart-centered” person. Then, he and Ashanti look back on their humble beginnings.
(13:30) Ashanti and Marcelo make their masks together.
(14:00) Ashanti shares the front of his mask - heart-centered, hard-working, serious - and tells a quick story of how he got “worked up” at the workplace recently and remembered to own his feelings.
(17:35) Marcelo shares the front of his mask - loving man, truth, passion - and expresses the importance of putting “loving” and “man” side by side. Then, he and Ashanti embrace the messy side of life.
(30:10) Ashanti shares the back of his mask - fear of failure, doubt, not being effective - and looks back on a recent session he had with his coach.
(37:45) Marcelo shares the back of his mask - sadness, melancholy, prove myself/belonging - and it leads him and Ashanti into a conversation about the transitory nature of dark days.
(50:00) Ashanti and Marcelo take time to appreciate one another.
E111. Call Me Man - with Man Le, Husband, Father, Nurse, & EFC Alumnus
Tuesday, October 18, 2022 • Duration 45:56
E111. Call Me Man - with Man Le, Husband, Father, Nurse, & EFC Alumnus
“If I walk into a room, they’re gonna feel it. They’re gonna feel my positivity. I’m trying to smile as much as possible, especially with the job that I’m doing. I got to be able to - regardless of what the situation is - show a smile, be positive. You run into some tough situations with the job I’m in. So, I just got to do my best to show the positivity, to light up the room somehow.” - Man Le
Ever Forward Club’s Ashanti Branch is joined by Man Le. Man is one of the original members of the Ever Forward Club, a student of Ashanti’s at San Lorenzo High School. Nearly 20 years later, he is now a nurse and a loving father and husband based in San Diego, California. Please enjoy Man and Ashanti as they reminisce about old times, give merit to life paths outside of the conventional route, and share how they take off their masks and decompress in different ways.
(0:50) Ashanti’s introduction.
(5:55) Ashanti and Man make their masks together and reflect on their time in the Ever Forward Club.
(10:40) Man introduces himself. He shares his origins, how he met Ashanti, and how he got involved with the Ever Forward Club.
(13:35) Ashanti and Man look at some old photos together. Our podcast is in video format on Spotify and Youtube.
(16:45) Ashanti shares the front of his mask - serious, hard-working, dedicated
(18:40) Man shares the front of his mask - positivity, always trust, consistency - and he and Ashanti give gratitude to one another.
(22:55) Ashanti shares the back of his mask - fear of failure, worry, “what am I doing” - and explains how he defines “giving his best”.
(26:55) Man shares the back of his mask - sadness - and how he and his wife are always there for each other. Then, he explains how he learns from all of his failures and how certain hobbies keep him mentally healthy.
(39:10) Ashanti and Man celebrate life’s “non-traditional” paths. Then, Man provides a challenge for the listeners.
E110. Formative Years In The Police State - with Muhammad Bilal, Filmmaker and Educator
Tuesday, October 11, 2022 • Duration 53:03
“I find that when I was a kid I wasn’t validated a lot, and I wanted that. I used to internalize that… So I always felt like not having that in my formative years - that validation, that love, that security - it affects me now. So for me, going through therapy and going all the way back… those formative years are really important. The picture, the self-perception, you have as a kid, a lot of that stuff stays with you.” - Muhammad Bilal
Ever Forward Club’s Ashanti Branch is joined by Muhammad Bilal. Muhammad is an African American filmmaker, actor, and educational consultant from the South Side of Chicago. His film, The Blue Cave, won 22 awards and was accepted into 42 film festivals worldwide in 2021, and it is now airing on Short & Fresh on REVOLT TV. Now in post-production on a new film, Perdido, Muhammad has always demonstrated a high level of compassion and empathy for individuals in their formative years. We are so lucky to have Muhammad on our side, fighting for a kinder, more understanding world through his many talents.
(1:55) Ashanti’s introduction.
(6:30) Muhammad introduces himself and shares some details about his career in film and education.
(8:55) Muhammad talks about two of his films, “The Blue Cave” and “Perdido.” And he and Ashanti share their thoughts on police brutality and vicarious trauma.
(16:15) Muhammad shares the front of his mask - creative, strategic, successful.
(17:00) Ashanti shares the front of his mask - serious, concerned, caring - and he shares some concerns he has for his community in Oakland. Then, he and Muhammad continue to discuss how guns and policing can affect someone’s psyche, whether it be through direct or indirect encounters.
(29:00) Muhammad shares the back of his mask - depressed, pessimistic, perfectionist.
(30:00) Ashanti shares the back of his mask - worry, doubt, pressure - and he and Muhammad look back on their formative years, and how childhood experiences and dynamics never go away.
(41:00) They continue discussing youth wellness and how PTSD drives us into one of three responses - fight, flight, or freeze.
(40:30) Dax and Ashanti ponder male friendships and how they have been affected by the over-sexualization of our society.
(46:30) Dax reflects on how it felt making a mask. Then, he and Ashanti share some final thoughts on how men and boys can break out of “the straight jacket.”
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