Education leader Erik Greenberg never planned to work in schools. Now, as CEO of Academies of Math and Science, he argues that the answer to America's education problem is not innovation. It is relationships, retention, and the slow work of building community schools in the neighborhoods that need them most.In this episode of The Stronger Podcast, Mike Montoya sits down with Erik, CEO of Academies of Math and Science, to talk about why a STEM charter network serving low-income and immigrant communities has staked everything on teaching math and reading better than anyone else.Erik grew up in Colorado Springs with a built-in math tutor for a dad and teachers he still talks to in his forties. He fell backward into education after an international business degree, spent more than a decade in higher ed and early education, and only in the last few years came to see how unevenly opportunity is handed out. That realization became the thing that drives him.He and Mike get into why education has barely changed in centuries, why the research keeps pointing back to one enduring teacher relationship, and why a kid's third year in the same school produces a jump in growth even when nothing else changes. Erik makes the case that school choice, for all its benefits, can quietly erode the community a school is supposed to be.Listen in for a candid conversation about high expectations, never-ending work, and why the most ambitious thing a school can build is a place where people belong.Chapters:🏔️ 01:27 Meet Erik Greenberg: Colorado Springs kid who fell backward into education💡 04:28 The teachers he still talks to in his forties, and why that is disappearing⚖️ 05:31 Not every kid gets the childhood I got, and I am not okay with that🏫 08:30 Why AMS will only ever serve underserved communities🔁 11:18 Education is one of the most archaic parts of society📖 15:11 Teach math and reading better than anyone: the whole mission🤝 20:39 Generational versus immigrant poverty, and the one enduring teacher relationship📈 24:09 Why a kid's third year in the same school changes everything🌱 35:46 Building community schools where everyone belongs🧭 46:17 If you want to lead, you have to read: the mentor who changed his careerLinks:Connect with Erik Greenberg: LinkedInAcademies of Math and Science: amsimpact.com | LinkedInReach out to Erik to learn more about building STEM-focused community schools in underserved neighborhoods, and the talent AMS is looking for to do that work.Connect with Mike: www.linkedin.com/in/mmscStronger Consulting: strongerconsulting.comPublish a Book That Matters: booksthatmatter.orgStart a Podcast That Matters: podcastsmatter.comGo from Expert to Thought Leader: geniusdiscovery.orgFor more great podcasts like this one, visit https://podcaststhatmatter.orgStay strong.

Career expert Jeremy Schifeling says a referral used to give you a 10x edge in hiring. In today's AI-flooded job market, it's now 20x, because trust is the one thing a machine can't fake.In this episode of Ronderings, Ron sits down with Jeremy Schifeling, founder of The Job Insiders and best-selling author of the top LinkedIn and AI job-search books on Amazon, for a conversation about how to actually get hired when applying online has stopped working.Jeremy's story doesn't start with success. It starts with him, by his own admission, sucking at teaching. A kindergarten teacher in Bed-Stuy who once tried to win over a room of eighth graders with a Jeopardy game and got laughed out of the room, he learned the hard way that you have to understand people before you can lead them. That failure pushed him from the classroom to Teach For America, to Echoing Green and iMentor, to LinkedIn, and finally to building his own company helping the next generation find meaningful work.Ron and Jeremy compare notes from both sides of the table: what Jeremy hears from buried job seekers, and what Ron sees as a recruiter watching a thousand applications land in three days. They get into why referrals now matter more than ever, why introverts should reach out to geek out instead of network, and why social connection is as essential as a good diet.Tune in to hear Jeremy's challenge to treat 2026 the way the best of us treated 2006: go build your own luck.🎙️ 00:39 Jeremy Schifeling on sucking at teaching and why that failure built his whole career🧠 03:17 Why the people who pick the hard path tend to run everything later🎒 10:18 The eighth-grade Jeopardy disaster that taught him to understand people before leading them🛠️ 12:08 How running a school blog in Bed-Stuy quietly became a tech superpower🚀 18:42 Leaving the safe path to bet on himself, ten years of mistakes and all🪄 22:49 Turning workshops into a magic show instead of a lecture📉 25:00 Two career experts compare notes on the toughest job market in years🤝 32:44 Referrals jumped from a 10x to a 20x advantage, and AI is the reason🌱 39:07 Why social connection is as essential to your life as a good diet🧲 40:15 Reach out to geek out: networking advice for introverts who hate networking💡 53:37 The Rondering: build your own luck and make the world a better placeLinks:Website: thejobinsiders.comLinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/schifelingYouTube: youtube.com/@jobinsidersBooks: Jeremy's best-selling LinkedIn and AI job-search books on AmazonReach out to Jeremy Schifeling, fellow LinkedIn nerd, to talk job searching, AI, and how to build your own luck. He would genuinely love to hear what you are seeing in the market, so connect with him on LinkedIn and keep the conversation going.Connect with Ron: www.linkedin.com/in/rapataloCheck Out Ron's Book: www.amazon.com/dp/1613431473Leverage Publishing Group: www.leveragepublishinggroup.comPublish a Book That Matters: http://booksthatmatter.orgStart a Podcast That Matters: http://podcastsmatter.comGo from Expert to Thought Leader: http://geniusdiscovery.orgFor more great podcasts like this one, visit: https://podcaststhatmatter.org

From classroom teacher to founder of a cradle to career movement, Dominique Lee built the BRICK Education Network in Newark to do what schools alone never could: support a child and their family from before birth all the way through a career.In this episode of The Stronger Podcast, Mike Montoya sits down with Dominique Lee, founder and CEO of BRICK Education Network, to talk about what it actually takes to change outcomes for Black and brown children when the system was never built for them in the first place.Dominique traces the path from a Teach For America placement in Newark's South Ward to the moment he decided he was done. After watching his district treat a school full of Black children as the place to dump teachers nobody else wanted, he asked a simple question about what to do next, and BRICK was the answer. Fifteen years later, what started as five young teachers with an amorphous plan is now a two generation model spanning maternal health, schools, housing, and workforce development.Mike and Dominique get into why trust is built by listening and then executing, not by running another focus group. They dig into the equity argument at the center of his work: communities should not have to fight for the basics that wealthier neighborhoods simply expect, and systems, not exhausted families, should carry the load.Tune in to hear why Dominique believes the way forward starts with denying yourself and picking up something bigger than your own mission.🎙️ 00:50 Want a podcast just like this one? Check out www.podcastsmatter.com🧱 01:11 Meet Dominique Lee and the BRICK Education Network🚗 02:13 Growing up between Pontiac and Bloomfield Hills, Michigan⛪ 06:12 The faith that still guides every decision he makes📚 10:00 Need help with your book? Visit www.booksthatmatter.org🍎 12:54 From Teach For America to the day he walked away from the classroom🙏 17:55 One question at Riverside Church, and five teachers with an amorphous plan🌱 19:51 Building a cradle to career model, from maternal health to workforce👂 24:51 How trust gets built: listen, then execute, skip the focus group🏥 28:34 The wellness center the community told him not to build⚖️ 33:29 Why systems, not exhausted families, should carry the load🤝 37:25 The real problem is that people don't trust people💡 43:47 Go from expert to thought leader at www.geniusdiscovery.org🔥 44:25 Abundance over zero sum, and the case against scarcity thinking✝️ 49:00 Deny yourself and pick up something bigger than your own mission🌐 52:31 Find more podcasts that matter at www.podcaststhatmatter.orgLinksLinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/dominique-lee Company: BRICK Network Website: bricknetworks.orgReach out to Dominique Lee to learn more about the cradle to career model BRICK is building in Newark's South Ward and beyond.Connect with Mike: www.linkedin.com/in/mmscStronger Consulting: strongerconsulting.comPublish a Book That Matters:  booksthatmatter.orgStart a Podcast That Matters:  podcastsmatter.comGo from Expert to Thought Leader: geniusdiscovery.org For more great podcasts like this one, visit https://podcaststhatmatter.orgStay strong. 

Some leaders climb out of a system and never look back. Dr. Patrick Fagan climbed out of New York City Public Schools and came back to lead it.In this episode of Ronderings, Ron sits down with Dr. Patrick Fagan, Chief Talent and Human Resources Officer for New York City Public Schools, the largest school system in the nation, for a conversation about what it takes to lead people at a scale most of us will never touch.Born in London to Jamaican parents and raised in East Flatbush, Patrick is a K-12 product of the very schools he now serves. He walks Ron through the full arc: playing trumpet at JHS 285, learning a trade at William E. Grady, and the doctorate in industrial-organizational psychology that taught him to read workplace behavior like a scientist.Then he gets into the leadership. Why he traded "leadership" for "teamship" across his 10 executive directors. Why he refuses to be the bottleneck every decision runs through. Why he says you have to love people, not just like them, to last in HR. And how faith and a 5:30 AM gym routine keep him grounded while he oversees HR for 150,000 employees inside a $44 billion system.There is also the line he tries to live by: every day is an interview. Not for the next job, but for trust.Tune in to hear how Patrick brings the human back into human resources, and why he calls leading 150,000 people a privilege, not a burden.🎙️ 00:16 Welcome to Ronderings, and a full-circle homecoming📚 01:59 Want to publish a book that matters? Check out www.leveragepublishinggroup.com🎺 06:38 From JHS 285 to a trade school, the path was never straight🏢 17:19 The real scale: 150,000 employees and a $44 billion system🛞 21:21 Teamship over titles, and why he refuses to be the bottleneck🥧 30:12 The PIE framework, and bringing the human back to HR💡 36:38 Got something worth saying? Talk to Dr. Kent at www.talktokent.com🙏 37:18 Faith, wellness, and every day is an interview❤️ 45:37 The Ronderings question: leave it stronger for the next generation🎧 48:52 Podcasts That Matter, and a Stronger Podcast shout-outLinks:LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/patrick-d-fagan-ph-d-mbaReach out to Dr. Patrick Fagan to talk teamship, building talent pipelines inside the nation's largest school system, and the many careers in New York City Public Schools that don't require a classroom.Connect with Ron: www.linkedin.com/in/rapataloCheck Out Ron's Book: www.amazon.com/dp/1613431473Leverage Publishing Group: www.leveragepublishinggroup.comPublish a Book That Matters: http://booksthatmatter.orgStart a Podcast That Matters: http://podcastsmatter.comGo from Expert to Thought Leader: http://geniusdiscovery.orgFor more great podcasts like this one, visit: https://podcaststhatmatter.org

Ethan Ashley got handcuffed at a police precinct at age six for stealing a pack of gum. He went on to finish high school at sixteen, earn a law degree from Howard by twenty-two, win an elected school board seat, and build a national organization that trains the people deciding what happens in your kid's classroom. His throughline: his story should have been the rule, not the exception.In this episode of The Stronger Podcast, Mike Montoya sits down with Ethan, former school board member and CEO of School Board Partners, to talk about why elected school boards are one of the most powerful and least understood levers in American public education.Ethan traces an unlikely arc: born in Lakewood, raised in Compton, sleeping on the couch of a Hispanic family in East LA so he could stay dual-enrolled in community college as a high school freshman. A college recruiter who paid attention to an eighth grader, and a mentor who picked up the phone to Howard the day before a missed deadline, are the kind of people he credits for everything that followed. He started his legal career representing kids sentenced to die in prison, working the Louisiana arm of Bryan Stevenson's Equal Justice Initiative, before deciding he wanted to work at the front end of the school-to-prison pipeline instead.Ethan and Mike get into why most school board members have no idea what they signed up for, what Brown v. Board actually turned on, and the three things leaders almost never say: I'm sorry, I don't know, and I need help.Listen in for a conversation about opportunity, the people who open doors, and building systems so the next kid does not have to be the exception.🎙️ 00:53 Want a podcast just like this one? Check out www.podcastsmatter.com🛫 01:32 Meet Ethan Ashley: from row 14F to leading school boards across the country🏠 02:07 Born in Lakewood, raised in Compton, and a grandmother who went west🎓 05:08 The recruiter and the mentor who opened the door to Howard🛋️ 07:10 The East LA family whose couch made dual enrollment possible📚 13:54 Find support for writing your impact-driven book at www.booksthatmatter.org⚖️ 15:09 A pack of gum, handcuffs at six, and why he chose the law🏛️ 19:00 What Brown v. Board actually turned on: the school board nobody names🗳️ 25:25 Good people get elected, then learn being an advocate is not the same as governing🙏 31:29 The three things leaders never say: I'm sorry, I don't know, and I need help🌟 31:58 If you are a leader or changemaker looking for support, check out www.geniusdiscovery.org🤝 34:24 Meeting the moment: ICE, school closures, and AI inside School Board Partners🧭 43:26 Advice to his younger self: stay curious and connect deeply🎧 47:49 Find more podcasts that matter at www.podcaststhatmatter.orgLinks:LinkedIn: http://linkedin.com/in/ethanashley Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ethancashley/ Twitter/X: https://twitter.com/ethancashley School Board Partners: https://www.schoolboardpartners.org/ School Board Partners on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/school-board-partners/Connect with Ethan Ashley on LinkedIn or explore School Board Partners to learn more about how it supports elected school board members across the country to lead with courage, competence, and impact, including the Our Collective Power national conference.Connect with Mike: www.linkedin.com/in/mmscStronger Consulting: strongerconsulting.comPublish a Book That Matters:  booksthatmatter.orgStart a Podcast That Matters:  podcastsmatter.comGo from Expert to Thought Leader: geniusdiscovery.org For more great podcasts like this one, visit https://podcaststhatmatter.orgStay strong.