This Mental Health Month, we are discussing the mental health crisis among college faculty and staff. Our guest, Mary Ellen Flannery, is a Senior writer for NEA Today magazine who has been reporting on the mental health challenges of staff and faculty on college and university campuses and what solutions exist for our members.

They say that the best way to prevent a strike is to prepare for one. So how can educators successfully avoid striking, while also having their demands met? Leah VanDassor, president of the St. Paul Federation of Educators, and executive board member Quentin Wathum-Ocama discuss how St. Paul, MN educators prepared for their recent negotiations, and how you can use their example as a helpful guide for your upcoming bargain.

The Community Schools model is catching on across the country, with NEA members standing at the forefront of this exciting new way of approaching education. But where are these community schools, and what differences are they making for students and educators? Two Senior Policy Analysts and Program Specialists who focus on Community Schools at NEA join the show to discuss the state of the community schools movement and how you can take steps toward bringing community schools to your area.

We’re discussing how educators can support students with disabilities in schools and sharing tactics and practices educators can implement to foster inclusivity and combat ableism. Our guest is Katie Punsly, a creative writing teacher in Louisville, Kentucky, with years of experience as an instructional technology coach, working with English language learners, and serving the needs of students with disabilities.

In this episode, we explore the invaluable partnership between Education Support Professionals (or ESPs) and new and aspiring educators in schools. Our guests, Joie Moore, an ESP from Ohio, and Demetrius Dove, an aspiring educator from Georgia, share their insights and experiences in fostering strong partnerships within the school community.

An audio feature from NEA Today magazine: Nature-Based, Outdoor Pre-Kindergarten Takes Root in Maine from Senior Writer Mary Ellen Flannery.

AP African African American Studies—the "controversial" AP course being piloted in schools across the country, is far more interesting than the headlines it's made. Antoinette Dempsey-Waters, a Virginia History teacher and member of the course's development committee, joins the show to talk about why this course will be so impactful, how it was developed, and what the public discourse was truly about.

In this episode, we address the urgent issue of gun violence in schools. Joining us are Zach Martin, a survivor of the 1999 Columbine High School shooting and current teacher at Columbine, and Mary Kusler, Senior Director of NEA’s Center for Advocacy and Political Action. Together, we explore the current state of our nation and discuss how educators can collaborate with parents, students, and communities to advocate for gun-safety legislation and comprehensive school safety policies.

The end of the year can be an especially stressful time, so it only seemed fitting to re-run this enlightening episode to help you discover strategies for stress relief and set internal goals and boundaries for the new year. Educators are more stressed than ever these days, but there are ways to make things better—from federal funding, to local actions, to individual practices. On this episode, Todd Scholl from the Center for Educator Wellness and Learning discusses the toll stress can take on educators, and discuss strategies for managing it, taking action for the greater good, and maintaining a healthy work/life balance.

We’re talking women in leadership with Stephanie Johnson, a South Carolina Reading Interventionist, Fulbright awardee, and former Chair of NEA’s Women’s Issues Committee. Together, we discuss her personal leadership journey as an educator and NEA member, and how every woman has the power to lead–even if they don’t quite recognize it yet.