The Power of Diversity and Curiosity in Education with David Bryan Transformative Principal 584

Jethro sits down with David Bryan to talk about how to make school more worthwhile. 

• The difference between public and private schools
• More freedom in a private school to address issues in their schools.
• How to manage high tuition.
• All students paid tuition.
• Why he started New Roads to connect people. 
• The richness of a diverse population leads to amazing environments.
• Schools that are worthwhile are flexible, nimble, and messy. 
• What does the future of education look like? 
• Schools have to invest in those areas where kids are interested.
• Improving the conversation by being together.
• Every human being has been learning from the time they were aware. 
• “Getting Credit” for their learning.
• Kids learning skateboarding tricks. 
• Fan the flames that are there. 
• Grade school teachers 
• David Bolton - Educational Activist
• Curiosity Invited Podcast
• How to be a transformative principal? Pause before you say no. 

About David Bryan

Through a decades-long career in the trade, business, and education spaces, Dr. David Bryan has garnered the skills to be a curious and eager student of many fields. Having taught at middle school, high school, and university levels throughout the United States, Dr. Bryan gained the experience to spearhead his own venture, co-founding  New Roads School, a unique independent school in Southern California that devoted between 40 to 50 percent of its annual budget to need-based financial aid. That allowed New Roads to create a private school population that was ethnically, racially, and socioeconomically diverse.

Bryan served as a faculty member, Founding Head of School, and President from 1995 until his departure in 2013. Following this, he founded his own consulting business and lectured in economics at UC Santa Cruz.

In 2020, Dr. Bryan relocated to rural Wyoming, and for the first time in years found himself outside of the classroom. The podcasting space has been steadily growing, allowing people all over the world to connect. Leveraging the podcasting format and fortified by his “enduring belief that a person can learn a great deal about the world and other people by simply being curious about what folks do”, Dr. Bryan launched his largest “classroom” yet, the CURIOSITY INVITED podcast. 

Between the podcast, participating on several boards, and spending time with his wife, Shelly Graham, exploring the many splendors of Wyoming terrain, his calendar and inbox are both pretty full.

Learn more about today's sponsors, Playworks, IXL, and Renaissance Learning:

As a global leader in education technology operating in more than 110 countries, Renaissance is committed to providing educators with insights and resources to accelerate growth and help all students build a strong foundation for success. We believe that technology can unlock a more effective learning experience, ensure that students get the personalized teaching they need to thrive, and help educators and administrators to truly, fully, See Every Student. Learn more at renaissance.com.

We’re proud to be sponsored by Playworks, a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization with evidence-based practices that help schools improve the health and well-being of children by increasing opportunities for physical activity and safe, meaningful play.

If you’re a school or district leader struggling with the challenge of chronic absenteeism, as so many are across the U.S., you may not realize that structured recess is a research-backed approach to keep kids in school. In fact, a UC Berkeley study of Title I schools found that those partnering with Playworks had significantly lower chronic absenteeism rates. Further, Mathematica research demonstrated that Playworks schools spent 27% less time transitioning from recess back to learning, saving teachers valuable instructional time. 

These results are possible for your students, too. Learn how Playworks can help you improve student-educator relationships, belonging, and attendance by signing up for a quick no-obligation conversation.

We’re also thrilled to be sponsored by IXL. 

IXL’s comprehensive teaching and learning platform for math, language arts, science, and social studies is accelerating achievement in 95 of the top 100 U.S. school districts. Loved by teachers and backed by independent research from Johns Hopkins University, IXL can help you do the following and more:

• Simplify and streamline technology
• Save teachers’ time
• Reliably meet Tier 1 standards
• Improve student performance on state assessments

🚀 Ready to see why leading districts trust IXL for their educational needs? Visit IXL.com/BE today to learn more about how IXL can elevate your school or district.