Innovative Leadership in Education with Dr. Sarah Stone
Better Learning Podcast
Jeff Kubiak sits down with Dr. Sara Stone, Superintendent of Albany Unified School District in California’s East Bay, to discuss what it takes to lead meaningful change while building trust with a school community. With 32 years in education, Sara reflects on her journey from classroom teacher to superintendent and the lessons she has learned about leadership, collaboration, and putting students first. The conversation explores Albany Unified’s $63.8 million Measure L bond, which passed with 72% voter approval, and how the district is approaching facility upgrades, wildfire resilience,...
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The Role of Community Engagement in School Redesign with Dr. Robert Hunt
Better Learning Podcast
Matt Rogers sits down with Dr. Robert Hunt, Superintendent of Upper Arlington Schools, to explore his experience leading major school facility projects and the district’s current $273 million bond initiative for two new middle schools and an early childhood building. Dr. Hunt shares lessons from 16 years as a superintendent, including renovating a 100-year-old historic building in Chagrin Falls, navigating a major facilities referendum in Illinois, and now leading Upper Arlington through a process built around extensive community engagement. The conversation dives into how the district...
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What Community Members Get Wrong About School Construction with Dr. George Hummer
Better Learning Podcast
Kevin Stoller sits down with Dr. George Hummer, Superintendent of Frederick County Public Schools, to explore his journey from special education aide to school district leader, and the district's ongoing effort to build its fourth high school. Dr. Hummer shares how his mother's career as a special education teacher and his own experience working with students with disabilities shaped his empathy-driven leadership style. The conversation dives deep into the mechanics of planning new school construction — including the critical difference between "design capacity" and "program capacity," how...
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Leading Districts with Emotional Intelligence with Dr. Adam Swinyard
Better Learning Podcast
Dr. Adam Swinyard, Superintendent of Spokane Public Schools and 2023 Washington Superintendent of the Year, joins the Jeff Kubiak to discuss leading one of Washington's largest districts through a rapidly shifting information and mental health landscape. Adam shares how Spokane centers everything on relationships, why transparency and "doors and windows" communication have replaced the old top-down model, and how the district's Engage in Real Life initiative and revised cell phone policy are tackling the youth mental health crisis. He also reflects candidly on lessons learned since becoming...
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Reshaping How We View School Campuses with Dr. Sharon Bradley
Better Learning Podcast
Dr. Sharon Bradley, founder of Bradley Site Design and a landscape architect with four decades of experience, joins Matt Rogers to explore how school campuses can become powerful teaching tools rather than just backdrops. Sharon shares how her childhood in the English countryside shaped her belief in "environment as teacher," and explains her curriculum integration model — mapping specific lesson units directly onto campus features like whisper walls, bioretention gardens, and stormwater "raindrop journeys." She also discusses how early collaboration between landscape architects, building...
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Making Career Education Visible with Mark Shephard
Better Learning Podcast
Mark Shepard, K-12 Advisor at BVH Architecture, joins Carla Cummins to share his unusual path from industrial tech teacher to school superintendent to architectural firm advisor. Drawing on his experience leading a transformative CTE center project in Fremont, Nebraska, Mark discusses how listening to local industry and students — not just assumptions from educators — reshaped a district's approach to career and technical education. He dives into the design choices that put CTE on display rather than hidden away, the partnerships with local businesses that created real jobs for students,...
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Facilities Leadership in a Fast-Growing District with Matt Wark
Better Learning Podcast
Matt Wark, Chief Facilities Officer for Forsyth County Schools, joins Katie Jubenville to share his unconventional path from a struggling student written off by his own guidance counselor to leading facilities for one of Georgia's fastest-growing, top-performing school districts. Matt discusses how his personal journey through teaching, administration, and district leadership shapes his "houses, not buildings" philosophy of facilities management, and dives into how Forsyth balances explosive growth with maintenance, community trust, and cost. He also shares his perspective as president of the...
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Making Every Dollar Count with Jennifer Gibb
Better Learning Podcast
In this episode, Jeff Kubiak talks with Jennifer Gibb, Vice President of Business Development at Van Pelt Construction Services, about turning school bond measures into real buildings. With 20+ years spanning district facilities leadership, bond program management, and consulting, Jen shares how districts navigate tight budgets, layered funding sources, and community skepticism to deliver modern learning environments. The conversation dives into strategic bond planning, the real story behind fast-tracked construction after a razor-thin bond vote, balancing capital projects against general fund...
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Turning Campuses into Learning Tools with Orin Williams
Better Learning Podcast
Jeff Kubiak sits down with Orin Williams, Assistant Superintendent of Facilities, Planning, and Development at Riverside Unified School District, to unpack a 33-year career in school facilities planning. Orin traces his path from architecture school at Cal Poly Pomona through private practice into public education facilities, sharing how his design background shapes his advocacy for thoughtful, human-centered school environments. The conversation covers turning aging campuses into cohesive learning spaces, building community trust around bond projects, balancing tight budgets against big...
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Inside Rock Hill's $336M Vision for Safer, Smarter Schools with Andrew Jones
Better Learning Podcast
In this episode, Matt Rogers sits down with Andrew Jones, Executive Director for Safety and Emergency Management at Rock Hill School District (South Carolina), to explore how safety and design intersect in modern school construction. Andrew shares his winding path from youth ministry to law enforcement, teaching, and school administration before landing in his current role. The conversation dives deep into the district's new Sunset Park Elementary School project — a $336 million, 10-year facilities initiative — covering CPTED (Crime Prevention Through Environmental Design), hardwired...
info_outlineIn this episode, host Matt Rogers and co-host Dr. Brian McCraw talk with Shara Bumgarner, cofounder of Houston's Joy School, and architect Janann Pittman of Jackson & Ryan Architects about creating a K-8 school built for kids with learning differences. From the school's humble start with four students in 1997 to its thoughtfully designed campus today, Shara and Janann unpack how intentional design - down to door handles and bathroom stalls - can turn a school into a true second home. They dig into individualized instruction, the "it depends" philosophy, and why joy, not just remediation, should be at the heart of every learning space.
Takeaways:
- No one-size-fits-all - Kids are grouped by specific learning needs, not grade level or diagnosis.
- Design follows philosophy - Spaces are built around flexibility and the school's culture, not just function.
- Details matter - Even door handles and toilet flushes were chosen to ease student anxiety.
- Safety enables learning - An anxious brain can't learn, so comfort comes first for kids and parents alike.
- Joy beats survival - Disco balls and dance parties aren't extras - they're core to helping kids truly thrive.
About Shara Bumgarner:
Shara Bumgarner co-founded The Joy School in 1997 and has been our Head of School since 2002. Shara's inspiration for starting The Joy School stemmed from witnessing bright students with learning differences and disabilities slip through the cracks in public school because of a lack of understanding of such students. Shara is committed to providing the most optimal, joyful environment for students and teachers with an emphasis on embracing individual differences. Starting The Joy School changed her life as an educator, and she hopes to have that same impact on each student, parent and teacher at the School. Outside of school, Shara focuses on her family, which includes her supportive husband and three daughters.
Link to Shara's LinkedIn account - Link
Link to The Joy School Website - Link
About Janann Pittman, AIA:
For over 35 years, since her first K-12 and higher education projects, Janann has been passionate about institutional and educational architecture that reinforces and expands communities, and impacts children of all ages.
As a Principal with Jackson & Ryan Architects, Janann is licensed in multiple states, with education projects from Pennsylvania to Texas. Janann seeks to understand her unique clients and their communities, so her designs reflect them and serve them in highly personal ways.
Janann comes from a family of educators and has served on numerous PTO boards and committees for her sons’ schools, on the Rice University Alumni Board, and was a founding board member of Books Between Kids.
While Janann loved her time at Rice University, she is most enthusiastic about her middle school years at Shoreham-Wading River Middle School. Named a Blue Ribbon School the first year the award was given, Janann loved the fabulous arts and community service programs, and the focus on interdisciplinary projects, in smaller neighborhood communities. And, the amazing school even had goats!
Link to Janann's LinkedIn account - Link
Link to Education portion of JRA web site Link to JRA education web page
Link to Jackson & Ryan Architects Education brochure Link to Design for Education brochure
Episode 345 of the Better Learning Podcast
For more information on our partners:
Association for Learning Environments (A4LE) - https://www.a4le.org/
Education Leaders' Organization - https://www.ed-leaders.org/
Second Class Foundation - https://secondclassfoundation.org/
EDmarket - https://www.edmarket.org/
Catapult @ Penn GSE - https://catapult.gse.upenn.edu/
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