A Purposeful Approach to Student Support - Sam Dusek & Jordan Seifert
Release Date: 06/13/2025
The CharacterStrong Podcast
Learn More About CharacterStrong: Access FREE Visit the
info_outlineThe CharacterStrong Podcast
Learn More About CharacterStrong: Access FREE Visit the
info_outlineThe CharacterStrong Podcast
Learn More About CharacterStrong: Access FREE Visit the
info_outlineThe CharacterStrong Podcast
Today our guest is Chris Fore, Principal at Mojave High School, in Hesperia, CA. We talk with Chris about why it is important and how it is guiding his work everyday. He shares how creating high-accountability meetings with parents and teachers led to a nearly 60% reduction in failure rates. Chris also highlights the impact that “flipping the script” on parent communication has as he has celebrated individual student wins with positive phone calls home. Learn More About CharacterStrong: Access FREE Visit the Chris Fore is the Principal at Mojave High School, a 2025...
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Today our guests are Assistant Principal Crystal Keck & Humanities Instructional Coach Wendy Uzzle from Bowie High School in Austin, TX. We talk about the unique challenges and solutions for implementing CharacterStrong at the high school level. Crystal & Wendy share how they utilized a "soft launch" approach and adjusted their schedule from 3rd period to advisory based on honest student feedback. They also highlight practical strategies for increasing teacher confidence, including creating a "one-stop shop" for materials and live demonstrations of the low-prep curriculum. Learn More...
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On today's episode CharacterStrong Co-Founder John Norlin talks about the “Power of the Post-It Note,” a simple strategy to build connection with students. He shares practical ways to use written notes for compliments, questions, or behavioral pre-corrections during class. He highlights how small, low-cost investments of time can leave a lasting legacy for students. to subscribe to the CS Weekly Learn More About CharacterStrong: Access FREE Visit the
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Today our guests are Yvonne Culver, Director of School Counseling and Student Wellness, and Stephanie Hammond, Coordinator for School Counselors at Akron Public Schools. We talk about how they moved beyond "posters on the wall" by creating a district timeline that aligns life skills with academic pacing guides. They share how they engaged content teachers to build practical toolkits that integrate character development into daily lessons without adding more work. They highlight the critical need for patience in implementation and how to use data for support rather than compliance. Learn More...
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Today our guest is Krystal Colhoff - Director of MTSS at Austin ISD. Krystal shares how a large, urban district strengthened implementation not through top-down directives, but by elevating campus leaders and letting momentum build from the ground up. She explains how a “soft launch” created space for early adopters to innovate, how campus highlights sparked organic buy-in across 116 schools, and how monthly champions meetings and usage data now guide coaching and support. Krystal also highlights early wins, from thousands of Tier 1 lessons delivered to faster, clearer Tier 2...
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Today our guest is Michelle DePuy, Secondary Ed. Program Specialist at Redlands Unified School District. We talk to Michelle about how her district is strengthening Tier 2 systems by focusing on both mindset and skill-building with secondary counselors. She shares how creating small-group structures, using consistent data from youth-needs screeners, and providing real coaching on implementation fidelity have helped staff move from uncertainty to confidence. Michelle also discusses early results: students gaining emotional-regulation skills, counselors feeling empowered to lead small groups,...
info_outlineToday our guests are Sam Dusek & Jordan Seifert, School Counselors at Meyer Middle School and part of the team that was awarded the 2025 Wisconsin School Counseling Team of the Year. We talk to Sam & Jordan about how their school counseling program is leading the way in proactive, purpose-driven student support. They share how a clear mission focused on academic growth, character development, and student well-being—has helped them build a program where character education is intentionally taught and deeply integrated across campus. Their reminder for all of us: when in doubt, trust that every student can grow and that our intentional efforts matter.
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Sam Dusek and Jordan Seifert are school counselors at Meyer Middle School in River Falls, Wisconsin. This is Sam’s 13th year as a school counselor and Jordan’s 12th year as a school counselor. They received the Wisconsin School Counseling Team of the year award at the annual Wisconsin School counseling Conference in 2024. Meyer Middle school is a State and National School of Character. Jordan and Sam serve on the Meyer Middle School character education committee.