Episode 341

full
Published on:

9th Jan 2025

More Than Grades: Building Schools That Inspire, Connect, and Lead

Join CT as he chats with Dr. Ryan Saxe, Superintendent of Berkeley County Schools, about building a thriving school district. Dr. Saxe shares his vision for blending trust, innovation, and personalized learning to create a vibrant educational environment.

Explore how he’s reshaping education with workforce development programs, leadership initiatives, and a focus on real-world readiness. Perfect for leaders seeking practical strategies to drive growth and engagement in schools.

Key Takeaways:

Customer-Focused Education

Public schools must prioritize engagement, relationships, and an enriching curriculum to remain the top choice for families in a competitive educational landscape.

Flexibility in Accountability

Dr. Saxe advocates for customized accountability measures that reflect the unique needs of each district and foster well-rounded education.

Building Relationships & Trust

Strong relationships between schools, families, and communities are essential. Dr. Saxe emphasizes creating a welcoming environment with meaningful parent-teacher connections.

Holistic Workforce Development

Berkeley County blends technical education and academics to prepare students for college, careers, or military service, ensuring real-world readiness.

Leadership Pipeline

Through initiatives like the Aspiring Leaders Network, the district focuses on developing future leaders by offering structured training, coaching, and growth opportunities.

Balancing Vision & Action

Effective leadership requires addressing immediate needs while maintaining a long-term vision for sustainable district success.

Continuous Growth

Dr. Saxe stresses the importance of lifelong learning for leaders, reflecting on his own experiences in adapting and evolving in leadership roles.


Chapters:

00:00 Introduction

04:09 Best First Choice

09:50 Customer Service

18:02 Instructional Leadership

27:30 Future Leaders


Connect with Dr. Jim: linkedin.com/in/drjimk

Connect with CT: linkedin.com/in/cheetung

Connect with Dr. Ryan Saxe: linkedin.com/in/cabellsupersaxe

Music Credit: Shake it Up - Fesliyanstudios.com - David Renda



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About the Podcast

Principal Office Hours
Real principals. Real talk. No hall passes required.
Finally—a podcast that proves school principals have personalities (and killer insights, too). Every week, join us for candid conversations with K-12 principals who are navigating the beautiful chaos of educational leadership without losing their minds or sense of humor.

Each 40-minute episode features real principals sharing what actually works in school leadership—from handling helicopter parents and budget nightmares to building school culture that doesn't make everyone roll their eyes. Consider this your professional development that doesn't feel like professional development.

Our guests aren't afraid to share their epic fails alongside their victories. They'll tell you about the initiative that spectacularly bombed during assembly, right before revealing how they turned their school's reading scores around. It's educational leadership with the BS filter turned off.

Whether you're currently wearing the principal badge, aspiring to the big chair, or teaching while secretly taking notes on what you'd do differently, Principal Office Hours delivers actionable strategies you can implement faster than a student being sent to detention.

Subscribe now and join the faculty lounge conversation that's too real for the school board meeting. New episodes drop every week. Warning: May cause spontaneous leadership growth and occasional inappropriate laughter during staff meetings.

About your hosts

CheeTung Leong

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Jim Kanichirayil

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Your friendly neighborhood talent strategy nerd is the producer and co-host for The HR Impact Show. He's spent his career in sales and has been typically in startup b2b HRTech and TA-Tech organizations.

He's built high-performance sales teams throughout his career and is passionate about all things employee life cycle and especially employee retention and turnover.