Dr. Victoria Fudge joins James Symons to explore what AI tutors can actually look like in K-12 education. She explains why AI should support rather than replace teachers, how personalised tutoring can help students fill learning gaps, and why successful AI adoption depends more on thoughtful implementation than the technology itself.
Dustin Gray joins James Symons to discuss the pressures facing public education and K-12 IT, from tighter budgets and changing enrolment to AI, privacy and doing more with less. Dustin also shares why school IT teams are often the invisible “shadow workers” of a district, and why honesty, listening and consistency matter when leading through uncertainty.
Dr. Chad Stevens joins James Symons for a candid conversation about EdTech, leadership, self-confidence and reflection. Chad shares why slowing down helped him become more comfortable being himself, how vulnerability is helping him build confidence, and why he believes the real legacy of leadership is the number of new leaders you help grow.
Maurice Dragon, CIO of Orange County Public Schools, joins James Symons to explore why the AI cheating debate may be more about adults than students, which parts of learning still need productive struggle, how AI could reduce teacher workload, and why technology implemented well may actually increase human connection in classrooms.
Lacey Merrifield runs technology at Bosqueville ISD with a team of just two people. She joins James Symons to talk about managing more than 1,500 devices, leading from the front, recovering from a failed technology rollout, and why one of the hardest leadership lessons is learning to let someone else do the job differently.
Todd Chapman joins James Symons for a behind-the-scenes look at how aviation actually works. Drawing on 30 years across airline and airport operations, Todd explores leadership at scale, shared values, customer experience, culture, technology and how thousands of people make the right decisions every day without one person directing them all.
Steve Simpson, Director of Technology Innovation and Integration at Arlington ISD, joins James Symons to discuss the post-COVID EdTech backlash, digital literacy, meaningful technology integration, and why his leadership philosophy is built around flat hierarchy, autonomy, trust, and speaking with intention rather than volume.
Natasha Rachell, Director of Instructional Technology at Atlanta Public Schools, joins James Symons to discuss why not all screen time is equal, leading a team reduced from 39 people to 13, how her brother’s traumatic brain injury changed her view of accessibility, and why too many good ideas can still become a leadership problem.
Kris Trejo went from working in a textbook warehouse just after high school to leading technology for more than 100,000 students across 127 campuses. He joins James Symons to discuss building a “work toward a yes” culture, avoiding leadership bottlenecks, developing future leaders, and why sustainable leadership means making yourself replaceable.
Dustin Harden, CTO of Clear Creek ISD, joins James Symons to talk about students outsmarting internet filters, becoming a technology director at 26, learning to trust his team, slowing down when innovation moves too fast, and why great IT leadership eventually means giving up the need to be the smartest person in the room.
Cara Carter, CTO of Northwest ISD, joins James Symons to discuss leading technology across 33,000 students and 35 campuses, building a cyber-aware culture, navigating AI before all the answers are clear, and developing the confidence to make difficult decisions while still caring deeply about the people affected by them.
From at-risk student to petroleum engineer and technology leader, Dr. David Weems joins James Symons to discuss transforming technology in rural education, improving connectivity and access, developing IT teams, and why giving people confidence and opportunity can unlock potential that might otherwise go unseen.
Dr. Chad Jones, Executive Director of Technology at Lamar Consolidated ISD, joins James Symons to talk about leading IT for nearly 50,000 students and more than 70,000 devices, scaling technology through rapid growth, building strong teams, and why great IT leadership requires accountability, curiosity, and constant improvement.
What does great IT leadership look like when budgets are shrinking, expectations are growing, and your team still needs to feel heard? Aaron Alonzo, Executive Director of Technology at San Antonio ISD, joins James Symons to talk about IT leadership, servant leadership, tighter budgets, student repair programs, and why leading people well matters just as much as managing technology.
