Teaching Learning Leading K-12

Ralph R. "Rick" Steinke - Vital Mission: A Jake Fortina Series Love Story - 790

Ralph R. "Rick" Steinke - Vital Mission: A Jake Fortina Series Love Story. This is episode 790 of Teaching Learning Leading K12, an audio podcast.

Ralph Richard “Rick” Steinke is the award-winning author of a memoir, Next Mission: US Defense Attaché to France (to be republished in 2026). He is also an award-winning author of the Major Jake Fortina series, which includes Major Jake Fortina and the Tier One Threat (2022), Jake Fortina and the Roman Conspiracy (2023), and Change of Mission: A Jake Fortina Series Novel (2024). All Jake Fortina books have received awards, individually and as a series.

Steinke has spent a lifetime in US national security roles, including twenty-eight years in the US Army and fourteen in the Department of Defense. His official duties have taken him from the US Military Academy at West Point to over thirty countries on the Eurasian landmass, including Afghanistan and Ukraine. Steinke holds master’s degrees in West European studies and diplomacy from Indiana and Norwich Universities, respectively, as well as post-graduation certificates in national and international security affairs from Harvard and Stanford Universities. His passions include faith, family, fly fishing, and travel.

Our focus today is Rick’s book - Vital Mission: A Jake Fortina Series Love Story.

Excellent story!

Incredible talk!

Jake is AWESOME!

Thanks for listening!

Thanks for sharing!

Before you go...

You could help support this podcast by Buying Me A Coffee. Not really buying me something to drink but clicking on the link on my home page at https://stevenmiletto.com for Buy Me a Coffee or by going to this link Buy Me a Coffee.

This would allow you to donate to help the show address the costs associated with producing the podcast from upgrading gear to the fees associated with producing the show. That would be cool. Thanks for thinking about it. 

Hey, I've got another favor...could you share the podcast with one of your friends, colleagues, and family members? Hmmm? What do you think? Thank you!

You are AWESOME!

Connect & Learn More:

https://ricksteinke.com/

fortunatiquatro@gmail.com

https://www.linkedin.com/in/ralph-rick-steinke-8071376/

https://www.facebook.com/people/Rick-Steinke-Author-2/61553494599866/

Length - 50:02

Chelsi Brosh, PhD & Melissa Cook - TouchMath - How Combining Multisensory Mathematics Instruction with AI - Powered Progress Monitoring Has Transformed Outcomes for Struggling Learners - 789

Chelsi Brosh, PhD & Melissa Cook - TouchMath - How Combining Multisensory Mathematics Instruction with AI-Powered Progress Monitoring Has Transformed Outcomes for Struggling Learners. This is episode 789 of Teaching Learning Leading K12, an audio podcast.

Chelsi Brosh, PhD, BCBA-D, is Chief Academic Officer at TouchMath, leading efforts to make math accessible for students with learning challenges. Previously, she was VP of Product Innovation. She holds a PhD in Special Education from UNC Charlotte and has experience in behavior analysis and education for students with disabilities. 

Melissa Cook is Chief Product Officer at TouchMath. She oversees the company's product strategy and development, leveraging her over 25 years of leadership experience to align innovative multisensory solutions with market needs. Before joining TouchMath, Melissa demonstrated her transformative leadership as President and Chief Operating Officer at Classworks.

Our focus today is “How combining multisensory mathematics instruction with AI-powered progress monitoring has transformed outcomes for struggling learners.”

Awesome conversation!

So much to learn!

Thanks for listening!

Thanks for sharing!

Before you go...

You could help support this podcast by Buying Me A Coffee. Not really buying me something to drink but clicking on the link on my home page at https://stevenmiletto.com for Buy Me a Coffee or by going to this link Buy Me a Coffee.

This would allow you to donate to help the show address the costs associated with producing the podcast from upgrading gear to the fees associated with producing the show. That would be cool. Thanks for thinking about it. 

Hey, I've got another favor...could you share the podcast with one of your friends, colleagues, and family members? Hmmm? What do you think? Thank you!

You are AWESOME!

Connect & Learn More:

https://touchmath.com/

https://www.linkedin.com/company/touchmath/

https://www.youtube.com/@TouchMath

https://www.instagram.com/touchmath.official/

https://www.facebook.com/TouchMath/

Length - 27:44

Mediocrity - Part 4: Not in These Classes - 788

Mediocrity - Part 4: Not in These Classes. This is episode 788 of Teaching Learning Leading K12, an audio podcast.

Mediocrity creeps into being when something should have been done but wasn't. Ignored or the thought that somehow the issue would fix itself or go away allows mediocrity to cement itself to the school or organization. It becomes accepted as how we do things here. A shrug and a comment, "It's just life in our building. You get used to it." The great thing is that not every teacher or administrator is swayed by the trap of "it's ok." There are educators who probably come to mind that are far from mediocre, matter of fact they are incredible examples of what life in classrooms and schools should be like.

I have been in public education for 39 years. Over those years I have had the good fortune of working with some amazing educators. (I have previously shared some of the memories of the ones who weren't good.) Now it is time to share some thoughts about a few of the educators I have had the good fortune of calling teammates or supervisors. I learned and experienced much over the years. I always wanted to be surrounded by colleagues who didn't try to be mediocre. I wanted to work with those peers who wanted to make a difference and spent the time and energy on trying to do just that.

In this episode I share some stories about amazing educators who I worked with. They were educators who understood that to make a difference you had to know what you were trying to accomplish. They knew that you had to be purposeful about what you needed to do. They figured out that to make a difference you had to commit to the time it required, make plans, collaborate with others, and be prepared to fail and learn from the failure. There was not mediocrity their classes.

So much to think about!

Thanks for listening!

Thanks for sharing!

Before you go...

You could help support this podcast by Buying Me A Coffee. Not really buying me something to drink but clicking on the link on my home page at https://stevenmiletto.com for Buy Me a Coffee or by going to this link Buy Me a Coffee.

This would allow you to donate to help the show address the costs associated with producing the podcast from upgrading gear to the fees associated with producing the show. That would be cool. Thanks for thinking about it. 

Hey, I've got another favor...could you share the podcast with one of your friends, colleagues, and family members? Hmmm? What do you think? Thank you!

You are AWESOME!

Length - 18:58

Mediocrity- Part 3: Could I Have Done More?

Mediocrity: Could I Have Done More? This is episode 787 of Teaching Learning Leading K12, an audio podcast. 

Mediocrity creeps into being when something should have been done but wasn't. Ignored or the thought that somehow the issue would fix itself or go away allows mediocrity to cement itself to the school or organization. It becomes accepted as how we do things here. A shrug and a comment, "It's just life in our building. You get used to it." 

What is going on in your building where mediocrity has been able to foment?

In this episode I share some specific examples of mediocrity that was allowed to be the norm, the status quo, the way they did things in a few schools. Was there someone there asking - "Could I have done more?" Could I have done something to set the organization on the correct path and pushed the accepted meh practices out? Could I have replaced the bad practices with something better that focused the school on working together? 

Hope that while you listen that you think about what accepted aspects of your work environment should be identified as a waste of time, eliminated, and replaced with practices that encourage collaboration and assist with accomplishing the mission of the organization, building, or school.

So much to think about!

Thanks for listening!

Thanks for sharing!

Before you go...

You could help support this podcast by Buying Me A Coffee. Not really buying me something to drink but clicking on the link on my home page at https://stevenmiletto.com for Buy Me a Coffee or by going to this link Buy Me a Coffee.

This would allow you to donate to help the show address the costs associated with producing the podcast from upgrading gear to the fees associated with producing the show. That would be cool. Thanks for thinking about it. 

Hey, I've got another favor...could you share the podcast with one of your friends, colleagues, and family members? Hmmm? What do you think? Thank you!

You are AWESOME!

Length - 33:36

Mediocrity: Settling for Ok - 786

Mediocrity: Settling for OK. This is episode 786 of Teaching Learning Leading K12, an audio podcast. 

Mediocrity can find its place in your building by you not paying attention to what is going on in your setting. It can manifest by allowing things to go unaddressed. There are challenges in our schools where situations can arise that are going to take time and require our full attention. Unfortunately, that time commitment can cause some to ignore and move on. In other words, the leader puts a blind fold to his eyes and covers his ears and says, "I see nothing, I hear nothing." By doing this the climate will be adequate. It will be just ok. Mediocrity will settle in for a long time.

So much to think about!

Thanks for listening!

Thanks for sharing!

Before you go...

You could help support this podcast by Buying Me A Coffee. Not really buying me something to drink but clicking on the link on my home page at https://stevenmiletto.com for Buy Me a Coffee or by going to this link Buy Me a Coffee.

This would allow you to donate to help the show address the costs associated with producing the podcast from upgrading gear to the fees associated with producing the show. That would be cool. Thanks for thinking about it. 

Hey, I've got another favor...could you share the podcast with one of your friends, colleagues, and family members? Hmmm? What do you think? Thank you!

You are AWESOME!

 

Length - 24:14