Building Regenerative Schools - with RUTH POULSEN

→ How can principals do better than superficial gestures of teacher appreciation?

→ How can we address teaching colleagues who seem caught in a martyr mindset?

→ How can school leaders work efficiently without building a toxic culture of rushing?

Welcome back to another episode of the Teachers on Fire Podcast, airing live on YouTube most Saturday mornings at 8am Pacific, 11am Eastern. My name is Tim Cavey, and my mission here is to warm your heart, spark your thinking, and ignite your professional practice.

About This Guest, Ruth Poulsen

Ruth is an international school leader who has spent her career building cultures of care—from China to Colorado, and next up, Jordan. She’s currently on sabbatical and writing Regenerative Schools, a newsletter exploring the mindset shifts and systems changes needed to prevent the crisis of educator burnout and ultimately, to support student wellbeing.

Connect with Ruth

on LinkedIn, 

on Substack at regenerativeschools.substack.com

In This Conversation

0:00:00 - Ruth Poulsen is a school principal and education writer.

1:31 - Stepping from an industrial paradigm to a regenerative mindset

4:56 - Distinguishing between efficiency and frantic rushing

9:19 - The "fertilizer" in our schools: toxic element or asset?

11:48 - How can teachers show appreciation beyond superficial efforts?

14:52 - Surveys: How to take the pulse of teachers effectively

20:13 - How to set up tree lines in our schools: boundaries that preserve and protect

29:04 - Managing parent complaints

30:25 - How to coach colleagues caught in a martyr mindset

35:01 - Creating intentional moments in schools that connect with mission

36:53 - Ruth talks about Regenerative Schools, her Substack

38:58 - How and where to connect With Ruth Poulsen online

Visit the home of Teachers on Fire at https://teachersonfire.net/.

Song Track Credit: Tropic Fuse by French Fuse - retrieved from the YouTube Audio Library at https://www.youtube.com/audiolibrary/.