Coming to you live from the harbor terrace in sunny San Diego, Mike Palmer sits down with Karl Rectanus, the new CEO of Really Great Reading, amidst the buzz of the ASU+GSV Summit. Between views of sailboats and silver-lined clouds, the duo digs into why literacy remains the fundamental building block of the educational system and how we might finally be cracking the code on systemic improvement.
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LIVE! from the ASU+GSV Summit, Mike Palmer catches up with College Board President Jeremy Singer against the backdrop of the San Diego marina to dive into the launch of Jeremy’s new podcast, The Education Equation. Produced by Mike, this new series aims to bring a much-needed level of scientific rigor to the education space, drawing inspiration from data-heavy health and fitness media to identify scalable, evidence-based practices that actually move the needle for students.
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On this episode of Trending in Education, host Mike Palmer welcomes Liz Cohen, Vice President of Policy at 50CAN and author of the new book, The Future of Tutoring: Lessons from 10,000 School District Tutoring Initiatives.
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The global landscape of education and work is changing at a pace that requires an entirely new approach to measurement. Trending in Education host Mike Palmer welcomes Amit Sevak, CEO of ETS (Educational Testing Service), the organization responsible for millions of assessments worldwide, to discuss the high-stakes transformation of how we identify talent.
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On this episode of Trending in Education, host Mike Palmer is joined by educator, speaker, and author Mitch Weisburgh to discuss the concept of “mindshifting” and its profound implications for education, personal development, and navigating a rapidly changing world. Mitch shares his journey from teaching computer skills in the early days of personal computing to developing frameworks for resilience, resourcefulness, and collaboration that he now calls mindshifting. Check out Mitch’s book on the topic to learn more.
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Step into a very special episode of Trending in Ed, where host Mike Palmer reunites with fellow co-founders Brandon Jones and Dan Strafford! Since its inception in September 2016, Trending in Ed has been a consistent voice in education, and this reunion delivers a nostalgic yet forward-looking take on education trendspotting. Catch up with Brandon and Dan, discover what they’ve been doing, and hear theirs and Mike’s reflections on the podcast’s journey and the evolving landscape of education over the past 8+ years. Here’s the link to Tim Urban’s What’s Our Problem? which Brandon refers to in the conversation.
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In this episode of Trending in Education, host Mike Palmer interviews Desmond Stinnie and Addison Wiggin, the co-founders of Dealing with Debt, a platform focused on financial literacy and community support. Desmond shares his lifelong passion for financial education, tracing back to his childhood curiosity about money. Addison brings his 30 years of experience in financial publishing and macroeconomic analysis, highlighting the evolution of consumer culture and debt. Together, they discuss the importance of understanding one’s relationship with debt, the distinction between good and bad debt, and the need for accessible financial education.
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In this episode of Trending in Education, host Mike Palmer welcomes Dana Bryson, Senior Vice President of Social Impact at Study.com, for an engaging discussion on the intersection of education, technology, and social impact. This follows almost exactly a year from Dana’s first appearance on Trending in Ed with Paul Gollash from ETS.
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In this episode of Trending in Education, we welcome Auditi Chakravarty, CEO of the Advanced Education Research and Development Fund (AERDF), to explore the cutting edge of education R&D. We begin by tracing Auditi’s journey from a high school English teacher to a leader in curriculum and assessment development, with stops at Kaplan and the College Board, where she helped shape major programs like AP and the redesigned SAT.
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Join us for a recap of SXSW EDU 2025! Host Mike Palmer shares his takeaways from the conference, including highlights from the panel discussion he hosted on the podcast stage. Catch highlights from interviews with Dr. Jenny Nash from LEGO Education, Dana Stephenson from Riipen, and Lindsay Whorton from The Holdsworth Center, as Mike shares his experiences attending the conference with his wife and 6-year-old son. Palmer discusses the importance of hands-on learning with Nash and Stephenson and gets into the role of AI in education and transformations in the workforce with Stephenson and Whorton.
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Jarian Kerekes, President of the Equitable Foundation, joins Mike Palmer on Trending in Education to share his personal and professional journey, highlighting the transformative power of education and the importance of finding one’s passion. From his challenging upbringing in rural Virginia to his impactful work at the Equitable Foundation, Kerekes’ story is one of resilience, determination, and a deep commitment to opening up higher education pathways for underserved students. Here’s the link to NCAN also discussed in the episode.
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