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In this episode, host Shauna McBride speaks with Nick Butler, artist and illustrator of Committee for Children’s Captain Compassion® comic series. Nick explains how he used every design choice to carefully and intentionally craft a visual identity for Captain Compassion® and her sidekick Kid Kinder®. To create Kid Kinder, Nick took visual cues from his little brother and himself as children, making this project an intensely personal one. He tells Shauna, “When I had this opportunity with Kid Kinder to represent the Black community, I dug in. I really wanted to make sure that I was singing the praises of Black boys and Black girls, and I wanted to have the character capture that essence and really represent.” Nick and Shauna also explore how Black creators are forging new, independent paths through the media landscape, no longer relying on traditional gatekeepers to allow them a seat at the table. These stories contain lessons for anyone seeking to create or consume media that represent a diversity of identities and lived experiences. To see more of Nick’s work, check out his Instagram account @turtledusttoons, or at turtledustmedia.com. Learn more about the Captain Compassion campaign at CaptainCompassion.org. Visit GrowKinderPodcast.org for more episodes of the Grow Kinder® podcast. You can rate and follow us on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, SoundCloud, or Stitcher. Take our listener survey to let us know more about you and what you think of the podcast. We’d love to hear from you! Listener Survey: https://forms.office.com/Pages/ResponsePage.aspx?id=LWN-Qn3OEkeSrzrKSxjPe1fy2tWnuMpOsq-A9xekDc9UQlNYU05BVU5WVTJPOEQyNzc0Sk0wRjJGWi4u Links to other resources from the episode: Manuel Godoy’s Black Sands Entertainment https://blacksandsentertainment.com/

On this episode, host Tia Kim speaks with Vicky Rideout, one of the authors of a new report, “Coping with COVID-19: How Young People Use Digital Media to Manage Their Mental Health.” The report found substantial increases in both depression and social media use among teens and young adults during the COVID-19 pandemic. Further, it investigated the relationship between those two data points. Could social media be causing the rise in depression? The report suggested that, despite the common media narrative about the dangers of social media, it can be a valuable tool for connection and its effects can be both supportive and uplifting for kids. In this conversation, Vicky and Tia explore the implications of these findings and if they should change how we think about young people’s digital media use. “It’s really powerful to understand how eager young people are to lift one another up and support one another, whether it’s online or face-to-face,” Vicky says. Read more about some of the studies mentioned in the episode: "Coping with COVID-19: How Young People Use Digital Media to Manage Their Mental Health" https://static1.squarespace.com/static/5ba15befec4eb7899898240d/t/604f8af03ad0e7695c9dc79f/1615825650909/Coping-with-COVID19-full-report-FINAL.pdf “Digital Health Practices, Social Media Use, and Mental Well-Being Among Teens and Young Adults in the U.S.” https://hopelab.org/research/national-survey-2018/ “Social Media, Social Life: Teens Reveal Their Experiences, 2018” https://www.commonsensemedia.org/research/social-media-social-life-2018 Visit GrowKinderPodcast.org for more episodes of the Grow Kinder® podcast. You can rate and follow us on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, SoundCloud, or Stitcher. Take our listener survey to let us know more about you and what you think of the podcast. We’d love to hear from you! Listener Survey: https://forms.office.com/Pages/ResponsePage.aspx?id=LWN-Qn3OEkeSrzrKSxjPe1fy2tWnuMpOsq-A9xekDc9UQlNYU05BVU5WVTJPOEQyNzc0Sk0wRjJGWi4u&fsw=0

In this episode, host Andrea Lovanhill speaks with Dr. Theanne Griffith, PhD, a neuroscientist and author of the children’s book series The Magnificent Makers. Theanne explains how the environment of curiosity and exploration fostered by her parents helped her grow into the person she is today and influenced the work she’s doing as an author and scientist. “The most important thing a scientist needs, I think, is creativity and openness and curiosity,” Theanne says. “I think any way you can foster that in your child, you’re going to create a love for science.” Theanne also talks about how she showcases diverse characters in her books to increase representation for those who are underrepresented in the scientific community, such as people of color and people with disabilities. Learn more about Theanne and her book series at www.theannegriffith.com, or follow her on Twitter at @doctheagrif. Visit GrowKinderPodcast.org for more episodes of the Grow Kinder® podcast. You can rate and follow us on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, SoundCloud, or Stitcher. Take our listener survey to let us know more about you and what you think of the podcast. We’d love to hear from you! Listener survey: https://forms.office.com/Pages/ResponsePage.aspx?id=LWN-Qn3OEkeSrzrKSxjPe1fy2tWnuMpOsq-A9xekDc9UQlNYU05BVU5WVTJPOEQyNzc0Sk0wRjJGWi4u

We’re back with a new mini-season of the Grow Kinder® podcast! In this teaser episode, hosts Andrea Lovanhill, Dr. Tia Kim, and Shauna McBride get together to catch up, reflect on a busy summer, and preview the conversations we’ll be sharing this season. All three hosts will explore media topics, including the relationship between depression and social media use, the importance of diverse representation in children’s media, and how we can foster a sense of curiosity in our kids. Also included in this episode are Andrea’s take on what social-emotional learning is and what it isn’t, Tia’s thoughts on Squid Game, and why Shauna is reevaluating her relationship to social media. Visit GrowKinderPodcast.org for more episodes. You can rate and follow us on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, SoundCloud, or Stitcher. Take our listener survey to let us know more about you and what you think of the podcast. We’d love to hear from you! Listener Survey: https://forms.office.com/Pages/ResponsePage.aspx?id=LWN-Qn3OEkeSrzrKSxjPe1fy2tWnuMpOsq-A9xekDc9UQlNYU05BVU5WVTJPOEQyNzc0Sk0wRjJGWi4u

In this season finale of Grow Kinder®, co-hosts Andrea Lovanhill, Dr. Tia Kim, and Shauna McBride come together to explore what it really means to amplify diverse voices. They reflect on the importance of treating communities as non-monolithic entities; the positive impact of diversifying the workforce; and the power in making room for others to take center stage. We’ll be back with a new season of Grow Kinder later this year. Until then, visit GrowKinderPodcast.org for more episodes from our archives. You can rate and follow us on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Soundcloud, or Stitcher—we’d love to hear from you. And to let us know more about you and what you think of the podcast, take our listener survey: https://forms.office.com/r/2WttRZdfgW

On this episode, host Andrea Lovanhill speaks with Jodi Grant, executive director of the Afterschool Alliance, a nonprofit public awareness and advocacy organization working to ensure that all children and youth have access to quality, affordable after-school programs. At the helm of the organization, Jodi works to ensure that out-of-school-time programs not only help students stay engaged and recover from the pandemic, but also provide their families with essential supports. In this conversation, Jodi talks about the correlation between affordability and equity in summer learning programs, funding opportunities in the American Rescue Plan, the role of social-emotional learning in after-school programs, and supporting after-school staff. Learn more in the special report, “Time for a Game-Changing Summer:” http://afterschoolalliance.org/AA3PM/ To learn more about Jodi and the Alliance, visit AfterschoolAlliance.org. For more episodes of Grow Kinder, visit GrowKinderPodcast.org. You can rate and follow us on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Soundcloud, or Stitcher—we’d love to hear from you. And to let us know more about you and what you think of the podcast, take our listener survey: https://forms.office.com/r/2WttRZdfgW

In this episode of Grow Kinder®, host Dr. Tia Kim speaks with clinical psychologist and social-emotional learning researcher Dr. Mylien Duong. An accomplished researcher, Dr. Duong has been funded by the Institute of Education Sciences and the National Institutes of Health and has published over 40 peer-reviewed journal articles and books. Dr. Duong speaks about the importance of building educators’ self-awareness in equity work and how educators can use perspective-taking and equity audits to help improve DEI in education. She describes how she applies David Foster Wallace’s idea of “seeing the water” to these practices. Visit the links below to learn more about the books Dr. Duong mentions in the podcast. Caste: The Origins of Our Discontents by Isabel Wilkerson https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/653196/caste-oprahs-book-club-by-isabel-wilkerson/ How to Be an Antiracist by Ibram X. Kendi https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/564299/how-to-be-an-antiracist-by-ibram-x-kendi/ For more episodes of Grow Kinder, visit GrowKinderPodcast.org. You can rate and follow us on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Soundcloud, or Stitcher—we’d love to hear from you. And to let us know more about you and what you think of the podcast, take our listener survey: https://forms.office.com/r/2WttRZdfgW

On this episode of Grow Kinder®, host Andrea Lovanhill speaks with Melanie Willingham-Jaggers (they/she), the Interim Executive Director at GLSEN, a national nonprofit that works to ensure K–12 education is safe and affirming for all students, including LGBTQIA+ youth. A lecturer at City University New York in the Master of Applied Theater program, Melanie has extensive experience in social justice organizing within and beyond the LGBTQIA+, immigrant, disabled, incarcerated, and other marginalized and intersecting communities. From 2016 to 2019, they served as board chair of The Audre Lorde Project, one of the oldest centers for community organizing for Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Two Spirit, Trans and Gender Non-Conforming People of Color in the New York City area. And before joining GLSEN in 2019 as deputy executive director, they served as the program associate director of The Worker Institute at Cornell University’s School of Industrial and Labor Relations. In this conversation, Melanie talks about the critical importance of having windows and mirrors for students, and they share their insights into how schools can create a safe, inclusive, and affirming environment for LGBTQIA+ youth, educators, and families. You can follow Melanie on Twitter at twitter.com/themelster. To learn more about GLSEN, visit glsen.org. Visit the links below for some of the resources mentioned in this episode. LGBTQ+ Student Rights Guide: https://www.glsen.org/sites/default/files/2021-01/LGBTQ-Student-Rights.pdf LGBTQ+ Educator Rights Guide: https://www.glsen.org/sites/default/files/2021-01/LGBTQ-Educator-Rights.pdf “Erasure and Resilience: The Experiences of LGBTQ Students of Color” Reports: • glsen.org/AAPI • glsen.org/black • glsen.org/latinx • glsen.org/native GLSEN 2021 Legislative Agenda • https://www.glsen.org/sites/default/files/2020-12/2021-Legislative-Agenda-Policies-Inclusive-LGBTQ-Students-Schools_0.pdf For more episodes of Grow Kinder, visit GrowKinderPodcast.org. You can rate and follow us on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Soundcloud, or Stitcher—we’d love to hear from you. And to let us know more about you and what you think of the podcast, take our listener survey: https://forms.office.com/r/2WttRZdfgW

In this episode, host Tia Kim speaks with Justina Schlund, Senior Director of Content and Field Learning at the Collaborative for Academic, Social, and Emotional Learning (CASEL). In her role, Justina leads the translation of CASEL’s learning and expertise into content to deepen and expand social-emotional learning (SEL) knowledge across the education field. Prior to joining CASEL, Justina was the executive director of Chicago Public School’s Office of Social and Emotional Learning, where she led districtwide strategies to promote the social and emotional development of all students. While at CPS, Justina also launched a districtwide initiative to build organizational commitment to addressing issues of race and equity. Justina talks with us about the connections between SEL and diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) work. During the conversation, she addresses some common critiques of SEL in relation to DEI and provides practical recommendations for how educators, schools, and districts can effectively approach SEL and DEI. To learn more about CASEL, visit casel.org. To read more about CASEL’s resources on Transformative SEL as a Lever for Equity and Social Justice, visit casel.org/research/transformative-sel. For more episodes of Grow Kinder, visit GrowKinderPodcast.org. You can rate and follow us on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Soundcloud, or Stitcher—we’d love to hear from you. And to let us know more about you and what you think of the podcast, take our listener survey: https://forms.office.com/r/2WttRZdfgW

In this episode, host Shauna McBride speaks with Baionne Coleman, founding partner of the nonprofit Global Majority Consortium and CEO and principal of Rainier Valley Leadership Academy, an anti-racist middle and high school focused on dismantling systemic oppression through scholar leadership. With more than 20 years of experience in education, Baionne is a community leader who works with scholars and families to decolonize education systems and provide a safe and inviting environment for scholars and other educators. In this podcast, Baionne talks about common missteps taken by schools and organizations in approaching diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) and anti-racist work. She also discusses how educators can use social-emotional learning to better align their intentions with the impact of their actions, and how to make amends for any mistakes they make on their journeys to become anti-racist. To learn more about Rainier Valley Leadership Academy, visit myrvla.org. To learn more about Global Majority Consortium, visit globalmajorityconsortium.com. For more episodes of Grow Kinder, visit GrowKinderPodcast.org. You can rate and follow us on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Soundcloud, or Stitcher—we’d love to hear from you. And to let us know more about you and what you think of the podcast, take our listener survey: https://forms.office.com/r/2WttRZdfgW

In this episode of Grow Kinder®, co-hosts Andrea Lovanhill and Shauna McBride reflect on all of the changes and challenges of the past year. They talk about how listeners can use lessons from Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.’s foundational text "Where Do We Go from Here: Chaos or Community?" to approach the next school year. Andrea and Shauna also discuss how teacher diversity relates to Dr. King’s concept of “the world house,” the relationship between education and social action, and the pros and cons of teachers either waiting for a DEI program to implement or taking messy action towards equity without one. For more episodes of Grow Kinder, visit GrowKinderPodcast.org. You can rate and follow us on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Soundcloud, or Stitcher—we’d love to hear from you. And to let us know more about you and what you think of the podcast, take our listener survey: https://forms.office.com/r/2WttRZdfgW

In this teaser episode, Committee for Children CEO Andrea Lovanhill gives listeners a sneak peek into the upcoming season of Grow Kinder and reveals two new hosts who’ve joined the podcast: Dr. Tia Kim, our VP of Education, Research, and Impact, and Shauna McBride, our VP of PR and Communications. New episodes begin airing next week. Listen, rate, and follow on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, or anywhere podcasts are found. To learn more, visit GrowKinderPodcast.org. And while you’re there, take our listener survey and let us know what you think of the show. We’d love to hear from you! Listener survey: https://forms.office.com/r/2WttRZdfgW

In this episode of Grow Kinder®, we look back on some of the meaningful conversations that helped us through this tumultuous year and some of the moments we grew kinder. We highlight conversations with Angela Duckworth, Dr. Stephanie Hull, Dr. Monique Morris, Rachel Kamb, Anya Kamenetz, Tabatha Rosproy, and Rachel Lovan. To listen to our full conversations with these thought leaders and other experts in education, business, and the arts, visit GrowKinderPodcast.org.

October marks the start of National Bullying Prevention Month and Committee for Children's Captain Compassion® campaign to prevent bullying. Senior Research Scientist Dr. Jasmine Williams joins us on the podcast to talk about the 2020 Captain Compassion campaign, new comic strips that empower kids to stand against racially motivated cyberbullying, and the Secret Decoder Wheel contest to win a one-of-a-kind illustration with Captain Compassion herself. To read the comics, download the Secret Decoder Wheel, and learn more about the campaign, visit CaptainCompassion.org!

The Grow Kinder Podcast will be going on a short hiatus. We'll be back in the Fall with brand new conversations with leaders in education, tech, business, and the arts. Until then, you can listen to past episodes at GrowKinderPodcast.org.

As educators and families across the country get ready for back to school, we're thrilled to share this pre-pandemic conversation with Greg Lucas, from New Visions for Public Schools in New York City. As Deputy Director of School Culture and Climate, Greg oversees social-emotional learning, school safety, and restorative discipline initiatives. Whether students are returning to learning environments with in-person teaching, continuing remote instruction, or learning in a hybrid model, the culture and climate of a school community will be especially important this year. In this episode of Grow Kinder, Greg talks with us about the subtle differences between school culture and school climate, the importance of SEL for adults, and why we should never take kindness for granted.

This back-to-school episode of Grow Kinder features 2020 National Teacher of the Year, Tabatha Rosproy. A teacher with 10 years of experience, Tabatha is the first early childhood educator to be named National Teacher of the Year. She teaches an intergenerational preschool program at Winfield Early Learning Center, which is housed in Cumbernauld Village, a retirement community and nursing home in Winfield, Kansas. In her program, members of the retirement community are daily visitors and volunteers in the children’s classroom. Tabatha speaks with us about how the COVID-19 pandemic has affected her multigenerational classroom, the importance of social-emotional learning for all age levels, and why educators should take every possible opportunity to connect with students and their families during remote instruction this fall. To learn more about Tabatha: https://ntoy.ccsso.org/tabatha-rosproy/ To follow Tabatha’s journey as 2020 National Teacher of the Year, follow her on social media: https://twitter.com/TabathaRosproy https://www.facebook.com/NTOY20 https://www.instagram.com/ntoy2020/ To get a sneak peek into Tabatha’s classroom at Cumbernauld Village before the pandemic, watch this video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mC_xENwbjMQ

On this mini-episode of Grow Kinder (at Home), Andrea and Mia discuss why it’s so hard to ask for help at work, at school, and at home. They also speak about a recent TED talk on the value of allowing mental health days for K–12 students, as well as their own experiences with burnout during their school years. Watch the TED talk here: https://www.ted.com/talks/hailey_hardcastle_why_students_should_have_mental_health_days

This episode of Grow Kinder features a pre-pandemic conversation with Anya Kamenetz, National Public Radio (NPR) education correspondent and a host of the NPR podcast Life Kit. Anya joined NPR in 2014 as part of a new initiative to coordinate on-air and online coverage of learning. A contributor to the New York Times, the Washington Post, New York Magazine, and Slate, Anya is the author of several books, including The Art of Screen Time: How Your Family Can Balance Digital Media and Real Life. With families physically distancing and staying inside, children are engaging in the digital world more and more. Anya talks with us about technology’s effect on social-emotional learning, how her research and reporting influence her own parenting style, and common challenges for young families. To learn more about Anya’s work, visit www.anyakamenetz.net.

In this mini-episode of Grow Kinder (at Home), Andrea and Mia discuss the importance of leaning into discomfort in conversations about race and centering the voices of the black, indigenous and POC communities. They also ask Grow Kinder listeners which experts they would like to hear from in upcoming episodes. Email suggestions to growkinder@cfchildren.org.