podcast
details
.com
Print
Share
Look for any podcast host, guest or anyone
Search
Showing episodes and shows of
Eric Gurna
Shows
Please Speak Freely
Episode 42: Dorothy Jungels of Everett Stage Company School
When I met Dorothy Jungels, I knew immediately that I wanted to spend more time with her. As the co-founder and co-Artistic Director of Everett Company Stage School, Dorothy is part of an amazing “mom and pop” nonprofit community arts organization, along with many members of her family and extended family. This past year while my family and I were living in Providence, RI, my daughter Rosie had the good luck to take a Story Ballet class with Dorothy’s granddaughter Grace, I had the privilege to take an Improv class with Dorothy herself, and my wife Elia, as Executi...
2015-01-13
1h 05
Please Speak Freely
Episode 41: Dr. Nancy Rappaport, Child and Adolescent Psychiatrist!
For a long time, I have been concerned about how young children are given drugs like Ritalin and Adderal. So when I saw Nancy Rappaport‘s recent Washington Post article, “We Are Overmedicating America’s Poorest Kids,” it caught my eye. In this episode, I talk to Dr. Rappaport about many issues including the oversimplication of the headline that caught my eye. Mental health challenges in children are complex. In this article, and her book, The Behavior Code: A Practical Guide to Understanding and Teaching the Most Challenging Students, Dr. Rappaport explains many of the complexities and provi...
2014-07-17
55 min
Please Speak Freely
Episode 40: Carla Sanger of LA’s BEST Afterschool Enrichment Program
One of the great things about doing this podcast is that I get to meet awesome new people. The other great thing is that I get to sit down with some of my favorite people and talk to them for an hour or so, and this is one of those episodes. Carla Sanger, the President and CEO of LA’s BEST is definitely one of my favorite people, and also a very important mentor to me and many others. I’ve been wanting to interview her since Please Speak Freely started, and I finally got the chance! We talk...
2014-05-06
51 min
Please Speak Freely
Episode 39: A Memorial to theGreat Richard Murphy
This is a very special episode of Please Speak Freely, a memorial to the great Richard Murphy. Murphy was a friend and a mentor to me and countless others, and he passed away on Valentine’s Day, 2013. He was a true lion in the field of youth development. Among many other accomplishments, he founded Rheedlen Centers for Children and Families which became the Harlem Children’s Zone, created the Beacon Programs when he was Commissioner of Youth Services under Mayor David Dinkins, cofounded the Neighborhood Family Services Coalition, helped to create Food and Finance High School, and founded iMapVentures. I...
2014-04-08
28 min
Please Speak Freely
Episode 38: Jaime Casap, Google’s Global Education Evangelist
Thanks to support from the National AfterSchool Association (NAA), I got a chance to interview Jaime Casap at the 2014 NAA National Convention where he was the keynote speaker. Jaime is the Global Education Evangelist at Google, a company you may have heard of. In his role, he is responsible for working with schools and organizations to bring technology into the education environment. We had a lively conversation that covered Jaime’s experience growing up in the Hell’s Kitchen neighborhood in NYC, my terror at the thought of having my progress as a learner evaluated on a daily bas...
2014-03-11
41 min
Please Speak Freely
Episode 37: Baratunde Thurston, Comedian, Entrepreneur and Author of How to Be Black!
Baratunde Thurston is the CEO and co-founder of Cultivated Wit, a design, media, and technology company. I came across Baratunde’s book, How to Be Black, in a used bookstore last summer. It caught my eye because the title is so funny, and because I recognized his name, probably from his days as Director of Digital at The Onion, his column in Fast Company, or his more than 10 years as a standup comedian. His book is so engaging and has a really smart approach to discussing race, culture, class, and much more. When I heard him discussing his e...
2014-02-18
56 min
Please Speak Freely
Episode 36: Pasi Sahlberg, Author of Finnish Lessons and Visiting Professor at Harvard!
If you’ve been following the national or international news about education policy over the past few years, you’ve probably heard that Finland is a big educational success story. What’s amazing about the Finnish story is that the Finnish have basically done everything the opposite of the current education reform agenda in the United States. They’ve focused on equity over excellence, improving the teaching force, limiting student testing, putting responsibility and trust before accountability, and making sure schools and districts are led by education professionals. Pasi Sahlberg and I discussed all this, but also talked about...
2014-01-14
44 min
Please Speak Freely
Episode 35: Selma James, Activist and Founder of International Wages for Housework Campaign!
Selma James is a freedom fighter, fighting against racism, and fighting for human rights for all, especially women. She is best known for the International Wages for Housework Campaign, launched in 1972. She has continued her fierce activism all these years, and her most recent book, Sex, Race and Class, The Perspective of Winning, A Selection of Writings 1952-2011 (PM Press 2012) had a big impact on me personally. I was honored to be able to talk with Selma James for Please Speak Freely. The challenging part was that she is based in London, so we conducted the interview over S...
2013-12-20
38 min
Please Speak Freely
Episode 34: Jesse Hagopian, Teacher & Co-Organizer of Garfield High School Test Boycott
Last year, people across the country were inspired by the solidarity of the faculty, students, and parents at Garfield High School in Seattle, Washington. The teachers there were tired of being forced to give a test they didn’t believe in, and they decided to do something about it. They boycotted the test, and become the leading edge of a national movement to do away with high-stakes, standardized testing and move to more intelligent and human assessments of learning. Jesse Hagopian, the teachers’ union representative at the school, became one of the leaders of the boycott movement and...
2013-11-21
38 min
Please Speak Freely
Episode 33: Aaron Regunberg of the Providence Student Union
If you love zombies, you’re going to love this episode! I talked with Aaron Regunberg, Executive Director of the Providence Student Union (PSU). PSU became well known nationally last year when they led a zombie marchthrough the downtown of Providence, RI to call attention to the “zombification” of students that results from high-stakes testing and the narrowing of the curriculum. We also talked about the PSU’s other creative actions, including the day they asked “objectively successful” adults to take standardized tests for themselves. We discussed the huge praise the PSU has received from Diane Ravitch, the complexities...
2013-09-26
50 min
Please Speak Freely
Episode 32: Kevin Coval and Jamila Woods
Just in time for this week’s 16th Annual Brave New Voices International Youth Poetry Festival (held in…
2013-08-05
1h 08
Please Speak Freely
Episode 31: Midwest Afterschool Science Academy
We are pleased to present this special episode of Please Speak Freely, sponsored by Project Liftoff and recorded…
2013-06-05
46 min
Please Speak Freely
Episode 30: Kristin Wartman, Journalist & Author of NY Times Op-Ed, “Pay People to Cook At Home”
On May 10, 2013, I read an Op-Ed in the New York Times that really…
2013-05-17
38 min
Please Speak Freely
Episode 29: Marty Blank of Institute for Educational Leadership and Coalition for Community Schools
Almost fifty years go, the Institute for Educational Leadership was formed to bring together leaders from diverse…
2013-03-25
47 min
Please Speak Freely
Episode 28: Michelle Yanche of Good Shepherd Services
First, let me apologize for the extra long delay between episodes of Please Speak Freely! While…
2013-03-05
54 min
Please Speak Freely
Episode 27: Tony Smith, Superintendent of Oakland Unified School District
I sat down with Tony Smith, Superintendent of the Oakland Unified School District at the…
2012-12-12
54 min
Please Speak Freely
Episode 26: Empowering Youth Voice, Live From the Bridge Conference 2012
This episode was recorded live at the School’s Out Washington Bridge Conference in Seattle, WA on October…
2012-11-27
51 min
Please Speak Freely
Episode 25: Raffi, Children’s Troubadour and Founder of the Centre for Child Honouring
Children’s Troubadour Raffi is famous worldwide for his beautiful songs, including, “Baby Beluga,” “Bananaphone,” “Willoughby…
2012-10-31
40 min
Please Speak Freely
Episode 24: Lenore Skenazy, “America’s Worst Mom” and Author of Free-Range Kids
You may know Lenore Skenazy as the woman who let her nine-year old son ride…
2012-10-12
51 min
Please Speak Freely
Episode 23: Terry Peterson of the Afterschool and Community Learning Network
Many years ago when I was Director of Staff Development at LA’s BEST After School…
2012-09-27
34 min
Please Speak Freely
Episode 22: Jason Yoon and Sarah Meyer of New Urban Arts
One of my favorite youth programs in the country is New Urban Arts, based in…
2012-09-14
46 min
Please Speak Freely
Episode 21: Holly Delany Cole, Co-Director of Community Resource Exchange
It was a pleasure to sit down with Holly Delany Cole, Co-Director of Community Resource…
2012-08-21
47 min
Please Speak Freely
Episode 20: Jakada Imani, Executive Director of the Ella Baker Center for Human Rights
“I grew up as one of those kids who came from an ‘at risk’ background.…
2012-08-14
49 min
Please Speak Freely
Episode 18: Will Power, Performer, Playwright and Educator
“A lot of times you come into a place and you’re going to have an influence…
2012-06-19
54 min
Please Speak Freely
Episode 17: Jane Quinn, Children’s Aid Society
“We know from lots of research and from lots of experience that the work of…
2012-06-14
1h 03
Please Speak Freely
Episode 16: Afterschool for All Challenge 2012
This special episode was recorded live from the Afterschool Alliance’s Afterschool for All Challenge, held…
2012-06-03
57 min
Please Speak Freely
Episode 15: Marc Mannella, CEO of KIPP Philadelphia Schools
“We are trying to teach the kids that there is a way that KIPPsters act.…
2012-05-17
1h 10
Please Speak Freely
Episode 14: Jennifer Davis | National Center on Time and Learning
Jennifer Davis, Co-Founder and President of the National Center on Time and Learning, leads a…
2012-05-03
53 min
Please Speak Freely
Episode 13: Hanaa Arafat of the YWCA of the City of New York
Hanaa Arafat spearheaded an appeal effort that had a big statewide impact in New York,…
2012-04-07
53 min
Please Speak Freely
Episode 12: Brad Lupien, Co-Founder and Co-President of ARC
Brad Lupien, Co-Founder and Co-President of ARC (formerly Champions) has a million ideas for how to improve…
2012-03-14
51 min
Please Speak Freely
Episode 10: Michael Edwards
“I’m very worried that the move towards the business is best approach, right throughout society,…
2012-03-08
50 min
Please Speak Freely
Episode 11: The PASEsetter Awards Celebrates Afterschool
2012-03-07
55 min
Please Speak Freely
Episode 8: Crystal FitzSimons
This episode of Please Speak Freely is all about food. I sat down with Crystal FitzSimons of…
2012-01-26
50 min
Please Speak Freely
Episode 9: Alfie Kohn
Alfie Kohn is a busy man, and I had to be pretty pushy to get him…
2012-01-26
55 min
Please Speak Freely
Episode 8: Blog – Let’s Focus on Healthy Food Solutions
By Rhys Powell, Founder & President, RedRabbit When I listen to these types of interviews, I cannot help…
2012-01-26
50 min
Please Speak Freely
Episode 7: Rich Berlin
As a youth development organization, Rich Berlin and his team did an audacious thing – they started…
2011-12-12
50 min
Please Speak Freely
Episode 6: Dr. Paul Heckman
I’ve known Dr. Paul Heckman, Associate Dean at the University of California School of Education for a long…
2011-09-06
1h 01
Please Speak Freely
Episode 5: Live from the Bridge Conference in Seattle, WA with Zach Wilson and Others
This is a special episode of Please Speak Freely, recorded live at the Bridge from School…
2011-07-02
37 min
Please Speak Freely
Episode 4: Karen Pittman
I got to sit down with Karen Pittman, President and CEO of the Forum for Youth Investment and…
2011-07-01
1h 10
Please Speak Freely
Episode 3: Dr. Pedro Noguera
I was pleased to speak with Dr. Pedro Noguera of New York University, who has been a leader…
2011-06-14
42 min
Please Speak Freely
Episode 2: Earl Martin Phalen
In this episode, I had a chance to talk with Earl Martin Phalen, who founded BELL andSummer Advantage and…
2011-06-10
1h 04
Please Speak Freely
Episode 1: Alexis Menten
In our premier episode, I had a very interesting conversation with Alexis Menten, Assistant Director…
2011-06-03
59 min