Iowa

What is School For?

Russ Goerend is a bold and generous leader who designs community-driven experiences for high school students exploring what’s next within the Waukee APEX work-based learning program. This is a powerful episode for educators, students, and parents! Inspired by Stop Stealing Dreams, Connect Dots, and How to get into a famous college with Seth Godin, together we ask, what is school for? This is a simple, but important question that has so many answers!

As we embark on 2024, how might we continue to blur lines between the classroom and community? What are more side doors we can open today, that accelerate those ready to build tomorrow? Enjoy!

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By Ben McDougal, ago

Lifelong Learning

Elizabeth Tweedale brings parents and students together by embracing lifelong learning. Since graduating from Loras College, she has (co)authored six books and exited an AI company called GoSpace. This award-winning technologist is now the CEO of Cypher Coders, which is an IRL coding camp for children, as well as, Coco Coders, an online coding school that has taught over 10,000 kids how to code!

It was cool to have this leader in education craft a caffeinated contribution called Playforce and as you’ll hear in this impactful episode, Elizabeth is passionate about family and remains dedicated to transforming how parents think about technology and the future of work. As Elizabeth closes by saying, “do your best, and let them say.”

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By Ben McDougal, ago

Safe Cāmpfires

Gabriel Glynn solves clues to keep team members protected. MākuSafe is making the world safer with hardware, data, and analytics. Imagine you’re sitting next to the campfire with Ben and Gabriel. Let the s’mores melt, as this heartfelt conversation is brewed to enjoy!

Together, we chat about Gabe growing up with his dad, who worked the 3rd shift and in safety management roles within manufacturing. Hear how this led to innovative ideas that now help manufacturers lead with proactive prevention. We also talk about gratitude, prototyping, raising $20M+, product-market fit, and cultivating a culture of significance while maintaining rocket ship growth.

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By Ben McDougal, ago

Professor X

Andre Wright is a genuine father, designer, visionary, activist, and community builder. He was inducted into the Junior Achievement Hall of Fame in 2021, with work featured at New York Fashion Week, and collaborations with Politico, NPR, Target, Atlantic Records, Warner Music Group, and Facebook.

Whether it’s Wright House, Humanize My Hoodie, or having dinner with Banksy, Andre has dedicated his life to the underrepresented. Listen as we jam on the hope for our youth, telling the story of a project to expand trust, and uniting a movement.

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By Ben McDougal, ago

Data Enablement

Ryan Gerhardy puts data to work. This friend from Australia started in investment banking and worked within venture capital before launching Pitchly. We unclip from our snowboards to chat about data enablement and leadership to scale a startup. As we discuss his team raising over $10M, Ryan outlines three stages investors look for: Potential, Promise, and Proven.

This episode is invaluable for intrapreneurs looking for productivity within big data, non-technical founders raising capital, and investors looking for fresh opportunities.

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By Ben McDougal, ago