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Community DC Gaby Jordan Human Better EDU FInal for 7.19.26 · Community D.C.

• 0:04
  Speaker 1: Good morning, and welcome to another edition of Community DC.
• 0:06
  Speaker 1: I'm your host Dennis Glasgow. This morning, we welcome to
• 0:08
  Speaker 1: the program for the first time Gaby Jordan. She is
• 0:11
  Speaker 1: the founder and president for Human Better Edu while headquartered
• 0:14
  Speaker 1: in New York City. We'll also have a chance to
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  Speaker 1: speak with DC leadership Casey Seidenberg, who is an executive
• 0:20
  Speaker 1: coach and program leader here in the DMV. For those
• 0:23
  Speaker 1: who don't know, Human Better Edu partners with K twelve
• 0:26
  Speaker 1: schools to provide expert coaching and custom classes. They use
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  Speaker 1: life design frameworks to help students and staff build important,
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  Speaker 1: real world skills to overcome everyday challenges and strengthen their
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  Speaker 1: school community. Here's my conversation with both Gaby and Casey.
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  Speaker 1: I hope you enjoyed as much as I did. Good morning, Gaby,
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  Speaker 1: Good morning Dennis. It is great to have you on
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  Speaker 1: Community DC for the first time. It is such a pleasure.
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  Speaker 1: I'm glad we found each other and after going over
• 0:52
  Speaker 1: the website and then talking to you a little bit
• 0:54
  Speaker 1: before this interview finding out what you do. I love
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  Speaker 1: to talk to educators that help and there's so many
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  Speaker 1: holes in our industry now that you can talk about.
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  Speaker 1: Before I do anything about your programs and the cool
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  Speaker 1: things do you do with Human Better DU I'd love
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  Speaker 1: to find out the start, the origin story about this
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  Speaker 1: incredible nonprofit and why you came up with it. It
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  Speaker 1: really is such a cool and mean idea. It seems simple.
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  Speaker 1: I'm sure it's not behind the scenes, but what was
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  Speaker 1: the impetus about you starting this?
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  Speaker 2: Well, let's just say, first of all, my background is
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  Speaker 2: I'm a lawyer. I practiced law for fifteen years. I
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  Speaker 2: was a commercial civil litigator in mid ten Manhattan. I
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  Speaker 2: live in New York City and I've been doing this
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  Speaker 2: work with schools students since two thousand and six. And
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  Speaker 2: in two thousand and six, I was the head of
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  Speaker 2: an education division for a consulting company. And the consulting
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  Speaker 2: company there we believed in the importance of education, and
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  Speaker 2: ultimately we created the nonprofit Human Better Edu because I
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  Speaker 2: wanted to create more access. I wanted people, you know.
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  Speaker 2: So we started at MIT in two thousand and six
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  Speaker 2: teaching of course called Designing Your Life. And then I
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  Speaker 2: went to NYU. I created Empowering Women in Science, which
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  Speaker 2: was women men, undergrads, grads, faculty, staff, the whole, and
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  Speaker 2: then Stanford Business School and Stanford Med School, all of that,
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  Speaker 2: and so over the years we've been at eighty different
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  Speaker 2: schools around the world and it's always been the case that, yes,
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  Speaker 2: we wanted the institutions, which are elite institutions, to benefit
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  Speaker 2: from this, but we also want this to be available
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  Speaker 2: to everyone. We have a mission of reaching a million people, right,
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  Speaker 2: We got a little bit to go, but that's what
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  Speaker 2: the mission was. And so making it a nonprofit, which
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  Speaker 2: sometimes is also people will connect more to education if
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  Speaker 2: they think it's a nonprofit was one of the ways
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  Speaker 2: in which to be able to expand what we do,
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  Speaker 2: and so that was the impetus about five years ago.
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  Speaker 2: Well let's do this.
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  Speaker 1: I'd love for everybody that is being introduced to Human
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  Speaker 1: Better Edu just to find out exactly what you do.
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  Speaker 1: So if you were to give a thirty thousand foot
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  Speaker 1: view and tell people, hey, this is exactly who we
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  Speaker 1: are and what will we do, what would you tell them?
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  Speaker 2: We are a nonprofit that serves students, and what we
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  Speaker 2: like to say is we serve students and the ecosystems
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  Speaker 2: that support them with the tools they need to bring agency,
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  Speaker 2: build healthy connections, and cultivate resilience. And we really have
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  Speaker 2: people create their lives or design their lives or architect
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  Speaker 2: their lives in a way that they choose. And we
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  Speaker 2: really do believe that students are the future of our world.
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  Speaker 2: But just as when I do and I do work
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  Speaker 2: in companies globally, just as we believe that you can't
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  Speaker 2: just work with the people who are on the ground
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  Speaker 2: and even the executives that you need to work with leadership,
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  Speaker 2: we also think that you need to work with people
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  Speaker 2: who are parents, educators, administrators, because it's the ecosystems that
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  Speaker 2: support students that enable them to thrive that can make
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  Speaker 2: a difference. And that's why we do work not just
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  Speaker 2: with students, but in all of the arenas that support
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  Speaker 2: students outstanding.
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  Speaker 1: Now, what I'd like to do is, I've got four
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  Speaker 1: different buckets that i want to talk about, and I
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  Speaker 1: know that you can expound on each one a little bit,
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  Speaker 1: just to give people some more context. Exactly as we
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  Speaker 1: dig deeper into what you do and what you offer.
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  Speaker 1: There is life design. There is supporting students, training educators,
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  Speaker 1: and connecting families. Tell me a little bit about life design.
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  Speaker 2: Well, the intention there is that you can actually create
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  Speaker 2: the life you want so each of us in our
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  Speaker 2: lives have at some point created something that we either
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  Speaker 2: didn't think we could do, we didn't know how we
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  Speaker 2: were going to do it, but we were committed. And
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  Speaker 2: so in that context, you really were the architect the
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  Speaker 2: creator of making something happen. So what aeposit relative to
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  Speaker 2: life design is you really can design the life that
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  Speaker 2: you want. It's a question of recognizing your own agency
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  Speaker 2: and recognizing what you want to create, what gets in
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  Speaker 2: your way, and then what there is to do about
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  Speaker 2: it in order to make it happen. And so the
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  Speaker 2: life design programming has to do with making that all happen.
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  Speaker 1: Support students. They're all great categories and they mean a
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  Speaker 1: lot to me, but this one really got my attention
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  Speaker 1: because when it comes to helping middle and high school
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  Speaker 1: students build confidence and strong life skills, we're talking about
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  Speaker 1: the human condition. We all know if we've been in
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  Speaker 1: middle school in high school, it's not easy. It's a
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  Speaker 1: real rough out there. It doesn't matter what era you
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  Speaker 1: came from. I'm Generation X and it was hard on me,
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  Speaker 1: and I know it was hard on my daughter who's
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  Speaker 1: now twenty four. What that said, I'd love that you
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  Speaker 1: offer this tell me a little bit about supporting students.
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  Speaker 2: Absolutely, So, you're right, it is not easy at any age.
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  Speaker 2: And by the way, that is a human phenomena. It
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  Speaker 2: is you know, and each of the generations goes through
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  Speaker 2: their own struggles. But it's also part of evolution, it's
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  Speaker 2: also part of growing up. And so our intention is
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  Speaker 2: really to give students the tools to be able to
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  Speaker 2: live more effectively. So why we how we support students
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  Speaker 2: is by having them recognized, first of all, you're not alone.
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  Speaker 2: That when we work with students in a group, they
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  Speaker 2: get to see that other people have some similar challenges.
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  Speaker 2: They get to see that there are tools in order
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  Speaker 2: to effectuate creating the world that they want to live in.
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  Speaker 2: And by giving them these tools, we elevate their chances
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  Speaker 2: for really creating what they want. And so we do
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  Speaker 2: that on an individual level, but also on a community level.
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  Speaker 2: So when we're working with students in a classroom, what
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  Speaker 2: winds up happening is they lean on the community, They
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  Speaker 2: get supported by community, They challenge the community to really
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  Speaker 2: create effective human beings for themselves and others not standing.
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  Speaker 1: I just love that you tackle that. That's just wonderful.
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  Speaker 1: Tell me about training educators.
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  Speaker 2: Well, one of the reasons that it makes it so
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  Speaker 2: important in our estimation to train educators is because educators
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  Speaker 2: are training the students and there are the academic training
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  Speaker 2: and then there's also pastoral life. And if the educators
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  Speaker 2: themselves don't feel empowered, it's difficult for them to be
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  Speaker 2: able to impart that to students. And so it is important.
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  Speaker 2: You know, educators, teachers, faculty, administrators all very important to
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  Speaker 2: the success of a student, and therefore we want to
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  Speaker 2: train them so that they have the experience so they
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  Speaker 2: can speak to and speak the same language as the
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  Speaker 2: students they're trying to train. And so, for example, there
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  Speaker 2: was one brilliant superintendent in Montana who contacted us and said,
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  Speaker 2: not only do I want to work with the students,
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  Speaker 2: but I went all of the staff. It was a
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  Speaker 2: small school, but all of the staff and the teachers
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  Speaker 2: to go through this because I want the teachers to
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  Speaker 2: have this experience. I want them to know and be
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  Speaker 2: empowered in their lives so that they can also community
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  Speaker 2: kate in that way and support the kids even though
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  Speaker 2: they weren't teaching the class with our content, but at
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  Speaker 2: least they would understand it. And so that's an example
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  Speaker 2: of having the adults who are supporting students actually be
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  Speaker 2: effective in their own.
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  Speaker 1: Lives, outstanding and finally connecting families. It's a big one
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  Speaker 1: tell us about that.
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  Speaker 2: So similarly to the educators, it's also important for parents
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  Speaker 2: to feel that they have agency. And you know, the
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  Speaker 2: kids look up to the parents, and that doesn't mean
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  Speaker 2: being a superstar, that doesn't mean being a hero. That
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  Speaker 2: means being a human being. And so when parents actually
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  Speaker 2: do this work and then can support their kids in
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  Speaker 2: their evolution, kids get to see their parents as a
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  Speaker 2: human being. Parents get empowered, they start to see where
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  Speaker 2: they can be more effective in their lives so that
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  Speaker 2: they can also then support their students in that. So
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  Speaker 2: they get to not just be be on a pedestal,
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  Speaker 2: if you will, And so being able to have their
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  Speaker 2: humanity and impart that to students supports the students in
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  Speaker 2: their evolution. They get to see their parents are human beings, right,
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  Speaker 2: And so there's a beautiful synergy that works when kids
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  Speaker 2: and parents are both involved.
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  Speaker 1: In this conversation, I want to pivot over to your
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  Speaker 1: team and we're specifically going to talk to one member
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  Speaker 1: who's a program leader and executive life coach in the
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  Speaker 1: DMV is Casey. We're going to chat with her about
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  Speaker 1: what she does here locally. But I know you're proud
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  Speaker 1: of all your teammates, but we're going to spotlight her.
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  Speaker 1: Tell me a little bit about Casey before we chat
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  Speaker 1: with her.
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  Speaker 2: Well, I am so fortunate that Casey is part of
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  Speaker 2: our team. I could just cry. You know, we've worked
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  Speaker 2: together for a number of years, even before the nonprofit,
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  Speaker 2: and she has got an incredible heart, and I and
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  Speaker 2: the dm frankly is fortunate that she is in the
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  Speaker 2: area and could do things in person. Yes, we do
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  Speaker 2: things remotely as well, but she's been able to support
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  Speaker 2: students and educators as they are evolving their life and
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  Speaker 2: so she herself, you know, as a parent. She actually
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  Speaker 2: came to coaching because she was dealing with a challenge
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  Speaker 2: to situation with a couple of her kids, and then
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  Speaker 2: she was empowered of that God. It's so inspired that
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  Speaker 2: she decided to become a coach. So she's been around
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  Speaker 2: the work that we've done for many years and brings
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  Speaker 2: a particular flavor to it. I love the story of
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  Speaker 2: her working with a group of girls, which was initially
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  Speaker 2: intended to be for a six week period, but people
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  Speaker 2: kept wanting more and more and more, and then it
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  Speaker 2: became three years that she worked with them, and that
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  Speaker 2: is a tribute to both who she is and the
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  Speaker 2: community that she created around.
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  Speaker 1: I love that and I love her passion that you're
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  Speaker 1: speaking of when we're in talk to you right now.
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  Speaker 1: Here's my conversation with Casey.
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  Speaker 3: Good morning, Casey, Good morning, Dennis. It's great to.
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  Speaker 1: Talk to you. Can you give us an overview, because
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  Speaker 1: I know you've been doing this for about five six years, oough,
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  Speaker 1: Can you give us an overview about exactly what you do.
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  Speaker 3: Yeah, it's a great question.
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  Speaker 4: So at our core, Human Better as a nonprofit, our
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  Speaker 4: mission is to equip students and then all of the
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  Speaker 4: adults around them, so parents, administrators, educators, with the tools
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  Speaker 4: to build what we call personal agency, so really that
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  Speaker 4: feeling that you can take charge of your life, healthy relationships,
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  Speaker 4: and resilience. And so we always say that one of
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  Speaker 4: the definitions of mental health for these kids is having
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  Speaker 4: the tools to deal with whatever is handed to you.
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  Speaker 4: And so what we do is teach those tools. And
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  Speaker 4: so we have an actual curriculum that we go into
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  Speaker 4: actually starting at kindergarten all the way through college and
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  Speaker 4: postgrad and the curriculum is actually the same for all
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  Speaker 4: the grade levels, just adjusted a little with language for
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  Speaker 4: kindergarteners versus fifth grader versus high schools. But we go
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  Speaker 4: in and we coach students of all ages, teach them
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  Speaker 4: those tools, and then also work with the adults around them.
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  Speaker 1: When you get to talk to parents and the children
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  Speaker 1: and the educators and do your research, I imagine there's
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  Speaker 1: a lot of fluidity that goes on with your curriculum
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  Speaker 1: because one size doesn't fit all. I think we can
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  Speaker 1: agree with that. So how does that work when it
• 12:20
  Speaker 1: comes to your programs that you offer and staying up
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  Speaker 1: with the times?
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  Speaker 4: So are fundamental The core of our program is actually
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  Speaker 4: what we call the core Human Behavior.
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  Speaker 3: Model, and it's based on a lot.
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  Speaker 4: Of psychology and CBT and all kinds of other things,
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  Speaker 4: but it's really our magic of blending all of those
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  Speaker 4: and that doesn't change. So that doesn't change if we're
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  Speaker 4: working with a CEO or a dean of students a
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  Speaker 4: university or a kindergartener. And what it is is it
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  Speaker 4: helps anybody understand the architecture of who they are. So
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  Speaker 4: what's actually driving their thoughts, their feelings, their actions, their results.
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  Speaker 4: And so once a kid understands that or an adult
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  Speaker 4: understands that, they can still kind of reacting to life
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  Speaker 4: and start designing it from a place of the driver's seat.
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  Speaker 3: And so that is really the core of what we do.
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  Speaker 4: And again it's called a core human behavior model, so
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  Speaker 4: that doesn't change. But yes, have we adjusted curriculum as
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  Speaker 4: social media has taken over and they're different challenges for
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  Speaker 4: different age groups. Or we actually did a lot surrounding.
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  Speaker 3: COVID when that happened.
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  Speaker 4: So yes, we adjust things, but the core of what
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  Speaker 4: we do is actually through this model of understanding how
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  Speaker 4: we defaultly behave as humans.
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  Speaker 1: I like to follow up on that when it comes
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  Speaker 1: to the parents and the children and the educators, how
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  Speaker 1: do you get the feedback and what do you do
• 13:39
  Speaker 1: with it.
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  Speaker 4: So at this point, we've reached over twelve thousand participants
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  Speaker 4: as a nonprofit. We've been in twenty states, five countries.
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  Speaker 4: I think we've trained about nineteen hundred educators in our
• 13:51
  Speaker 4: asset based social emotional curriculum, and so we have had
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  Speaker 4: a lot of people fill out our surveys and so
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  Speaker 4: we do a pre survey before every program, whether we're
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  Speaker 4: coaching parents or kindergarteners, and we do a post survey
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  Speaker 4: and what we see is one hundred percent of our
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  Speaker 4: participants show some increase in enhance mental well being. So
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  Speaker 4: you know, whether that's stronger relationships, a real sense of belonging,
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  Speaker 4: more agency in their lives, a better understanding of how
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  Speaker 4: they exist.
• 14:22
  Speaker 3: In the world, and how they react.
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  Speaker 4: We are getting in, We are getting survey results in
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  Speaker 4: the moment, and so we do react from those. We
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  Speaker 4: also have questions about our curriculum and what it felt
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  Speaker 4: like and our teachers and you know, how they felt
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  Speaker 4: the class gelled and whatnot, and so we are always adjusting.
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  Speaker 1: Is there something that kind of touched you, whether it
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  Speaker 1: was with a child, an educator, a family, or something
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  Speaker 1: that you guys really made a difference and you said,
• 14:47
  Speaker 1: you know what, we're doing some good work here today.
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  Speaker 1: This is why we get up every day. Can you
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  Speaker 1: maybe share one story with.
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  Speaker 4: Us in COVID, I actually taught on Zoom to a
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  Speaker 4: high school class. They were freshmen in high school in
• 14:58
  Speaker 4: rural Pennsylvania, and there was a boy who was very quiet.
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  Speaker 4: The first couple classes, he didn't say anything, and we
• 15:05
  Speaker 4: were talking maybe on the fourth class about our beliefs
• 15:08
  Speaker 4: and how our beliefs about ourselves can really drive how
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  Speaker 4: we behave in the world. And he spoke up for
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  Speaker 4: the first time and he said, I believe that I'm
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  Speaker 4: going to be just like my father who's in jail.
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  Speaker 3: And I said, why do you believe that?
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  Speaker 2: Word?
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  Speaker 4: Do you think that came from? And he said, because
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  Speaker 4: my mother tells me that all the time. And we
• 15:25
  Speaker 4: broke that down and he started to collect evidence throughout
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  Speaker 4: the rest of our course, which was semester long, as
• 15:32
  Speaker 4: to why he is not his father and how, and
• 15:35
  Speaker 4: he made promises that he was going to follow through
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  Speaker 4: on a weekly basis of taking actions that were not
• 15:42
  Speaker 4: like his father, but actually the way that the human
• 15:44
  Speaker 4: that he wanted to be.
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  Speaker 3: In the world.
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  Speaker 4: And he took those actions week after week, and by
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  Speaker 4: the end of the semester, he had busted holes in
• 15:50
  Speaker 4: that belief and he didn't believe it anymore.
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  Speaker 1: That's huge, that's huge.
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  Speaker 2: It was huge.
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  Speaker 3: It was huge.
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  Speaker 4: This was years ago and it still kind of brings
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  Speaker 4: me to tears.
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  Speaker 1: Yeah, did you have one more story you said you
• 16:01
  Speaker 1: wanted to share?
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  Speaker 4: Yeah, yeah, I did so over a three year period,
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  Speaker 4: I coached about twenty middle school girls in the DMV
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  Speaker 4: and we were in person every Thursday. They were in
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  Speaker 4: five different friend groups, very different groups of girls, and
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  Speaker 4: they came in, you know, a little bit closed minded,
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  Speaker 4: not sure who they were, a little judgmental or skeptical
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  Speaker 4: of everybody in the room, not sure how this was
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  Speaker 4: going to work. And through the course of three years
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  Speaker 4: they got so vulnerable. So honest, we dealt with how
• 16:37
  Speaker 4: to handle friendships, how to have hard conversations, how to
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  Speaker 4: bounce back from a bad grade, what if you get,
• 16:43
  Speaker 4: you know, hurt by someone, how do you communicate, how
• 16:46
  Speaker 4: do you go after your dreams? All of these things,
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  Speaker 4: and at the end, they all decided that they could
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  Speaker 4: walk into their school and they could go sit at
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  Speaker 4: any lunch table and any one of those young women
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  Speaker 4: would welcome them. And to me, that just it just
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  Speaker 4: embodies the community that we're trying to create. So our
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  Speaker 4: classes are not just teaching those skills, but everyone who's
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  Speaker 4: in a class is getting vulnerable about their inner dialogue
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  Speaker 4: and their interfears, and that creates a unity in a
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  Speaker 4: classroom and a belonging that I think.
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  Speaker 3: Is hard to create. It with a lot of social
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  Speaker 3: emotional curriculum.
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  Speaker 2: But we're able to do that.
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  Speaker 1: Yeah, I'm glad you shared that. I have a twenty
• 17:23
  Speaker 1: four year old daughter, so that means I went through
• 17:25
  Speaker 1: social media. What it's like to have a young woman
• 17:28
  Speaker 1: and go through today's climate. It's hard enough as it
• 17:31
  Speaker 1: is just to be a normal human being out there,
• 17:33
  Speaker 1: but when you add female social media, the dynamics of
• 17:36
  Speaker 1: young women and everything else. Not that it's not hard
• 17:39
  Speaker 1: for boys out there, but that's what I lived, and
• 17:42
  Speaker 1: that you gained their trust in that situation and handed
• 17:45
  Speaker 1: down life lessons fulfilling for you and your team.
• 17:48
  Speaker 4: We touched on everything from body image because that's a
• 17:51
  Speaker 4: big thing with social emails media right now, to friendships,
• 17:55
  Speaker 4: to academics, to our communication and relationships. So it is
• 17:58
  Speaker 4: it's very meaningful.
• 18:00
  Speaker 3: I love this work so.
• 18:00
  Speaker 1: Much, Danny Well, Casey, thanks for joining us a little
• 18:03
  Speaker 1: bit on community DC continue success. I really appreciate your
• 18:06
  Speaker 1: valuable time.
• 18:06
  Speaker 3: Thank you so much, Dennis Gabe, it.
• 18:08
  Speaker 1: Was really wonderful to talk to Casey. I mean, you
• 18:12
  Speaker 1: build it up. She's passionate, she knows what she's doing,
• 18:15
  Speaker 1: she loves what she's doing, and it really is truly incredible.
• 18:18
  Speaker 1: Can you tell me a little bit. I know there's
• 18:19
  Speaker 1: other people on your team, and maybe we can't spilight everybody.
• 18:22
  Speaker 1: But it's a small team, but it's a powerhouse team.
• 18:25
  Speaker 1: They really know what they're doing. Life coaches, they're instructors.
• 18:28
  Speaker 1: Can you tell us a little bit about the rest
• 18:30
  Speaker 1: of the team if he can, it's for a few moments.
• 18:32
  Speaker 2: Sure, Sure, you know. One of the things I will
• 18:35
  Speaker 2: say is that it's a small but mighty team, but
• 18:40
  Speaker 2: everybody brings a passion to it, and everybody brings a
• 18:44
  Speaker 2: commitment to education. And then one of the things I
• 18:46
  Speaker 2: will also say, similar to me, similar to Casey, similar
• 18:50
  Speaker 2: to others on the team, we work in both the
• 18:53
  Speaker 2: corporate world and the education world. And why I think
• 18:57
  Speaker 2: that is useful is because when you're in the education world,
• 19:02
  Speaker 2: it makes it's powerful for students and educators to know
• 19:07
  Speaker 2: this isn't just something in academics, This isn't just something
• 19:10
  Speaker 2: that happens in universities or schools. We use this very
• 19:14
  Speaker 2: same frame this very same frameworks in the corporate world.
• 19:19
  Speaker 2: So it's used in businesses to have businesses be effective
• 19:22
  Speaker 2: and powerful in the way that they work and the
• 19:24
  Speaker 2: communities they create, and so One of the things about
• 19:28
  Speaker 2: many of our coaches is that we work in both worlds,
• 19:31
  Speaker 2: and then likewise, in the business world, it's useful to
• 19:35
  Speaker 2: know that this is something which is actually taught in
• 19:38
  Speaker 2: academic institutions, so as there is a symbiosis, if you will,
• 19:43
  Speaker 2: in the two different worlds. And then a number of
• 19:46
  Speaker 2: my team work in both of those worlds, and so
• 19:49
  Speaker 2: they have that perspective, so they have the real life
• 19:51
  Speaker 2: experience and they have the experience of academia. And then
• 19:56
  Speaker 2: we have a couple of people in the DMV who
• 19:58
  Speaker 2: are currently in training, one of whom is a lawyer
• 20:01
  Speaker 2: and she's also teaches at you know, at a law school,
• 20:06
  Speaker 2: so there is that dimension that she brings. And then
• 20:10
  Speaker 2: people come from all different walks of life. We have educators,
• 20:13
  Speaker 2: we have people who've been in the jewelry business. We've
• 20:15
  Speaker 2: have people who have been in marketing, and so one
• 20:18
  Speaker 2: of the really valuable things about that is they bring
• 20:21
  Speaker 2: that experience to the work that they do with individuals
• 20:25
  Speaker 2: and groups and teams.
• 20:26
  Speaker 1: You know, I love that you do that, and if
• 20:29
  Speaker 1: I could intimate to what you're saying, kind of read
• 20:31
  Speaker 1: between the lines. And I've always been a big proponent
• 20:33
  Speaker 1: of this, especially in my industry. You know, I could
• 20:36
  Speaker 1: hire a radio person to do a radio job, but
• 20:39
  Speaker 1: sometimes when you hire somebody outside of your industry with
• 20:42
  Speaker 1: a fresh set of eyes from a different point of view,
• 20:45
  Speaker 1: it's actually pretty helpful. And I imagine you live that
• 20:47
  Speaker 1: every day with all the different types of people that
• 20:49
  Speaker 1: you have on your staff.
• 20:50
  Speaker 2: Absolutely, and the thing, you know, the thing about coaching
• 20:55
  Speaker 2: is you need to be open, and so we've been
• 20:57
  Speaker 2: developing our frameworks for a number of you and come
• 21:01
  Speaker 2: from various different perspectives, all which illuminate what we're doing.
• 21:05
  Speaker 2: And to that end, it also makes sense that people
• 21:08
  Speaker 2: have those different experiences which they bring to the work
• 21:11
  Speaker 2: that they're doing with students.
• 21:12
  Speaker 1: Yeah, agreed. And this is a great segue because on
• 21:15
  Speaker 1: your website it's featured very nicely how to become a coach?
• 21:18
  Speaker 1: Can you go into that a little bit more?
• 21:20
  Speaker 2: Sure? We have a training program where people who get
• 21:24
  Speaker 2: inspired by the work we do, either want to make
• 21:26
  Speaker 2: a difference in education or don't even know quite what
• 21:30
  Speaker 2: they're ultimately intending to do but want to elevate their
• 21:33
  Speaker 2: own life, they can actually participate and get trained and
• 21:37
  Speaker 2: be certified as a human Better Edu coach, and so
• 21:40
  Speaker 2: we have a process where we have a trainer, there's
• 21:43
  Speaker 2: group calls, there's individual one on one coaching that happens
• 21:49
  Speaker 2: for them. But the thing about why it's so great
• 21:52
  Speaker 2: and why people love the training program is it's not
• 21:55
  Speaker 2: just about learning to deliver something. It's about really elevating
• 22:00
  Speaker 2: your own life. We really do believe in walking the talk,
• 22:04
  Speaker 2: and so people come into the training program and whether
• 22:07
  Speaker 2: or not they wind up teaching, they wind up being
• 22:10
  Speaker 2: in such a different place when they begin than when
• 22:13
  Speaker 2: they complete, because they have actually applied the frameworks to
• 22:17
  Speaker 2: their own life so they can really live the life
• 22:20
  Speaker 2: they want to be living.
• 22:22
  Speaker 1: I want to talk a little bit about donations and
• 22:24
  Speaker 1: being a part of Human Better Edu, because that's a
• 22:27
  Speaker 1: big part. When you're nonprofit, you need money and to
• 22:29
  Speaker 1: keep it going. Are you how are you funded?
• 22:33
  Speaker 2: We are funded both. We do both fee for services work,
• 22:36
  Speaker 2: but we also do work we apply for we get grants.
• 22:39
  Speaker 2: We also have individual donations and we've been very lucky.
• 22:43
  Speaker 2: You know, one of our main donors is from Microsoft
• 22:46
  Speaker 2: and has been incredibly generous. And then as a result
• 22:50
  Speaker 2: of that, and there may be other of your listeners
• 22:52
  Speaker 2: who are there who wind up donating and then their
• 22:55
  Speaker 2: companies have matching funds, and it makes a tremendous difference,
• 22:58
  Speaker 2: because you know, we are a small all nonprofit and
• 23:01
  Speaker 2: we do need funds in order to continue to run
• 23:03
  Speaker 2: and do the good work that we're doing.
• 23:05
  Speaker 1: One of the nice things that you do is that,
• 23:07
  Speaker 1: of course you can make a one time donation. We'll
• 23:09
  Speaker 1: give the website at the end of this interview, but
• 23:11
  Speaker 1: you can also sponsor a K twelve classroom two and
• 23:16
  Speaker 1: the dream Builders and everything. I love that you have
• 23:18
  Speaker 1: all these different kind of buckets, say you can put
• 23:20
  Speaker 1: your money into two different things. I think it's pretty cool.
• 23:23
  Speaker 2: Thank you so much. We do too well.
• 23:26
  Speaker 1: Listen, I want to talk about the state of education.
• 23:29
  Speaker 1: Education has been in the news the last year and
• 23:31
  Speaker 1: a half, obviously for better or worse. With that said,
• 23:35
  Speaker 1: you're doing your work, you're independent about whatever else is
• 23:38
  Speaker 1: going on out there. But I want to ask you
• 23:39
  Speaker 1: about the state of education, of working with the educators
• 23:43
  Speaker 1: and the parents and the kids out there, and also
• 23:46
  Speaker 1: not what's happening today, but also because I know you're
• 23:48
  Speaker 1: looking down the road too, about how the state of
• 23:50
  Speaker 1: education is doing right now and what you see happening
• 23:52
  Speaker 1: down the road for its specifically what you and your
• 23:54
  Speaker 1: team do.
• 23:55
  Speaker 2: One of the things that is important to us is
• 23:59
  Speaker 2: that we equip people with skills. Those skills build resilience,
• 24:05
  Speaker 2: those skills build the opportunity for connection. They are far
• 24:09
  Speaker 2: beyond what happens in academia. Academia has its place, but
• 24:14
  Speaker 2: the state of education is changing. People come and there's
• 24:19
  Speaker 2: in some instances declining enrollment in colleges. You're not going
• 24:23
  Speaker 2: to decline in being a human being unless you don't
• 24:26
  Speaker 2: exist anymore. So it's something that we think is critically
• 24:30
  Speaker 2: important to be able to have these skills to navigate
• 24:34
  Speaker 2: the challenges which arise. Now there's a lot of education
• 24:37
  Speaker 2: that's been defunded. There's there a challenges for teachers. I
• 24:43
  Speaker 2: do think that teachers aren't sufficiently appreciated for the work
• 24:46
  Speaker 2: they do. My God, during COVID that it was teachers
• 24:51
  Speaker 2: were on the front lines. It's not like kids stop growing,
• 24:55
  Speaker 2: Oh no, they didn't. But then teachers had to deal
• 24:58
  Speaker 2: with challenges that they had had before. And actually during COVID,
• 25:02
  Speaker 2: we actually created an educator cohort where we had a
• 25:08
  Speaker 2: six week program where we had educators from all over
• 25:11
  Speaker 2: the country come together and get supported through our programming.
• 25:15
  Speaker 2: And we did this as a free program because we
• 25:18
  Speaker 2: wanted educators to be supported, and they were so appreciative
• 25:24
  Speaker 2: of the opportunity have a place where they could talk
• 25:28
  Speaker 2: about their own concerns, where they could dream, where they could,
• 25:32
  Speaker 2: you know, dump their negative inner dialog. Right by the way,
• 25:36
  Speaker 2: we all have negative inner dialogue. We do. It doesn't
• 25:39
  Speaker 2: mean anything with their studies that show that eighty percent
• 25:42
  Speaker 2: of our thinking is negative. Okay, So it's not it's
• 25:45
  Speaker 2: not no one should worry because they have a lot
• 25:48
  Speaker 2: of negative inner dialogue. Everybody's saved, absolutely, yes, okay. And
• 25:52
  Speaker 2: so then the importance is what do you do with that?
• 25:55
  Speaker 2: And so, as I said, this work that we're doing
• 25:59
  Speaker 2: is abouticular skills and educators we, as I said, were
• 26:03
  Speaker 2: being introduced to that. There's a very funny story, Sorr.
• 26:06
  Speaker 2: I digress a little bit, but we were working with
• 26:10
  Speaker 2: the group of educators and then what she happened to
• 26:13
  Speaker 2: have been a friend of mine, but she was in
• 26:15
  Speaker 2: the Midwest. Her daughter overheard the work that she was
• 26:18
  Speaker 2: doing on negative inner dialogue in the class. She wasn't
• 26:22
  Speaker 2: even in the room. She could just hear the conversation
• 26:25
  Speaker 2: and she was in sixth grade and she came and
• 26:27
  Speaker 2: she said, I want to have that in my school.
• 26:30
  Speaker 2: And as a result of that, we wound up teaching fourth, fifth, seventh,
• 26:35
  Speaker 2: and eighth graders in her school because this little girl
• 26:39
  Speaker 2: heard what her mother was engaged in and then wanted
• 26:42
  Speaker 2: to bring it to her school. So that's the type
• 26:45
  Speaker 2: of work that is. There's so many stories about the
• 26:49
  Speaker 2: levels of inspiration. I mean, there was a six year
• 26:53
  Speaker 2: old who where we were working individually, and this was
• 26:55
  Speaker 2: when we were doing younger kids as well, and she
• 26:58
  Speaker 2: came to her parents and she said, Okay, this is
• 27:02
  Speaker 2: my book. You know, I want to watch TV as
• 27:03
  Speaker 2: much as I want. She said, that's my tantrum toddler voice,
• 27:07
  Speaker 2: and I think this is your mouth voice. Her parents
• 27:11
  Speaker 2: are like, oh my god, we've created a monster. But
• 27:13
  Speaker 2: the point is this type of education there's a need
• 27:17
  Speaker 2: for it, and there's a need for it prospectively for
• 27:20
  Speaker 2: people to deal with all of the challenges they have
• 27:22
  Speaker 2: coming up no matter where we are in the world,
• 27:25
  Speaker 2: and the new form that education takes.
• 27:28
  Speaker 1: Agreed and well said, and as a parent of now
• 27:31
  Speaker 1: a twenty four year old, I can guarantee everybody out there.
• 27:34
  Speaker 1: If your kid is young and they can hear you
• 27:38
  Speaker 1: and they watch you, they do it all the time, folks,
• 27:40
  Speaker 1: So you got to you got to be on as
• 27:42
  Speaker 1: a parent all the time. I do want to do this, Gaby.
• 27:44
  Speaker 1: We only have a few minutes left, and I'd like
• 27:46
  Speaker 1: to get some final thoughts from you. I'd like to
• 27:48
  Speaker 1: give the website to everybody to make sure they check
• 27:50
  Speaker 1: it out. A gorgeous website, easy to navigate, folks. It's
• 27:53
  Speaker 1: just beautiful what Gaby and her team have done to
• 27:55
  Speaker 1: put this together so you can easily navigate what Human
• 27:57
  Speaker 1: Better e to you. But let's just get some fun
• 28:00
  Speaker 1: thoughts from you. Gave me the floor of yours.
• 28:02
  Speaker 2: First of all, thank you for the opportunity. I really
• 28:05
  Speaker 2: am inspired by the opportunities that lay ahead. Human Better
• 28:10
  Speaker 2: EEDU is really on a mission to impact a million
• 28:16
  Speaker 2: people in the next five years. We've got a ways
• 28:19
  Speaker 2: to go, but that's you know, too bad, It's all good.
• 28:22
  Speaker 2: I thank you, and I really I invite people to
• 28:28
  Speaker 2: come play with us. I invite people to see what
• 28:31
  Speaker 2: inspires you, either about education or about the people that
• 28:34
  Speaker 2: you want to support, or about educators' ecosystems. And to
• 28:41
  Speaker 2: complay in a world where we are continuing to elevate
• 28:46
  Speaker 2: what's possible for humanity and are committed to doing that. Well.
• 28:50
  Speaker 3: I think that is well said.
• 28:51
  Speaker 1: And one of my favorite things when I found out
• 28:54
  Speaker 1: about you and your team and what you do is
• 28:56
  Speaker 1: that unfortunately the current school system, no matter what level,
• 29:00
  Speaker 1: can only offer so much because of time and finances,
• 29:04
  Speaker 1: and you fill in a really big gap there with
• 29:06
  Speaker 1: your team, which I think is huge. Let's give the
• 29:08
  Speaker 1: website to everybody so they can find out more about you,
• 29:10
  Speaker 1: your team and all the cool things that you do.
• 29:13
  Speaker 2: Great. It is human Better edu dot org. So www.
• 29:20
  Speaker 2: Humanbetteredu dot org.
• 29:22
  Speaker 1: And there's a big fat blue donate button on the
• 29:25
  Speaker 1: top right hand corner that you can't miss, and you
• 29:27
  Speaker 1: should click it. There's many ways to give out there
• 29:29
  Speaker 1: and make a donation now, Gaby, thank you so much.
• 29:32
  Speaker 1: Once again, I said this at the top. I'm glad
• 29:33
  Speaker 1: I found you. I think whether it's here locally in
• 29:36
  Speaker 1: the DMV or what you're doing in New York City
• 29:38
  Speaker 1: or around the nation with your team, it's so cool
• 29:41
  Speaker 1: and I think you're going to make your goal someday.
• 29:43
  Speaker 1: I think it's a lovely goal to have and attainable.
• 29:46
  Speaker 1: So thank you for what you do. I want to
• 29:48
  Speaker 1: stay in touch with you and catch up with you
• 29:50
  Speaker 1: down the road, but we really appreciate you and caseing
• 29:53
  Speaker 1: everybody else in your team and be able to feature
• 29:55
  Speaker 1: you on Community DC.
• 29:56
  Speaker 2: Thank you so much, Thank you so much, Jenna. It's
• 29:59
  Speaker 2: a pleasure to be here.