In this episode of Make It Mindful, Seth Fleischauer welcomes Chris O’Shaughnessy, international speaker, author, and advocate for third culture kids (TCKs) - children who grow up in a culture different from their parents’ or passport country and who often attend international schools. The episode explores how the TCK experience is becoming increasingly relevant for students everywhere. Chris and Seth discuss how growing up with multiple cultural inputs and frequent transitions shapes identity, empathy, conflict resolution, and resilience—and why these same themes are essential in today’s rapidly changing world. The episode highlights how we can build the small “weights” of resilience into classrooms and homes, helping students better navigate discomfort, conflict, and complexity.

Key Topics Discussed:

• What defines a third culture kid and why their experiences matter beyond international schools
• Identity formation and the challenge of answering “Where are you from?” in a globalized world
• How relational resilience is undermined by both transience and technology
• The cost of avoidance and the rise of “relationship disposability”
• Why adaptability is a critical life skill and how to help students build it
• The need for intentional inefficiencies to build resilience in the age of convenience
• How rethinking culture as a non-zero-sum game creates more compassionate global citizens

Guest Bio:
Chris O’Shaughnessy is a speaker, author, and passionate advocate for international and third culture kid communities. With a background in both performance and global education, Chris brings humor and insight to topics like identity, cross-cultural communication, and resilience. He has worked with international schools, diplomatic organizations, and corporate groups around the world.

Host Bio:
Seth Fleischauer is the founder of Banyan Global Learning and an advocate for global, digital, and cultural competencies in education. Through live virtual programs and thought leadership, he helps students and educators explore the interconnectedness of people, cultures, and systems.

Episode Links:

• Chris O’s website: www.chris-o.com
• Chris’s podcast Diesel & Clooney Unpack the World
• Book: Arrivals, Departures, and the Adventures In-Between by Chris O’Shaughnessy

Host Links:

Seth Fleischauer’s Banyan Global Learning provides meaningful global learning experiences that prepare students across the globe for success in an interconnected world.

In this episode of Make It Mindful, Seth Fleischauer welcomes Chris Brida, district administrator at Portland Public Schools, to explore how career and technical education (CTE) can transform K-12 learning. They discuss the urgent need for public-private partnerships and the role of cross-functional teams in driving educational systems change. The episode highlights how aligning education with workforce needs can empower students with durable, transferable skills—without sacrificing choice or creativity.

Key Topics Discussed:

• The evolution of CTE: from vocational stigma to future-ready pathways
• Why CTE must start before high school: awareness, exploration, and preparation
• Building public-private partnerships to align K-12 with workforce needs
• How to design systems that are nimble, sustainable, and equitable
• The power of cross-functional teams to solve educational problems
• Why K-12 must stop working in isolation—and what happens when it doesn't
• How bringing in outside expertise can solve internal challenges (like teacher burnout)

Guest Bio:
Chris Brida is a district administrator for Portland Public Schools, overseeing Career and Technical Education (CTE), Advanced Placement (AP), and International Baccalaureate (IB) programs. He is also a doctoral candidate at the University of Kentucky, where his research focuses on the role of public-private partnerships in education systems change.

Host Bio:
Seth Fleischauer is the founder of Banyan Global Learning and an advocate for global education. He leads conversations with forward-thinking educators who are shaping the future of learning by connecting people, cultures, and systems.

Episode Links:

• Connect with Chris Brida on LinkedIn
• Learn more about Portland Public Schools’ Career and Technical Education programs

Host Links:

Seth Fleischauer’s Banyan Global Learning provides meaningful global learning experiences that prepare students across the globe for success in an interconnected world.

In this episode of Make It Mindful, Seth Fleischauer welcomes Chris Balme, educator, author, and founder of Hakuba International School and Millennium School, to explore how middle school can be redesigned to better support adolescent development. They discuss how current structures often fail kids during this crucial time—and how identity, social belonging, and real-world engagement can drive meaningful transformation. The episode highlights the importance of brave spaces, authentic adult role models, and trusting students to lead.

Key Topics Discussed:

• Why middle school “doesn’t have to suck”—and how to redesign it
• Three developmental drivers in early adolescence: identity, social belonging, and contribution
• The role of advisory in creating safe and brave spaces for meaning-making
• How weird (authentic) adults help model real growth for students
• The power of apprenticeships and real-world learning experiences
• Navigating cultural authenticity in American and Japanese school contexts
• How distance learning can level access to global ideas and connections

Guest Bio:
Chris Balme is an internationally recognized educator, school founder, and author of Finding the Magic in Middle School. He founded Millennium School in San Francisco and Hakuba International School in Japan, both designed around the developmental needs of adolescents. Chris is also the creator of Spark, a nonprofit that has facilitated over 17,000 apprenticeships for middle schoolers. His newsletter, Growing Wiser, shares ongoing insights on adolescent learning.

Host Bio:
Seth Fleischauer is the founder of Banyan Global Learning and an advocate for teaching digital and cultural competencies through a global lens.

Episode Links:

• Chris Balme’s book: Finding the Magic in Middle School – https://www.findingthemagicinmiddleschool.com
• Growing Wiser Newsletter – https://chrisbalme.substack.com
• Hakuba International School – https://www.hakuba-is.jp
• Millennium School – https://millenniumschool.org

In this episode of Make It Mindful, Seth Fleischauer welcomes Dr. Hayley Watson, clinical psychologist and founder of Open Parachute, to explore how schools can meaningfully address student mental health without overburdening teachers. They unpack the developmental science behind peer-based mental health education and discuss how a preventative, skill-based approach can empower both students and educators.

Key Topics Discussed:

• Why traditional therapy alone can’t meet the scale of the youth mental health crisis.
• How peer-driven, documentary-style lessons create authentic, relatable entry points for mental health discussions.
• The power of practicing emotional regulation, communication, and critical thinking in a classroom setting.
• Why teachers don’t need to be mental health experts to facilitate meaningful conversations.
• The developmental need for adolescents to learn from peers rather than adult authority figures.
• How Open Parachute equips educators with ready-to-use, non-clinical mental health lessons.
• What happens when we avoid the “can of worms” — and why we must open it with care and structure.
• Building a culture of self-reflection in schools to shape future generations of emotionally aware adults.

Guest Bio: Dr. Hayley Watson is a clinical psychologist specializing in adolescent mental health and the founder of Open Parachute. Her organization provides documentary-based mental health education programs for schools globally, helping students build emotional resilience and social-emotional skills through authentic peer storytelling.

Host Bio: Seth Fleischauer is the founder of Banyan Global Learning and an advocate for global competence, digital literacy, and education reform. As a former classroom teacher, he brings deep experience and thoughtful insight to conversations that bridge practice and possibility in today’s schools.

Episode Links:

• Try Open Parachute for free: https://openparachuteschools.com
• Connect with Hayley on LinkedIn: Dr. Hayley Watson

In this episode of Make It Mindful, Seth Fleischauer welcomes Steve Ventura, educator, author, and founder of the Achievement Teams model. They explore how reflective teaching, collective efficacy, and purposeful collaboration can transform both teacher culture and student outcomes.

Ventura shares why traditional PLCs often fall short—and how his framework, rooted in evidence and emotional intelligence, gives teachers the tools to improve practice without fear. The conversation highlights the emotional challenges of teacher self-assessment, the power of root cause analysis, and the global applications of culturally responsive collaboration.

Pain Point: Teachers are expected to constantly improve—but often lack the time, structure, and emotional safety to do so effectively.

Solution: Achievement Teams provide a collaborative framework that supports honest reflection, shared responsibility, and mid-course corrections grounded in student data—not blame.

Action: Start small. Identify one meaningful learning target, build a short-cycle assessment, and focus on what you can control. From there, build trust and clarity within your team before scaling up.

Episode Links:

• Steve Ventura’s Website
• Achievement Teams book on Amazon

Host Links:

Seth Fleischauer’s Banyan Global Learning provides meaningful global learning experiences that prepare students across the globe for success in an interconnected world.

Many educators assume online education is inherently inferior to in-person learning—especially when it comes to student agency, academic rigor, and building a real sense of community. Teachers worry students will fall behind, become socially isolated, or struggle to self-motivate in virtual settings.

Heather Rhodes, founder of Highgrove Education and former leader of Harrow School Online, proves otherwise. Her students consistently outperform their in-person peers while becoming confident, globally-minded adults. In this episode, Heather shares the key structures behind that success:

• Flipped learning models that promote deeper understanding.

• Cultural collaboration and rituals that foster true connection.

• Executive functioning skill-building baked into the curriculum.

• A values-based culture of shared academic goals and high expectations.

Listen in to learn how online educators—and brick-and-mortar schools too—can build learner autonomy, nurture global citizenship, and deliver world-class academic outcomes. Plus, Heather shares how conflict transformation, small-group work, and personalized coaching create a safe and rigorous environment where students thrive.

Key Topics Discussed:

• How to build community in an international online school

• Fostering learner autonomy and executive functioning

• The flipped classroom model done right

• Turning cultural differences into shared values

• Why online learning might actually reduce social conflict

• What kind of adults online education can uniquely produce

Guest Bio:

Heather Rhodes is the founder of Highgrove Education and the former leader of Harrow School Online. With over a decade of experience at the forefront of online international education, she’s known for designing high-impact models that combine academic excellence with global citizenship.

Host Bio:

Seth Fleischauer is the founder of Banyan Global Learning and an advocate for meaningful global learning experiences that prepare students across the globe for success in an interconnected world.

Episode Links:

1. Highgrove Education
2. Highgrove Speaker Series – A public-facing program of expert-led talks that anyone can attend, not just enrolled students.

In this episode of Make It Mindful, Seth Fleischauer welcomes Miles Madison, an expert in literacy, SEL, and character education, to tackle a universal teacher struggle: the feeling of never having enough time.

Pain Point:

Teachers everywhere say, “There’s just not enough time.” But what if the issue isn’t time itself, but how it’s structured, prioritized, and used? Too many educators are caught in cycles of inefficiency—over-planning, managing classroom disruptions, or doing tasks for students that could be built into routines. Without strong organizational systems, clear routines, and structured collaboration, learning time gets lost.

Solution:

Miles introduces a three-pillar framework that reclaims time without sacrificing engagement:

1. Organizational Management – Optimize classroom space and daily schedules for smoother transitions and fewer distractions.

2. Routines & Rituals – Automate repetitive tasks so students can self-manage, freeing teachers to focus on deeper instruction.

3. Collaborative Learning – Teach explicit teamwork skills to reduce student dependence on teacher intervention.

Actionable Takeaways:

• Instead of saying “I don’t have time,” ask: “What am I prioritizing?”

• Invest time upfront in systems and routines that save time later.

• Recognize that SEL, literacy, and global learning aren’t “extras”—they integrate naturally when systems are in place.

Episode Links:

• EffectiveClassrooms.org

• Erin Kent Consulting: https://erinkentconsulting.com/

Host Links:

• Follow Make It Mindful for more episodes.

• Learn more about global learning with Banyan Global Learning.

If you’re ready to take back control of your teaching time, this episode is packed with practical, real-world strategies you can apply today!

Bridging AI & Education: Insights from a Live Panel Discussion

This week on Make It Mindful, we’re bringing you a special crossover episode with AI Portland, diving into one of the most pressing conversations in education today: How should AI be integrated into teaching and learning?

At a packed AI Portland event, host Seth Fleischauer moderated a panel featuring four educators with diverse perspectives on AI, from deep skepticism to full adoption. This episode captures the key insights, tensions, and takeaways from that conversation—plus reflections on what made this event such a must-attend moment for the education and AI communities.

👉 The Big Debate: Is AI a threat to foundational learning, or a tool for building student agency?

🎧 Inside this special episode:

✅ Why educators are grappling with AI’s role in critical thinking, ethics, and skill-building

✅ How different schools are approaching AI policy—from cautious restriction to full integration

✅ The tension between AI’s potential for equity vs. its environmental and ethical concerns

✅ What last night’s event revealed about the urgency and passion behind this conversation

Sharing the conversation with Seth are the founders of AI Portland, Nicole Mors and Megan Notarte.

🔥 Panelists discussed in this episode:

• Dr. Isabelle Boleyn (Associate Professor) – Highlights the risks of AI, from bias to environmental impact

• John Down (University of Portland Professor) – Predicts AI will radically transform education in the next five years

• Chris Brita (Portland Public Schools CTE, AP & IB Leader) – Advocates for AI as a tool for equity and access

• Marty Sampson (High School English Teacher) – Shares a pragmatic approach to AI policies in the classroom

Why this episode matters:

“You don’t have to love AI. But you do need to engage with it—because your students already are.” – Eric Hudson

This conversation makes one thing clear: The future of education is not about banning or blindly adopting AI—it’s about building ‘wide walls, not narrow hallways’ for students to explore their learning with agency and ethical awareness.

Visit https://www.aipdx.info/ for more information about Megan and Nicole's project, AI Portland.