On The Way To School

In this episode, Dr. Chris Dennis explains how educators can share difficult news with parents while preserving trust, dignity, and equity. He outlines three pillars: honoring the family’s experience, ensuring fairness, and respecting cultural context—and emphasizes clear structure, affirmation, and a sustainable path forward.
Listeners will receive practical steps and sample language for delivering consequences compassionately, inviting parental voice, and offering a clear path to restoration, so students are not defined by their mistakes.

Host Dr. Chris Dennis explores the mid-year pressures school leaders face — grading periods, conferences, and the tough decisions that shape classroom and school outcomes.He explains how data, feedback, preparation, and empathy guide course corrections, and reminds listeners that hard choices grounded in values aim to improve experiences for students, staff, and families.

Host Dr. Chris Dennis recaps a busy week: chaperoning sixth graders to Catalina Island, attending the Harvard-Westlake Pollyanna Conference on neurodiversity, and an energizing board meeting highlighting the advanced inquiry curriculum.He reflects on building relationships with students and staff, the importance of supporting neurodivergent community members, and reminds educators to prioritize self-care during the busy season.

Welcome back to "On the Way to School." In this episode, Dr. Chris Dennis speaks to brand-new school leaders who feel present in the room but not yet in it. He reframes leadership as identity, not title, and reminds new leaders that they already carry leadership through their lived experience.
He shares three pillars for early leadership growth:
Your experience is leadership capital.
Name roles, seek structure, understand unwritten rules.
Identity shapes how leaders handle conflict, feedback, and silence.
The core message: You didn’t get the seat as a favor; you earned it. You belonged before you performed. Stand in your presence, ask before you answer, and build with alignment, not applause.

In today’s episode, Dr. Chris Dennis reflects on a full and meaningful weekend before drawing a powerful lesson from the golf course. From celebrating Dr. Roger Bridges’ milestone birthday over nine holes to joining Mocha Moms and honoring fellow educator Dr. John Carroll at the Private School Axis event, Chris highlights the importance of community, fellowship, and recognizing those who serve. He also shares a family moment, sending his 10th grader off on an experiential education trip, and a film recommendation that sparks deeper reflection on immigration and storytelling.
The heart of the episode comes with a golf story: on the seventh hole, a simple $6 challenge suddenly sharpened his focus and produced his best shot of the day. That moment becomes today’s message. Sometimes, all it takes is raising the stakes to unlock our highest level of attention and effort.
Chris leaves listeners with a question: Are you waiting for the circumstances to change before you truly lock in? Or can you elevate your focus right where you are?Stay dry, stay focused, and keep striving to be your best on purpose.

Dr. Chris Dennis shares a personal story about tearing his hamstring after skipping a warm-up and connects it to why educators and administrators should prepare physically, mentally, and emotionally before meetings and the school day.Learn quick, practical warm-up ideas—physical stretches, vocal exercises, and mental resets—to help you enter the day focused and ready.

Host Dr. Chris Dennis reflects on a night at an LAFC match and draws a simple analogy between soccer and school leadership: understanding roles, positioning, and teamwork leads to better opportunities to score.After a long day, he shares how watching the game helped him see the importance of preparation, knowing your teammates, and embracing wins and setbacks as part of leading well.

Dr. Chris Dennis reminds educators and school leaders that while organizations move on, individual influence endures. Using a real campus example, he emphasizes that your daily consistency and presence matter to students, parents, and colleagues; even those who never say thank you.
He encourages listeners to save notes of appreciation, reflect on the positive effects of their work, and continue to show up with authenticity and steadiness to support others every day.

Dr. Chris Dennis reflects on settling into the school year and the difference between tactical tasks and strategic leadership. He discusses how administrators can avoid becoming the default problem-solvers, create clear off-ramps, and regain balance in their work.The episode offers practical advice to check your calendar, empower staff to lead solutions, and protect time for long-term initiatives while managing daily demands.

This morning, I’m recording live from my car! Literally on the way to school. I had a plan for today’s episode, but I decided to pivot. Lately, I’ve been thinking about what I call political fret and worry; how the government shutdown, activism, and civic anxiety are showing up in our classrooms and communities.
Students are asking deeper questions, colleagues are rethinking their work, and I’m reflecting on how all of this shapes us as educators and leaders. My takeaway? Education is liberation. When we stay informed, engaged, and grounded, we can turn worry into purpose and action.
I hope today’s reflection helps you think about where you stand and how you’ll move on the way to school.