In this episode of the Grow Kinder® podcast, Committee for Children Chief of Staff Shauna McBride talks with Katie Wohlford-McCracken, recipient of our Second Step® Educator of the Year Award and counselor at Fairview Elementary School, a National Blue Ribbon School outside of Asheville, NC. Katie shares how her school integrates social-emotional skills directly into its school-wide behavior expectations. Students are expected to be assertive and ask for what they want or need, as well as be able to stop and name overwhelming feelings and work to calm themselves down. Katie attributes her scho ..read more

In this episode of the Grow Kinder® podcast, Dr. Tia Kim interviews Dr. Laura Markham, a renowned clinical psychologist, author of the Peaceful Parent series of books, and the founder of Aha! Parenting. Throughout the episode, the pair explores the concept of peaceful parenting. Peaceful parenting focuses on self-regulation, connection with children, and coaching rather than controlling kids. Dr. Markham emphasizes the importance of parents and caregivers being mindful of their own social-emotional skills in order to effectively teach these skills to their children. Dr. Markham also highlights ..read more

In this episode of the Grow Kinder podcast, host Dr. Tia Kim interviews Amber Coleman-Morley, Senior Director of Community and Culture at The Female Quotient. Throughout the episode, they speak to the importance of social-emotional learning (SEL) in building strong communities, emphasizing the impact of how skills such as empathy and communication foster healthy relationships and help children and adults thrive. Dr. Kim and Amber also explore the intersection of SEL and civics education, and how this powerful combination strengthens kindness in society. Amber also shares with listeners her ext ..read more

In this episode of the Grow Kinder Podcast, host Andrea Lovanhill speaks with Dr. Kathleen Ethier, the director of the Division of Adolescent and School Health at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). In this enlightening conversation, Andrea and Kathleen dive deep into the pressing issues surrounding the mental health of today's teenagers. We take a close look at the CDC's recent Youth Risk Behavior Survey and the startling findings related to the mental health of teenage girls. We discover the initiatives undertaken by the CDC to help schools address these mental health chall ..read more

In this episode of the Grow Kinder Podcast, host Andrea Lovanhill speaks with Helen Westmoreland, the Director of Family Engagement at the National Parent Teacher Association and cohost of the Notes From the Backpack podcast. In this enlightening conversation, Andrea and Helen dig into the world of family engagement, education, and the power of social-emotional learning (SEL). We discuss why it’s important for parents to not only embrace SEL, but to also champion it, and Helen shares inspiring examples of successful parent-teacher collaborations. Listeners will also learn strategies for how th ..read more

Welcome back, listeners! After a two-year hiatus, the Grow Kinder podcast has returned and it’s better than ever. In this exciting relaunch, your host, Andrea Lovanhill, CEO of the Committee for Children, alongside her co-hosts, Dr. Tia Kim, and Shauna McBride, kick off an incredible new season with a promise of enlightening discussions on all things Social-Emotional Learning (SEL). This season features a stellar lineup of guests, including education experts, well-being advocates, communication specialists, health professionals, and research leaders. Each episode is meticulously crafted to add ..read more

In this episode, host Shauna McBride speaks with Nick Butler, artist and illustrator of Committee for Children’s Captain Compassion® comic series. Nick explains how he used every design choice to carefully and intentionally craft a visual identity for Captain Compassion® and her sidekick Kid Kinder®. To create Kid Kinder, Nick took visual cues from his little brother and himself as children, making this project an intensely personal one. He tells Shauna, “When I had this opportunity with Kid Kinder to represent the Black community, I dug in. I really wanted to make sure that I was singing the ..read more

On this episode, host Tia Kim speaks with Vicky Rideout, one of the authors of a new report, “Coping with COVID-19: How Young People Use Digital Media to Manage Their Mental Health.” The report found substantial increases in both depression and social media use among teens and young adults during the COVID-19 pandemic. Further, it investigated the relationship between those two data points. Could social media be causing the rise in depression? The report suggested that, despite the common media narrative about the dangers of social media, it can be a valuable tool for connection and its effect ..read more

In this episode, host Andrea Lovanhill speaks with Dr. Theanne Griffith, PhD, a neuroscientist and author of the children’s book series The Magnificent Makers. Theanne explains how the environment of curiosity and exploration fostered by her parents helped her grow into the person she is today and influenced the work she’s doing as an author and scientist. “The most important thing a scientist needs, I think, is creativity and openness and curiosity,” Theanne says. “I think any way you can foster that in your child, you’re going to create a love for science.” Theanne also talks about how she s ..read more

We are back with a new mini-season of the Grow Kinder Podcast! In this season-teaser episode hosts Andrea Lovanhill, Tia Kim and Shauna McBride get together to catch up, reflect on a busy summer, and preview the conversations we’ll be sharing this season. All three hosts will be exploring media topics – covering the relationship between depression and social media use, the important of diverse representation in children’s media, and how we can foster a sense of curiosity for our kids. Also in this episode – Andrea’s take on what social-emotional learning (SEL) is and what it isn’t, Tia’s thoug ..read more