Shifting Schools: Conversations for K12 Educators

Jeff Utecht, Tricia Friedman

jeff@shiftingschools.com

For verified host and producer emails, sign up to view.

Booking Overview

Shifting Schools brings K-12 education thinkers and authors into the same room with educators Jeff Utecht and Tricia Friedman to share practical strategies and fresh perspectives for improving teaching and learning. Guests span education, youth literature, and cultural/critical viewpoints—aimed at teachers, administrators, librarians, and family/community supporters.

Metrics

Episodes: 300

Frequency: Weekly

Rating: 4.8/5.0

Estimated listeners: 1k-10k

Gender skew: Female

Location: USA

YouTube: 12.6k subscribers

Instagram: 926 followers

Contact Information

jeff@shiftingschools.com

For verified host and producer emails, sign up to view.

Host

Jeff Utecht - Educator and host of Shifting Schools focused on K-12 teaching and learning. Provides educator-facing perspectives on strategies and tools to improve classroom practice, including approaches that l...

Tricia Friedman - Educator and co-host of Shifting Schools, interviewing education thought leaders and authors about trends, strategies, and tools for K-12 educators. Her episodes commonly connect creative/youth-foc...

Booking Intelligence

Booking Requirements

medium
Typical Credentials:  
Educators, education leaders, and prominent public thinkers; frequently bestselling children’s/YA/picture-book authors and cultural critics whose work is relevant to youth readers and classroom/school community learning (often with strong publishing credibility and/or academic/public engagement).
Required Achievements:  
Bestselling author status (NYT/major retail recognition), Academic professorship or established cultural-criticism platform, Notable public engagement (TED Talks, major media, book-club selection), Publishing leadership/organizing or community literacy initiatives

Recent Guest Discussions

Keala Kendall - Creative Process; Representation In Storytelling; Hawaiian History And Colonialism; Horror As Social Mirror; Pacific Islander Voice Amplification In Publishing

Veronica Roth - Creative Reinvention After Major Success; Dystopian/fantasy World-building; Writing For Young Readers; Creative Confidence; Starting Again

Dr. Brittney Cooper - Picture Book Creation; Collaboration; Care/resilience/identity Themes; Intention In Writing For Young Readers

Recent Topics

K 12, Education, Teaching, Literacy, Technology

Episodes

Here's the recent few episodes on
Shifting Schools: Conversations for K12 Educators
:

How to build a story one ingredient at a time with Keala Kendall

June 01, 2026

Join us as Keala Kendall, author of the compelling gothic novel That Which Feeds Us, takes us through her creative process, the importance of representation in storytelling, and how horror can serve as a mirror to society's fears and unresolved histories. This conversation uncovers the layers behind her work, blending culture, history, and genre to provoke thought and evoke emotion. Main topics covered: Kendall's artistic process and how the novel evolved from initial inspiration The sign...

Veronica Roth on Taylor Swift, Dystopian Fantasy, and the Art of Starting Again

May 25, 2026

This week, Tricia Friedman speaks with Veronica Roth, the #1 New York Times bestselling author of the Divergent series and the author of Seek the Traitor Son, the first book in a new epic romance dystopian fantasy series. In this conversation, Veronica shares how watching Taylor Swift perform during the Eras Tour helped her reflect on her own earlier work, her growth as an artist, and what it means to keep creating after a hugely successful series. She also talks about world-building, writing...

Dr. Brittney Cooper on Picture Books, Collaboration, and Love

May 18, 2026

This week, Tricia Friedman welcomes Dr. Brittney Cooper to the podcast to talk about her new picture book, Mama Says I'm Fine, illustrated by Tamisha Anthony. The conversation explores the story behind the book, the emotional weight of the phrase "you're fine," and how children's literature can hold care, resilience, identity, and family love. Dr. Cooper also reflects on what it means to write with intention and to collaborate with artists, editors, and readers in mind. Known for her work as ...

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