The Education Gadfly Show
For more than 15 years, the Fordham Institute has been hosting a weekly podcast, The Education Gadfly Show. Each week, you’ll get lively, entertaining discussions of recent education news, usually featuring Fordham’s Mike Petrilli and David Griffith. Then the wise Amber Northern will recap a recent research study. For questions or comments on the podcast, contact its producer, Stephanie Distler, at sdistler@fordhaminstitute.org.
The Education Gadfly Show
School choice, regulation, and Democrats’ defense of public schools, with Ashley Jochim | Episode 985 of The Education Gadfly Show
Ashley Jochim, principal at the Center on Reinventing Public Education and mom of four, joins Mike Petrilli and David Griffith on the Education Gadfly Show to continue our debate on private school choice and regulation. She also discusses how Democrats’ defense of public schools often clashes with families’ real experiences, and why clear, consumer-facing information is essential to making choice work.
On the Research Minute, Adam Tyner highlights a new NBER study from Chicago showing that giving principals more autonomy can boost student achievement— though effects vary widely depending on leadership capacity.
Recommended content
- Unfettered Choice Has Not Delivered on Promises to Milwaukee Families —Ashley Jochim, Education Next
- Innovation, regulation, and school choice, with Mike McShane | Episode 984 of The Education Gadfly Show
- Overregulated charter schools: Fact or fiction? —Michael J. Petrilli
- The mixed blessing of new school measures—Chester E. Finn, Jr.
- When decentralization works: Leadership, local Needs, and student achievement—C. Kirabo Jackson, NBER (2025)
Feedback Welcome: Have ideas for our show? Send them to thegadfly@fordhaminstitute.org