An Educated Guest
An Educated Guest is a podcast that dives deep into the innovations and trends shaping the future of education. The host is Todd Zipper who has over two decades as an entrepreneur, executive, and investor across K-12, Higher Education, and Workforce Development. He brings together visionaries, innovators, and operators from the education industry to explore the solutions that are transforming learning and work.
Episodes
76 episodes
Ep. 76 | The Diplomatic Chancellor: Leading Flagship Universities Through Turbulent Times with Nick Dirks, President of the New York Academy of Sciences
Is the "Iron Triangle" of higher education—cost, quality, and access—officially under siege? In this episode of An Educated Guest, Todd Zipper sits down with Nick Dirks, President of the New York Academy of Sciences and former Cha...
S3E36 | The Apprenticeship Renaissance: How Achieve Partners is Reengineering Workforce Entry with Daniel Pianko
Is the $1.8 trillion student debt crisis a symptom of a broken "Iron Triangle" in higher education? In this episode of An Educated Guest, Todd Zipper sits down with Daniel Pianko, Co-Founder and Managing Director at Achieve Par...
S3E35 | The Forest is the Classroom: How Terris King II is Revolutionizing Early Education
The Forest is the Classroom: How Terris King II is Revolutionizing Early EducationCan the future of education be found in the woods? In this episode of An Educated Guest, Todd Zipper sits down with Terris King II, founder...
S3E34 | The 10 Pillars of AI Enablement: Norm Allgood on Rebuilding Saint Leo University
Is your degree program past its "sell-by date"?In this episode of An Educated Guest, Todd Zipper sits down with Norm Allgood, Dean and CEO of the Lyonova Institute at Saint Leo University, for a candid look at the ...
Closing the First-Gen Underemployment Gap with the Founder of Basta, Sheila Sarem
Getting into college is a massive achievement—but for first-generation students, graduating is often just the beginning of a new struggle. Why are so many talented graduates stuck in "underemployment" traps?In this episode, Todd Zipper s...
S3E32 | The Blue-Collar Renaissance: Solving the Skilled Trades Shortage with Rob Holmes, Founder of ForgeNow
In this episode of An Educated Guest, host Todd Zipper sits down with Rob Holmes, co-founder of ForgeNow, to discuss the revolutionary "Micro-College" model. As traditional higher education faces a crisis of cost and duration, ForgeNow...
S3 E31 | Mark Milliron on Designing Value-Rich Education for the "ANDer" Student at National University
On this episode of An Educated Guest, host Todd Zipper sits down with Mark Milliron, President of National University, to explore how higher education can better serve the majority of today's learners: non-traditional, working, and mil...
S3E30 | Solving the Student Disengagement Crisis with Rebecca Winthrop of the Brookings Institution
Are we handing the keys of AI to a generation of "passengers"? In this episode of An Educated Guest, host Todd Zipper talks with Rebecca Winthrop, Senior Fellow at the Brookings Institution and author of The Disengage...
S3E29 | Dartmouth College’s Joe Catrino on Life Design and the $30 Million Internship Revolution
What happens when you apply the principles of design thinking to the Ivy League career journey? In this episode of An Educated Guest, host Todd Zipper talks with Joe Catrino, the Executive Director of the Dartmouth Center for Career De...
S3E28 | Hollywood Meets the Classroom: Josh Reibel on Scaling Immersive Learning from K-12 to Higher Ed
Can the emotional power of a blockbuster movie actually help a student master organic chemistry? In this episode of An Educated Guest, host Todd Zipper talks with Josh Reibel, CEO of Dreamscape Learn, about the radical redesign of the ...
S3E27 | From IBM to Colby College: Why David Watts is Leading the AI Revolution in the Liberal Arts
Is a liberal arts degree actually the secret weapon in the age of AI?On this episode of An Educated Guest, Todd Zipper sits down with Dr. David Watts, the Director of the Davis Institute for Artificial Intelligence at Colby Coll...
S3E26 | Breaking the 120-Credit Barrier: Madeleine Green on the College-in-3 Movement and the Future of the American Degree
Why does a bachelor’s degree take four years? Is it because that is how long it takes to learn, or is it just a historical accident?On this episode of An Educated Guest, Todd Zipper sits down with Madeleine Green of the "College...
S3E25 | Architecting the Public Enterprise: Chris Howard on the ASU Model and the Future of Innovation
How does a university reach 180,000 students while maintaining a billion-dollar research engine and a "perpetual" culture of innovation? In this episode of An Educated Guest, Todd Zipper sits down with Dr. Chris Howard, EVP and COO of ...
S3|E24 The AI Sputnik Moment: Why AI Literacy is the New "Fourth R" with Jeff Riley of the Day of AI
Is the United States facing a new "Sputnik moment" in education? On this episode of An Educated Guest, Todd Zipper sits down with Jeff Riley, the leader of Day of AI, to discuss the urgent need for AI literacy in our schools.Jeff, a vete...
S3E23 | Redesigning the High School Experience: Jeremy Lugbill on Career Academy Network and the Power of Community Collaboration
What happens when you stop asking kids to sit in 45-minute "silos" and instead ask them to solve real-world problems for their community? In this episode, host Todd Zipper sits down with Jeremy Lugbill, CEO of the Career Academy Network of Publ...
S3E22 | Scaling Experiential Learning with Dana Stephenson: Solving the "No Experience, No Job" Paradox
It is an all-too-common story: a student graduates with a degree but is rejected from entry-level jobs because they lack "real-world experience." On this episode of An Educated Guest, Todd Zipper sits down with Dana Stephenson, ...
S3E21 | The Entrepreneurial Investor: Sabari Raja on Venture Capital for the Frontline Workforce & the $1 Trillion Infrastructure Boom
Sabari Raja, Managing Partner at JFF Ventures, joins us to discuss her unique journey from founder (NEPRIS, now Pathful) to leading a pioneering venture fund focused on economic mobility. JFF Ventures operates at the intersection of philanthrop...
S3E20 | The Parent Power Tipping Point: Jeanne Allen on School Choice and the Future of K-12 Education
In this insightful episode, host Todd Zipper sits down with Jeanne Allen, Founder and CEO of the Center for Education Reform (CER). Jeanne walks us through her three decades of relentless advocacy, tracing the evolution of education refo...
S3E19 | From Stanford to Skilled Trades: Shaun McAlmont's Vision for Career Pathways in Education
Join us on Educated Guest as we sit down with Dr. Shaun McAlmont, a true visionary in the education sector. With an extraordinary career spanning three decades, Shaun has impacted every level of learning, from K-12 to higher education an...
S3E18 | Scaling Learning with Agentic AI: Mark Naufel on Building the New OS for Education
The AI Agent Revolution: Mark Naufel on Why the $1.8T Higher Ed System Must Change NowMark Naufel is not just talking about the future of education; he’s building it. As the Founder of Axio Education and the President of the Unive...
S3E17 | Elevating Life Skills: Advocacy, Innovation, and the Future of Family & Consumer Sciences with AAFCS Karin Athanas
In this insightful episode, we sit down with Karin Athanas, Executive Director of the American Association of Family and Consumer Sciences (AAFCS). Karin shares her strategic vision for the organization, focusing on how FCS profes...
S3E16 | The Co-Creation Engine: Katie Boody Adorno on Why Teachers and Community Must Lead EdTech Design
In this insightful episode of An Educated Guest, host Todd Zipper sits down with Katie Boody Adorno, Founder and CEO of LEANLAB Education. Katie shares her journey from the front lines of a middle school classroom to becoming a national ...
S3E15 | The Innovator's Mindset: D2L’s John Baker on Why EdTech Should Stop Solving Yesterday's Problems
In this exclusive episode of An Educated Guest, host Todd Zipper sits down with John Baker, the visionary Founder and CEO of D2L. John shares the remarkable 25-year journey of D2L, tracing its evolution from a student startup into...
S3E14 | Education Freedom: Shaka Mitchell on School Choice, Opportunity, and the American Dream
In this deeply personal and timely episode of An Educated Guest, host Todd Zipper sits down with Shaka Mitchell, Senior Fellow at the American Federation for Children. Shaka shares his compelling journey from the classroom and the courtr...
S3E13 | Chaos and Opportunity: Michael Moe on AI, The Seven C's, and the Future of Education Investment
In this powerful episode of An Educated Guest, host Todd Zipper sits down with Michael Moe, Founder and CEO of GSV Ventures, to discuss the seismic shifts occurring across the entire learning ecosystem. Michael, who was a key figure in a...