In this episode of Evolution Stories, Middle States President Christian Talbot sits down with Elinor Scully, Head of School at National Cathedral School, for a candid and deeply reflective conversation about leadership, change, and the realities of decision-making in schools.

Drawing from her journey as a classroom teacher, division head, and head of school, Elinor explores what happens when leaders pursue the right outcomes but underestimate the human dynamics of change. She reflects on an early failed attempt to redesign a school schedule, unpacking how fear, identity, and unspoken resistance can quietly derail even the most student-centered initiatives.

The conversation then shifts to a pivotal leadership moment during the COVID era, when Elinor was forced to make a high-stakes facilities decision without the certainty leaders often crave. Through that experience, she surfaces a core truth about leadership, that courage to act amid imperfect information is not optional, but essential.

The episode closes with a forward-looking reflection on the next frontier of educational leadership, stewarding faculty culture in a post-pandemic world where trust, morale, and meaning have become as critical as pedagogy and strategy.

This episode offers school leaders an honest look at why change is hard, what leadership actually requires, and how culture ultimately determines whether transformation succeeds or stalls.

In this episode of Evolution Stories, MSA President Christian Talbot speaks with Maria Vogelei, Head of School and founding team member at the Village School in Arlington, Virginia, a learner-driven microschool built around agency, purpose, and self-directed learning.

Maria shares her unconventional path into school leadership, moving from brand building and tech entrepreneurship into education after searching for a school that aligned with her daughter’s needs. She reflects on the difference between marketing and market education, why introducing new school models requires trust and social proof, and what surprised her most when stepping into the head of school role.

The conversation explores leadership during moments of low morale, how prioritizing educators can stabilize entire school communities, and why presence, transparency, and one-on-one relationships matter more than polished strategies. Maria also discusses lessons learned from a previous mental health startup that failed to launch, offering powerful insights into champions, timing, and reframing perceived failure.

As the Village School prepares to launch a learner-driven high school in a credential-focused market, Maria reflects on the tension between traditional measures of success and the skills students need in an AI-shaped future. This episode offers a grounded, honest look at change leadership, agency, and what it means to build schools for the world students are actually inheriting.

In this episode of Evolution Stories, Jeff Selingo joins the conversation to unpack how education systems are being reshaped by shifting student needs, changing labor markets, and growing skepticism about traditional college pathways. Drawing from decades of reporting and his latest book, Dream School, Jeff explores what meaningful learning looks like today, how institutions can better align with real-world outcomes, and why students need clearer signals about value, purpose, and possibility. The discussion challenges long-held assumptions about higher education and invites educators to imagine more responsive, learner-centered futures.

Key Topics Covered

• The evolving purpose of higher education
• What students and families are actually seeking from schools today
• How college admissions and credentialing are changing
• The disconnect between traditional institutions and workforce realities
• Insights from Dream School and what “fit” really means
• Rethinking success, value, and outcomes in education

Notable Quotes (Pull Quotes)

• “We’ve designed systems around institutions instead of learners, and that gap is becoming harder to ignore.”
• “Students are asking smarter questions now, not just about where to go, but why.”
• “The future of education is less about prestige and more about purpose.”

Other

• Official Website: https://www.jeffselingo.com
• Books: Dream School, Who Gets In and Why, There Is Life After College

Social Media

• X (Twitter): @jselingo
• LinkedIn: Jeff Selingo

In this episode of Evolution Stories, Christian Talbot sits down with Laura Light, Executive Director of AAIE and one of the most trusted conveners in international education. Laura has a unique view into the complexities facing school leaders around the globe, from geopolitical conflict to enrollment volatility to the rapid emergence of AI. She reflects on her own journey as a third culture kid turned educator and describes how international schools embrace risk, change, and innovation with remarkable courage.

Laura also takes listeners behind the scenes of AAIE’s Tuesday Morning Calls, a global lifeline for school leaders navigating sudden USAID cuts earlier this year. She shares why her philosophy of leadership centers on community, kindness, integrity, and the ability to admit mistakes and move forward. For anyone leading change in uncertain times, Laura’s insights are grounding, practical, and deeply human.

In this episode of Evolution Stories, Christian Talbot talks with Dr. Timothy S. Stuart, a global education leader whose career has spanned more than 30 years across schools, systems, and continents. Tim currently serves as Director of Leadership Recruitment and Global Partnerships at Search Associates and previously worked as a Regional Education Officer for the U.S. Department of State, supporting American-style international schools around the world. Before that, he spent five years as Head of School at the International Community School of Addis Ababa and held leadership roles at Singapore American School, including Executive Director of Strategic Programs and High School Principal. He also served as High School Principal at Jakarta Intercultural School.

Tim shares his powerful personal story of returning to the United States as a French-educated teenager, being misdiagnosed, and placed in special education. That early experience shaped everything that followed, influencing his beliefs about inclusion, safeguarding, and the centrality of human relationships in learning. He and Christian explore the challenges of transforming elite school cultures, the leadership lessons that emerge from failure, and the delicate balance between confidence and humility.

They also discuss how AI may finally help schools personalize learning at scale and why sustainable change rests on systems, not slogans.

In this episode of Evolution Stories, Christian Talbot sits down with Catarina Song Chen, a true third culture kid whose leadership journey spans South Korea, Paraguay, the United States, and Brazil. Catarina shares how she stumbled into teaching after a career in fashion and ultimately became head of an international school facing severe challenges, including losing accreditation, unstable leadership, low enrollment, and community mistrust.

She discusses what it took to rebuild the school from the ground up. From discovering the school lacked essential licenses to repairing culture, designing new learning models, and engaging parents through intentional listening tours, Catarina details both her failures and breakthroughs. She reflects on missteps like implementing co-teaching too quickly and the humility required to listen, course correct, and rebuild trust.

Now serving the U.S. Department of State as a Regional Education Officer and inaugural leader of Strategic Initiatives and Partnerships, Catarina offers clear, hard-earned lessons on leading wise and sustainable change.

In this episode of Evolution Stories, host Christian Talbot speaks with Liz Perry, Assistant Head of School for Academics at St. Luke’s School in New Canaan, Connecticut. Perry brings a remarkable breadth of experience, having taught and led in schools from Brooklyn to Brazil to Pine Ridge, South Dakota. She reflects on how her diverse teaching and leadership roles—including at Berkeley Carroll, the American School of São Paulo, Brimmer and May, and Red Cloud Indian School—have shaped her understanding of student learning and academic leadership. Liz and Christian revisit their collaboration during St. Luke’s strategic planning process, exploring how strategy and vision inform meaningful school change. Through her story, Perry underscores the value of global perspective, intentional leadership, and inclusive planning in helping schools thrive academically while preparing students for an interconnected world.

“Microschools are giving families agency, educators freedom, and students a chance to thrive outside of one-size-fits-all systems.” – Don Soifer

In this episode of Evolution Stories, Christian Talbot sits down with Don Soifer, CEO of the National Microschooling Center. A national leader in the microschooling movement, Soifer has played a key role in transforming education through innovation and policy. He co-created the first public-private partnership microschool in Las Vegas and served three unprecedented terms on the DC Public Charter School Board, where he helped authorize over 120 schools. As the founder of Nevada Action for School Options and co-founder of the Lexington Institute, Soifer has long been at the forefront of education reform. In this conversation, he shares insights into why microschools are gaining traction, how they give families more agency, and what it takes to create sustainable, student-centered alternatives to traditional schooling. Soifer’s story highlights the promise of microschools as a powerful model for the future of education.