In this in-depth conversation, Washington Monthly editor-in-chief Paul Glastris joins Gerardo to unpack how America’s obsession with elite college rankings distorts our sense of what higher education is for. From his days inside U.S. News & World Report to his years building an alternative ranking system rooted in upward mobility, research, and civic service, Glastris offers a powerful critique — and a hopeful vision for how colleges can once again serve democracy.

They dig into:

• The myth of “best” colleges and how exclusivity became a badge of honor
• Why schools like Fresno State and Berea College outshine Ivy League institutions in real impact
• How higher ed has become a political battleground — and what’s at stake for our democracy
• What vocational education really looks like when it’s not just political theater
• How students, families, and educators can use data wisely and choose institutions that serve the public good

Listen if you care about:

Educational equity • Democracy • College access • First-gen students • Public policy • Media and truth-telling

Guest:

Paul Glastris, Editor-in-Chief of The Washington Monthly

Follow him on X and BlueSky: @glastris

Explore the latest college rankings at washingtonmonthly.com

Host:

Gerardo A. Muñoz — 2021 Colorado Teacher of the Year, educator, scholar, disruptor, and co-host of Too Dope Teachers and a Mic

Music by:

Kevin Adams

Links Mentioned:

• Washington Monthly 2025 College Rankings: washingtonmonthly.com/college-guide
• Washington Monthly Podcast

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In this powerful episode, we sit down with Jamila Sams—educator, visionary, and founder of We Do It 4 the Culture—to talk about the movement that’s transforming school culture through hip hop, empowerment, and equity. From classrooms to district offices, Jamila’s work helps educators center student voice, cultural relevance, and joy in learning.

We dive into her journey as the founder of this unique resource, what it means to lead with authenticity, what it means to think critically, dialogically, and with joy, and how hip hop continues to serve as a cross-generational universe of healing and liberation. Jamila shares the origin story of We Do It 4 the Culture, the real meaning of culturally responsive action, and what schools must do if they’re serious about social emotional wellness, critical thinking, and liberation.

If you’re about that life—about students, about joy, about liberation—this conversation is for you.

Plus an absolutely fire top five RIGHT HERE.

💥 Tap in. Turn it up. Take notes.
🎙️ www.wedoit4theculture.com
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🔗 Subscribe, share, SUPPORT and stay dope.

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Back in October, Sofia González, teacher, thinker, writer, speaker and activist and Gerardo finally found time for this interview. This was prior to the 2024 election and all that followed. What ensued was a great conversation–provocative, humorous, and energetic. As we brace ourselves to face another four years of anxiety, frustration, fear, and state-encouraged violence, this conversation remains a reminder that the struggle is truly beautiful, and full of opportunities for all of us to engage differently, as the people we are. To quote the great poet Audre Lorde, “We are the ones we have been waiting for,” exemplified by Ms. G.

Sofia is 2019 teacher of the year with the National Society of High School Scholars, nonprofit leader for organization Project 214, and education activist from the Chicagoland area. She is a sought-after public speaker regarding the state of education who is known for her cutting-edge presentations and dynamic illustrations with a passion that’s infectious. A High School teacher, 15-year veteran, teacher leader, and alum in a variety of spaces like Fulbright, Latinos for Education, Latinx Education Collaborative-Storytellers for Change, and Urban Leaders Fellowship, Sofia’s passion and energy towards education equity remains a leading voice for the 21st-century classroom and beyond. 

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Vouchers are violence.

Privatization is violence.

Failure to see that school privatization is a tool of Christian Nationalism and White Supremacy is deadly. To the future prospects of the students they exploit for flash-in-the-pan snake oil pedagogies. To the very possibility  of civil society.

Dr. Josh Cowen joins me for episode 132 of Too Dope Teachers and a Mic to discuss the peril of school vouchers and the destruction they have wrought upon education and society. He discusses his new book, The Privateers: How Billionaires Created a Culture War and Sold School Vouchers.

Whatever you believe about vouchers, let me assure you, after reading this book, and talking with Dr. Cowen…it’s worse. Worse than you can imagine. The outcomes are awful, and the deception is dystopian. You’ll see why so many of us see privatization and all it’s cousins as a slippery slope that ultimately will destroy public education. And while there are abstract and unproven arguments about the unfulfilled promise of public education, there is still a promise.

It is now October. Many of you in Colorado, Kentucky, and Nebraska have this choice to make, and those of you in fourteen other states have a lot of work to get these repealed. This episode is a hard listen, but essential for anyone who wants to see systemic justice in education.

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ProPublica Report Cited during interview

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This week, Gerardo is joined by the eminent and brilliant Elena Aguilar, scholar of professional development and leadership! In this, Elena’s second visit to the show, she discusses her most recent coaching book Arise: The Art of Transformational Coaching. Elena shares her purpose, identities, and processes of writing, shedding a bright light on both the art of coaching, but also the art of writing itself. She shares her perspectives on both the value of writing that comes from academia as well as from the people.

In this episode, Elena also shows us why her intuitive and human-centered approach is so powerful. An unexpected moment of vulnerability arises, and she receives it with heart and profound empathy.

And. Stay tuned. An in-person conversation may be in the future.

Hispanic Heritage Month: From now until October 15, if you sign up for Patreon at the $10/month level, you will receive our series of Hispanic Heritage stickers!

Subscribe to Elena’s Bright Morning podcast!

Sign up to get updates from Elena and Bright Morning team!

Purchase the book, Arise: The Art of  Transformational Coaching and other powerful writings of Elena Aguilar.

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Zandra Jo Galván joins me for a fun and inspirational conversation on this week’s Chicanologues! Celebrated by the Association of Latino Administrators and Superintendents (ALAS), Zandra Jo now leads the school district that raised her, Greenfield Union in the Central Coast region of California.

Growing up the youngest child of Mexican immigrants, Zandra Jo was inspired to become a teacher by her older sister. At just 10 years old, Zandra Jo knew she wanted to take this journey. When she was elevated to serve as superintendent of the district that educated her, 90% raza, she became everything that a leader should be: joyous, engaged, motivational, and creative.

But she is not simply a “big energy” leader. She is a problem-solver who acts on data in meaningful ways. She shares with us her biggest successes, and reminds us that educational justice that is culturally sustaining and empowering is possible from the superintendent’s office.

Oh, and her top five is absolutely next-level.

Support the podcast at patreon.com/toodopeteachers (money is helpful in navigating capitalism).

Visit our sponsors, Tori and Alex! https://toriandalex.ceterainvestors.com/toodope.

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It is no secret that the teaching profession has become increasingly challenging, especially since the COVID-19 pandemic. For those of us who taught before and through the pandemic, it was never easy. Always challenging, always demanding, always underpaid. Kevin and I have both left classroom roles (although being an administrator is also difficult), and we are both still a little, what’s the word, surprised? When folx choose teaching in these times.

Filmmaker Adam Gacka, founder of Production House in Chicago, was hired to make a promotional video for the ambitious Chicago Teacher Residency and during the course of filming, got to know many of the teachers in the school. In particular, as he learned about Nkanga Nsa, a resident in the program, he felt that her story needed to be shared. So the result was Teacher, a film that would document her journey through her residency, as well as that of the community around her. As Adam boldly declares, saving our teachers will save our democracy.

Adam and Nkanga join us for an in-depth conversation on one teacher’s experience, the ongoing work to ensure that our American teaching corps better reflect children in most classrooms, and the ambitious dream to become “an island beyond oneself” in Nkanga’s words.

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