Engage in authentic conversation and reflection with experienced educators

Cultivate Positivity Through Mentoring Groups

Guest(s): Dr. Lori Wimbush and Kate Gilbert
Date: 04/16/2025
Run time: 50:18
Season 4, Episode 4

In this episode, Carol welcomes Lori Wimbush & Kate Gilbert. The conversation focuses on connecting, breaking down silos, and humanizing the teaching profession through mentorship groups. Carol, Lori, and Kate share creative and joyful strategies that helped them instill positivity in their mentoring groups - from positivity calendar reminders to paint parties.

Interested in Podcast PD?
Check out Carol's blogpost Podcast PD: A Professional Learning Strategy to Earn District Credit!

Additional episode resources:
Group Mentoring: Problems to Possibilities - Mentoring in Action

Sharing Best Practices: Emerging Teacher Leaders - Mentoring in Action

Listen, review and subscribe on: Apple, Spotify, YouTube,

Episode Audio

[BRIGHT MUSIC]

NARRATOR: Welcome to Corwin's Teacher to Teacher podcast with host Carol Pelletier Radford. Carol is an experienced

classroom teacher and university educator, founder of Mentoring and Action.com, and author of four best selling

professional books for teachers. She believes the best form of professional learning happens when teachers

engage in authentic conversations and share their wisdom.

In every episode, Carol and her guests share stories about pivotal moments in their careers, successful

classroom strategies, and personal actions they take to minimize stress and stay healthy. The Teacher to Teacher

podcast is a place to engage in authentic conversation and reflection with experienced educators. We hope these

conversations will energize you, keep you inspired, and remind you why you chose to become a teacher.

LIZ GILDEA: Hello, and welcome to the Teacher to Teacher podcast. I'm Liz Gildea, senior acquisitions editor here at Corwin.

This season of the podcast focuses on mentoring in action. And the topic of today's fantastic episode is

cultivating positivity through mentoring groups. Our guests are Laurie Wimbush and Kate Gilbert.

Both Laurie and Kate have decades of experience in education. Laurie is currently the assistant superintendent of

instruction and school improvement for a public school district, and Kate is a university supervisor for student

teachers and teacher candidates and their residency program. I love how the conversation today focuses on

connecting, breaking down silos, and humanizing the teaching profession through mentorship groups.

Carol, Lori, and Kate share creative and joyful strategies that help them instill positivity in their mentoring

groups. From positivity calendar reminders to paint parties, I think you'll hear ideas that surprise and delight you.

These two leaders bring such passion and expertise to the conversation, and I hope you'll find this episode as

thought provoking as I did. Let's dive in.

CAROL

PELLETIER

RADFORD:

Hello, everyone, I am Carol Pelletier Radford, and this is the Teacher to Teacher Podcast. I'm here today with two

very experienced guests. You're going to love this conversation. I've had a chance to talk off air with both of

them, and I'm excited to map out some ways in which we can create more positivity in our schools in somewhat

challenging times.

So this episode is episode 4, and it is titled, cultivate positivity through mentoring groups. And this is an

interesting topic for me, which I will share a little bit about. Moving from dyad one on one conversations to

mentoring groups brings its own challenges. And then to add positivity to that lens brings us to another level,

because when we mostly think of teachers and groups, it could turn into a gripe session.

And we need space for that as well. But that's not what we're going to be talking about today. So I have Kate and

Lori with me today. Lori, let's begin with you. Introduce yourself, your teaching background and who you are.

LORI

WIMBUSH:

Hi. I'm Laurie Wimbush. I am in my 27th year in education. I spent six years teaching high school social studies.

And my why is always doing what's in the best interest of students. And I have had the opportunity for pretty

much 37 years to watch a beautiful person, who is my mother, teach third grade and really show me the why and

why we get up every day and do what we do. So I'm really excited to be here today.

CAROL

PELLETIER

RADFORD:

Thank you, Lori. We'll get into more of what you're doing right now and your commitment to the teachers in your

district. And did you say which district you're from? Where are you teaching right now?

LORI

WIMBUSH:

I'm an assistant superintendent for instruction and school improvement for Roanoke city schools in Roanoke,

Virginia.

CAROL

PELLETIER

RADFORD:

Virginia is represented. All right. Kate.

KATE GILBERT: Hello, I'm Kate Gilbert. I am in my 14th year in education. I would describe myself as an educator and advocate. I

spent 9 and 1/2 years in a classroom in sixth grade social studies, and I love teaching. And through that time, I

also realized that I love mentoring and being with other educators and professionals.

In my current role, I serve as a university supervisor for student teachers and teacher candidates and their

residency program as well. And so I call myself an emotional support human. During that final semester, I teach

the course, but I also teach it in a we're going to humanize the profession way again. And I'm going to walk this

with you.

CAROL

PELLETIER

RADFORD:

I love that. And you're in North Carolina.

KATE GILBERT: I am. I'm in Charlotte, North Carolina.

CAROL

PELLETIER

RADFORD:

So I just want to disclose that I met Kate at a conference in North Carolina a couple of years ago. We instantly

connected. Like minded people, and I was speaking at a conference. And you were there with your mom.

KATE GILBERT: Yes.

CAROL

PELLETIER

RADFORD:

So that was interesting. It was a sad time for me because I was presenting at this conference, and my mom had

recently passed. And like Lori, my mother was my advocate and my mentor, and I was sharing the book,

Teaching With Light at the conference, and I dedicated it to her because I wouldn't be here as a podcast host,

teacher, anything if she hadn't pushed me when I was so uncertain in high school, when the guidance counselor

said, you're not going to be able to be a teacher. Your test scores aren't that great or whatever.

And she would not have it. She was not having it. She was like, no, you are a teacher, and you're going to be a

teacher. So when I heard that word, advocate, Kate mentioning my mom was an advocate. And then I heard you

both teach social studies, and you both have a connection to your mom. So this is we're all connected, and none

of us had met before.

KATE GILBERT: We're changemakers and social justice warriors here tonight.

CAROL

PELLETIER

RADFORD:

Yes. And, Lori, what did you hear Kate say that resonates with you or what I said that resonates as part of this

introduction?

LORI

WIMBUSH:

Well, one thing that I think is important, and I didn't mention it in my introduction, I have the pleasure to mentor

principals in the role I'm in right now. And knowing that piece, I have the ability to touch so many teachers,

principals, and students' lives through some of my own journeys. And to know that I'm able to mentor them in my

current role has really made this even more important of the work we're doing.

Because, as we say, we've all had journeys and different experiences, and to be able to give them a little bit of

light and hope to say, hey, at the end of the day, you're doing what's in the best interest of kids, has really

helped my work and really continued for me to explain my, why. So just listening to Kate talking about her

experience with student teaching, in my previous role in another division, I was able to do student teaching

placements.

And I didn't realize the impact my placement had until I was able to talk to a mentor who was actually in Roanoke

city schools now, talking about the importance of being placed in a place and being placed with someone who

can help them grow as a profession. So, Kate, I want to say, the work you're doing, thank you for that also.

CAROL

PELLETIER

RADFORD:

Oh, that's thank you for your insight and your articulation of how important this podcast is, Teacher to Teacher,

that we bring this to our attention through reflection. So we're reflecting. So all of us have been in the classroom.

I was in a classroom for 20 years. And then I went worked in higher education because I loved like pre-service.

And turned it into focusing on mental development. And all of this I can hear in our mutual visions is to transform

education for students. And that is the ultimate goal of mentoring in action. But we have to go through these

obstacles, stories, challenges, all of that, to get to the students. We have to go through the teachers. And Lori,

you're mentioning important, the principals. The principals are the school leaders. They're so important.

And it's all of us of working together. So I just totally believe in mentoring. It's what I've dedicated my career to.

So I want to begin, before we dive into the group discussion on an aha moment or a pivotal moment when you

were either mentored or you mentored someone else.

Like, I want our audience, our listeners, to hear how personal the mentoring relationship is and how it helps us

make decisions and big choices and how important that is. So, Lori, what shows up for you when I ask you that

pivotal moment, aha, what do you think about?

LORI

WIMBUSH:

I go back to my mother. Sometimes you don't realize you're being mentored until later on down the road. So I

say that to say, there were many examples she gave me and helped me early in my early years of teaching. I

actually was able to go back to my hometown and teach in Henry County, where my mom had taught for 37

years and was able to teach.

We were teaching together, and I remember seeing some of those examples that she now has instilled in me. I

get up every morning, come in to work, make sure I get everything done so then I can spend all my time focusing

on my people and my kids. So seeing her up at 4:00 AM in the morning doing grading papers, I now know she did

that so she could put all her time into her kids.

So that's some of the things that I didn't even realize I was being mentored. And now I'm able to also talk to

people I mentor. So just some of those small nuggets that you didn't know but my mother has passed and I'm

still today. Some of her students-- I was at a conference last week, and one of her students walked up to me and

said, you don't know how much your mom impacted me.

So that continues to make me know what my why is and why I need to do what I do. Because she still has an

impact on people long after she's been gone. So that's another reason we have to continue to do what we do

here.

CAROL

PELLETIER

RADFORD:

Exactly. Did you always want to be a teacher, though? Did your mother want you to be a teacher, or what did you

want to do?

LORI

WIMBUSH:

Great question. In high school I wanted to teach, and then once I got to college, I wanted to teach. And then I was

like, maybe I want to be a counselor. But my mom said to me, give me one year. Give me one year. And if you

don't like teaching, you can go back to college. We'll support you. So I said, OK, I'll give you that one year.

And the great thing was, I had a job before I even walked across the stage. I had a teaching job before I even

walked across the stage. So I was like, well, I guess I got to do this now. So I went back--

CAROL

PELLETIER

RADFORD:

Got the job.

LORI

WIMBUSH:

Yeah, I had the job before I even had a degree. And I was like, OK, I guess I gotta do this now. So I went back

home, and I remember those days that I'd be like, this is not what I want to do. And she was like, I promise you,

this is something you're going to love. And as I got into it, I didn't even turn back. I didn't even think about going

into counseling. I loved teaching.

And sometimes you don't know the impact you're having until you have that student say, hey, it was because of

you I actually liked geography. And hearing that was the spark that I was like, this is what I'm supposed to be

doing. So that was the aha moment for me. So I'm grateful to this day. I've been in it for 27 years, so she must

have saw something in me.

CAROL

PELLETIER

RADFORD:

She knew. Well, like my mother, it's like you're going to be a teacher. It was not an option because she saw that

in me like your mother saw that in you. And you can't get away from your moms. Those are the biggest big

mentors. Kate, what did you hear in the story? And then I want to hear your aha moment.

KATE GILBERT: So as you were talking, Lori, we have so much in common and Carol, as well. I would say that my mom turned my

teacher light on. And so I will give her a shout out here. And she was the one who said that this is the profession

for you and just really helped me see that as an educator herself, saw something in me that I was very reluctant

to see in at the time.

But my aha moment is slightly different. And I thought through the space that my cooperating teachers gave me

during student teaching. And perhaps I'm thinking there because of my role. But Adam and Danielle, gave me so

much space and creative freedom but support. And that inspired me so much as a teacher candidate to try new

things, to bring ideas to the table.

At 21 years old, sitting in a PLC meeting to still feel brave as a teacher. And so that I thought initially through this

question as being mentored, but I actually think that they shaped who I am as a mentor as well and how I

approach conversations with student teachers and clinical educators who are mentoring the student teachers to

ensure that their voices feel heard, that they feel empowered as an educator as well.

And so I think that was my big aha moment, was just the safety and bravery. Safety, I felt, but bravery I could

exhibit in those moments as a teacher and be able to develop who I am.

CAROL

PELLETIER

RADFORD:

And I think what's important about what you're saying is we don't want our beginning teachers to be silenced.

And for so many years, or when I started with mentoring, it was a very directed approach. You were respectful.

Just shut up and listen. They're going to tell you what to do, and then just do it. That paradigm is gone.

That left years ago in some ways, because of the way we teach children too. So that was part of the engagement

piece. But to engage, you got the feeling of that, Kate, like to be empowered or engaged so that you could feel

safe enough to participate in what? The brain doesn't work unless we're participating. You're going to be doing

your shopping list or something else and just sit there.

And I have other episodes where mentors will say, hey, when I was getting mentored, I wasn't even listening. I

was doing something else because that mentor didn't match with me. And if we don't change it up, we're going to

keep losing people to the profession. So part of our own stories are impacting the way we're moving forward to

retain teachers and retain mentors and get people who want to mentor. So, Lori, what did you hear in Kate's?

What are you thinking now as we're talking about our journeys?

LORI

WIMBUSH:

Well, I think it goes back to talking about when we were coming for, we just listened. When we had a mentor,

they told us to go left, we went left. And we didn't question it. And I think moving with the generations now, they

want to be engaged in whatever you're doing. So we have to create that space to allow them to engage in their

learning.

And what we're finding in our mentoring program is our mentors are getting just as much from the mentees

because they're having this open dialogue that in the past wasn't there. So we're really starting to see we're

having to shift with the generations that are coming in now and making sure that our mentoring programs reflect

their needs to make sure they're being met.

Because the big thing for us in Roanoke city, to retain our teachers of color. And us being the urban school

division, 70% of our students are of color. So of course, you see the need for us to have teachers of color in our

division. So knowing that piece, we need them to feel connected to our division. And any way to feel connected to

a division is by having people engaged and letting you know what they need and make sure their needs are met

and they're heard.

That's the biggest piece we're hearing, is they want to be heard and to ensure that someone hears them. And if

there are needs out there that we, of course, address those as needed.

CAROL

PELLETIER

RADFORD:

Wonderfully said. And perfect segue into our topic for today's podcast, which is cultivating positivity through

mentoring groups. So I'm going to set the stage with my background about how I got into groups. So truth be

told, I've been doing the dyad work, mentoring, conversations. That's my research, my doctorate, all of that,

trusting relationships, confidentiality.

We do know the dyad very well. What was happening in the schools that I was working with is that we didn't have

enough mentors. So the mentors were either getting assigned two or three, one on one. They were too busy.

They were all teaching. They can't figure out, how am I going to give quality time to these people? Then all the

other challenges. Are you getting paid? Are you getting released?

So all these other administrative things come up. And I was teaching a mentoring class, and I decided to-- I don't

even know how it at first came to me. I decided to introduce the concept of group mentoring, in part because my

administrator friends were saying, we got to do something. These teachers need help, and the mentors weren't

sure. They were complaining too. And we weren't able to differentiate or do anything.

So it started with a problem solving group because of what you're saying, Lori. Everybody has a need. Teachers

are entering the pathway in your district from five or six different ways. Everybody isn't going to college to

become a teacher. They're not in Kate's program. They're coming in through other alternative pathways. And it

puts a lot of pressure on the district and the mentor, especially if they're not prepared to be a mentor on getting

them up to speed so they can actually teach and all those social emotional issues.

And you both you know the drill. So we started with the problem solving group, and then I moved into something

called sharing best practices. Oh, let me tell you this, though. We started with the problem solving group, and I

am into empowering mentees. So I said, let's have the mentees lead some of these groups. And I did research on

it. Wrong. It didn't work. And this is why it didn't.

Now, maybe it could work somewhere else. But the way I did it, it did not work. So we had a problem solving

group with a lead mentor. And then we had one going with a very distinguished, smart beginning teacher. This is

what happened. The beginning teacher did not have the facilitation skills to organize the group, and it turned into

a gripe session.

So every time I debriefed with her, they never got to any problem solving, but they only got to saying what their

problems were, and everybody laughed not positive. They felt worse. So it did not cultivate positivity. So we

shifted it to only lead mentors could run the groups because we trained them to let the problems out, but then

focus. And the novice teachers, we created a new role for them. All they could do is share best practices.

So then the novice teachers led groups, and there were like 30 minute, 10 minute. What's working in your

classroom? And that's all they could talk about. Total shift in the way it worked. And then the third group that Lori

can talk more about is circles of light, whether it be to retain teachers of color or to mix mentors and novices or

just novices, it doesn't matter. It's about resilience and stories.

And these circles are just like what you were saying, Kate. Like, share your story, but then share what you did

about it. Like how did you actually resolve that issue? So something coming from, we didn't have enough

mentors to developing these group models shifted the whole way I looked at mentoring. And I find every program

should have group mentoring because it does cultivate positivity if you do it right.

You just don't throw novices in the wrong. You have to be thoughtful. That's my message. Kate, reaction.

response and Lori.

KATE GILBERT: So I feel so similarly and almost validated by everything that you shared because we are not meant to do this

alone. We are not meant to be educators in silos. And we need to humanize this profession again and let it be

acceptable to show up in spaces and be our authentic selves. And I found that the group mentoring was inspired

by, I am one supervisor who has upwards of 20 student teachers.

And I'm hearing all their stories and their successes and their genius and their challenges in silos. I'm just

meeting one on one with them, but they're all having these beautiful ideas. And I thought, wow, what if I could

get you in a space and you could hear each other and feel that empowerment and share your genius, and also

hear that it's OK to have some opportunities for growth, too?

And what if I'm out of the equation slightly and we're giving each other and sharing ideas and peer reflecting.

And so bringing teachers together, that's something we should celebrate in this profession. And the more that we

say in isolated spaces, the more it's just going to become easier to leave. And our light is going to only be spread

and glow brighter around others who share that passion for teaching.

CAROL

PELLETIER

RADFORD:

Lori, what do you think? What's your reaction to my story and Kate's perspective on this?

LORI

WIMBUSH:

Well, I think what I reflect on is that in our first year of BONDS-- and that's our mentoring program called Boost

an Opportunity for New Diverse Staff. And in our first year, we just pretty much got a group together and said,

have at it. It was not formalized. We just kind of said, you're a mentor, and you're a mentee. And seeing people

really struggle to have some of those, how do we share?

But when we brought the group together, you saw some people saying, well, I'm having this issue over here. So

really, when we bought the big group together, instead of having them just in their pairs, we saw the power of

giving them the opportunity to come together as a group. So that was one thing we learned a lot from that first

year with our mentoring program. And we're in our third year.

And I want to say, even though we had a lot of bumps in the road that first year, I mean, everyone that was in

the program-- at that time, we had 22 people in the program-- all of them came back to Roanoke city schools. So-

CAROL

PELLETIER

RADFORD:

Wow. Bravo. Take it in. Take that in. That's huge.

LORI

WIMBUSH:

Yeah, we're excited about that. And as we've learned, we really have seen people grow. But what we found from

that first year to the second year is now we have people who have experiences, and they're able to share them

with some of the other pairs. And that's where we're really starting to see how BONDS is really taking off,

because they now can tell their stories.

And now, as we're using Carol's work to show other stories, we're really seeing people come out of their shell and

really say, OK, I can relate. That's a problem I'm having. Here's some examples. And not only having Carol's

work, but we also have people who are in our BONDS program who have stories to share. Having mentors that

have over 26 years of experience, some have 30 that are mentors who have lived through different things.

And then some are our mentors now. We even have our first year people who are now mentors. So now they

actually are mentoring. So they have this generation post-COVID having some stories to tell is also being is

beautiful. So now we're really seeing, and again, it goes back to what you said. Sharing and not just trying to get

stuck in the problem, just not admiring the problem. What can we do so we can continue to get, and as you say,

travel light.

We got to travel light. We can't bring our baggage with us. Let's travel light. So then continue our why. So that's

what I take from that.

CAROL

PELLETIER

RADFORD:

Oh that's great. You're reminding me that when I was doing these pilots, the novice teachers want to be

together, and it doesn't even matter their age, because I worked with a lot of career changers. So they weren't

young people. They were career changers. But it didn't matter, because developmentally, everybody was a first

year teacher.

And it was so interesting in the groups to have see the age differences and the camaraderie, which we don't

always see because we attribute the wisdom and experience to age. But it isn't always age. And I think that

broke down a barrier as well for the beginning teachers. The older teachers felt like they couldn't fail because

they were older.

They had a different feeling like they had been mothers, and they were second careers, and they didn't feel safe

enough to sometimes share. And that's what I wanted to break down that, debunk that. And so what do you think

of that, Kate? That concept. Are you seeing that too?

KATE GILBERT: Absolutely. And it's really what inspired my thought of creating that the paint party around.

CAROL

PELLETIER

RADFORD:

Yeah, tell us about the paint party.

KATE GILBERT: So I think I'm just on this charge along with humanizing the profession to just also, what if there was joy? What if

there were joy in schools and teachers felt joy?

CAROL

PELLETIER

RADFORD:

They used to have fun. I remember that when I was teaching.

KATE GILBERT: Exactly. And then how can I bring all of these teachers who are in all the districts around this region that I serve

together in a space because they're not student teaching in the same schools. But I also serve residency

teachers. So these are your second career changers who are coming back. And so I wrote a grant to have a paint

party because I thought, well, this could be fun. Let's celebrate. Let's meet around a text.

And I had a local teacher in Charlotte who created a piece around your work and each teacher--

CAROL

PELLETIER

RADFORD:

Around teaching with light or?

KATE GILBERT: Yes.

CAROL

PELLETIER

RADFORD:

Really?

KATE GILBERT: Yes. And I actually have it with me. I'll show you at the end, but it stays in my office as a constant reminder to

me. And I brought them into a space, and we had great constructive dialogue around the text. We painted. We

fellowshipped. We bonded, and they all have them in their classrooms now as--

CAROL

PELLETIER

RADFORD:

Pieces of art that were like light-driven, like joyful things?

KATE GILBERT: Yes.

CAROL

PELLETIER

RADFORD:

Give me an example of what one of the ones that-- because I know our listeners can't see. But like for an

example.

KATE GILBERT: Yeah. So the teacher actually read your book and then created a original art piece around this that everyone

painted how they saw it. And so, yes. And so she used an anchor. There's an apple, but the apple almost looks

like it could be an owl for wisdom. And there's a huge heart in here. It's how you interpret the piece. And I will tell

you that no teacher painted it the same. And it was so beautiful.

CAROL

PELLETIER

RADFORD:

Oh, Lori, you have to do this.

LORI

WIMBUSH:

I'm writing this down because I'm thinking, at the end of the year, when we bring everybody together, this will be

a great opportunity.

CAROL

PELLETIER

RADFORD:

A cake party.

LORI

WIMBUSH:

Yes.

CAROL

PELLETIER

RADFORD:

Kate can mentor you and show you how to do it. That would be so much fun.

KATE GILBERT: So I applied for the grant again, but I decided to change up the book that I'm using and we are using when I--

CAROL

PELLETIER

RADFORD:

Started teaching.

KATE GILBERT: When I started teaching.

CAROL

PELLETIER

RADFORD:

I know.

KATE GILBERT: And so that's March 28. We have our paint party. And I've actually was able to secure more funding. So it's not

just my caseload. It's several caseloads coming together.

CAROL

PELLETIER

RADFORD:

I have goosebumps, and I'm so honored, and I'm so excited that you use this. Here's the positivity. It's the

creativity. But it's more than a book study. It's a book study that engages. It isn't that you didn't do the resilience

and the stories and all that. OK, Lori, are you going to do this?

LORI

WIMBUSH:

I'm thinking because I love it. And I'm thinking this would be a great opportunity to let them create. When you

first came in, in your first year, what did you think and what now? And maybe have them illustrate what they

thought teaching was going to be and now what it is or anything really to get them to express their first year. And

I think it will be a great opportunity for our mentors, too, because they're starting to learn so much from this

process.

They're reflecting on how they teach, how they relate to their students. And I think another thing that's big that

we're missing is a lot of our pre-service teachers, who are now our mentees, are bringing some of the pedagogy,

all some new things that are really helping our mentors. I had one who's been teaching, and she was like, she's

teaching me some technology that I never knew. And so now I feel like I am younger in my teaching, and I'm like,

I had never thought about it.

She was like, I feel young. And I'm like, you look young. That's what we're really starting to see is, you talk about

it mentoring is about relationships. And to see some of these relationships that are now happening because of

mentoring is really what makes you say, this is why people get into this profession. But to know you got that

person, we got people that like I was reading some comments from our last survey that they did after they had

their meetings.

And one of them said, he's become like we're great friends through this process. And that's one thing I love about

it. So it's just this work. You got to have support because it's so hard. And I think that--

CAROL

PELLETIER

RADFORD:

It's the humanness. See that friendship piece is that human piece. We're all human beings. We're in the human

being business. And yet we break it into the silos. So I want to just have you underscore positivity. So I get the

paint parties bringing that positive light. Lori, how in your teaching circles of light are you noticing positivity

emerging, even though people are sharing their problems and needs and all of that stuff?

How is the group shifting? What are you observing as a leader?

LORI

WIMBUSH:

What I'm seeing is they're not getting stuck because they have someone to help them see the bigger picture, the

ending. Like, for me, my mom was like, hey, you're just in that tough part. So for them to have someone to say,

hey, I know this is bad, but look at what's on the other side. That's what I think I'm really seeing a lot.

So one thing that really is helping us-- and this goes back to the positivity piece, is not only do they have their

mentor, but they also have us as central office staff that they know are supporting them. So when I go into a

classroom and it's one of our mentors and they see me, they're like, you're here to see me teach. And I'm like,

exactly.

So to see them excited for us to be in their classrooms and also to know that if they're struggling with something,

they have us to come to and have that conversation. That too is what I am seeing. We're building this huge

network around support, and it's all about making sure you're good so you can be good for our students.

CAROL

PELLETIER

RADFORD:

And that's why you get the results. That's why you got everybody stayed because if they go to another district,

they might not get that. And I remember when I was in higher education and my teachers were going for jobs

and they'd say, what should I ask? I said, always ask, are you going to have a mentor?

And if you have three job choices and the one that gives you a mentor, they invest because it's financial. If they

invest in you, then that's going to tip the scale for the choice of district that you're going to choose. And that's

going to start happening again because people are leaving. So we have to have mentoring be visible. That's

hence this podcast series for season four. It's about teacher retention.

And we have to keep putting those ideas out. So Kate, positivity in your group things, how does it surface? What

are you seeing?

KATE GILBERT: I think I'm just having to be really intentional in checking in and asking what's going really well. Can I shout out?

Tell me something I can shout out for your student teacher? And I added a section to my weekly updates, and it's

pictures from the classroom. And the mentors are sending them to me, and I'm writing up what is going on and

letting them try to draw inspiration from each other.

I think it's so important to uplift our mentors. They are doing incredible work. So small things that I do are I email

their principal and sometimes their superintendent, and I say, hey, you have a rock star mentor who is just a

phenomenal support to this teacher candidate. And I just want to lift them up and say thank you for giving them

the space to do this.

And I think Carol and Lori, what you both have talked about in humanizing is we've got to make space for the

positive. Our day to day life can get in the way of that recognition. And so I have it as calendar tasks every day

something positive that I do.

CAROL

PELLETIER

RADFORD:

I love it. I love it.

KATE GILBERT: Because it's a great way to also end or start my day and remind myself that this is the work that I'm doing. And

just to see student teachers empowered in a space, they're coming off mute in class. They're sharing ideas. They

love when their picture is in the shout out. And they get excited, and it fosters that relationship with their mentor

too. Like, oh, my mentor saw that in me? And so it's just about maintaining that relationship and feeding that as

well.

CAROL

PELLETIER

RADFORD:

Yeah. Intentionally. So that's what the three of us are here doing in this podcast is making an intentional. The

other mentoring group that I didn't represent is meeting monthly with the mentors and building that camaraderie

because they feel the same thing as the problem solving groups with the novice teachers.

And I really encourage that for our listeners. If you're not doing that, that should be a priority, because again, it

follows the gripe session thing, all the things that are going wrong. But we need to hear all of that and then hear

it all but intentionally the agenda is 10 minutes of that and 10 minutes of what inspires you, and show me

something that you just did that worked, or a celebration.

And that's all intentional. It's just an agenda. It's just like making the agenda happen. Does that make sense,

Lori?

LORI

WIMBUSH:

Yeah, absolutely. And I speak to that because what we found is after every session, they fill out a survey of what

they talked about. And then we always ask, what can the division do or what are your needs? So we monitor that

constantly, and we follow back up. But actually following up and going like a lot of times if I see that in a

response, I actually go to the school and be like, hey, I'm just over here and just checking in. Let's see what I can

do to help.

And what we were finding was, I just need some starters to help me from our mentors of how to get my mentee. I

want to talk more about just not time, because time is what everybody is always in the way. But I do want to

circle back to two things you both said just to piggyback on. Carol, you were talking about retention, but also

we're using our mentoring program as a recruitment tool.

And that was what we found is we didn't intend for our mentoring program to be a recruitment tool, but it has

turned into one. We all know teachers of color right now, if you can find one, and everybody wants teachers of

color in their school division. But for us to be able to say, we have a mentoring program that caters to our

teachers of color also, has really brought people into our division.

And what we've done is we've actually created videos of the power of our mentorship that we show when we go

on recruiting visits to show this is important to us as a division. And one of the things that shows the importance

of it for us-- and it goes back to being a recruitment tool-- is our superintendent. This is part of our strategic plan-

- so hiring a diverse work staff.

So having her at our recruitment, she also comes to our opening. We have an opening ceremony when we start

our BONDS mentor. She comes and she speaks. She is of color. So to see people and then our school board is

also invested in it too. So I say all that is to say, mentoring can become a recruitment tool for division also. And I

just wanted to say, this is really something that has shocked us how much people have said, hey, we came to

your division because of BONDS and to hear that.

And we have people who say, I want to be part of BONDS because of course, we have kept the groups small. But

as it's grown, we're up to now, I think we're up to 53 people in our group. We started with 21. Now we're up to

53. And then Kate, going to you talking about providing that space and pretty much allowing people to know that

we recognize you and see you to be able to go in a building and see a teacher of color that's doing great things in

their building and say to them, we want you to be a mentor because we see the value of what you're bringing,

the great things you're doing in the a classroom.

And to see that joy to say, next year we're going to make you a BONDS mentor. That has really been a great

thing for us. And I just say, we got to recognize people and the great things they're doing, and making them a

mentor is a great way to do that.

CAROL

PELLETIER

RADFORD:

Yes, yes. Powerful. Very insightful, articulate. I can hear the passion in your voice, but I hear the success too and

the joy. And it feels good. It feels good when we hit that stride. Kate, anything else that you want to add or any

challenges around running the groups? Because I have a challenge that I want to run by both of you, get your

feedback, but thoughts?

KATE GILBERT: Challenges. I think the greatest challenge is our mentors are typically our teachers that are pulled in a million

different directions. And I'm sure not shocking to anyone on this call, funding is also a great challenge for these

projects. And honoring teachers who are willing to do this work and see the value and in service essentially to the

profession to give back to prepare the next set of teachers.

The stipends that go along with that do not reflect the hours of work and the invisible work in education in

general. And so I think the challenge that we face is our quality and mentors feeling like they cannot take on this

responsibility, given all of the other directions that are pulled. They are department chairs. They're running the

clubs. They're our coaches. They're pulled in a million directions.

And then the funding to compensate them appropriately because they are doing the hard work day in and day

out.

CAROL

PELLETIER

RADFORD:

And it's also the skill set of moving from a dyad conversation to a group facilitation. So one of the challenges that

I had, and because people are busy, is having a mentor not just direct the whole conversation but to weave

together and have all the other. And it's a skill set. It's a facilitator skill set. Any insights around that for leading

groups? Lori, how do you do it?

KATE GILBERT: Well, we actually use your book, Carol, to help with that. We're actually using Teaching With Light, and we have

assigned a chapter for every session they have with their mentee. And it's really giving them almost like a

springboard into the conversation because as you said, when you're having those tough times, it's good to read

something that's light.

CAROL

PELLETIER

RADFORD:

Inspiring.

KATE GILBERT: And inspires them. And it turns the whole conversation instead of, I just had this tough conversation with a

parent, and then they can read. They both have read the chapters prior to that conversation. So it really kind of

helps change the mood and flow. So I'm really happy about that. And I go back, I keep piggybacking in on what

Kate said, talking about making sure we value our mentors through a stipend.

I'll give a quick synopsis of how when we started this. And originally when we started bonds three years ago, we

weren't going to pay the mentors. And we made the calls. Would you be a mentor? Everyone of them said, I'll do

it for free. I wish somebody had done this when I first came to Roanoke city schools. When we went back to our

superintendent and she said, absolutely not. We will pay them for their time, and they need to be valued.

And because she made that statement, we went out and found funding with our HR department to pay our

mentors, to be able to call them back and say, we value you as a division. I really knew that was the step. We had

a misstep, and because we found the money and to know that I was able to say, our superintendent values you

and what you do for our division and what you're going to do, that really helped take our program to the next

level.

So I want to say, Kate, Thank you for saying that as a barrier, because we're really finding sometimes no good

deed goes unpunished, but you have to make sure you value the people who are pouring into your people. And I

want to just say that.

CAROL

PELLETIER

RADFORD:

Yes. And what I'm thinking as we're talking about this is human resources departments are our friends. Because

now that you've said, Lori, this is a recruitment tool, they get money. Money goes into districts in different ways.

And we need to think differently instead of saying, it's a mentor stipend. No, no, no, this is a recruitment tool. Oh

it is? Oh, OK. Fine.

And then it's a mentor stipend. But we have to lead with recruitment and retention because it costs districts

money when they leave. Because all we're doing is rehiring, rehiring, rehiring. And I hope our listeners take this

the right way. We need to collaborate more with the HR people and use it to get the money to pay the mentors

and the group leaders and the books and all the pieces of resources that we need.

So wow, we could go on forever. But I think our audience has gotten some great ideas. Anything that last words,

Kate, anything you want to button it up? And I'm going to close with some affirmations, but we'll give you the last

word.

KATE GILBERT: Sure. So you asked the question of how we prepare mentors. And we don't want them to just stand and give

feedback or throw directives. We can't then train them that way. Training cannot consist of sitting and being

talked to. It needs to be a collaborative process from the beginning. We need to dig into identity work. We need

to think about our positionalities and really reflect as humans.

And we need to model this continuously what it means to be an impactful mentor. And that needs to show up in

every interaction we have with mentors and mentees.

CAROL

PELLETIER

RADFORD:

I appreciate that because that is kind of my life career work, is to model and prepare mentors for the role that

they unselfishly give so much to this profession. So thank you both for this dynamic conversation. And you two

are going to stay connected. I'm definitely staying connected to Lori. Kate and I are connected. I'm going to close

the episode with two affirmations from the mentoring and action book.

And this is what I chose. For mentors-- and just to know, we're all mentors-- I provide positive support and a

sense of optimism to novice teachers. And for the mentees and novices that are listening, I bring optimism to my

classroom. So thank you, Kate. That's so nice to see you. I want to be at a paint party. And, Lori, a pleasure to

meet you.

LORI

WIMBUSH:

Nice to meet you. Thank you.

[BRIGHT MUSIC]

NARRATOR: Thanks, everyone, for joining today's Teacher to Teacher conversation. We hope this time together energized

you, inspired you, and reminded you why you chose to become a teacher. You can purchase any of Carol's books

and any books mentioned in the podcast online at www.corwin.com. Please leave a review, and share this

podcast with your colleagues. Thank you for listening to the Corwin Teacher to Teacher podcast, a place to share

teacher wisdom and engage in authentic conversations with experienced educators.

ANNOUNCER: Come explore Corwin's free new teacher toolkit and resources. We've curated these resources based on

extensive research from teachers, coaches, and principals alike. Whether you are brand new or a veteran

teacher, find ready to go teaching tools at corwin.com today.

Dr. Lori Wimbush

An educator with more than 27 years of experience, progressing from a classroom teacher to a middle and high school principal, and now serving at the central office level, consistently prioritizing children's needs in every decision.

Kate Gilbert

Kate Gilbert is a Lecturer and Lead University Supervisor at UNC Charlotte, dedicated to teacher preparation, mentoring teacher candidates, and community partnerships. She works with grants and research focused on mentoring, teacher preparation, and intentional placements. Within these roles, she trains teacher mentors to support student teachers and teacher candidates. A former National Board-Certified middle grades social studies teacher and teacher mentor, Kate also engages in international research on teacher preparation, fostering connections between UNC Charlotte and global education programs.

Carol Pelletier Radford

Carol Pelletier Radford is the founder of Mentoring in Action, an organization dedicated to the success of novice teachers and their mentors. Before she established her own organization to support mentors and new teachers, she was a veteran elementary school teacher and a teacher preparation leader. Carol is the author of Corwin’s bestselling books Mentoring in Action: Guiding, Sharing, and Reflecting With Novice Teachers and The First Years Matter: Becoming an Effective Teacher.

Carol received her Education Doctorate from the Harvard University Graduate School of Education, where she focused her studies on mentoring and teacher leadership. She is also a certified yoga teacher who practices meditation and shares mindfulness strategies with educators through her online courses and website. Her podcast Teaching With Light features the stories of teachers and inspirational leaders. Her next passion project is the creation of a Teacher Legacy Network, where retired teachers can share their wisdom with the next generation of teachers.

You can learn more about Carol, find free resources, videos, meditations, courses, and all of her books at mentoringinaction.com/.

Twitter: @MentorinAction
Facebook: @MentoringinAction4Teachers
Instagram: @cpradford