About the Getting Smart Podcast

The Getting Smart Podcast covers trends, innovations and insights in K-12, higher ed, lifelong learning, leadership, investing and more. You can listen and subscribe on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher or wherever you get your podcasts. Every other Friday we publish an episode called “Catching Up” where Nate McClennen and Mason Pashia try to make sense of what’s going on in education, learning and human flourishing. Check it out. 

If you’re on Spotify, we have built some great playlists to help you jump into some conversations we’ve been having over the last few years. You can go long on the following topics: 

Interested in placing an advertisement in the podcast or sponsoring a series of conversations? Check out our sponsored content page to learn more. 

Know of someone who would make a great guest on the podcast? Email Mason to pitch your suggestion or learn more about being on the podcast.

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This podcast highlights developing trends in K-12 education, postsecondary and lifelong learning. Each week, Getting Smart team members interview students, leading authors, experts and practitioners in research, tech, entrepreneurship and leadership to bring listeners innovative and actionable strategies in education leadership.

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Future of Work

Khan Academy’s founder on AI: “Hope isn’t a strategy” | Sal Khan

Nate McClennen

What does the founder of Khan Academy think about AI's impact on education, work, and human development? In our latest podcast episode, Sal Khan joins Nate McClennen for a wide-ranging conversation that moves from mastery learning and Khanmigo's next chapter to the launch of the Khan-TED Institute and the durable skills that no algorithm can replace. For education leaders navigating the pressure to adopt AI while preserving what makes learning deeply human, this conversation is essential listening.
Equity & Access

A Grammy Nominee Says AI Just Made the Case for Music Class | Tony Mazzocchi

Guest Author

In our latest podcast episode, Getting Smart host Mason Pashia sits down with Grammy-nominated music educator Tony Mazzocchi, President and CEO of New York City's Kaufman Music Center, to make the case that arts education is not a nice-to-have but the most human-skills-rich environment a school can offer. Tony challenges the myth that talent is rare, argues that the real scarcity is sustained access, and shows how one K-12 public school is outperforming the city in ELA and math precisely because music is embedded into every school day. For education leaders navigating budget pressures and the rise of AI, this conversation reframes the question: not 'can we afford the arts,' but 'can we afford to keep treating them as optional.'
EdTech

Are Schools Collecting Too Much Data? | Dr. Kelly Page

Guest Author

Digital badges and verifiable credentials promise to transform how we recognize learning, but are they built to serve learners or surveil them? In this episode, Getting Smart host Mason Pashia speaks with Dr. Kelly Page, author of When Credentials Cause Harm, about the surveillance risks, data equity failures, and vendor lock-in traps hidden inside many credentialing systems. Dr. Page offers school leaders a practical framework for auditing edtech tools, building data governance policies, and designing recognition systems that center consent and human storytelling. This is a must-listen for any education leader navigating procurement decisions in an era of accelerating edtech adoption.
Future of Learning

Catching Up: Meta’s Billion-Dollar Payout, AI Search Bias, and Fixing Student Voice

Mason Pashia, Nate McClennen

In the latest episode of Catching Up, Nate McClennen and Mason Pashia move from Meta's billion dollar settlement to a sharper question: what if we funded real life instead of more apps? They also untangle the difference between AI as an efficiency tool and AI as an efficacy tool, walk through a clear framework for how school systems actually learn, and trace the growing shift from tokenistic student surveys to genuine intergenerational co-design, complete with a student-drafted AI policy bill and a constitutional lawsuit filed by Kentucky students. This one is built for leaders who want less noise and more signal on where education is actually heading.

Ed Policy

Chicago’s Former Schools CEO on Phones, Power, and the Future of Public Education | Janice K. Jackson

Guest Author

Former Chicago Public Schools CEO Dr. Janice K. Jackson joined Mason Pashia on the Getting Smart Podcast for a conversation that refuses to stay comfortable. From why blanket tech bans risk leaving low-income students further behind, to what Chicago's governance shift reveals about accountability gaps in large urban systems, Dr. Jackson offers the kind of grounded, systemic thinking that education leaders are hungry for right now. If you are navigating enrollment decline, edtech fatigue, or community trust erosion, this episode is essential listening.