This week, our host Rick Fernandez sits down with Dr. Elizabeth Norton, a relentless leader and CTE workforce expert with a remarkable journey through the heart of Tennessee’s education system.

From her early days as a reading interventionist to leading statewide literacy initiatives and navigating the complexities of district support, Dr. Norton shares how her passion for impact guided every career move, even her recent leap into consulting and her work at the frontier of AI in education. Together, Rick Fernandez and Elizabeth Norton dig deep into the real-world challenges of creating coherence across massive systems, supporting teacher growth in an era of rapid technological change, and reimagining the high school experience for a future shaped by artificial intelligence and evolving workforce needs.

Whether you’re an educator, leader, or just curious about how big ideas become real solutions, this episode will spark a fresh perspective on transformation, continuous improvement, and what it takes to truly solve for X in today’s schools. So grab your coffee, and maybe some hot sauce, and get ready for an insightful journey with Dr. Elizabeth Norton!

What You’ll Learn

• Why coherence, structures, and routines are essential for leading large-scale improvement—and how leaders lose impact when those systems break down

• What it takes to lead continuous improvement effectively, including the role of after-action reviews, leading indicators, and disciplined follow-through

• Why AI literacy is now a leadership responsibility, not just a technology issue—and what district and school leaders need to understand right now

• How AI is poised to reshape teaching, assessment, and professional learning, moving schools toward process-based evaluation and project-based learning

• The emerging impact of AI on CTE pathways and workforce readiness, including which career clusters are most vulnerable to automation

• Why the future of high school depends on reimagining CTE, relevance, and postsecondary pathways, and how systems must evolve to keep students engaged

Episode Timestamps

04:14 "Building Coherence in Education"

07:18 "Building Coherence with Structure"

11:55 Tennessee's Push for AI Literacy

14:18 "AI Leadership for Everyone"

19:40 Rethinking Assessment in AI Era

21:27 "PBL: The Future of Learning"

25:51 AI as Lesson Thought Partner

27:32 AI's Impact on Career Clusters

31:42 "AI as Tool for Teacher Versatility"

33:57 "Challenges in Education Certification"

39:57 "Leadership through Growth and Empowerment"

42:37 "Improving Data Collection for Change"

Connect with Us

• Host’s LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/dr-rick-fernandez-40692434/
• Company’s LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/powerschool-group
  
  

Special Thanks

To Elizabeth Norton and the Tennessee Department of Education team for their commitment to helping districts navigate complex challenges with clarity, strategy, and a deep focus on student success.

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