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.

In this second episode of Season II Evolution Stories, host Christian Talbot sits down with Suzanna Jemsby, Head of School at Washington International School and a Commissioner with the Middle States Association. A lifelong educator fluent in four languages, Suzanna’s global journey has taken her from classrooms in England and Syria to leadership roles in Atlanta and Washington, DC. She candidly reflects on early career decisions, lessons from a failed campus expansion project, and how that experience shaped her approach to community engagement and leadership. Suzanna shares how she rebuilt trust with neighbors, successfully led a major construction initiative, and developed a collaborative school culture that empowers both faculty and students. Through her story, she reminds us that meaningful change in education begins with listening, relationships, and a steadfast belief that students must always remain at the center of every decision.

In this Season II opening episode of Evolution Stories, host Christian Talbot welcomes back Michael Horn, renowned author, speaker, and leading thinker in education innovation. Horn was the very first guest in Middle States’ live conversations nearly three years ago, and he returns to discuss his influential work on school reinvention and systemic change. He shares insights from his book From Reopen to Reinvent and beyond, highlighting why schools often get stuck in outdated practices and how leaders can design better systems for students. Drawing on years of research and collaboration, Horn emphasizes the need for schools to embrace disruption, adopt flexible models, and put students at the center of learning. The conversation underscores his belief that innovation is not optional—it’s essential for the future of education.

In this episode, Rory Sutherland, Vice Chairman of Ogilvy and author of "Alchemy," shares his perspective on leading change, particularly in schools. Sutherland argues for the importance of incorporating psychology into change initiatives, suggesting that an over-reliance on numerical metrics can be detrimental.

Drawing from his experience in advertising, he emphasizes the need to understand human behavior and motivations to drive effective transformation. The conversation explores how schools can apply principles of lateral thinking and creativity to overcome challenges and achieve meaningful change.