Aspire Mailbag: Building Trust Through Leadership and Initiative Changes

Aspire Mailbag: Building Trust Through Leadership and Initiative Changes

June 13, 2026 · 32 min

About this episode

Joshua Stamper and Jeff Gargas discuss building trust through leadership and the transition from punitive to relationship-based discipline in education.

In this Aspire Mailbag episode, Joshua Stamper and Jeff Gargas respond to listener questions about supporting an aspiring leader through a campus transition and helping teachers shift away from punitive discipline. They explore how new leadership can create both uncertainty and opportunity, and what aspiring leaders can do to build trust, stay visible, and align themselves with a new principal’s vision without losing momentum in their own leadership journey. The conversation also digs into one of the biggest challenges in education today: helping teachers move from punishment-based discipline to relationship-based support. Joshua and Jeff discuss why this shift takes time, why common language matters, and how schools can make restorative approaches feel practical instead of overwhelming. They also talk about the importance of small, intentional steps, teacher buy-in, and creating systems that support student growth without making behavior management feel like an unfair sacrifice of teacher time. Follow Jeff Gargas: Twitter: https://twitter.com/jeffgargas Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/_jeffgargas/ Follow The Teach Better Team: Twitter: https://twitter.com/teachbetterteam…

People in this episode

Host: Joshua Stamper

Guest: Jeff Gargas

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Organizations: Teach Better Team

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