Aspire Mailbag: How to Hire Well and Reimagine Student Discipline

Aspire Mailbag: How to Hire Well and Reimagine Student Discipline

July 11, 2026 · 40 min

About this episode

Joshua Stamper and Jeff Gargas discuss effective hiring practices and reimagining student discipline to foster skill development in education.

In this Aspire Mailbag episode, Joshua Stamper and Jeff Gargas tackle two leadership topics that are on a lot of educators’ minds right now: how to hire great people when applicant pools are shrinking, and how to rethink student discipline in ways that actually build skills. They explore why culture matters in attracting the right staff, how leaders can look beyond interview answers to find the right fit, and what it means to create a school or district people genuinely want to be part of. The conversation also dives into the tension between punishment and education in student behavior systems. Joshua and Jeff discuss why discipline should not be about simply removing students or making them “sit and think,” but instead about teaching regulation, repairing harm, and helping students build the skills they need for the future. This episode offers practical leadership insight for administrators, coaches, and educators who want to build stronger teams and healthier school cultures. 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

Topics covered

Keywords

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: Teach Better Team

More episodes of Aspire to Lead

Explore listener stats, chart rankings, contacts and more on the Aspire to Lead podcast page.