About this episode

The episode discusses reimagining leadership in education through the lens of artificial intelligence with guest Jerry Almendarez.

Outline and Show Notes Show Title: Reimagining Leadership in the Age of AI with Jerry Almendarez Teaser (written by Claude ai): Today's episode tackles a question that should make every one of us a little uncomfortable: why do our school systems keep working harder without getting meaningfully better results? My guest has spent more than 30 years wrestling with that question — first as a classroom teacher, then as Superintendent of Santa Ana Unified, leading over 41,000 students and 5,000 staff. Jerry Almendarez learned that real change doesn't come from piling on more programs — it comes from rethinking how leaders make decisions, build relationships, and see what's coming before it arrives. Now, through Creative Futures Collaborative, Jerry works with superintendents and executive teams to redesign how leadership systems actually process information — using artificial intelligence not to add another tool to the pile, but to help leaders think clearer, connect deeper, and act earlier. If you've ever felt buried by the pace of decisions you're asked to make, this conversation is for you. Stick around — we're about to get into how intelligence should move before it ever reaches…

People in this episode

Host: Frederick Buskey

Guest: Jerry Almendarez

Topics covered

• leadership
• artificial intelligence
• education reform
• decision making
• relationship building

Keywords

• leadership
• AI
• education
• decision making
• superintendent

Sponsors

Kaleidoscope Adventures

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: Creative Futures Collaborative, Santa Ana Unified

More episodes of The Assistant Principal Podcast

• Motivation Deep Dive with Katie Powell · July 14, 2026 · 50 min
• What SPED Needs from You with Liz Capone · July 7, 2026 · 53 min
• Schools to Watch with Dr. Joe Coleman · June 30, 2026 · 44 min
• My 11 Morning Affirmations · June 23, 2026 · 29 min
• Reframing Resistance with Becca Silver · June 16, 2026 · 49 min

Explore listener stats, chart rankings, contacts and more on the The Assistant Principal Podcast podcast page.