In this episode of Swimming Upstream, host Tom Luna is joined by Johnny Key live from the Excel in Ed Conference in New Orleans for a conversation with Richard Woods, Georgia’s elected State School Superintendent.

Woods reflects on his path from classroom teacher to statewide office sharing how the post No Child Left Behind era pushed him to focus on what he felt was missing most: talking about kids, not just tests. Now entering his 12th year in office and running for a fourth term, he describes what it takes to stay relevant, energized, and centered on student outcomes over multiple terms.

The conversation explores Georgia’s push to strengthen early literacy, including the rollout of new K–12 literacy standards grounded in the science of reading. Woods shares early results from Georgia’s federally identified CSI schools, where coaching support modeled after Mississippi’s approach has driven initial gains and is now being replicated more broadly across the state.

Woods also discusses Georgia’s comprehensive approach to school safety—not only hardening buildings through cameras, SROs, and facility design collaboration with first responders, but also addressing the “question behind the question” through mental health supports, stronger inter-agency coordination, and telehealth access in rural communities.

Key Moments

06:12 "Importance of Reading for Kids"

09:57 "Focusing on Kids' Basic Needs"

11:14 Prioritizing School Safety and Readiness

17:15 "Teaching the Peach Initiative"

18:05 Addressing Teacher Retention Challenges

21:45 "Improving Literacy Through Accountability"

24:49 "Integrating Subjects for Deeper Learning"

Connect with Richard Woods

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/richard-woods-52571849/

Website: https://www.gadoe.org/

In this episode of Swimming Upstream, host Tom Luna is joined by Strategos Group Partner Johnny Key for a live conversation from the Excel in Education Conference in New Orleans with Lizzette Reynolds, Commissioner of Education for the state of Tennessee.

A major focus of the conversation is literacy. Reynolds explains Tennessee’s commitment to the science of reading, the importance of early literacy benchmarks, and how statewide implementation from teacher preparation to instructional materials and tutoring has helped drive improvement. She emphasizes that literacy is foundational not only to academic success, but to students’ long-term economic and life outcomes.

The episode also explores assessment and accountability, including Tennessee’s A–F school grading system, the push for clearer and faster data reporting, and how states can use assessment results to support not punish schools and educators. Reynolds discusses how Tennessee is reimagining high school accountability through a “Future Ready” lens that values college, career, and military readiness.

The conversation closes with a hopeful outlook on Tennessee’s educators, school leaders, and students and a fun piece of trivia: Mountain Dew originated in Tennessee, originally created as a whiskey mixer.

Key Moments

00:00 Tom Luna on leadership, accountability, and Swimming Upstream

01:08 Introducing Commissioner Lizzette Reynolds live from New Orleans

01:43 Reynolds’ path from federal education policy to Tennessee leadership

04:32 Implementing Tennessee’s A–F accountability system

07:34 Why literacy and the science of reading matter long-term

10:03 Tutoring, teacher prep, and instructional support statewide

15:13 Assessment, ESSA waivers, and accountability going forward

17:42 Future Ready Tennessee: rethinking high school outcomes

21:43 Using assessment data to individualize instruction

24:10 What gives Reynolds hope for Tennessee’s students

25:39 Tennessee trivia: the origin of Mountain Dew

Connect with Lizzette Reynolds

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lizzetteg

In this episode of Swimming Upstream, host Tom Luna sits down in New Orleans at the Excel in Education Conference with Senator Lori Den Hartog, Senate Majority Leader from Idaho, to explore how education policy, school choice, and government accountability intersect especially in a fast-growing state.

Sen. Den Hartog shares her personal story growing up on a dairy farm in rural Ada County and how that upbringing shaped her work ethic and her views on private property rights, regulation, and the real-world cost of government bureaucracy especially for small businesses and family operations.

The conversation then turns to education policy, where Den Hartog emphasizes the importance of transparency, especially since K–12 education represents a major portion of Idaho’s state budget. She explains why unclear funding flows make it difficult to track spending, measure outcomes, and defend policies ultimately limiting the state’s ability to evaluate what’s working.

Finally, Den Hartog explains the broader challenge legislators face: balancing education investments alongside transportation, healthcare, corrections, and other core state responsibilities while remembering that every dollar is taxpayer money.

Key Moments

00:00 Tom Luna intro + the “not rocket science… more complicated” line

00:41 Live from New Orleans: introducing Sen. Lori Den Hartog

02:58 Growing up on a dairy farm + how it shaped her leadership

07:43 Growth, regulation, and why “time is money” for small businesses

10:46 Why education funding needs transparency and traceable results

13:06 Why school choice has always felt “normal” to her

16:41 Idaho’s refundable education tax credit: who qualifies + what it covers

22:07 Balancing education with roads, healthcare, and other state priorities

Connect with Lori Den Hartog

Website: https://www.dordt.edu/