Unplugged: Interviews with SHAPE America's CEO

Tune in to SHAPE America's popular interview series — Unplugged — with SHAPE America CEO Stephanie Morris.

Each month you'll hear fresh interviews with some of the health and physical educators who are shaping the way forward for the profession. No topic is off-limits!

Season 4

Unplugged Season 4 Episode 4 Graphic

S4, Episode 4

Stephanie talks with the authors of Infusing Self-Advocacy into Physical Education and Health Education, Lauren Lieberman, Ruth Childs, and Mary Connolly, about the unique publication that provides an interdisciplinary approach to promote the benefits of self-advocacy for every child.

Unplugged Season 4 Episode 3 Graphic

S4, Episode 3

Stephanie talks with physical educators Jeff Ladd, Krista Winn, and Leah Wheeling about their experiences with hosting health. moves. minds. Fundraisers, and how doing so impacted their school culture and community for the better.

Unplugged Season 4 Episode 2 Graphic

S4, Episode 2

Stephanie talks with Holly Alperin and Sarah Toth of SHAPE America’s National Health Education Standards Task Force about where they are currently in the standards revision process (which began in 2021).

Unplugged Season 4 Episode 1 Graphic

S4, Episode 1

Stephanie talks with Sally Jones, Brad Brummel, and Cory Dixon of SHAPE America’s National Physical Education Standards Task Force about where they are currently in the standards revision process (which began in 2021).

Season 3

S3, Episode 12

Stephanie chats with SHAPE America’s Director of Educational Content & Programs Michelle Carter on the Teacher of the Year program & much more!

S3, Episode 11

Stephanie chats with Sally Jones from the North Carolina Department of Public Instruction and Langston Clark, Associate Professor at the University of Texas (San Antonio) on the revision of the National K-12 Physical Education Standards & much more!

S3, Episode 10

Stephanie chats with Dr. Sarah Toth of Alabama A&M University and Nadine Marchessault of the Hawaii State Department of Education on the revision of the National Health Education Standards & much more!

S3, Episode 9

Stephanie chats with Annie Deusch of New Jersey. Annie is a new Physical Educator and they chat about starting a career and teaching during the pandemic & much more!

S3, Episode 8

Stephanie chats with two of our District Teachers of the Year, Tanner Roos and Elizabeth Bolger about their experience over the last year, lessons learned, changes they are implementing, their why's and much more!

S3, Episode 7

On this episode of Unplugged, Stephanie is joined by Paul Rukavina, Chair of the Research Council! Stephanie connects with Paul about lessons he learned from a recent Equity, Diversity and Inclusion (EDI) training. They then dive into what the Research Council does, their named lecture series at #SHAPENOLA, the McKenzie grant and future plans for the Council!

S3, Episode 6

On this episode of Unplugged, Stephanie is joined by Lisa Paulson and Nilo Ramos of the Physical Activity and Physical Education councils! Stephanie connects with the chairs about their back to school experiences, what their council does, their ongoing work and their future priorities.

S3, Episode 5

On this episode of Unplugged, Stephanie is joined by Erin Centeio and Elizabeth Sharp from the Professional Preparation Council! Stephanie connects the chairs about their back to school experiences, what the professional preparation council does and their priorities.

S3, Episode 4

On this episode of Unplugged, Stephanie is joined by some special guests! Stephanie connects with Angela Stark along with her student Reese Owens and her family to discuss health. moves. minds. including how to incorporate it into your school year, how the program helps manage student stress levels and how the community comes closer together through great teachers like Angela!

S3, Episode 3

Stephanie is joined by members of SHAPE America’s Emerging Leaders Innovation Team (ELIT). ELIT provides emerging leaders an opportunity to contribute as volunteer leaders to the health and physical education community. Members of the Emerging Leaders Innovation Team are invited to help develop content (such as blogs, podcasts, and other resources), engage at conferences or SHAPE sponsored events, and contribute in other meaningful ways to the development of SHAPE America’s professional development offerings.

S3, Episode 2

Stephanie chats with Andrea Cahn, Vice President of Unified Champion Schools, Special Olympics in this special back-to-school episode of Unplugged. Andrea and Stephanie discuss what they have seen during the pandemic and Andrea shares many great resources that Unified Schools & Special Olympics have produced.

S3, Episode 1

In the Season 3 premiere of Unplugged, Stephanie talks with SHAPE America President Terri Drain about a number of current issues in the profession. They cover the need for teachers to advocate for health and physical education, the benefits of National Board Certification and why it can be a worthwhile experience for HPE teachers, and the importance of grasping the full scope of health and physical literacy.

Season 2

S2, Episode 7

Stephanie chats with Emily Zien, a Physical Education teacher from the American School of Milan in Italy. They chat about teaching during the pandemic in Italy, her recent blog post, "5 Remote Teaching Tips for Your Virtual Health Education Classroom." how she connects with her students while managing their cognitive overload, what resources she is using and more!

S2, Episode 6

Incorporating mindfulness into a school’s daily activities is more important than ever. On this week’s episode of Unplugged, our CEO Stephanie Morris talks with Principal Jennifer Perilla from George G. Tyler Elementary School in Gainesville, VA and gets her thoughts on how to best incorporate themes around mindfulness in a school setting and why it’s so important for her school.

S2, Episode 5

Stephanie chats with Brett Fuller about the comings and goings with SHAPE America including SPEAK Out! Day, #SHAPEVirtual and the importance of Equity, Diversity and Inclusion.

S2, Episode 4

Stephanie speaks with Holly Hunt, chief of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's School Health Branch about how she is doing, how partnerships help further the mission of the CDC, new resources her branch and the funded partners have created and resources that are coming soon!

S2, Episode 3

Stephanie is joined by Alexis Glick, the CEO of GENYOUth. Stephanie and Alexis chatted about what they've learned from this past year, how GenYouth is navigating this new world, updates about Fuel Up to Play 60 and more!

S2, Episode 2

Stephanie chats with Bo Shappell and Daniella Land, the co-founders of WE Integrated. WE Integrated is creating a new paradigm of wellness that transforms the body into a vessel for experiencing life and exploring the self: mentally, emotionally, and physically. This inner awareness ignites a new way of seeing the self and engaging with the world. At some point in that journey we realize that ME, becomes WE. WE are more than bodies. WE are all in this together. WE are creating a new wellness paradigm.

S2, Episode 1

In the Season 2 premiere of Unplugged, Stephanie chats with Nana Donkor, Health Education Supervisor, Amy Wiley, Physical Education Supervisor and Jonathan Jones, a Physical Education Resource Teacher from Prince George's County Public Schools. Stephanie discusses a bevy of topics with the group including how they are preparing and operating in the current environment.

Season 1

S1, Episode 14

This is the Season 1 finale of Unplugged! Stephanie chats with Katie Mulloy, a K-12 Physical Education & Health Education Teacher from Ronald Reagan Elementary School.

S1, Episode 13

Stephanie chats with Jessica Napier, the 2020 SHAPE America Health Educator of the Year about health education during a crisis.

S1, Episode 12

Stephanie speaks with Kyle Bragg and Audra Walters how they are navigating the current situation and the Crosswalk for SHAPE America National Standards & Grade-Level Outcomes for K-12 Physical Education and CASEL Social and Emotional Learning Core Competencies.

S1, Episode 11

This week, Stephanie talks to Karen Wegge about how coronavirus has affected her day-to-day life, what resources she is currently using and more!

S1, Episode 10

This week, Stephanie chats with Scott Todnem, the 2019 SHAPE America Health Education Teacher of the Year from Scullen Middle School in Naperville Illinois, about Health Education in the world during coronavirus.

S1, Episode 9

This week, Stephanie sits down with Keri Schoeff, a Safe & Healthy Students Specialist in Arizona, to discuss the CARES Act and emergency Coronavirus funding.

S1, Episode 8

This week, Stephanie sits down with Kennedra Tucker, the health and physical education coordinator at Baltimore City Public Schools, to discuss a variety of topics including Equity, Diversity and Inclusion.

S1, Episode 7

This episode, Stephanie sits down with Yasmeen Taji-Farouki and Michelle Carter, the two architects of the health.moves.minds.^® program to discuss the program and how the program is influenced by current events and can be used as a teaching tool.

S1, Episode 6

This episode, Stephanie sits down with Brian Creasman, Ed.D, Superintendent of Fleming County Schools, to discuss his takeaways from SPEAK Out! Day, how his school district is coping with coivd-19 and more!

S1, Episode 5

This episode, Stephanie sits down with Carly Wright, Vice President, Advocacy, Equity, Diversity & Inclusion, to discuss SHAPE America’s 2020-2021 School Reentry Considerations: K-12 Physical Education, Health Education, and Physical Activity.

S1, Episode 4

This week, Stephanie sits down with Jewel Toyama, a Physical Education Teacher from the Hanahauoli School in Hawaii, to discuss her school’s experience with the health.moves.minds.^® program.

S1, Episode 3

This week, Stephanie sits down with special guest Tara Blackshear, Ed.D., assistant professor of Kinesiology, Physical Education Teacher Education at Towson University, to discuss her suggestions for promoting racial inclusiveness through the Teacher of the Year selection process.

S1, Episode 2

Stephanie checks in with Nate Dungey, physical education teacher from Gideon Pond Elementary and Marion W. Savage Elementary. In the spirit of the times, a few special guests also "zoom bomb" their interview!

S1, Episode 1

Learn more about integrating health. moves. minds.^® into physical education teacher education programs with Joe Deutsch, associate professor, Physical Education & Coaching Education at North Dakota State University.