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The episode will air on June 25, 2022 at 5:30 PM Eastern.

K-12 schools, especially those known for their own unique educational philosophies and pedagogies, have been working on preparing their own teachers and spreading their philosophies and pedagogies through their own graduate schools. Recent years have seen a number of K-12 schools developing their own graduate programs that offers masters and doctoral degrees. In this episode, we invite leaders and students from two recently emerged graduate schools to share their experiences. Bridges Graduate School of Cognitive Diversity in Education is an expansion from Bridges Academy, a group of K-12 schools that serve twice-exceptional students. High Tech High is a group of schools that have been known for their innovative practices. It has also built a graduate school called High Tech High Graduate School of Education.

More info about our guests below the video.



Dr. Lin Lim is currently an Associate Dean at Bridges Graduate School of Cognitive Diversity in Education. She has a diverse academic background, growing up in Singapore and arriving in the US for higher education. She holds a bachelor’s degree in Economics from Boston College and a doctorate in psychology (human development) from Boston University, Academic Graduate Certificate in Mind, Brain and Education (Johns Hopkins University Graduate School of Education), and Academic Graduate Certificate in Twice-exceptional Education (Bridges Graduate School). Her parenting journey with her two profoundly gifted children, one twice-exceptional, and the other radically accelerated drives her to create better understanding, communication, and nurturance for such children among all educational stakeholders. She is a founding board member of the non-profit Gifted Education Family Network, the founder of the non-profit Quark Collaboration Institute, and serves on several non-profit education boards including Supporting the Emotional Needs of the Gifted (SENG). She has presented both nationally and internationally in conferences ranging from education, and interdisciplinary social science, to psychology. She is currently focused on using data visualization techniques, and developing interdisciplinary dynamic complex multi-systems embodied guiding frameworks around parenting, education, and applied research with diverse gifted outliers across the life span.

 

Ben Daley joined High Tech High to teach physics as a founding faculty member in fall 2000. He has been a school director, chief operating officer, and chief academic officer for High Tech High and is now the president of the Graduate School of Education. As a student at Haverford College, Ben majored in physics and was credentialed in secondary physics and math, student teaching at Lower Merion High School outside Philadelphia. After graduation, he traveled to the Philippines and taught science and math at an international school in Manila. Upon his return to the U.S., he taught physics and AP physics at the Madeira School, a girls’ boarding school in suburban Washington, D.C. He then moved to California to coach basketball and to teach physics at Pomona and Pitzer Colleges. He earned an M.A. in Science Education at the University of California, Santa Barbara and a Doctorate in Educational Leadership at the University of California, San Diego.

Ben’s research is focused on continuous improvement in schools, which is an effort to spread good practices in education using a broad range of both outcome and process data. He completed a dissertation on increasing college access for traditionally underserved students using these methods.

Kim Vargas, MS, taught in the public school system for 26 years before coming to Bridges Education Group. She received her bachelor’s degree from USC Rossier School of Education and studied under Dr. Barbara Clark to earn her Master’s Degree in Special Education for the Gifted and Talented. Kim holds a post-graduate teaching credential in mild/moderate learning disabilities. In addition to overseeing admissions for the Bridges Graduate School of Cognitive Diversity in Education (BGS) and the new online Bridges  Academy high school, Kim is also the site administrator for the Bridges 2e Research Center and a doctoral student at BGS.