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Lead Strong with Cheri

Cheri Dixon

Effective school leadership requires more than vision...it demands strategy, execution, and the ability to build empowered teams. On Lead Strong, leadership coach and veteran school leader Cheri Dixon equips experienced and aspiring school leaders with practical tools, leadership frameworks, and expert insights to lead with confidence and drive sustained results. Whether you're navigating complex challenges or building your leadership capacity, this podcast helps you strengthen your leadership approach to create schools where students and teams excel.

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Episodes

295 episodes

  1. Every Minute Matters, But Not Every Minute Looks the Same 21:24
  2. Leadership is About What You Protect, Not Just What You Prioritize 15:27
  3. The Human Side of Instructional Excellence 20:42
  4. Don't Wait Until a Teacher is Struggling 29:07
  5. Get Out of the Office and Into the Work 27:46
  6. What You Do Right Now Will Show Up in March 18:12
  7. Is It Time to Remember Your Why? 22:03
  8. Knowing When to Adjust Without Abandoning the Plan 17:13
  9. Celebrating Progress While Maintaining Accountability 23:01
  10. Monitoring Without Micromanaging 22:56
  11. The Leadership Habits That Make Implementation Stick 25:51
  12. Leading Through Resistance Without Losing Trust 17:29
  13. How Great Leaders Create Shared Responsibility 26:06
  14. The Leadership Conversations That Build Commitment 32:10
  15. Why Buy-In Is Earned, Not Announced 30:34
  16. How to Build an Action Plan That Doesn't Sit on a Shelf 19:58
  17. The Leadership Mistake That Creates Initiative Fatique 26:21
  18. The Standard Behind Every Successful School Improvement Plan 18:05
  19. Stop Writing Better Plans. Start Building Better Systems. 24:11
  20. Standing in Front, Beside, and Behind Your People 23:03
  21. The Leadership Skill That Sustains Change 16:03
  22. From Root Cause to Actual Results 21:58
  23. The Power of Two to Three Strategic Priorities 20:29
  24. Giving Ourselves Permission to Rest 24:08
  25. How Turnaround Leaders Balance Data and Human Insight 22:21
  26. What Chronic Discipline Referrals are Really Telling Leaders 30:02
  27. Stop Fixing Symptoms: How Leaders Find the Real Problem 27:57
  28. Looking Beyond the Test Scores: The Real Indicators of School Health 23:36
  29. Culture Changes Before Student Achievement Will 23:41
  30. Why Staff Meetings Fail in Struggling Schools 16:12
  31. What Teachers Wish New Principals Would Understand 20:44
  32. The First Thing Turnaround Leaders Must Do: Stabilize the Culture 20:20
  33. The Leadership Moves That Prevent Burnout 16:07
  34. How to Monitor the Work and Still Build Trust 20:22
  35. Using Reflection to Drive Better Decisions 17:47
  36. Lead Strong with Dr. Lisa Riegel 35:26
  37. Why Compliance is Not the Goal 18:58
  38. Lead Strong with Dr. Nelva Lee 35:52
  39. What Strong Leaders Do Differently for Students with Special Needs 24:40
  40. Leading Schools Where People Feel Safe to Learn 26:55
  41. Why Culture is Built in the Small Moments 28:08
  42. From Chaos to Clarity: Why Systems Change Schools 27:51
  43. How to Protect Teachers from Initiative Fatigue 27:10
  44. The Leadership Lens on Student Behavior 28:03
  45. The Leadership Reset: Building Systems that Actually Work 30:33
  46. 2026 is Coming in Hot! 29:36
  47. Semester Wrap Up and Second Half Planning 17:39
  48. Leading with Integrity 25:03
  49. Taking Care of Your People 17:19
  50. Cold Fronts in Schools: Navigating Chaos Before a Break 28:20