Ep. 38 - Karen Sakata

Ep. 38 - Karen Sakata

In this episode of Moving Forward: Conversations on Culture, Identity, Healing, and Hope, I sit down with Karen Sakata, former Superintendent of the Contra Costa County Office of Education, whose career in public education has spanned more than four decades and nearly every level of educational leadership. Karen reflects on her journey from Speech Language Pathologist to Superintendent and shares how her early experiences supporting students with learning challenges shaped her lifelong commitment to advocacy, belonging, and strengths-based leadership. Throughout our conversation, she speaks about the importance of seeing the whole child and keeping relationships, empathy, and humanity at the center of education. We also discuss what it meant to break barriers as one of the first Asian American administrators in the Mt. Diablo Unified School District, the first Asian and first woman in cabinet-level leadership within the Contra Costa County Office of Education, and the first Asian County Superintendent in California. As a third-generation Japanese American (Sansei), Karen also shares reflections on her family’s experience with the incarceration of Japanese Americans during World War II and how those experiences shaped her understanding of resilience, identity, justice, and belonging across generations. In addition, Karen talks about the importance of mentorship, professional community, and the evolving challenges facing public education today. She also shares how coaching basketball and playing traditional taiko drums continue to bring joy, rhythm, and connection into her life beyond leadership. This conversation is a thoughtful reflection on leadership, service, identity, history, and the responsibility of helping others feel seen, valued, and supported. If you have a comment or question please email us at themovingforwardpodcast@gmail.com Follow us on: Instagram [https://www.instagram.com/lluande1/] Facebook  [https://www.facebook.com/linda.unrathanderson] LinkedIn  [https://www.linkedin.com/in/linda-unrath-anderson-93ab7b3/] Music by Maksym_Dudchyk [https://pixabay.com/users/maksym_dudchyk-34570439/?utm_source=link-attribution&utm_medium=referral&utm_campaign=music&utm_content=391379] from Pixabay [https://pixabay.com/music//?utm_source=link-attribution&utm_medium=referral&utm_campaign=music&utm_content=391379] Podcast produced by Ury Gonzalez

Ep. 37 - Jeff Schinkel

In this episode of Moving Forward: Conversations on Culture, Identity, Healing, and Hope, Linda Anderson sits down with Jeff Schinkel—artist, designer, storyteller, and Creative Director for Kid Scoop. Jeff’s career has spanned newspapers, illustration, marketing, educational media, and community storytelling. Before joining Kid Scoop full time in 2004, he served as Creative Services Director for Bay Area News Group, where he developed campaigns and community projects connected to organizations including the Golden State Warriors, Oakland Athletics, and Las Vegas Raiders. Beyond his professional work, Jeff has remained deeply connected to local history and community through projects with the Washington Township Museum of Local History, Candle Lighters, and Niles Rotary. Through illustration and design, he has helped preserve the stories, history, and identity of the Tri-City area for future generations. Together, this conversation explores: • How creativity shapes identity and human connection • The importance of storytelling across generations • Why preserving local history matters within communities • The role curiosity and creativity play in learning • How creativity can become a source of healing, belonging, and hope • What it means to move forward while staying connected to purpose and community Thoughtful, reflective, and grounded in both creativity and service, this episode is a reminder that storytelling is not simply about preserving the past—it is also about helping people feel seen, connected, and understood. Thank you for joining us on Moving Forward. Follow us on: Instagram [https://www.instagram.com/lluande1/] Facebook  [https://www.facebook.com/linda.unrathanderson] LinkedIn  [https://www.linkedin.com/in/linda-unrath-anderson-93ab7b3/] Music by Maksym_Dudchyk [https://pixabay.com/users/maksym_dudchyk-34570439/?utm_source=link-attribution&utm_medium=referral&utm_campaign=music&utm_content=391379] from Pixabay [https://pixabay.com/music//?utm_source=link-attribution&utm_medium=referral&utm_campaign=music&utm_content=391379] Podcast produced by Ury Gonzalez

Ep. 36 - Joaquin Noguera

Today’s episode of Moving Forward: Conversations on Culture, Identity, Healing, and Hope invites us to think more deeply about leadership—not simply through policies, systems, or structures, but through the human experiences that shape the way people feel seen, valued, and supported within them. My guest is Joaquin Noguera, an educator, scholar, and practitioner whose work centers on how schools and communities can respond to poverty, marginalization, and inequity through culturally and locally responsive approaches. Joaquin earned his Ph.D. in Social Science and Comparative Education from University of California, Los Angeles with a specialization in race, ethnic, and cultural studies. He later served as a postdoctoral fellow at the Center for Black Studies Research and as a Visiting Professor in Black Studies at University of California, Santa Barbara, and now serves as an Assistant Professor at Loyola Marymount University. His professional journey spans roles as a social worker in Harlem, a K–12 teacher and school leader in New York City, and now a scholar preparing future educators and leaders. Across each of these experiences, Joaquin’s work has remained grounded in a central question: How do we create systems that not only serve people—but truly see them, understand them, and honor their humanity? In this conversation, Joaquin reflects on the experiences that shaped his understanding of culture, identity, and leadership responsibility. Together, we explore what it means for schools and systems to move beyond surface-level acknowledgment of culture and toward genuine responsiveness and accountability to the communities they serve. We also discuss the impact on students when they feel unseen or misunderstood, the role healing plays within education, and what leadership requires in this moment—not through grand statements, but through the everyday choices that shape belonging, opportunity, and human connection. Thoughtful, reflective, and deeply grounded in both scholarship and lived experience, this conversation reminds us that leadership is ultimately relational. It asks us to examine not only the systems we build, but the humanity we bring to them. Thank you for joining us on Moving Forward. Follow us on: Instagram [https://www.instagram.com/lluande1/] Facebook  [https://www.facebook.com/linda.unrathanderson] LinkedIn  [https://www.linkedin.com/in/linda-unrath-anderson-93ab7b3/] Music by Maksym_Dudchyk [https://pixabay.com/users/maksym_dudchyk-34570439/?utm_source=link-attribution&utm_medium=referral&utm_campaign=music&utm_content=391379] from Pixabay [https://pixabay.com/music//?utm_source=link-attribution&utm_medium=referral&utm_campaign=music&utm_content=391379] Podcast produced by Ury Gonzalez

Ep. 35 - Joann Jansen

In this episode of Moving Forward: Conversations on Culture, Identity, Healing, and Hope, Linda Anderson sits down with JoAnn Jansen — renowned film choreographer, producer, acting coach, speaker, and transformative mentor — for a deeply honest conversation about resilience, creativity, reinvention, and the courage to keep rebuilding your life when circumstances change unexpectedly. JoAnn reflects on her early years in the vibrant New York dance world, where movement became more than performance — it became identity, storytelling, and self-expression. She shares how those experiences shaped her creative voice and later influenced her work in film and television, including the real-life experiences that inspired part of Dirty Dancing: Havana Nights. But behind the success is also a story of profound challenge. At just nineteen years old, JoAnn became the single mother of a severely disabled child — an experience that forced her to navigate hardship, uncertainty, and the question of whether her own dreams could still survive alongside overwhelming responsibility. Together, Linda and JoAnn explore: * How creativity can become a source of healing and survival * The connection between identity and self-expression * What adversity teaches us that success alone cannot * Why so many people struggle to believe they are “enough” * The courage required to reinvent yourself across different seasons of life * How hardship can eventually become a source of wisdom, strength, and purpose Throughout the conversation, JoAnn speaks candidly about motherhood, resilience, reinvention, and the importance of helping others reconnect with their own value and possibility. This episode is a reminder that even when life forces us to rebuild ourselves, we are still capable of growth, creativity, healing, and hope. Follow us on: Instagram [https://www.instagram.com/lluande1/] Facebook  [https://www.facebook.com/linda.unrathanderson] LinkedIn  [https://www.linkedin.com/in/linda-unrath-anderson-93ab7b3/] Music by Maksym_Dudchyk [https://pixabay.com/users/maksym_dudchyk-34570439/?utm_source=link-attribution&utm_medium=referral&utm_campaign=music&utm_content=391379] from Pixabay [https://pixabay.com/music//?utm_source=link-attribution&utm_medium=referral&utm_campaign=music&utm_content=391379] Podcast produced by Ury Gonzalez

Ep. 34 - Richard Zapien

Today’s conversation explores leadership, access, identity, and the systems that shape opportunity—especially in a moment when technology and artificial intelligence are rapidly changing the world around us. My guest is Richard Zapien, an educator and leader whose work spans more than 25 years across teaching, instructional coaching, site leadership, and district administration within the San Francisco Unified School District. He currently serves as Professional Learning Coordinator with the 21st Century California School Leadership Academy (21CSLA) Bay Area Regional Academy at the UC Berkeley Graduate School of Education, where he supports equity-centered leadership development across schools and districts. Throughout this conversation, Richard challenges us to think more deeply about who gets seen, who gets access, and how leadership decisions shape opportunity—not only in education, but across society. Together, we discuss the importance of representation in leadership, the lasting impact of deficit narratives, and the ways systems can unintentionally reinforce inequities. Richard reflects on the moment early in his career that shifted his work from a profession to a purpose, and how that experience continues to ground his leadership today. We also explore the evolving role of artificial intelligence and computer science in schools and communities. Richard offers thoughtful insight into what AI literacy really means, why access matters, and how bias can show up in both technology and leadership systems. Rather than viewing computer science simply as coding, he reframes it as a pathway toward problem-solving, critical thinking, civic awareness, and opportunity. This conversation also highlights the importance of belonging and affinity spaces for leaders of color, particularly through Richard’s work with the Latino Leaders Affinity Network. He speaks candidly about the pressures many leaders carry, the realities of systems-level leadership, and the responsibility leaders have to approach both technology and people with intention, compassion, and critical awareness. At its heart, this episode is about leadership that sees humanity clearly—leadership rooted not only in strategy and systems, but in dignity, representation, relationships, and hope. If you’ve ever thought about who gets access to opportunity, how systems shape identity and belonging, or what responsible leadership looks like in a rapFollow us on: Instagram [https://www.instagram.com/lluande1/] Facebook  [https://www.facebook.com/linda.unrathanderson] LinkedIn  [https://www.linkedin.com/in/linda-unrath-anderson-93ab7b3/] Music by Maksym_Dudchyk [https://pixabay.com/users/maksym_dudchyk-34570439/?utm_source=link-attribution&utm_medium=referral&utm_campaign=music&utm_content=391379] from Pixabay [https://pixabay.com/music//?utm_source=link-attribution&utm_medium=referral&utm_campaign=music&utm_content=391379] Podcast produced by Ury Gonzalez