By: Erik Ellefsen and Sahira Kodra

In education, we often hear about the “crab bucket culture” – where success is met with pulling others down. But at the BCSL, we’ve embraced a different mascot: the stronger sea turtles who at hatching help others to hatch and get into the ocean safely. Throughout 2024, we’ve witnessed how this simple metaphor has helped us be an encouragement to the  educational communities worldwide that are creating ripples of positive change through patient, persistent, good work.

2024 in Review

We have had the privilege to catalyze educators locally and globally, raising the positive impact happening in schools worldwide. 

On Baylor’s Campus

• Just Leadership: Welcoming 150 leaders, this event focused on equipping educators with tools to lead with gritty optimism.
• Culture of Joy: Over 250 educators joined us to explore how JOY can transform classrooms at the start of a new academic year

Across Texas

Our work across Texas brought opportunities to collaborate with:

• TASSP (Texas Association of Secondary School Principals) 
• Convocations with local and regional educators 

National Travels

We witnessed incredible educators at work in their schools. Highlights included:

• Just Schools Academy: We hosted a regional JSA in Virginia with multiple teams who then entered our Improvement Community process with 12 other schools from around North America. We have been sharing some of their stories on the blog this semester including the work at Robinson Elementary School in Texas.
• Multiple professional learning events in California, Wisconsin, and Illinois where we had the opportunity to work with educators for multiple schools to simplify our work to find the JOY that makes our work essential and meaningful.
• Thriving Learning Communities: We have a grant that takes us to Oxford, Mississippi multiple times to have education researchers and school practitioners working together to develop contextualized interventions to increase student wellbeing. 
• CESA Symposium: We had the opportunity to meet and hang out with friends, as well as hear from President Livingstone about leading through challenges. 
• Cardus Education Survey: In partnership with friends at Cardus and the University of Arkansas this research was released in December and seeks to examine an array of educational outcomes in a nationally representative sample of 24- to 39-year-olds. These outcomes include educational attainment, labor market outcomes, mental health, well-being, life satisfaction, spirituality, religious behavior, and civic behavior.

Global Impact

The good work is not just in the United States. In 2024, our team extended its reach to:

• Pakistan: Dr. Sterrett was able to lead a team to Pakistan as part of another unique project empowering women for leadership through sports.
• Paris (UNESCO): Jon and Erik had the opportunity to lead a North American delegation to the thirty-year celebration of the Salamanca Statement on Inclusive Education. They also spent time with friends from IFIP thinking about the future of inclusive education.
• New Zealand: Jon had the opportunity to speak to educators and visit schools encouraging the good work happening throughout the country.
• Virtual Networks: Since the inception of the BCSL we have been doing virtual networks to bring together educational leaders and innovators to reimagin our work. This past year we hosted more than fifteen networks that included international eaders from more than 20 countries including Canada, Great Britain, Australia, New Zealand, India, Ghana, Panama, Dominican Republic, and Ethiopia.
• Canada: It seems as if we spent a good portion of the Fall semester working with more than 2,000 educators in Ontario, British Columbia, Nova Scotia, and New Brunswick. We had the opportunity to talk about gritty optimism in our profession, essential relationships educators need to thrive, and how AI can be used to give students feedback for growth.

Join Us in 2025

The greatest joy in our work is inviting friends into what we do. As we look to the new year, we are excited about what is in store, including: 

• Just Leadership | February 3
• Converge | February 21-24th
• Gritty Optimism in Milwaukee at Aug Prep | May 9th
• Faith/Integration/Transformation “FIT” Sports Summit | June 8-10th
• Catalyze | July 28-31st
• Culture of Joy | September 2025

Be a Turtle!

As Dr. Eckert reminds us, “The depth of our struggle determines the peak of our joy.” This past year has proven this truth countless times. We’ve witnessed lives changed, communities strengthened, and hope renewed through the dedication of educators worldwide.

Like the turtle, we move forward steadily, purposefully, supporting others in their journey toward educational excellence for each student. Each step may seem small, but together, they create powerful momentum for positive change in our profession. As we close 2024 and welcome 2025, we celebrate not just what we’ve accomplished, but the countless educators worldwide who’ve joined us in this movement. Together, we’re proving that the best way to rise is by encouraging the good work of others.

From all of us at BCSL, Merry Christmas and Happy New Year. May 2025 be filled with God’s purpose, your personal growth, and the kind of joy that comes from meaningful work done for and with others.