Episode #89: Zetta Elliot - Trauma Informed Educators Network Podcast
Unapologetic Disrupter for Good PodcastShow Notes
A Response to Book Banning
Born in Canada, Zetta Elliott moved to the US in 1994 to pursue her PhD in American Studies at NYU. She is the author of over thirty books for young readers, including the award-winning picture books Bird and Melena’s Jubilee. Dragons in a Bag, a middle-grade fantasy novel, was named an American Library Association Notable Children’s Book and was selected for the 2021 Global Read Aloud. Her poetry has been published in several anthologies, including Show Us Your Papers, We Rise, We Resist, We Raise Our Voices, and New Daughters of Africa; her young adult poetry collection, Say Her Name, was named a 2020 “Best of the Best” title by the Black Caucus of the American Library Association and was nominated for the YALSA Excellence in Nonfiction Award. Her picture book, A Place Inside of Me, was named an ALA Notable Book and a Notable Poetry Book by the National Council of Teachers of English. Elliott advocates for greater diversity and equity in children's literature; her essays have appeared in Blavity, The Huffington Post, and Publishers Weekly. She currently lives in Chicago, IL.
More from Unapologetic Disrupter for Good Podcast
Ginger Healy, LCSW, brings more than 25 years of experience in trauma and attachment. She began her career as a child abuse investigator and hospital social worker before becoming a school therapist. For 15 years, she served as a social services supervisor at an international adoption agency, deepening her expertise in developmental trauma and attachment.
Julie Kurtz, M.S., LMFT is a renowned author and national speaker specializing in trauma-responsive, social-emotional, and resilience-building skills, particularly within educational settings ranging from early childhood to 12th grade. As the Founder and CEO of the Center for Optimal Brain Integration®, Julie is dedicated to amplifying the voices of those who have experienced toxic or traumatic stress, empowering both children and adults, and nurturing humane beings through intentional social-emotional learning and resilience strategies.
Beth Tyson, MA, is a childhood trauma therapist, children’s book author, and founder of Beth Tyson Trauma Consulting. She creates trauma-informed training, curriculum, and tools to help prevent and heal childhood trauma. She serves as the co-chair of the Pennsylvania Child Abuse Prevention team, volunteers as a CASA, but most importantly, she is a mom who is trying her best to break the cycle of trauma in her family.
Dr. Michael Gaskell is an author, speaker and principal in East Brunswick. He models the pursuit of lifelong learning as he mentors new principals through the New Jersey Leaders to Leaders (L2L) program. An NJPSA Stars recipient, presents on AI in the Classroom, at NJPSA/FEA and at Rutgers, has been published in over 6 dozen education journals and blogs, including ASCD Smartbrief, Tech & Learning, Education Post, eSchoolNews, NASSP, Edtech, currently writes a monthly column for ASCD Smartbrief, and made the most-read section of ASCD Smartbrief. Mike presents at national conferences, including the Learning and the Brain conference, November 2021; FETC January 2022,, January 2023 January 2024, January 2025, & 2026, CEC January 2023, NJCEC 2024 & 2023and ISTE June 2023. He has been on numerous podcasts including Larry Ferlazzo’s Education Week Classroom Q&A. Mike has published three books: Radical Principals, Leading Schools Through Trauma and Microstrategy Magic. Dr. Gaskell supports instructional excellence and student success for all.
Season 2: Episode 1 - Co-Founder of INHABIT, Sean is a leader in breathwork, visualization, and mindset training, dedicated to guiding individuals toward their highest potential. With a mission to elevate human consciousness and performance, Sean has personally trained over 9,000 remarkable individuals in INHABIT breath methodologies—from elite athletes and visionary entrepreneurs to inspired artists and passionate educators.