Familiaris Podcast for Catholic School Leaders

Jaime Madison Vasquez, PhD

Mission-first professional formation to help Catholic school leaders forge extraordinary relationships with families familiaris.substack.com

  1. 2d ago

    How to Have a Better Back-to-School Night

    Learn more and register: Jumpstart Your Plan for Parent Partnership Back-to-school night sets the tone for the entire year, yet it is often planned in the rush of staff development and the first week of classes. In this solo episode, Dr. Jaime Madison Vasquez gives Catholic school leaders three verbs for shaping a beginning-of-year parent night: envision, encourage, and invite. Each one reframes the evening around families as the first educators of their children and draws them into the shared mission of the school. What You’ll Learn: * Why vision language centered on the graduate—rather than a recited mission statement—engages parents in the shared goal for their children * How to spotlight parents as the primary educators of their children instead of opening with logistics and control * Ways to keep the year’s vision or theme visible through calendar reminders, bulletin boards, conference invitations, and annual-fund letters * How the Latin root of “family,” famulus, reframes the school community as a household rooted in mutual service * Practical cues—tone, stories, and repeated invitations—that make families feel genuinely welcomed rather than buried in logistics Chapters: * 00:00: Welcome and the Jumpstart Your Plan for Parent Partnership workshop * 02:25: Verb one—envision: casting a shared vision for students * 04:47: Making the vision tangible throughout the year * 07:06: Verb two—encourage: parents as primary educators * 09:34: Verb three—invite: welcoming families into the community * 11:50: The tone of invitation and a recap of the three verbs * 14:09: Applying the verbs beyond the talk, and closing Learn more and register: Jumpstart Your Plan for Parent Partnership Join the conversation * Leave a comment and subscribe at familiaris.substack.com * Become a paid subscriber at familiaris.substack.com/subscribe Paid subscribers gain access to monthly collaborative office hours. Office hours are hosted on Zoom and are not recorded. Pop in to ask a question, get feedback on what you’re working on with families, hear what other leaders are doing in their schools. Visit familiaris-consulting.com to learn more about consulting, workshops, and speaking engagements God bless! Produced by Saint Kolbe Studios Get full access to Familiaris at familiaris.substack.com/subscribe

    How to Have a Better Back-to-School Night

  2. Jul 16

    (Re-Air) 7 Principles for Making School-Family Relationships Work

    This episode is re-aired for summer as an invitation to refocus and recommit before the new school year, with a companion live workshop, Jumpstart Your Plan for Parent Partnership, on Thursday, July 30th. Turn your school’s mission into a practical plan for extraordinary relationships with families next year by registering here. What You’ll Learn: * How the Gottman Institute’s Seven Principles for Making Marriage Work applies to your school-family partnerships. * Practical ways to nurture appreciation and counter criticism, contempt, defensiveness, and stonewalling with their antidotes * How the four pillars of “shared meaning” (rituals of connection, mutual support of roles, shared goals, and shared values and symbols) translate a school’s mission into everyday partnership with families * Why knowing each family’s hopes, background, and aims, build the trust that carries a relationship through hard moments * How to “turn toward” families through small, asynchronous mini-moments—and how to keep reaching out when parents don’t respond * The difference between solvable and perpetual problems, and how to welcome problem-solving as an ongoing relationship rather than a one-and-done fix Chapters * 00:00: Re-Air Introduction & Upcoming Workshop * 01:44: Why Gottman’s Marriage Research Applies to Schools * 06:19: Principle 1 — Create Shared Meaning * 11:01: Principle 2 — Get to Know Your Families * 15:34: Principle 3 — Nurture Your Appreciation * 20:21: Principle 4 — Turn Toward Each Other * 29:54: Principle 5 — Let Your Families Influence You * 34:44: Principle 6 — Solve Your Solvable Problems * 41:17: Principle 7 — Welcome Problem Solving * 47:39: Listener Q&A Q&A * When a parent comes to us already upset or critical, how do we respond without falling into defensiveness right away? * If a parent rarely responds to emails or school communication, how should we interpret that—do we keep reaching out, or give them space? * What about new teachers, fresh out of college, who are nervous about dealing with parents? * What are some small ways teachers can show appreciation to parents without it becoming another big task on their plate? Learn more and register: Jumpstart Your Plan for Parent Partnership Join the conversation * Leave a comment and subscribe at familiaris.substack.com * Become a paid subscriber at familiaris.substack.com/subscribe Paid subscribers gain access to monthly collaborative office hours. Office hours are hosted on Zoom and are not recorded. Pop in to ask a question, get feedback on what you’re working on with families, hear what other leaders are doing in their schools. Visit familiaris-consulting.com to learn more about consulting, workshops, and speaking engagements God bless! Produced by Saint Kolbe Studios To receive new Familiaris posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber. Get full access to Familiaris at familiaris.substack.com/subscribe

    (Re-Air) 7 Principles for Making School-Family Relationships Work

  3. Jul 9

    Four Questions to Strengthen Parent Partnership Next Year

    In this solo episode, Dr. Jaime Madison Vasquez offers Catholic school leaders four questions for reflecting on parent partnership before the next school year, structured around the four pillars of the Familiaris Framework. Under each question she shares a few points to consider and a curated set of past episodes worth revisiting over the summer, turning the archive into a playlist for personal reflection and team planning. She also invites leaders to go deeper at a virtual workshop on planning for parent partnership on Thursday, July 30th, 2026. Chapters: * 03:03: Question 1: Does our school have a vision for parent partnership and do we share it with families? * 09:32: Question 2: Does ongoing school-family communication illustrate our mission in action and invite families into dialogue? * 15:26: Question 3: Does our school community inspire, guide, and accompany parents through parent formation, friendship, and fellowship? * 18:40: Question 4: Is parent partnership a priority in our faculty and staff roles, responsibilities, and professional formation? Join the conversation * Leave a comment and subscribe at familiaris.substack.com * Become a paid subscriber at familiaris.substack.com/subscribe Paid subscribers gain access to monthly collaborative office hours. Office hours are hosted on Zoom and are not recorded. Pop in to ask a question, get feedback on what you’re working on with families, hear what other leaders are doing in their schools. Visit familiaris-consulting.com to learn more about consulting, workshops, and speaking engagements God bless! ______ Full Breakdown of the Episode and References Below: Overview of the Familiaris Framework: * Episode 7: The Familiaris Framework: A Blueprint for School-Family Partnership Question 1: Does our school have a vision for parent partnership and do we share it with families? What is Integral Formation of the Whole Person? * Episode 1: Why Parents Matter: Through the Lens of Familiaris Consortio * Episode 12: Created in His Image: A Catholic Vision for Students with Disabilities with Mark Bradford * Episode 13: Quo vadis, humanitas? Why Catholic Schools Need a Vision of the Human Person (Part 1) * Episode 14: Quo vadis, humanitas? Vocation, Identity, and the Gift of Freedom (Part 2) How to invite families into the mission and embrace their role as primary educators: * Episode 11: Partnering with Families Through the Admissions Process with Tyler Deschamps and John Rocha * Episode 4: Midtown-Metro Parent Programs: Strengthening Families, Forming Character with Low-Income Youth * Episode 17: A History of American Homeschooling with Dixie Dillon Lane Does ongoing school-family communication illustrate our mission in action and invite families into dialogue? How to communicate with families as a professional practice: * Episode 18: Four Personas for School-Family Communication * Episode 5:7 Principles for Making School-Family Relationships Work Communication about teaching and learning: * Episode 8: Quirky Catholic Kids: Supporting Parents with Ginny Kochis * Episode 16: Speech and Debate as Whole Person Formation * Episode 3: Physical Education: Patrick Whalen with Iliad Athletics Does our school community inspire, guide, and accompany parents through parent formation, friendship, and fellowship? * Episode 2: Forming Parents: A Leader Insights Panel Discussion * Episode 15: The Case Study Method for Parent Formation with Leticia Rodriguez of IFFD * Episode 19: The Heart of the Family: A Resource for the Domestic Church Is parent partnership a priority in our faculty and staff roles, responsibilities, and professional formation? * Episode 20: Unreasonable Hospitality: 6 Lessons for Catholic School Leaders * Episode 6: Nurturing Teachers Who Build Parent Trust with Faustin Weber and Mike Kendrick * Episode 9: The School Office with Jeremie Solak * Episode 10: Building a Culture of Giving: Development as Parent Partnership with Susan Mangels Produced by Saint Kolbe Studios To receive new Familiaris posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber. Get full access to Familiaris at familiaris.substack.com/subscribe

    Four Questions to Strengthen Parent Partnership Next Year

  4. Jul 2

    Unreasonable Hospitality: 6 Lessons for Catholic School Leaders

    Visit familiaris-consulting.com to learn more about consulting, workshops, and speaking engagements. Dr. Jaime Madison Vasquez unpacks six practical lessons from Will Guidara’s bestselling book Unreasonable Hospitality, applying the leadership philosophy behind Eleven Madison Park to the world of Catholic school leadership. The episode explores how hospitality can become a driving core value in relationships with families, staff, and students alike. What You’ll Learn: * How to define and apply hospitality as a core value in a Catholic school setting * Why being fully present with parents matters more than pure efficiency * How to build practical toolkits for recurring hospitality moments like admissions, transfers, and difficult meetings * How to delegate hospitality initiatives by tapping into the passions of staff and parent leaders * How intentional budget choices can create meaningful, memorable experiences for families Six Lessons: * Hospitality is a core value * Be present and pay attention * Create a toolkit * Tap into their passions and then give them the keys * Finish strong: the one-inch rule * Rule of 95/5 Book referenced: Unreasonable Hospitality: The Remarkable Power of Giving People More Than They Expect by Will Guidara (Amazon, Bookshop, Thrift Books) Chapters * 00:00: Welcome and introducing Unreasonable Hospitality * 02:22: Six reasonable lessons for school leaders * 04:41: Defining hospitality for Catholic schools * 06:59: Balancing hospitality and academic excellence * 09:19: Everyday encounters as opportunities for hospitality * 11:35: Lesson two—be present and pay attention * 14:00: Attentive versus present: two kinds of servers * 18:48: Lesson three—create a hospitality toolkit * 23:27: Lesson four—tap into passions and delegate * 30:18: Lesson five—finish strong, the one-inch rule * 34:18: Lesson six—the rule of 95.5 * 39:08: Closing thoughts on generous stewardship Join the conversation * Leave a comment and subscribe at familiaris.substack.com * Become a paid subscriber at familiaris.substack.com/subscribe Paid subscribers gain access to monthly collaborative office hours. Office hours are hosted on Zoom and are not recorded. Pop in to ask a question, get feedback on what you’re working on with families, hear what other leaders are doing in their schools. Visit familiaris-consulting.com to learn more about consulting, workshops, and speaking engagements God bless! Produced by Saint Kolbe Studios To receive new Familiaris posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber. Get full access to Familiaris at familiaris.substack.com/subscribe

    Unreasonable Hospitality: 6 Lessons for Catholic School Leaders

  5. Jun 25

    (Re-Air) Physical Education: Patrick Whalen with Iliad Athletics

    Visit familiaris-consulting.com to learn more about consulting, workshops, and speaking engagements. Patrick Whalen, Marine Corps veteran, founding headmaster of St. Martin’s Academy, and founder of Iliad Athletics, makes the case that physical education is not peripheral to Catholic school mission but foundational to it. In this conversation with Dr. Jaime Madison Vasquez, Patrick explores why a student’s capacity for intellectual and spiritual formation depends on serious physical encounter with reality, how schools and families must work together to cultivate it, and what tools exist right now to help Catholic school leaders elevate their PE programs. What You’ll Learn: * How to make the philosophical and practical case within your school community for treating PE as central to Catholic mission—not an add-on * What gamification and narrative techniques look like in a PE curriculum, and why they cultivate character more effectively than competition alone * How to structure PE differently for boys and girls at puberty in ways that are both philosophically grounded and practically appropriate * Why inviting parents into school physical activities strengthens the home-school partnership—and what that can look like concretely Questions Addressed in the Q&A Segment: * “I live in Illinois - where nature can be very flat and unvaried terrain. We lived for many years in the city of Chicago and didn’t have grass in our yard. We would make concerted efforts to visit nearby forest preserves for hiking trips, but wondering about your recommendations for schools and families to incorporate nature when they don’t have as direct access in the daily routines.” * “If a leader realizes this is an area to grow in, what is the place to start that will be the most fruitful?” * “If you are looking ahead to next year’s budget and want to allocate additional resources to fitness, apart from the Iliad curriculum, what would be your recommendation for investment?” * “Parents on the sidelines can be a major liability for schools. What are your recommendations for instilling a charitable and partnership-oriented ethos among fans while still maintaining a commitment to excellence and competition?” * “What about kids who are not naturally gifted in athletics? Isn’t PE just going to make them feel bad?” * “How can PE contribute to overall school culture including spirituality, discipline, and even advancement?” Resources: * Iliad Athletics * Iliad Educator Course Registration * Iliad Summer Camp Registration * Follow Iliad on Facebook and LinkedIn Chapters: * 00:00: Introduction and Patrick Whalen’s background * 05:18: Why physical education? The philosophy behind Iliad Athletics * 11:48: Tools for schools: curriculum, teacher training, and camps * 14:43: Parents as primary educators—schools as collaborative parental agency * 16:56: Body stewardship, family culture, and the screen time problem * 19:22: Encouraging families who feel behind * 24:21: Inviting parents into school PE activities * 26:10: Gamification and narrative in the PE curriculum * 31:28: Physical excellence and sex differences * 38:53: Parents as models and encouragers—the Lenten parallel * 41:26: Educator courses: Don Bosco, pedagogy, and teacher formation Join the conversation * Leave a comment and subscribe at familiaris.substack.com * Become a paid subscriber at familiaris.substack.com/subscribe Paid subscribers gain access to monthly collaborative office hours. Office hours are hosted on Zoom and are not recorded. Pop in to ask a question, get feedback on what you’re working on with families, hear what other leaders are doing in their schools. Visit familiaris-consulting.com to learn more about consulting, workshops, and speaking engagements God bless! Produced by Saint Kolbe Studios To receive new Familiaris posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber. Get full access to Familiaris at familiaris.substack.com/subscribe

    (Re-Air) Physical Education: Patrick Whalen with Iliad Athletics

  6. Jun 18

    The Heart of the Family: A Resource for the Domestic Church

    Visit familiaris-consulting.com to learn more about consulting, workshops, and speaking engagements ______ Benito Medrano Calderón, Director of the Holy Family Initiative at the McGrath Institute for Church Life at the University of Notre Dame, joins Jaime to unpack a free, scripture-rooted family formation program built through years of multi-diocese pilots and to show Catholic school leaders exactly how to bring it to their parent communities. Whether your school serves primarily Hispanic families or not, the Heart of the Family series offers a ready-made pathway for helping parents embrace their role as the first educators of their children. What We Cover * The demographic reality Catholic school leaders can’t ignore: nearly half of all US Catholics are Hispanic, and the vast majority are second- or third-generation Americans born and raised in the US * What years of parish pilot programs revealed about how families actually grow in faith — and what keeps them coming back * How the Heart of the Family video series is structured: seven sessions, scripture-rooted, free in both English and Spanish * Why effective parent formation must begin with hope before it can move toward formation and how the program eases families in gradually * Three concrete models Catholic schools can use to implement the Heart of the Family with their own parent communities Resources: * Access the Heart of the Family Series * Contact Benito for more information Chapters * 00:00: Introducing Benito Medrano Calderón and the Holy Family Initiative * 07:26: The McGrath Institute — bridging Catholic intellectual and pastoral life * 09:25: The demographic reality: Hispanic Catholics and disaffiliation * 13:52: Extended family networks and faith transmission * 18:45: Abuelita theology and community-rooted catechesis * 20:19: Starting with encounter: evangelization before formation * 28:26: The Heart of the Family series: structure and sessions * 33:12: Scripture as the foundation of the program * 35:00: The pilot format: meals, music, reflection, and take-home resources * 42:41: Fruits from the field: parishes that took it further * 46:34: Three models for Catholic schools * 55:43: Why hope is the key to reaching parents Join the conversation * Leave a comment and subscribe at familiaris.substack.com * Become a paid subscriber at familiaris.substack.com/subscribe Paid subscribers gain access to monthly collaborative office hours. Office hours are hosted on Zoom and are not recorded. Pop in to ask a question, get feedback on what you’re working on with families, hear what other leaders are doing in their schools. Visit familiaris-consulting.com to learn more about consulting, workshops, and speaking engagements God bless! Produced by Saint Kolbe Studios To receive new Familiaris posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber. Get full access to Familiaris at familiaris.substack.com/subscribe

    The Heart of the Family: A Resource for the Domestic Church

  7. Jun 11

    Four Personas for School-Family Communication

    What if becoming a more effective communicator with parents starts with recognizing the different roles educators must navigate throughout the relationship? In this episode, Dr. Jaime Madison Vasquez shares four educator personas that represent the mindsets and practices that shape family partnerships in Catholic schools. The personas of The Public Servant, the Coach, the Toast, and the Doctor each offer a lens for teachers and leaders to reflect on and strengthen communication with parents. We'll explore the key traits that define each persona, the situations where each is most helpful, and how school leaders can use them to audit communication practices, support faculty growth, and think more intentionally about the overall experience families have with their school. What We Cover: * The foundational beliefs about parent-school relationships that ground the four educator personas * How the Public Servant persona keeps mission central while upholding transparency and professional responsibility * How the Coach persona delivers actionable goals and feedback while motivating students and families toward growth * How the Toast persona honors each student’s unique value and builds relational foundations through intentional celebration * How to audit your communication across key circumstances, personal tendencies, and team composition to strengthen your school’s overall family experience Overview of the Four Personas: Public Servant * Focus on the mission * Transparency & professional responsibility The Coach * Actionable goals; Actionable feedback * Motivate the team effort The toast * Honor the student’s value * Celebrate the moment The doctor * First listen, then explain, then recommend * Make the technical understandable Chapters: * 00:00: Introduction to the Four Educator Personas * 04:21: The Public Servant * 08:56: The Coach * 16:13: The Toast * 23:07: The Doctor * 29:34: Applying the Personas Throughout the Year * 34:15: Conferences and Mission-Critical Problem Solving * 36:41: Personal Tendencies and Team Audit * 40:39: Recap Resources: * Episode 5: 7 Principles for Making School-Family Relationships Work * The Seven Principles for Making Marriage Work: A Practical Guide from the Country’s Foremost Relationship Expert by John M. Gottman, PhD and Nan Silver (Amazon, Bookshop, Abe Books) Join the Conversation: * Leave a comment and subscribe at familiaris.substack.com * Become a paid subscriber at familiaris.substack.com/subscribe Paid subscribers gain access to monthly collaborative office hours. Office hours are hosted on Zoom and are not recorded. Pop in to ask a question, get feedback on what you’re working on with families, hear what other leaders are doing in their schools. Visit familiaris-consulting.com to learn more about consulting, workshops, and speaking engagements God bless! Produced by Saint Kolbe Studios To receive new Familiaris posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber. Get full access to Familiaris at familiaris.substack.com/subscribe

    Four Personas for School-Family Communication

  8. Jun 4

    A History of American Homeschooling with Dixie Dillon Lane

    What can the history of homeschool teach us about the future of Catholic schooling? Historian and educator Dr. Dixie Dillon Lane joins Dr. Jaime Madison Vasquez to discuss her new book, Skipping School: A History of American Homeschooling and How It Went Mainstream. Drawing on extensive research and interviews, Dixie traces homeschooling’s journey from a small and often hidden movement in the mid-twentieth century to a significant and growing part of the American educational landscape. The discussion includes the changing relationship between families and schools, why parental influence has become such an important educational question, and lessons for Catholic school leaders. Guests Dixie Dillon-Lane, Historian of Education, Author of Skipping School: A History of American Homeschooling and How It Went Mainstream, Editor, Hearth and Field What We Cover * How Sputnik and the Cold War triggered federal intervention in local education and why that history illuminates the parental instincts driving educational choice today * The distinction between parental control, influence, and authority and what it means practically for school-family relationships in Catholic schools * How homeschooling evolved from a legally risky fringe practice into a minority norm now larger than Catholic schooling, and what that says about American beliefs * What the data actually shows about homeschooling and child safety and how Catholic school leaders can model clear-eyed, fair engagement with contested education statistics * Post-COVID shifts in how families weigh institutional affiliation against core values and the invitation that creates for schools anchored in a strong Catholic mission Chapters * 00:00: Introduction and Dixie’s background * 09:31: Sputnik and the Cold War’s impact on American education * 11:56: Early homeschoolers and the anti-institution movement * 17:14: Parental authority vs. control vs. influence * 25:03: Where homeschooling and Catholic schooling overlap * 31:54: Subsidiarity, local control, and education * 36:49: Homeschooling and child safety: data vs. narrative * 41:14: What public school performance numbers reveal * 44:01: Post-COVID shifts in values and institutional affiliation * 49:00: Lessons for Catholic school leaders in this moment * 53:15: The ultimate purpose of education Resources: * Skipping School: A History of American Homeschooling and How It Went Mainstream by Dixie Dillon Lane (Amazon, Bookshop, Eerdmans Publishing) * The Hollow Substack Newsletter * The Bad Moms Homeschool Substack Newsletter * Hearth & Field: A Journal, An Invitation, A Quest for Real Life Follow Dixie on LinkedIn Join the conversation * Leave a comment and subscribe at familiaris.substack.com * Become a paid subscriber at familiaris.substack.com/subscribe Paid subscribers gain access to monthly collaborative office hours. Office hours are hosted on Zoom and are not recorded. Pop in to ask a question, get feedback on what you’re working on with families, hear what other leaders are doing in their schools. Visit familiaris-consulting.com to learn more about consulting, workshops, and speaking engagements God bless! Produced by Saint Kolbe Studios To receive new Familiaris posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber. Get full access to Familiaris at familiaris.substack.com/subscribe

    A History of American Homeschooling with Dixie Dillon Lane
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