Edgemont Superintendent’s new podcast debuts
Dr. Kenneth Hamilton shares his hopes for the innovative initiative.
Mic drop “Edgemont is being not just creative, but trailblazers,” says Superintendent Hamilton.
BY JESSE MOIDEL
Innovative, informative, and easily accessible: these are just a few words that Dr. Kenneth R. Hamilton, Superintendent of Edgemont Schools, used to describe his new podcast, On The Edge. Dr. Hamilton, who became superintendent of Edgemont at the start of the 2022-2023 school year, has been searching for ways to reach more of the Edgemont community. He found it using a convenient platform to share information: a podcast. In an interview with the Insider, Dr. Hamilton discussed his motivations, goals, and future plans for the podcast and even shared some tidbits about exciting plans for the future of Edgemont School District.
A new way to communicate with the community
When asked how he came up with the idea for the podcast in the first place, Superintendent Hamilton credited a group of Edgemont students, whom he said recommended the idea of creating a podcast to him as a new and innovative way to reach the Edgemont community. He took the recommendation seriously, and it has paid off. He hopes that members of the Edgemont community who do not have enough time to read the weekly newsletter and emails from the school will be able to listen to his podcast. “They could listen in the car, while they’re cooking, or wherever they please. The catalyst behind doing the podcast is so it is more convenient and easily accessible,” he said.
Thus far, he has released two editions of his podcast, which are recorded in both audio and video format. The first episode featured an interview with the new Assistant Superintendent of Curriculum, Instruction, and Assessment, Dr. Felipe Arozco; the second episode focuses on a conversation with the Edgemont student chosen as the Superintendent of the Day, Joseph Vadakkan.
A show for parents, and their kids
Although the interview with Dr. Arozco was directed towards Edgemont parents, with the aim to keep them informed about new curriculum changes, Superintendent Hamilton said that his podcast is for students to listen to as well. The podcast he did Vadakkan was, he says, “a big hit” with both students and parents. He also hopes to address topics that will interest both students and parents, such as the use of AI in schools, how the school chooses days off, and the tenure process.
Superintendent Hamilton puts a lot of time and effort into choosing which guests to have on his podcast. “ I run by ideas by our PR firm and board members, who work with me to choose my next guest and recommend topics to discuss,” he said. When a guest is chosen, the goal is to engage the audience and at the same time provide the community with important information about different things going on in the district. When asked about who he hopes to have next on his podcast, Superintendent Hamilton said that he would like to have a teacher who is less in the spotlight, but still has a lot to say. “I want the teacher to be somebody who you don't hear about all the time—the goal is to try and get information out that people just don’t ordinarily hear and would be interested in,” he explained.
A big success so far
Overall, Superintendent Hamilton said, the podcast has received positive feedback from both parents and students. Because of its success, he expressed his desire to improve the filming and production of the podcast. For now, he says that he simply sets up his iPhone on a ring light stand and films the podcast, which is then edited by Edgemont’s PR team. He is considering investing in better equipment if the positive feedback and audience continue to grow.
In addition to all the exciting details about his podcast, Dr. Hamilton provided a sneak peak into some new developments coming to the Edgemont School District soon. He said that Edgemont is planning to put in money into rebranding athletics in the coming years, roll out world language at the secondary level, and also introduce STEAM classes at the elementary schools. The STEAM class changes are the result of the bond that passed in 2024, which created classes designated for STEAM at the elementary schools.
The podcast is a first for Edgemont, an exciting new twist on the district’s typical methods of communicating to the community. “I think that it is exciting for the Edgemont and Scarsdale communities to hear how Edgemont is being not just creative, but trailblazers,” Superintendent Hamilton said.