We Don’t Do “Challenges,” We Do Growth (And A Little Drake)

What if a middle school could flip its story—from under-performing to excelling? We sit down with Dr. Damon Lewis, principal of Norwalk's Ponus Ridge STEAM Academy and National Middle School Principal of the Year, to unpack the deliberate moves behind his school's rise: mantras that drive action, systems that respect time, and core values that shape decisions, strengthen trust, and keep the work centered on kids and community.

Transcript

Introductions & Big News

SPEAKER_01 0:00

Hi, and welcome to the Linking Leaders Podcast. Linking Leaders Podcast features tangent conversations with top educational leaders who come together to share experiences and explore pathways to success. In each episode, we engage with dynamic leaders to uncover real-life stories, practical strategies, and bold insights on timely and relevant topics. Listen up to Link Up and let us help you expand your network of innovation and support.

Ponus Ridge Culture & Community

SPEAKER_02 0:34

Hello, Linking Leaders, listeners. This month's episode with Dr. Damon Lewis, Connecticut's 2025 Middle School Principal of the Year, is a very special one. My conversation with Dr. Lewis was recorded back in June, and I'm thrilled to share that since our captivating interview three months ago, Dr. Lewis went on to win the national, yes, I said national, Middle School Principal of the Year Award. The highly anticipated announcement was made at the NASSP Illuminate Gala in July. This is only the third time in the history of the National Principal of the Year program that a Connecticut administrator has won this prestigious award. It was my great honor to get to know Damon through the Linking Leaders Podcast, and now you too will understand why he's at the top of his game. Thank you, Dr. Lewis, for making Connecticut proud. Welcome to the Linking Leaders Podcast. I am your host, Dr. Alicia Bowman, and today I have the pleasure of speaking with Dr. Damon Lewis, Principal of Ponis Ridge STEAM Academy in Norwalk, Connecticut, who is recently named the 2025 Connecticut Association of Schools Middle School Principal of the Year. And wait, there's more. Damon was just named finalist for the national, yes, national principal of the year. Damon, it's my pleasure to welcome you to the Linking Leaders Podcast.

SPEAKER_00 2:09

Thank you, Dr. Bowman. I appreciate it. I really do. Thank you for the invite.

SPEAKER_02 2:14

Oh, it's gonna be fun. So let's begin our conversation by providing our listeners with a little bit of context. Can you describe the Ponis Ridge Steam Academy school community in a few sentences?

SPEAKER_00 2:27

Oh, sure. Firstly, before we begin, I'd like to, you know, give a big shout out to Norwalk Public Schools for providing me with the space and place and opportunity to do this work. Secondly, my family, my wife Keisha, my daughter Saraya, my daughter Naya, and my son Elijah. And I'd also like to thank without roughing any feathers, my uh my obviously my Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. Okay? Absolutely. I have a great administrative team here, also, uh Evan Byron, assistant principal, Colleen Brosnan, assistant principal, and Ashley Glode, our Dean of Students. Ponus Resteam Academy, in a few sentences, we are a school of 663 students, a fully inclusive learning community. We are a 90% minority, approximately 70% free and reduced lunch. We're 68 school, over 100 staff, Dr. Bowman. And our learning community is a community right off the bat that doesn't make excuses. We refrain from using the word challenges. We prefer opportunities to grow and deeper understanding. So challenges is a word that our entire staff doesn't use. In addition to our core classes, we offer an extreme uh selection of elective courses, including coding, computer science, robotics, immersive media, music technology. And the expectation at Ponitra Steam Academy is that all students can learn, regardless of ethnic background, regardless of socioeconomic status. We set the expectation high for all students. And we, you know, we push, really push that growth mindset in all of our staff. And it's really not about how smart you are, it's about how hard you're willing to work and what you're willing to sacrifice for the greater good. So I love my staff. I really do. They love our scholars, and the way that we go about our work is very intentional and deliberate.

“Every Day Counts” Mantras in Action

SPEAKER_02 4:18

Yes, intentional and deliberate for sure. And just by the way you use the word scholars, I know that's important to you. And I appreciate your your opening with gratitude. That you know that that sets the tone. So let's talk a little bit more about the ponis ridge culture. So it's known for its everyday counts. What does that mean to you? Everyday counts, and how has it impacted your culture there for your sixth, seventh, and eighth graders?

SPEAKER_00 4:45

You know what, everyday counts is one of our many mantras. I know in education we talk about if you have too many priorities, you don't have any at all.

SPEAKER_02 4:53

Right. I think you're allowed to maybe have three. That's what the research says. That's it.

SPEAKER_00 4:58

We top out of three, because that's that's the data trend. That's trend data, right?

unknown 5:02

Yep.

SPEAKER_00 5:03

We have everyday counts, we have be better than you were yesterday, we have steam rolling, we have progress, not perfection. But everyday counts begins with myself and our admin team. I mean, now we don't take anything for granted. You know, we discuss making intentional, strategic, and deliberate steps to ensure that that six and a half hour day in our building is truly maximized via class observations, feedback in the feedback loop, teacher team meetings, parent meetings, phone calls. In a nutshell, Dr. Bowman, we don't waste any time. Our doors open at 8 a.m. The students leave at 2 50, and we we do the work. We don't talk about it, we do the work. Some of our kids come in to us performing below grade level, so we cannot waste any time. I I truly believe that we are in the life-saving business. We really are, and trying to help the trajectory of young scholars. And time wasted is a life lost to me. It really is.

SPEAKER_02 6:07

I would agree. I hear in the word that's coming to mind as you speak is urgency. We have to act with urgency, and it and the other one is intentionality.

SPEAKER_00 6:16

So we have six and a half hours in a 24-hour day, and we have to really maximize it. And you know, make sure kids are walking around with a purpose. Staff is walking and working with the purpose. We talk about the chin-to-chest mentality. We do not allow that. Don't feel sorry for yourself. Let's work hard, let's get better, and we have to maximize the day. It's really passionate work. It rivers, it's work that you really have to care about and you have to be selfless. You have to want to help scholars. So we do not waste a day. Today is our Steam Day presentations. This is the eighth kids have been working on their Steam projects and business plans and pitches and prototypes. And we have about 45 authentic audience members in the building today. And the kids are doing like a Shark Tank mentality with a presenting.

SPEAKER_02 7:12

So awesome. I just heard, I think, maybe five mantras from you, but the energy and and the the vision starts with you.

SPEAKER_01 7:20

Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 7:20

That's where it starts. So in absence of that, it's really hard to get that going in in a school community.

SPEAKER_00 7:27

Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 7:28

So let's lighten it for a second. If Ponus Ridge had a theme song, what would it be and why?

SPEAKER_00 7:35

Oh wow. If Ponus Ridge had a theme song, I'd have to say it'd be by the rapper Drake and it'd be started from the bottom.

SPEAKER_02 7:45

All right.

From Bottom to Model: The Turnaround

SPEAKER_00 7:46

And the reason I say that, we're in this constant space, Dr. Bowman. We're trying to accelerate and intervene simultaneously. We're trying to accelerate the kids that need to be enriched, but we're also intervening where kids aren't meeting those grade level standards yet. So ponis wasn't always what ponis is today. I'll I'll tell you that. I've been here 14 years. And Ponus, quite honestly, hence the the theme song started from the bottom. Ponus was what people viewed as probably the the worst or not the most successful middle school in the city of Norwalk. Now we have to turn kids away. And it's been that culture of academic expectations, behavioral expectations, the course offerings. We found money in the budget and we, you know, aligned our Steam theme with things that we want to offer and attract kids and families. We're an open choice district, so we have students now from 10 out of the 11 elementary schools. We are pretty much maxed out. So when I say we started from the bottom, it's it's been a hard fight, but again, going back to those deliberate and intentional and strategic steps around everything that we do, Dr. Bowman. You say in education, nothing happens by mistake. We don't do anything by mistake. Hope and faith are not strategies. You really, really have to dig into the work and you have to look at, you know, first the data, right? Then from that data, you create a problem of practice. From that data and problem of practice, you create that theory of action, right? Yep. If then and West. Yes. And then you get those student outcomes. So you really, really take a hard look at all of our data points and we create pops, the problem of practice and theories based on that. That wasn't always the case, but the teaching and learning process has really transformed that Pullman Street Steam Academy.

SPEAKER_02 9:39

That's awesome. Sometimes we see that there's a lot of collecting of data and not a lot of using of data in really smart ways and intentional ways. And so if we're going to ask educators to collect it and we're going to ask students to engage in these tasks that require us to gather data, then we best use it in really smart ways.

SPEAKER_00 10:00

Yes.

SPEAKER_02 10:00

And so it sounds like that's exactly what you're doing. So when I read your press release, I read about RBC, scholars, walk through Wednesdays, equity ambassadors, they're all pride points at Ponus Ridge. How do these pride points represent your core values as a leader?

Data, Theory of Action, and Outcomes

SPEAKER_00 10:18

You know what? RBC is an acronym for relationships before content. Don't get me wrong, we emphasize and stress grade level standards and having kids meet proficiency in those grade level standards and exceed those. And some of our students that come in below grade level, we provide the appropriate scaffolds and differentiated resources and materials. But what's the through line? The through line, my core values have always been, Dr. Bowman, faith and service. I mean, and your core values are your core values, are your core values. Meaning your core values, you don't have a set of core values for home. Then you have a different set of core values for work. Then you have a different set of core values when you're out there in the community. You are who you are who you are. It's done with purpose, it's done with positive outcomes. I talked about the problems of practice and the theories of action, but that through line and my through line of faith and service in every single thing that we do is really, really important. And you can see it throughout our school culture. You see it with the kids, you see with our families that come into our food pantry to receive food, to receive coats in the wintertime, to come in and get simply soap and deodorant from our care closet. Everything is done with that backdrop of faith and service and believing in, strongly believing in what we're doing is what's right for kids. And it really selfish, it really helps me sleep at night, Dr. Bourne. Because I know I know what's going on. Well, I was gonna say, listen, right for kids.

SPEAKER_02 12:07

As a former principal, you know, often we're found in moments that are really tough. We have to make tough decisions at times. There's times where we have to step up to the plate. And so when you can lead from your core values, you're right, Dr. Lewis. You can sleep at night a little bit better, knowing that when you're making tough decisions, you're making those aligned to your core values. And the people around you, those that you lead, also see that in you. Like, yes, he has to make a tough choice, but he's always guided by that core.

SPEAKER_00 12:38

So yeah, yes. I know I just told you my core values, but you should be able to see a person's core values by their actions, their behaviors, what they do and what they don't do.

SPEAKER_02 12:46

Absolutely. It's definitely through your actions. I 100%. So what advice would you give your first year principal self?

SPEAKER_00 12:57

You know what? My first year principal self, again, I've been in this building 14 years, four years as an AP, and this is my tenth year as a principal. My first year self, one of the most underrated skills I believe in leadership is listening. I would tell my first year self to listen more. You know, I you know, my mother, God bless her, love her to death, she's still alive. She always tells me, Damon, you know what? The Lord gave you two ears, one mouth, right? You need to listen twice as much as you talk. That's what she tells me. She tells me that now, and I'm 54.

SPEAKER_02 13:32

That's true.

Core Values: Faith and Service

SPEAKER_00 13:33

So as a first-year principal, you want to come in and go, go, go and change the landscape of everything. And but you just can't do it. You have to listen to the people who have walked the walk, right? Who have been there before, the people who I continue to look up to and admire in my educational journey. You know, listen more, right? I always say uh talk less so kids can do more in the classroom.

SPEAKER_02 13:56

It's true. It's it also took me a while to learn that the people I really should be listening to and listening really closely to are our students. You know, when we think about those middle-level learners, tweens and teens, they have a lot to say. And if we take the time to really inquire and get curious, it can help us a lot to be better educators and leaders for sure. So let's dream for a minute. Dr. Lewis, if you had an innovation grant with no restrictions, what dream project would you launch at Ponus Ridge?

SPEAKER_00 14:31

Oh, wow. An innovation grant. More breakout rooms for kids to collaborate and consult, more space to do that, more PD opportunities for staff that are truly aligned with the district and school priorities. Since we're a steam school, I've always asked for a robot to meet and group people at the front door.

SPEAKER_02 14:53

Yeah, we go out.

SPEAKER_00 14:54

Falk Representative Steam Academy, how can I help you? You know, those type of things. But mainly just more breakout space. I I think our kids, as you alluded to, are during those middle ages, and as much as they want autonomy, Dr. Bowman, they still need people to guide them and facilitate learning, but we need some more space. That that's the first thing I'd ask for. Um more breakout space.

SPEAKER_02 15:17

That's a great one. Space matters.

SPEAKER_00 15:19

Yes, it does.

SPEAKER_02 15:20

And certainly, like you said, to provide a little more autonomy, a little more room to breathe, and a little more independence. That's really cool. All right, so sit up tall. We're gonna uh shift to the ignite round. Are you ready? We're gonna speed it up, and I'm gonna read you a bunch of statements, and you are going to fill in the blank. So it'll give us a like a raven glimpse into leadership style personality.

SPEAKER_00 15:44

Okay.

SPEAKER_02 15:45

Ready? Leadership in one emoji.

SPEAKER_00 15:48

The balance scale. Because I'm constantly trying to find out balance between life, work, but I'm also always trying to find out balance and identify disproportionately in the areas in our building and try to balance everything else so all kids have access and opportunity to programs and resources.

SPEAKER_02 16:05

A phrase that you say so often and your staff could mimic you is progress, not perfection. You can't start your day without praying. The app you use the most.

SPEAKER_00 16:17

The Bible app.

Listening as a Leadership Superpower

SPEAKER_02 16:19

If you weren't a principal, you would be a businessman, business person. The most unexpected place you found inspiration for school leadership is watching kids at recess. An underrated leadership skill is listening. You recharge by pausing and reflecting. Awesome. You made it. So what's something you are secretly proud of, but get rarely asked about? It could be personal, professional.

SPEAKER_00 16:52

I'm secretly proud of the fact that I graduated from a large urban high school in Connecticut. Big shout out to Harding High School in Bridgeport, Connecticut.

SPEAKER_02 17:02

All right.

SPEAKER_00 17:03

Love it. Absolutely love it. That was my my birthplace, Love Harding High School. Secretly proud of that through my academic and athletic success, I was offered four full football scholarships to go to college, uh, the University of Connecticut, Villanova University, Northeastern University, and Boston University, and I chose uh UConn.

SPEAKER_02 17:28

Let's go.

SPEAKER_00 17:28

And I'm actually uh the tri captain of the 1994 football team.

SPEAKER_02 17:34

No way.

SPEAKER_00 17:35

I really keep that to myself. I don't talk about that a lot.

SPEAKER_02 17:38

That's really cool. And I'm a proud husky, deep, deep rooted.

SPEAKER_00 17:42

Oh, my daughter graduated from NIAG last year. She's a first-year teacher, and uh, I have twins. My twin daughter is a freshman at UConn studying animal science, and her twin brother is a uh freshman at Southern Connecticut studying education. Wow. Small world.

SPEAKER_02 18:01

That's great.

SPEAKER_00 18:02

And my wife is a one-to-one paraeducator.

SPEAKER_02 18:04

It's amazing. Glad I asked you that question. Is there something that you'd like to ask me?

SPEAKER_00 18:11

You know what? I did a little research, Dr. Bowman, looking at this interview. Um, I'd say you spent 20 years in Farmington Public Schools as a grade six teacher, then you went to a math and ELA coach. You were an assistant principal, a principal, assistant superintendent. You were a distinguished elementary principal, Westwoods Elementary School, and adjunct professor in UConn's NEAC program.

SPEAKER_02 18:35

Right.

SPEAKER_00 18:36

With all those things and managing budgets at Central Office and working with kids and also being part of someone's book, right? Your school is part of someone's book for classroom observations and feedback. What is your proudest accomplishment and why?

SPEAKER_01 18:54

Proudest accomplishment.

Dream Grant: Space, PD, and a Robot

SPEAKER_02 18:57

Well, I I don't know if I can say that this is my proudest, but this is maybe one in the moment of where I am right now. So I do teach at UConn in their administrative preparation program. So that to me fills two of my buckets. One is I love to teach. I'm a teacher at heart, but two, getting to mentor and uh those who are, you know, aspiring leaders and help to grow them. And right now we're launching a course that was an elective last year, and now it's going to be a part of everyone's program. And it's on work-life integration for school leaders because it's something I am so passionate about. I always was trying to quote figure it out. And I really want to help those, you know, our schools need great leaders. And so I feel I feel like finally I can share something that I'm so passionate about with others. I don't have all the answers, like you were saying. Lots of self-growth and reflection, but I've learned a lot. And I want our leaders to be able to think about how they can integrate work and life. It's a different day and age, and we need to recognize that as we welcome new school leaders uh to the table. So I think that's what I'm most proud of. So we'll be kicking that course off this summer. Um, and it's really exciting.

SPEAKER_00 20:19

That's good. Good for you. Happy for you.

SPEAKER_02 20:21

Thank you so much. So, lastly, where can listeners go to find out more about you and your work?

SPEAKER_00 20:29

I'm gonna sound a bit boring here, Dr. Bowman. I don't have any social media. I really don't. None.

SPEAKER_02 20:36

Me either. You're not boring.

SPEAKER_00 20:38

No Facebook, nothing. So if people wanted to get in touch with me and and and chop it up and talk, they can email me at lewisd at norwalkps.org. You can go on Norwalk Public School website. I don't have any podcasts, I don't have I I just do the work.

SPEAKER_02 20:58

Just is not a thing. You're not just doing the work, you're killing it over there. So thank you so much.

SPEAKER_00 21:05

And you know what? I didn't have a bucket list in education, Dr. Bowman. I never set out to be the best principal. I never set out to do that. But with that being said, I did always set out to do the best job I could for kids, families, and the community.

SPEAKER_02 21:21

Wonderful.

SPEAKER_00 21:22

Right. I never said I'm gonna be the best. That wasn't him, but I always said I want to do the best job I can for the people that I work with.

Ignite Round: Rapid-Fire Insights

SPEAKER_02 21:29

Wonderful. So, Dr. Damon Lewis, thank you so much for joining us on the Linking Leaders podcast. Your insights, your your humility, and your leadership is truly inspiring. I want you to know we're going to be cheering you on as you continue as a finalist for National Principle of the Year. That's amazing.

SPEAKER_00 21:51

I mean, just to be considered is amazing.

SPEAKER_02 21:54

Is incredible, really. No, no small thing. And I'm gonna keep some of those mantras with me. Steamrolling, better than you were yesterday. Every day counts, the chin-to-chest mentality.

SPEAKER_00 22:06

I'll give you one more. You ready? The five P's. You ready?

SPEAKER_02 22:10

I'm ready.

SPEAKER_00 22:11

Proper preparation prevents poor performance.

SPEAKER_02 22:16

Thank you so much. It's been a lot of fun.

SPEAKER_00 22:18

Thank you for having me. I appreciate it. Have a good rest of the day.

SPEAKER_01 22:25

Thanks so much for joining us for this episode of the Linking Leaders Podcast. This episode is brought to you by the Connecticut Association of Schools, serving schools and their leaders since 1935.