Leading with Joy

Teaching With Joy began as a small network of Watson College of Education faculty and local high school teachers committed to creating joyful learning experiences and sharing those practices with others. In 2025, the group grew to include teachers at all grade levels. Current efforts include extending the work to school leaders through a new Leading With Joy initiative.

“Recognizing the principal’s essential role in shaping a school’s culture, we asked our teachers to describe what a school looks and feels like when the principal leads with joy,” said Robert Smith, WCE professor emeritus and a founding member of the group. “Their responses reflected experiences with leaders who embody joy as well as those in settings where joy was noticeably absent.”

To better understand and support joyful leadership, Teaching With Joy network members hosted monthly virtual meetings for education leaders and principals over the past six months. Participants were also invited to share their perspectives by contributing articles for publication.

The first article in the series, “What if we valued joy in schools?” authored by Smith along with founding members Denise Ousley and Jessica Harvey ’12M, was published in EdNC on Jan. 5.

Kevin Spainhour, area superintendent in Winston-Salem/Forsyth County Schools, authored the second article, “Enjoy the journey: Finding joy in school leadership.” In the piece, Spainhour explores how joy shows up through laughter, listening and learning together.

Edith Skipper, Ed.D., principal at Southeast Area Technical High School, also contributed to the EdNC leadership series. A four-time UNCW graduate, Skipper shares a personal perspective on how joy shapes her approach to leadership.

“When asked to reflect on how joy informs educational leadership, I was reminded of how central joy — and its close companion, love — has been to my own work at SEA-Tech High School,” Skipper said. “Joyful leadership is not simply about optimism or enthusiasm; it is about intentionally creating the conditions in which students and educators feel safe, seen and empowered to learn through connection, play and purpose.”

Her article, “The pedagogy of joy: How love and psychological safety transforms learning,” was published in EdNC on Jan. 7.

Educators PK-20 interested in bringing more joy into their schools, classrooms and lives are invited to attend the network’s next Spark of Joy teacher meet-up at Wilmington Brewing Company on Friday, Feb. 27, from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. Principals/leaders interested in participating in Leading with Joy are invited to join the next virtual meeting on Feb. 25. For more information, contact Denise Ousley at ousleyd@uncw.edu.

About the Teaching With Joy Network

Teaching With Joy began in 2024 as a grassroots group of educators — Ousley, Smith, Harvey, Jeremy Buie, Sydney Hoover ’24M, Kylee Maarschalk, Hannah Moon ’08M, Matt Taylor ’24M and Nicole Turner ’24M — focused on reimagining teaching through the intentional practice of joy. In May 2025, Ousley was named Watson’s Murphy Distinguished Scholar and received a three-year appointment to grow and formalize the work.

Over the past year, the initiative has reached more than 1,800 teachers and school leaders through presentations, professional development sessions and Spark of Joy meetups. The network continues to expand through initiatives like Leading With Joy and research examining how intentional joy influences teacher retention, student engagement and attendance.

EdNC Articles – January 2026

Jan. 5 | Perspective: What if we valued joy in schools? by Robert Smith, Denise Ousley and Jessica Harvey
Jan. 5 | Perspective: Enjoy the journey: Finding joy in school leadership by Kevin Spainhour
Jan. 7 | Perspective: The pedagogy of joy: How love and psychological safety transforms learning by Edith Skipper