At BLAQUE Kansas City, we believe strong schools require strong leaders at every level, including the community members who step forward to serve on school boards.
Through the Charter School Board Draft, BLAQUE Kansas City prepares community leaders with the knowledge, tools, and support they need to serve effectively on public charter school boards. And through The Board Collective, alumni who have been placed on boards have an opportunity to continue building their skills, strengthening relationships, and growing together as education leaders.
Antwan Daniels is one of those individuals.
A member of the 2024 Charter School Board Draft class, Antwan is now the board chair of Scuola Vita Nuova Charter School. His journey to board leadership has been shaped by a career in education, a commitment to listening, and a belief that Kansas City’s schools are stronger when leaders choose cooperation over competition.
Following our first Board Collective gathering, we sat down with Antwan to reflect on his journey from the Charter School Board Draft to board chair, what board service has taught him about leadership, and why he believes collective action can transform education in Kansas City.
BLAQUE Kansas City: Take us back to 2024. What made you say yes to participating in BLAQUE Kansas City’s Charter School Board Draft? What was happening in your life at the time that made the opportunity important to you?
Antwan Daniels: I had been in Kansas City for about three years solid, but I had been around Kansas City for a long time. I had heard so many things about Kansas City schools and Kansas City Public Schools, and I had also done my own reading. I had both lenses—what people were saying on the ground and what I was learning for myself.
I had heard about BLAQUE Kansas City and what they were doing, and I said, “You know what? I want to lean into that.”
I believe that if you’re going to talk about a problem, you also have to be willing to be part of the solution. I believed BLAQUE Kansas City was working toward the solutions we needed for improved learning, improved relationships, and a city where everyone can thrive.
I’m a professor, but I wanted people to know I wasn’t just that. I had been a football coach, an instructional coach, a lead teacher, and a head soccer coach. I had done research. I had just written a chemistry textbook. I wanted to tell that story and let people know that I could be not only a trusted partner, but also a valuable listener.
I truly believed there was a gap in listening in Kansas City. Many people had told KCPS what they were. Many people had said what our students were, especially our Black students. People had said a lot of things, but there wasn’t enough listening.
I wanted to be part of the response. And I believed BLAQUE Kansas City was offering a response—not a reaction, but a response.
BLAQUE Kansas City: Before joining the Charter School Board Draft, what did you think board service meant or looked like? How has your understanding changed now that you’ve served on a board?
Antwan Daniels: My perspective has changed tremendously.
Earlier in my career, when I was in Memphis, I had a very different relationship with charter schools. I was a union guy. I had seen situations that made me skeptical of the charter school model, and I had concerns about schools competing against one another rather than working together.
When I came to Kansas City, I knew I wanted to approach things differently.
Public schools and public charter schools shouldn’t be fighting each other. We should be cooperating in ways that uplift our students, especially our Black students.
That became very real for me during the KCPS bond campaign. I had been in rooms where people said KCPS would never get a bond passed. I heard people say there was no way charter schools would help KCPS get it passed.
And I said loud and clear: this board will.
I didn’t have enough votes at first, so I went to work. I brought the data. I brought the information. I talked with people. By November, we were one of the schools saying yes to the KCPS bond.
That represents how my mindset has evolved. Today, I’m asking: What can we do? How can we work together to get better?
BLAQUE Kansas City: You were ultimately selected to serve on the board of Scuola Vita Nuova and now serve as board chair. What has that journey been like for you?
Antwan Daniels: I’ll tell you the truth: I wasn’t picked until the third round of the Charter School Board Draft.
I’m different. I’m loud sometimes. I’m boisterous. I also stutter, and sometimes when people hear you stutter, they can turn their ears off a little bit.
There were other schools I was interested in, but those opportunities didn’t work out. Then Scuola Vita Nuova responded.
Superintendent Nicole Goodman gave me a tour of the building. I learned from her. I listened—not just with my ears, but with my eyes and my heart.
And SVN believed in me.
They saw the best of me and not the less of me.
I don’t hold any grudges about the other opportunities not working out. We had an incredibly strong Charter School Board Draft class. There were some hitters in there. But SVN gave me an opportunity to come in, learn, and serve.
That has meant a lot to me.
BLAQUE Kansas City: How has serving on the SVN board shaped or grown you as a leader?
Antwan Daniels: The biggest thing I’ve learned is listening.
I’m really big on leadership and followership. BLAQUE Kansas City also coaches you on understanding your lane. The way I think about that is: my lane can expand. I’m not going into someone else’s lane, but that doesn’t mean my lane has to stay skinny.
I’m also not going to be a rubber stamp. I’m not going to say yes just because someone else says something should happen.
As a board member, you have to listen. You have to understand what your superintendent needs, what they believe in, what their team looks like, and what you can add to that melting pot of knowledge.
We grew our board from six members to 10. I’ve been able to help bring four people onto the board by listening and thinking about what our school needs.
I’ve also learned that silence is consent. When you have a vote and a decision has to be made, saying nothing is still a choice.
That doesn’t mean conversations always have to be contentious. We’ve learned how to move from butting heads to having crucial conversations—the kind of academic churn that ultimately helps you get better.
Today, three of our 10 board members have been trained by BLAQUE Kansas City. That’s a beautiful thing because BLAQUE Kansas City puts you through a boot camp. You learn. You understand the history. You learn how to walk into a room, know what you’re talking about, and contribute.
There are going to be moments when things are bitter. But the goal is to get better from them.
BLAQUE Kansas City: Why do you trust BLAQUE Kansas City as a partner in this work?
Antwan Daniels: I look at Dr. Hill-Woodard and what she has done.
She has been on a school board. She has served on City Council. She put the work in. And BLAQUE Kansas City being a 501(c)(4) on purpose—that takes a level of guts.
I see that leadership, and I want to pour into it.
I’m not always going to be right. I’m not always going to show up perfectly or have the best suit on. But my heart is in the right place, and I mean well.
That’s part of why I trust this work and want to be part of it.
BLAQUE Kansas City: You’ve gone from the Charter School Board Draft to being placed on a board and now participating in The Board Collective. What do you hope to gain from this next stage of the experience?
Antwan Daniels: When I go into The Board Collective, I leave my ego behind.
I don’t need to walk into the room saying, “I’m Dr. Daniels.” I go in with the mindset that I don’t need to be right—we need to get it right.
If we have a message and we have an agenda, let’s roll with it. We don’t need everybody deciding they have to go start their own thing. We need good, solid people moving together.
What I want to see from The Board Collective is an understanding that we are each part of a whole.
My Ph.D. work is about chemistry self-efficacy, but there is also something called collective efficacy. It’s about how people in a shared space show up believing something can happen because of the collective strength of the room.
That’s how I think about The Board Collective.
Whether you’re coming from Liberty or all the way down to Belton, if the collective says yes, why are we waiting?
Let’s go forward.
BLAQUE Kansas City: If someone in Kansas City is considering stepping into a leadership role or joining a school board but isn’t sure whether they belong at that table, what would you say to them?
Antwan Daniels: First, I’d want to know why you’re there.
This isn’t about “me over we.” It has to be “we over me.”
This isn’t your chance to come get a bag or put something on your résumé. You have to ask yourself: What do I bring to the table? What am I trying to be part of? What am I passionate about?
Passion matters, but it also has to align with what the school actually needs.
You might come in passionate about starting a pre-K program, for example. That’s great. But does the data support it? Do you have enough students? Does the building have the space? Do you have the personnel? Do you have the budget?
Board service also takes time. It isn’t 10 hours a year. You have to prepare for meetings, read your materials, attend board meetings, and serve on committees. You have to be willing to put the work in.
So I’d tell someone considering it: bring your passion. Bring your ears. Bring your heart.
This is not hard work.
It’s heart work.
And let’s do it together.