I remember sitting at my desk before the first bell of the 2021-2022 school year rang and just looking at my classroom. I waited for the excitement to kick in. It didn’t. Instead, I felt a sense of...
At the beginning of another unprecedented year, the 2021-22 school year, for educators riddled with extreme changes and new guidance, it is a daunting task to lead capable and dedicated educators as an Expanded Learning Program Manager for...
Leadership seems to be constantly thrust upon me, often by others seeing something in me that I didn’t quite see in myself. As I progressed through my teaching career I would avoid leadership roles because I didn’t believe...
Entering De Anza High School, I had only known the hardened inner city educational environments of Philadelphia and Baltimore. The specific schools I had taught in approached educators similar to an assembly line at UPS or any other...
Expecting teachers to collaborate in Professional Learning Communities, or PLCs, has become a nearly ubiquitous practice in schools across the nation. While site leaders create schedules that allow for teachers to meet regularly...
A brave soul cuts through the terse and awkward attempt at discussion that is a high school English Zoom class: “Maya Angelou has a conversational style with all those words that sound just like the people she heard...
I had no idea how I was going to pull through last year as both a department chair and instructional leadership team (ILT) member for the first time. I doubted myself. Not only was it my first time...
Distance Learning was a huge transition for a Physical Education Department. No more “Mile Monday” or “Try it Once” Tuesday or “Fun Friday.” Everything had to be online. It wasn’t just about digitizing worksheets or textbook material. It...
We know one of the main areas of uncertainty on everyone’s minds right now is reopening. What does it look like? And, what does it feel like for students, educators, leaders, and community members to reopen in partnership?...
Four years ago when I entered my role as After School Program Coordinator in Oakland Unified (OUSD), I began by becoming an active learner to get a better understanding of the Expanded Learning world in OUSD. What I...
