Recent Blog Posts

It is OK to be Exhausted and Overwhelmed Right Now

I have long been a fan of David Rock. I think he does an amazing job of boiling down the complex advancements in neuroscience into usable language and concepts. For me, that means he gives those of us without complex knowledge of our brain a glimpse into how our own brain works. As a bonus, if we start to begin to understand how our brain works then tangentially we can begin to understand how the brains of those we are… Read More »It is OK to be Exhausted and Overwhelmed Right Now

Teacher Appreciation 2021

I always think of Teacher Appreciation Week like a wedding anniversary. If we wait to make our staff feel loved and appreciated until one special day we are probably doing it wrong. With that being the core of my philosophy on this, 2020-2021 presents unique challenges.  I have always felt that the way we make our staff feel loved and appreciated is that we should know, honor, and value all staff. And even more than that, we can always be… Read More »Teacher Appreciation 2021

A Nuanced Look at Teacher Shortages

Throughout the public sector we have a growing problem. We have jobs that continue to grow in terms of complexity, are staying level in terms of demand, and are shrinking in terms of supply. This puts in a very dangerous cycle. Education is in the midst of this as we speak. Well, let me start by saying we are already in a VERY dangerous cycle. The COVID-19 Pandemic has brought this into greater focus, but let’s be clear: the problem… Read More »A Nuanced Look at Teacher Shortages

Yesterday, I exhaled

Nearly 12 months ago I sent an email to parents and to staff at the direction of the Governor of Illinois closing schools indefinitely. I remember vividly the Leadership Team meeting shortly before this when someone on my Leadership Team asked when I thought we would be back in session. When I replied and I told them that I did not think we would be back for the remainder of the school year. The expression on the person’s face was… Read More »Yesterday, I exhaled

A Look Behind the Curtain

Transparent Look Inside a Snow Day from a Superintendent’s Perspective The easiest way to explain a snow day from a transparent and vulnerable perspective is to provide an annotated timeline of what occurs from my lens. I am very cognizant that my lens is fallible and filled with my personal skew and bias. In this timeline I will place the commonly heard complaints. This IS NOT intended to be passive aggressive. It is just to demonstrate that I am acutely… Read More »A Look Behind the Curtain

The EduSpeak Right Now is SO Misguided

We are at an interesting inflection point in education. I think that there are a few things that we can generally agree on. In-person learning is better than remote learning for the vast majority of students. Not having in-person learning as an option is seemingly disproportionately impacting those students who are traditionally underserved. There currently exist many opportunities for us to examine our educational practices and make necessary evolutions in our process and performance. Educators are more tired, stressed, and… Read More »The EduSpeak Right Now is SO Misguided

My 40th Birthday

I am about to turn 40. I definitely do not have anxiety about turning 40 or anything like that, but there is something about a round number such as this that makes you take inventory. So, as I sit here and try to capture the thoughts I have had in this – the strangest of all of my adult years – I do so with an acute awareness of how lucky I am to be turning 40 happily married, with… Read More »My 40th Birthday

If Schools Close, This Will Be the Reason

Tomorrow morning the buses will run and students, albeit in a limited number, will enter our doors. At that moment, for the first time in months, school will feel normal. All educators, at least the great ones I know, went into education to work with kids. Tomorrow is going to give us the opportunity to do so again. We will have an opportunity to do what it is we do best. No more excruciating hours playing arm-chair epidemiologist or health… Read More »If Schools Close, This Will Be the Reason

My Thoughts on Racism and the George Floyd Murder

So, I tweeted about the SpaceX launch on Saturday and how it was nice to see overwhelming positivity on my social media timelines for an hour or so. As a huge fan of Elon Musk (I think he is fascinating) and science I was enthralled with the coverage of the launch and tried to capture it in a tweet. Relatively innocuous tweet, or so I thought. Then yesterday the aforementioned tweet was quote tweeted and I was asked about #BlackLivesMatter.… Read More »My Thoughts on Racism and the George Floyd Murder