The show to help you get the tools to write a better story with your life.
Episodes
Wednesday May 15, 2019
Wednesday May 15, 2019
Marisa Thompson is an educator living and working in Southern California and considers herself the luckiest person. She has a family she adores, friends who are family, and a life of variety, fun, and joy.
Marisa has an M.A. in Teacher Education and more than a dozen years of classroom experience teaching various levels of English including AP, Honors, College Prep, Remedial English, and Transitional English for English Learners. As a member of her district's Modern Learning Spaces, OER, Digital Portfolios, and ELA vertical teams, she helps assess success and develop curriculum and environmental goals for the secondary level as well as K-12. She is also an online instructor for the University of San Diego, a designated cooperating teacher for a CSU credential program, and a guest collaborator for a credential program at a private university.
Besides teaching, Marisa has worked as a coach and club advisor, and has traveled with students on educational trips to Greece, Turkey, Peru, Thailand, Cambodia, and Vietnam. Traveling internationally since she was nine, she's been fortunate enough to visit more than twenty countries and nearly every continent.
She believes in the power of education, the transformative effects of travel, and the joy the unexpected can bring. Her children and students prove to her each day we can be optimistic about our future and she is grateful to be a part of their lives.
Follow Marisa @MarisaEThompson
Thursday May 09, 2019
Thursday May 09, 2019
We're thrilled to welcome a math teacher from a comprehensive public high school to the show, John Wilkes. John has been teaching for 18 years and rumor has it, he really cares about kids. In fact, he has a math equation: more care = better test scores.
Wednesday Apr 24, 2019
Wednesday Apr 24, 2019
There's nothing that wakes someone up like a well-told story. Even more, stories that are vulnerable and relevant. But what stories can you share?
We often hear teachers and leaders tell us: I just don't have any interesting stories. Not true! You just haven't spent the time yet to reflect on the stories from your life, categorize them, or allegorize them. That's where we come in. We have a free giveaway for you called: Your Story Library. It's a simple tool designed to help you to think back in your life to recall stories that can be used later to influence others.
Get your Story Library here.
Friday Apr 12, 2019
Friday Apr 12, 2019
Brittany and her small team of essay experts serve clients locally throughout New York, New Jersey, and Connecticut, and seamlessly across the country and around the globe via email, phone, and video chat.
Until 2012, Brittany spent her professional career working in higher education, and held positions in admissions and student services at the University of Pennsylvania at Penn Law and The Wharton School; Princeton University (undergraduate) and the Woodrow Wilson School of Public and International Affairs; and the Johns Hopkins University-Paul H. Nitze School of Advanced International Studies (SAIS). She has also served on admissions committees with American Councils for International Education and International Research and Exchanges Board; as an invited speaker to numerous community programs; and as an alumni interviewer and admissions representative for the Graduate School of Education at the University of Pennsylvania. Brittany is an active Executive Board member and Membership Director of the Penn GSE Education Alumni Association and an Associate member of the Independent Educational Consultants Association.
Brittany received her doctorate in higher education from the George Washington University in 2012. Prior, she attended the University of Pennsylvania for her master’s, and the University of Vermont for her bachelor’s degree—a degree she obtained in three years.
Download Giveaway: Your Story Library Giveaway
-----------------------
1
00:00:07,830 --> 00:00:22,710
Unknown: Welcome to the YouSchool podcast where we believe inside of everybody there is a great story waiting to be discovered and lived. This is the show where we guide you on your journey in discovering what your story can be. It's your life. Don't let anybody else write it.
2
00:00:31,480 --> 00:01:32,080
Scott Schimmel: Hey, everybody, this is your, your consummate host of the YouSchool podcast. This is Scott Schimmel. And we are in a theme for the next couple months talking about story and the idea that not only our lives in a story, but also it's through stories, that we see the world and interact with the world. And a lot of the work we do if YouSchool is helping people uncover and discover and understand their own story, and so on. I'm thrilled to have Brittany, on the podcast today. And Brittany, you don't know this, but I hardly ever actually introduce anybody in the show. I'd rather just hear from your perspective, like, not only Who are you and what are you doing in the world, but again, we're talking about stories. So the backstory, how did you get into your work and what what led you there? So first of all, and say thanks for taking time, especially on a late Friday afternoon, you're in New York, I'm in San Diego. So this is way later for you. So thanks for taking the time and introduce yourself to the audience.
3
00:01:32,160 --> 00:02:35,750
Well, thank you so much for having me. I'm really excited to talk about my backstory. I'm a story person, I know you're a story person. So I'm excited to dig into it. But before I go into it, so I am a college admissions counselors own independent counselor, I'm based in Brooklyn, I've been doing this for about seven years. And my career story and my personal story are very much connected. So growing up, I was, I guess, kind of like a typical over achiever type student athlete. But as I got older, I sort of started to not fit into that typical, I guess, good student mold. I went to a number of different high schools, just trying to find something that was a good fit for me, my parents were really concerned wanted to find something that was a good fit for me. And I didn't have some great experiences early on, I was actually asked to leave school. And yeah, it was, it was a
4
00:02:35,930 --> 00:02:37,190
really nice way to say that
5
00:02:38,690 --> 00:05:54,060
it was a bad fit a lot about fit in college admissions. And I ended up back at my local public high school. And unfortunately, things went kind of downhill for me there. So by the time it came for me to apply to college, now my GPA wasn't great, wasn't horrible, hi, 2.8 million, seven, eight or nine range. There's some sees on there for sure. I decent test scores, though. But my high school counselor really didn't believe in me. I had had some disciplinary issues. Early in my my time in high school, you know, 10th grade, but both my parents had gone to college, both my parents are going to four year colleges, and they really thought that I should go to college. So that was something that they wanted me to do. And I wanted to go to college to I was really excited about going to college, but my high school counselor was not so excited about really applying Yeah, out of state, he thought really, I should just, if I was going to go anywhere, I should just apply it and maybe my state institution and probably keep my list at that. But you know, fast forward through that process. And I did get into college, I actually went to the University of Vermont. So I parents day, they were excited for me to get away. And I think that was a good thing. And my sort of journey in higher education kind of took off from there. So I went to the University of Pennsylvania for grad school, I went to George Washington University for my doctorate, and all of those degrees have actually been in education. And so in thinking about, you know, my career path and my career story, I always thought back to, you know, my experiences, and I just was really drawn to education, I was drawn to how education works, I was drawn to how education doesn't work for some people. And I, you know, did some exploring, and it wasn't on purpose that I got a job in admissions initially. But I really fell in love with it. And when I started to reflect back and really began to connect the dots, I felt like that was the perfect place for me to be. So I spent many years working in higher ed working in student affairs, working in admissions, you know, as the person that reads these application files. And then about seven years ago, I decided to switch sides and really get in a position where I can help families, you know, through this process, it's a tough process. It's not always a transparent process. And I really work with all different types of students. So students that go to Ivy League schools and students that have disciplinary records and 2.8 GPA, like me, and it's, it's just super rewarding to be able to look back on my journey, and help people have a more positive journey toward college and towards secondary education.
6
00:05:54,810 --> 00:06:04,080
By the way, I'm sorry to introduce you as a doctor. I will from now on Dr. Tell me more about why you shifted from admissions to doing work on your own.
7
00:06:04,000 --> 00:06:48,790
I think that there's a couple of reasons that I shifted. I kind of am a little I'm and I'm antsy. So the work environment itself, I think that anyone that's thinking about their career, that's something that you don't often think about early in your career, like, what type of work environment? Is it good for me to get up and leave the house every day, kind of do the nine to five thing and go to an office or something different. And I figured out pretty early on that that going to an office every day and sort of that that typical work schedule just wasn't the best for me. And I think the biggest factor was also I didn't like rejecting students, specifically.
8
00:06:50,320 --> 00:08:00,010
And there's a lot that goes on behind the scenes and admissions that I just thought was just really uncool and not fair. And I loved. There are certain parts of working in admissions that I loved, I loved working one on one with the candidates with the applicants. Yeah, like sort of get providing them information, helping them through the process. And I loved reading their applications. I loved reading their essays, I loved reading their stories. And as someone that enjoys writing, I and having worked in admissions, I had, you know, a couple people that would ask me, you know, friends of friends and family, friends, stuff like that, to look at their kids essays and to kind of give them some advice. And I just started to put two and two together and really thought deeply about the things that I enjoyed about the role. And then, you know, sort of stroke of luck, I met someone that was an independent counselor and really learned a lot about how what I was doing in admissions and just my really kind of deep knowledge about higher education and how it works. How I could translate that into a role as an independent counselor and took the plunge. And that was,
9
00:08:00,490 --> 00:08:25,540
yeah. Well, your your entire line of business has obviously been in the news a lot lately. This operation was it Varsity Blues, and this huge, like, takedown by the FBI of parents like, so maybe this is a week or two late, but what's your what's your What was your first reaction, when you're hearing the news come out about parents manipulating the entire system?
10
00:08:25,000 --> 00:08:34,000
This is a loaded question. My first thought my first thought was it sad.
11
00:08:35,280 --> 00:09:39,920
It's really sad. It's sad, because essentially, these parents are telling their children, you're not enough, you know, you're not good enough. And because of that, I'm going to do this for you. And you know, you can't do this on your own. And I think that's just a horrible, horrible message to send anyone and especially to send someone at such, you're formative age, so, so really just sadness. And frustration, I guess a little bit too, because on the other end there, there's parents on one end, and there's the schools, but then there's also kind of there were some some people in in my role involved. But those, those people aren't the majority. So the majority of people in my line of work are actually members of professional organizations, and they really love what they do. And they do things, you know, right. So it's sad, kind of on that front to to see sort of what we do put in a bad light.
12
00:09:40,830 --> 00:10:31,350
With the theme of story. I think, when I was watching the news and reading some of the news articles, I think the lens I was looking through, and having this I had the same reaction z like the cash, it's so sad, like, that's, that's crazy, it's come to that, or at least to several people, it's come to that, but the idea of manipulating the story about who you are. And in this case, its parents manipulate the story about who their kids are, in order for someone to like purchase a story. There's not to use too much like commodities language, but there's, there's something there about the story I have, this is not the story that's going to fit where I'm trying to get it to fit, you're not going to buy this story. So let's let's let's purchase another one. Let's create another one. I guess, I don't know what the question is in that, but what are your thoughts on that?
13
00:10:32,470 --> 00:12:40,630
So I think that, that this idea of creating a story, creating this certain persona, or whatever you want to call it, for the application, is a bad idea. It actually puts students at a disadvantage. So one of the ways that your story comes through and your application is in your essays. And so you don't get a ton of opportunities to really show admissions officers and your words, what matters most to you, and why who you are and what you're all about. And the stuff that they you can't glean from your resume, or your grades, or your test scores. If you don't present that authentic, true self that was behind the scenes look in the application, you're at a huge disadvantage. And, you know, back to sort of your, your question like what you're what you're talking about, like sort of creating that package. admissions officers, although there's no like, formal training on this, they are able to sense when a story is a manufactured story, or it's an authentic story. And it's just a vibe you can get. I mean, there are some kind of tale signs, like, you know, there are certain words that 17 year olds don't use, yeah. Or it just sounds like a 45 year old, wrote it. Or the story is just so ridiculous, you can't believe it. But it's, I think it's so much of that, that trying too hard type of story, or that when you sense a student is trying to tell you something that they think you want to hear that in and of itself is not being authentic, that means, you are trying to craft something, For what you think you know, who you think the reader is, or what they want to see. And hear
14
00:12:41,410 --> 00:12:58,030
And back when you were an admissions counselor for university, when you would get a sense, what, what did you do? Like, what's the typical response? If you're reading this story and think, man, this just doesn't smell right. sound right? It doesn't seem believable. What do you do with that?
15
00:12:59,470 --> 00:14:48,820
Well, there's no, like formal process for saying like, okay, we need to do some extended research on this first, or, but there are ways to kind of check the story, right? So one of the ways is looking at the other components of the application. So the letters of recommendation, for example, if the story of the students presenting, let's say, in the personal statement, like nothing kind of comes up to, you know, check that in those other letters, yeah, that is a red flag. And then the other, the other component might be not all schools have this, but the interview, so many schools do have this, this interview, and there's an interview report. And so if a student, you know, says they had this crazy thing happened in their life or something, and it never comes up in an interview, that would be like a pretty big red flag. I've also heard that admissions officers and the is rare. They can call high school guidance counselors and ask them questions. So that's why honesty is so important. Yeah. process, you just, you have to be honest, you have to be truthful. But even beyond that, like you should just be yourself because that's, you know, colleges don't admit. Half of this, colleges, don't they admit people, right? They admit people, they don't admit numbers, they don't know. They, they want to know the real you. There you are what you're all about. So I really try to get students to understand that it's okay. And it's actually to your benefit to be your unique self, whatever that is.
16
00:14:48,210 --> 00:16:07,770
Hmm. Well, it's it's interesting. My recently I at my mom's house, found my college essay that I wrote. My mom is like, if you know, there's hoarders you keep everything, she's like, the opposite of that. So it's like the one thing that made it through from my childhood, I don't know why, but there's this little file folder. And I opened it up. And there's my University of San Diego college application I read and I saw I read the essay. And I was so fascinated by it, and I started to read it. I'm like, Who wrote this? Like, literally, I don't, I don't remember, obviously, it was me. But it doesn't seem like me, because it nothing. This the tone didn't sound like me. I clearly wrote something that I thought I wanted someone else to think that this was impressive. And so I guess my question, and that is, there's so many students that I know and have known that when you when it comes to sitting down with them and saying, Hey, tell me your unique story. They just sort of blink at you. Like, what do you mean, there's nothing dramatic? I'm a normal kid who's gone to school and done well, and I played a sport like that's, that's it? So I guess my question is, how do you? How do you respond to that? And how do you help an average, I'm using air quotes here, average ordinary kid hasn't had anything dramatic happening in life, tell a story about themselves. Like what's the process you take them through?
17
00:16:08,200 --> 00:16:21,070
Yeah. So we actually do a pretty formal brainstorming process with the students that we work with. And it's not easy at all. And not for us, it's not easy for them.
18
00:16:23,370 --> 00:19:07,950
It's brainstorming. But the reason that we do it is because we believe, and I say we because I have a couple colleagues I work with, we believe that everyone has a story. We know everyone has a story. And sometimes it's hidden in plain sight. And sometimes you need to dig around for it. So we really get our students to dig around, you know, in, in their back stories in their lives. And often, that means getting them to think about the stuff that's hard to think about this stuff that might feel embarrassing, you know, getting them to, you know, be vulnerable, it might be getting them to talk about some failures that they've had, you know, things like that. And it's like I said, it's not, it's not always easy, they don't always like that process, because it is, you know, it makes you vulnerable, you you have to, you know, kind of get this stuff out there. But from my experience, when it comes to admissions essays, vulnerability is where it's at, like, I that's my goal. And if I can give anyone advice that has to think about where is approaching this college application process, and in thinking about, you know, the story that they're going to present in their personal statement, I would push you to think about the hard moments in your life, the embarrassing things, the stuff that you might not want to tell people that you might not feel comfortable talking. I think going to that place is where kind of the good stuff is. And it's not that admissions officers, will they do want to see your human right. That's nice, but they want to get a sense of like, your personal characteristics, like what have you been through? Like, how have you developed into the person that you are, you know, whether that's, you know, resilient, or funny, more loving, or whatever, you know, those traits that you really feel like make you you. That's what admissions officers want to know about. And so you're often not going to see that in some of the really typical essays, big sports win, or the first time you got to be or know something. Yeah, I mean, and those things, yes, they probably all have affected you in some way. But just going a little bit further, a little bit deeper, can be just so helpful.
19
00:19:08,460 --> 00:19:43,650
One of my best friends at a college, his first job was as an admissions counselor. And one day I said, What do you do all day? And he's like, I just read, read, read. And he's like, it is so boring. And the but I said, Well, does it ever do you ever read anything that's like crazy, like, Oh, yeah, every now and then. And then he's like, and then we all walk around the office and like, you gotta read this one. Totally tell you are there any of those that stick out to you that you can share in your, in your years of doing this, like an essay or something that you that just felt, I don't know, absurd, or ridiculous or just crazy?
20
00:19:44,460 --> 00:21:17,570
I don't have too many crazy, crazy ones. But I do have a number that I really like. And I think all the essays that I tend to really like, have theme. And the theme is they show students in their most vulnerable moments. Because to me, that's the craziest thing a 17 year old can do. Yeah, my mind is by putting themselves out there. That is what really, you know, sticks with me. And whether that is a really weighted topic, like maybe a student's sort of journey to being able to come out to his friends, his or her friends or his or her family. Or if it's something that's a little bit more lighthearted. I had an essay, for example, that a young woman wrote that was about the time she spent in her parents. You know, nail salon. Little, little tiny moment, like a sliver of of someone's life. Yeah, yeah, it was colorful, it was a colorful, sad. And that was a fun way to to remember it, but but I do just really think that the most memorable. And the essays that I really kind of hang on to are the ones where I feel a connection to the student, I'm almost like, I feel like they told me
21
00:21:20,750 --> 00:22:14,420
Unknown: There's nothing that's going to wake somebody up, like a well told story. Even better, stories that are vulnerable, real, and relevant. What stories can you share? we hear all the time from teachers and leaders don't really have any stories, interesting in my life to share, well, you're wrong, you just haven't taken the time yet to really think about it to really be called and reflect the stories from your life that would be meaningful and relevant to the people that you're trying to influence. Andthat's why we put together Your Story Library, it's a really simple tool, you can download, and start to remember stories from your life. Go to the show notes. Download your story library today and start working on remembering all the interesting, fascinating, vulnerable and real stories from your life. So you can influence others.
22
00:22:19,980 --> 00:23:21,900
Scott Schimmel: When given kind of the state of affairs these days, and it's it's not just that new scandal, you know, it's such as parents that are going to these extraordinary unethical places to get the kids into school. But there's, there's also around that a much broader conversation around the entire college prep college admissions process of the extraordinary stress and competition and getting worse and worse every year. And I know, for example, I was sharing with some people yesterday that when I got into college, it was it wasn't that hard. And even at USD, where I went to, this is not bragging, but there was a top academic scholarship now. And now there was my friend told me this I'd probably I might get in, but I definitely wouldn't get any scholarship extended to me. So it's, it's changed and and mental health is affected and students dealing with anxiety and rejection. And so I guess my question on that, what do you think is going to change? Or even on the flip side of that, if you could change something, what would it be?
23
00:23:21,000 --> 00:23:44,730
Brittany: I think well, how change? I guess I'll tackle first what might change? mean, I think possibly a lot could change and quite possibly very little could change. So like our system of higher education has been how it has been for a very long time.
24
00:23:44,820 --> 00:23:45,180
Scott Schimmel: Yeah.
25
00:23:45,750 --> 00:26:18,510
Brittany: And although I'm absolutely a glass half full type of person, I don't think we're going to see anything change soon on, like, the college end of things. Right. So from the top down, yeah. However, I do think something that will change is something that has to change, because of the sort of way college admissions is going. So not everyone can get in to top 25 schools, even the top 50 schools. Students and parents need to widen their college knowledge, they need to think outside of the box more, they need to learn about different schools, new schools, schools that they don't know. And they need to do this because not everyone can go to the same schools, you can have an amazing academic experience social experience, at so many colleges and universities, you just need to open your mind to those schools. Yeah, research them. And you need to look beyond the brand names that are those everyday names that we know, the college admissions landscape now requires it. And to me, that's actually a good thing. I've always tried to push students to think outside of the box a little bit and not necessarily kind of follow the crowd. And I think that one change that we will see, because of how competitive college admissions is getting is that students will start to do that. And we will start to hear more about schools that we don't know a lot about, and that students might not know a lot about, those schools will get more popular. And hopefully, there won't be this just laser focus on this super small set of colleges. I go on lots of college tours, I have colleagues that I know that have worked at different colleges, universities, there are so many amazing colleges in the US and abroad that there is just no need to be going crazy over 5, 10, 15, 25 schools, our students can get an amazing education at an so many other different colleges and universities, just the stress is not it's just not it's not worth it anymore. It's just not.
26
00:26:19,890 --> 00:27:25,320
Scott Schimmel: Well, maybe this is putting the letting the cat out of the bag a little bit. But Brittany and I put together as speaking to the audience now- we put together the past few months, a new digital course called your real college essay course. And we're really intending that, that students that don't have access to a high school counselor on a campus when a lot of high schools have a 450 to 750 Kids assigned to each counselor. So how are you ever going to get personal attention, or they don't have the access maybe in their community or financial resources to work with someone like Brittany one on one that we wanted to create a way of process for students to go through that can actually help them walk through and understand themselves understand their real story, and be able to tell that and an articulate way. So we're going live with that's right in the next few weeks. It's got to be Sam, it's been a labor of love and something we're both excited about that could have a real impact for a lot of students. So what are you excited about when it comes to that course?
27
00:27:26,160 --> 00:28:17,190
Brittany: I'm most excited about having students give us some feedback on you know, the brainstorming. So I talked about that a little bit earlier. Yeah, I'm a story person, the brainstorming is where these stories begin to emerge. So I'm really excited to see, you know, what the students that take the course, you know, come up with if it really helps them develop their thinking, deepen their thinking. And I hope that some of them will share their stories with us in the finished product in the in the essays because everyone has a story. Everyone has a unique story and exciting story. And colleges deserve to hear that story. And so I'm just so hopeful that this course helps students unlock those stories, and present, you know, their best, most authentic, you know, true self to admissions officers.
28
00:28:17,340 --> 00:29:48,570
Scott Schimmel: And when I think about when I think about myself, writing that sort of autopilot essay 20 years ago, because I thought that's what I what someone wanted me to say. And but but really, even more broadly than that the entire process for me was just going to autopilot. I knew I was in my family going off to for your school, I knew that was the directions where all my friends were going from the high schoolers at. But there was no real sense during that season of life of real discovery, I was not open was not thinking about things, I was not exploring who I was. And so the idea that we can actually leverage this pretty stressful season, maybe the most stressful season that a kid will go through in there, in some ways, and you're tired lives maybe. Yeah. But we could actually leverage that season as as a time to actually really get to understand yourself and who you are and who you want to be. And that's I think that's the great opportunity that the college essay particularly provides that it forces you to look backwards. And by looking backwards, if you do that, well, you will see where your life is headed. And you'll be able to have a little sense of confidence and clarity, and maybe agency I think, you know, I want that story to change direction. I want to go in a different down a different path. And so that would be amazing. Brittany, if we can reconnect in a year from now on the show and say, Look, story after story of students saying, Man, I really, this really helped me understand myself. And now I'm making different choices about my life path because of that, that that's our dream.
29
00:29:49,590 --> 00:30:19,080
Brittany: Absolutely. And I think it's possible with the course. And I think it's also possible when students and families and counselors and advisors and teachers and everyone that touches students college counseling and sort of college application journey, looks at it as a journey. And as something that you can learn from and grow from and kind of do in a way that is true, and good to you. And also not that stressful. Yeah,
30
00:30:19,110 --> 00:30:39,060
Scott Schimmel: yeah. Well, I took some great quotes from just what you're saying that I love your perspective. I'm so glad you're doing what you're doing and how you're doing it. I'm so glad that we can partner together. And thanks again for being on the show. I hope you have a great warm spring New York weekends because I know it's going to be warm here in San Diego. So we'll send over some good vibes.
31
00:30:40,230 --> 00:30:50,040
Brittany: Thanks so much that you know, I am a huge fan of yours YouSchool, I'm so glad that we are working on this course together. So send some warm weather my way.
32
00:30:53,390 --> 00:31:32,360
Scott Schimmel: Hey, thanks for joining us for The YouSchool podcast, we wanted to let you know that we have a new free mini course. That's a available for you called the Real Me course. It's available on our website, go to theyouschool.com/register, create an account and you'll see The Real Me course available for you for free. Within three quick exercises, you can get clear about your identity about who you are and what matters to you. Let us guide you through video and through interactive prompts for you to figure out and get clear about your real story. So go to theyouschool.com and thanks for joining us today.
Monday Apr 08, 2019
Monday Apr 08, 2019
If you don't know Joe yet, you should, and you will.
JOE'S SIMPLE MISSION; RECLAIM HUMAN CONNECTION
Over the last 15 years he's spoken in educational settings all over the world with one simple mission… to reclaim human connection.
Whether it’s a Middle School in Minneapolis, a Professional Development workshop in Montana, or an International Conference in Malaysia…people are craving connection.
It’s only when we stop and slow down, separate from our screens, and truly listen to each other’s stories, that we can course correct, and give our youth the best chance to leave their mark on this world. Greatness lives in every single person. Every student, and every adult.
My mission is to help them discover this greatness, believe they can obtain it, commit to it, and most importantly... share it with others.
Connect with Joe and learn more about his work: Joe's website
Two videos Joe mentioned in the conversation:
Download Giveaway: Your Story Library Giveaway
Saturday Mar 30, 2019
Saturday Mar 30, 2019
Tracy Wilson is the Counseling Coordinator for the San Diego County Office of Education. She supports all counselors across every school in town. In other words- she's a big deal. From her experiences in the juvenile detention system, a school counselor, Assistant Principal and a mom herself, she has a unique perspective on the trends of social-emotional learning throughout the county.
This month we also have a giveaway for you called YOUR STORY LIBRARY, a simple tool designed for anyone working with students to become a better storyteller.
To get in touch with Tracy, go to www.sdcoe.net/schoolcounselors
Thursday Mar 14, 2019
Thursday Mar 14, 2019
So much of school is managing the externals: lesson plans, worksheets, assignments, papers, tests, projects, etc. The student experience is largely about the external world, but their internal world is where all the action is happening.
If you want to lead students to more meaningful moments, moments of insight, connection, self-discovery and empathy, then you need to learn how to address their inner worlds.
In this episode we mention the new mindfulness meditation videos available for you to use in your classroom (3 min or 6 min, no cost). Just shoot us an email info@theyouschool.com and we'll send you those videos as well as a short explanation video for how you can integrate a practice like this into your classroom.
Monday Mar 11, 2019
Monday Mar 11, 2019
How can a teacher be more thoughtful about cultivating moments in the classroom?
Tracy Yates joins us (again!) with some gold nuggets in this episode. We have an e-book for download this month- more info inside the episode.
More about Tracy
I'm a proud founding staff member at Canyon Crest Academy and began teaching full time in the fall of 1999 at La Costa Canyon High School before opening CCA in the fall of 2004. Creating both Envision Dance and Cinema Conservatories in CCA's second year, I went on to be Envision Director after Brian Kohn, then Director stepped into the position of CCA's Principal after David Jaffe's exit. (Kohn is now with Oakland School of the Arts, Jaffe is Superintendent at Rancho Santa Fe School District). After several years as Director and Envision Dance Coordinator, I stepped down and am "just" teaching. I am so proud of CCA and the amazing innovation of both staff and students each year.
A dancer since the age of 3, I've always had an interest in health and wellness. I've always been interested in exercise of any kind, eating well and mental health. So, I'm thrilled to teach the Intro to Dance with Health. The body has a profound ability to help heal the mind (and vice versa) so it'll be fun to infuse some of the latest research into both dance and health class.
Friday Mar 01, 2019
Friday Mar 01, 2019
Daniel Horgan is the Senior Director of Corporate Engagement for MENTOR. In this role, he is responsible for building and managing corporate partnerships that help close the youth mentoring gap in America while meeting business goals. A volunteer role with a YMCA summer camp at the age of 12 sparked Daniel’s passion for service. At the age of 18, Daniel pioneered the first youth-led Community of Promise in Pittsburgh under Retired General Colin Powell’s national America’s Promise movement, landing him a seat on the national board of directors and recognition from President George W. Bush. Daniel has over 18 years of experience working in the business and nonprofit sectors having served as the Executive Director at generationOn, the Vice President of Development at The Heart of America Foundation, the Senior Director of Community Affairs at Capital One, the Youth Program Officer at the Three Rivers Workforce Investment Board, and the Executive Director of Pittsburgh Cares. Daniel has extensive experience training, consulting and coaching in the areas of leadership, management, organizational development and public/private partnerships. He has worked with Fortune 500 companies (Intel, Deloitte, JPMorgan Chase, AT&T, Bank of America), national and local nonprofit organizations (Communities In Schools, Coro, DonorsChoose.org, Team Kids, Mentoring Partnership of SWPA, Youth Philanthropy Connect), school districts (Fairfax County Public Schools, NYC Department of Education) and government agencies (NYPD, NYC Service, NYC City Council, City of Pittsburgh). Daniel is the author of Tell Me I Can’t…and I Will and the producer/host of the Community Voices of Change podcast. He resides in New York City.
Connect with Dan on LinkedIn or send him an email dhorgan@mentoring.org
Show Notes:
Dan's top three tips for designing effective mentor moments:
- Be patient
- Be intentional
- Be super curious
Elements of Effective Practice for Mentoring, by Mentoring.org
Sunday Feb 17, 2019
Sunday Feb 17, 2019
Travis Sevilla is an artist and educator working for Canyon Crest Academy. Travis began teaching in San Diego at High Tech High North County as a multimedia/STEAM teacher. He moved to San Diego with his wife and two sons from Los Angeles for the opportunity to enjoy all that San Diego has to offer in the outdoors and to have an opportunity to work in a project-based learning environment with HTHNC. He has now made the move to Canyon Crest Academy in an effort to integrate some of the project based and real-world learning into the dynamic environment CCA has to offer. In addition to CCA, Travis works with new teachers through San Diego State University and Guest Lectures at Universities on occasion. An avid Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu enthusiast, surfer, rock climber, and cyclist, Travis has a passion for learning from all of his endeavors. He is a dedicated teacher who works to bring real-world projects to his students that incorporate the arts and design thinking. He believes strongly in bringing out students' power of creative and critical thinking as solutions to complex real-world problems.
To connect with Travis go to his website.