Fellow educators, you have made a career centered around giving to children. You have worked diligently to become an expert in your curriculum, designing dynamic lessons while connecting to the whole child. You might even call the students on your rosters, "your kids." With your compassion for other people's children as a focus, I ask [...]
If schools are like homes, then the location of a teacher’s classroom is often considered prime real estate. However, I did not know how much my neighborhood mattered until faced with forced relocation. Next year, the large suburban high school where I have taught since 2003 will move from random to integrated, from scattered to [...]
In Alabama abstinence is the best form of birth control, except when it is not. Although the teenage pregnancy rate has dramatically decreased in the USA, Alabama remains a state where teen pregnancy and sexually transmitted infection are actually rising. In a recent report published by the Centers for Disease Control in [...]
In 1991, I graduated at the top of my high school class. I could have majored in a myriad of topics. I chose the teaching profession. First in my nuclear family to graduate high school with a traditional diploma and one of the few in my extended family to pursue a college degree, I forged [...]
There are many aspects adults can agree on about teenagers. The most crucial acknowledgment is that they are a tired group. The research, the data, and the science all confirm that sleep matters. Bottom line: we need to start schools later — no earlier than 8:30 am. The AMA, AAP, and the CDC agree with the benefits of [...]