...and how late have the buses been? Teach long enough in NC public schools and you understand more how the terms "allotment" and "teacher points" drive a school's ability to have enough teachers. One common thread I have heard from many teachers throughout my district is that classes (number of students in each classroom) are … Continue reading So, How Big Are Your Classes This Year?

What do all of these images have in common? The Spanish Inquisition: The Salem Witch Trials: Joseph McCarthy’s Committee on Un-American Activities: The Ministry of Magic with Dolores Umbrage: This group of politicians: They all are on a witch hunt based on spectral and biased "evidence" using political weight to try and weaken a vital … Continue reading What Do NC’s State Superintendent, Monty Python’s Spanish Inquisition, Judge Danforth, Joseph McCarthy, & Dolores Umbrage Have In Common?

“You expect at least eight weeks paid vacation per year because that is what the taxpayers of North Carolina gave you back when you were a poorly compensated teacher.” – Sen, David Curtis in May of 2014 in response to a teacher letter. “I suspect that most people, if told they could work 10 months a year … Continue reading For Those Who Say That Teachers Had A Two-Month Vacation

Every time I walk into my classroom and unpack my bags for the day, I tend to have those few moments of reflection and meditation. Then I go to my lectern with my materials for the first class, look at the whiteboard, and see a pair of eyes looking back at me. It's a picture … Continue reading A Prayer For Coach Snow

If you are an educator in any capacity who will work with multiple students, please get vaccinated. From CNN.com today: "At least three of the educators were unvaccinated, Fusco told WFOR. The vaccination status of the fourth wasn’t immediately known." The push to make the beginning of the school year as "normal" as possible is … Continue reading Cautionary Tale For Educators To Get Vaxxed

The NCGOP House members just recently dropped its latest version of a budget proposal. 664 pages. Do not get the dates confused. The original "bill" was started on Feb. 18th, 2021. This last version includes supplementary info strategically released on August 9th. Late in the afternoon no less. There is an interesting part of this … Continue reading So They Want To Restore Graduate Degree Pay?

North Carolina is still without a new budget. Surprise. But there are many requests that have been made that would definitely be a waste of tax-payer money. Within this report on recent budget requests is an interesting item. It has some items from Lt. Gov. Mark Robinson. Specifically this: That's $120,000 for an "Education Advisor." … Continue reading The Teacher Bashing, Science Denying, Authentic History Disputant, And Leading Witch Hunter Needs An “Educational Advisor” For $120,000 / Year Of Tax Payer Money

Throughout North Carolina, every local school board is wrestling with how to manage maintaining safety and reopening school buildings trying to balance what resources they have with the needs of communities while anticipating how this pandemic will continue to play out with the more transmissible Delta variant. They are having to rush to give answers … Continue reading These Past 18 Months Have Shown Us That Local School Board Elections Are That Important For Every NC School System

With the "Delta" variant of the coronavirus surging in NC, the Centers for Disease Control issued new guidelines for mask wearing. Of course since it does not collide with Sen. Phil Berger's narrative to downplay the virus, he conveniently dismisses it with the ever powerful "raw cookie dough" argument. The irony here is that Berger … Continue reading Sen Berger’s “Science” Lesson About Raw Cookie Dough

It appears that many school boards will be meeting this week to make decisions about protocols for school openings including my own school district. And when big meetings occur, social media and email campaigns start up in full force and not all of the opinions out there are based on valid information and much seems … Continue reading Dear Local School Board Member, Put Science Over Politics