Before We Discuss ‘Equity in Schools,’ Tell Me What You Really Mean

To know me is to know my aversion to all things “buzzwordy.” My rule of thumb for education is that if it can fit on…

What It’s Like to Attend School in Rural America

On a rainy day in May of 2018, I toured a public school in northern Pennsylvania. Most of the students were eligible for free lunch.…

How Our Rural School Is Closing the Opportunity Gap and Preparing the Next Generation of Teachers

Teacher shortages in Wisconsin, and across the country, have a stranglehold on the profession. Enrollment in educator prep programs in Wisconsin is down 30 percent.…

This November, Vote for Education Equity

I recently attended the Education Post Blogger Summit in Montgomery, Alabama. Of the many inspiring moments, the one that hit me hardest was when Alma…

How We Can Help Rural Students Overcome the Opportunity Gap

One of the best baseball movies I’ve seen is “Moneyball” with Brad Pitt. There’s this scene where Pitt’s character had just brought in an economics…

Don’t Think We Need DACA? My Students Prove You Wrong

I teach in rural Central Illinois, and my high school, PORTA, is predominantly White, like most of the small schools in my area. However, I…

Coffee Break: Why the CEO of an Aerospace Company Opened a Charter School for Rural Kids

“It was either move the company or start a school.” —Paul Campbell Paul Campbell grew up in rural Kentucky and is currently the CEO of…

Rural Kids Need Better Schools Too

I didn’t really think much about rural representation until I first got involved in educational leadership. For the first time, I learned that there was…

What Teachers Can and Can’t Learn from ‘Hillbilly Elegy’ Author J.D. Vance

In his provocative memoir “Hillbilly Elegy: A Memoir of a Family and Culture in Crisis,” author J.D. Vance describes his childhood upbringing in Middletown, Ohio.…

Accountability Doesn’t Lie With a Number, It Lies With Our Students

Accountability is one of those words that means a million different things to a million different people. For many in my state (and even those…