A California Charter School Gave Me a Lifeline. Don’t Take That Away From Other Students.

If charter schools had been an option when I was young, I believe my mom would have been wise to choose them for me, given…

Teachers Can’t Take Care of Their Students If They Don’t Take Care of Themselves First

I remember vividly the first time I put my head on my desk and cried during my lunch period. The bell to end the fourth…

By the End of My Third Year, I Was in Therapy. We Must Start Taking Teachers’ Emotional Health Seriously.

We all know the female elementary school teacher stereotype, perhaps best portrayed by the iconic Jessica Day from New Girl: bubby, cheerful, exquisitely put-together, good,…

Social Emotional Learning Needs to Become How We Do School Not Just Another Thing We Do at School

Earlier this month, the fire alarm went off at my school as students were entering the building in the morning. For most people, this signifies…

Our Students’ Truth Matters and We Must Listen

As an English teacher, I encourage students to take risks as they dive into learning and embrace failure. I encourage them to share their struggles,…

How Educators Can Keep Their Kids Stress-Free and Learning

Trauma is a silent, but very prevalent problem in the classrooms of today. In fact, recent reports by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services…

Even in Death, Black and Brown Students Are Dehumanized

In my second year of teaching, I had a notorious student we’ll call Israel. After the first day of class, we sat down and discussed…

A Psychology Professor Explains How Racial Trauma Impacts Students of Color

Dr. Maryam Jernigan-Noesi has been thinking about and studying children’s mental health since she was a child herself. I recently talked to her about the…

What ‘Surviving R. Kelly’ Means for My Black Daughters and the Schools They Attend

As the Black mother of two Black girls, I am always acutely aware of how Black girls are harmed in this society. However, there are…

This Has Been a Different Type of School Year

Engage. Enrich. Educate. That is what we, the educators at Phoenix Charter Academy in Chelsea, Massachusetts, set out to do while embarking on a different…