Supercast

Transcription coming soon.

Anthony Godfrey:
When you are working on cyber security issues, do you kind of imagine an enemy like someone who's trying to get in.

Levi Hansen:
Yeah, it's a bit like that. It's kind of like a Tower Defense game where I'm like setting up my defenses for enemies coming in.

Mark Ogden:
The students are learning how to do hacking so that then they know how to better protect against that.

Khanon Curtis:
They're my favorite classes I have that I'm taking. And especially even out of school and after class, I love to do things that we do in this class.

Anthony Godfrey:
Hello and welcome to the Supercast. I'm your host, Superintendent Anthony Godfrey. They are students learning to fight crime on the web and make it a safer place for everyone.

On this episode of the Supercast, we take you inside a classroom at JATC North, where students are enrolled in a brand new cyber security course. Find out how they are learning things like digital forensics, which can take them down career paths as digital detectives, working at local businesses, in education, and even exploring opportunities with the Department of Defense.

We're at JATC North today talking with Mark Ogden about the cyber security program here at JATC. Thanks for talking with us.

Mark Ogden:
Yeah, my pleasure. I'm excited for you guys to come and learn about what we're doing here.

Anthony Godfrey:
Tell us about this program. It's pretty new and I believe you're pretty new.

Mark Ogden:
Yeah, this is the first year of the program. I worked out in industry in doing cyber security, designing solutions for companies all around the world, and decided to switch into teaching four years ago, right in the middle of the pandemic. I taught at Hidden Valley for four years in their engineering and computer science departments and then it's my first year here at the JATC and I love it. It's great.

The cyber security program, it's really an umbrella that encompasses a lot of things. So we talk about installing operating systems, patching them, building computer networks, as well as firewalls, and all the solutions to try to keep organizations safe.

Anthony Godfrey:
So this is the hub. It kind of smells electronic in here with the server fan. So we've got a couple of students here as well. Tell us your names and what drew you to the program.

Khanon Curtis:
I'm Khanon Curtis and I came to this program because my dad is a cybersecurity engineer and I wanted to learn more about his job to see if it would be a career pathway for me.

Anthony Godfrey:
And what do you think about it so far?

Khanon Curtis:
I love it. It's one of my favorite things to do and I look forward to coming here every day.

Anthony Godfrey:
That's awesome. How about you?

Levi Hansen:
I'm Levi Hansen and I came here because I have a general interest in technology and I just wanted to get into cyber security and learn more about computers and hopefully find a career in it eventually.

Anthony Godfrey:
So as you've explored it this year and started to learn more, is it indeed a career that you still want to pursue?

Levi Hansen:
100%.

Anthony Godfrey:
Awesome. That's great. I already feel safer. So tell us about some of the classes that are involved in the cyber security program.

Mark Ogden:
Yeah. So we start off with just a basic intro to IT. We have a really great focus in our district with computer science and coding and things like that. But on this side we're more hardware-focused, operating system-focused. It's a really great class for somebody that loves technology but maybe isn't as into coding. It's nice if you have that background but we're more about the hardware side of things, building things, updating things. So we do networking and then we move into the security side of things, configuring systems and keeping networks safe.

Anthony Godfrey:
We've already heard a little bit about this but tell me what are some of the interests or talents that a student might have that would draw them to this program.

Mark Ogden:
So if you like to take stuff apart and figure out how it works or you like to solve puzzles and really just focus in and solve problems, those are great skills to have in here. It's not as much technology. Like when I was in high school I didn't really have any interest in computers but I loved solving problems. And so when I started my career I started actually with Murray School District in their IT department, pulling cable and managing their systems. And then I went out to industry before coming back into teaching. We'll teach you everything you need to know about it but you need to have a passion for problem-solving and you like to just get in and figure stuff out.

Anthony Godfrey:
What are some of the skills that students leave with, problem-solving obviously and being able to put things together. But if they're talking to an employer what kind of certifications or skills do they come away with once they finish the cybersecurity program?

Mark Ogden:
We have a really big focus on preparing students so that they can get a job right out of high school or go into a cybersecurity program at a college. And so some of the big skills we focus on is, first thing is cabling, getting all the computers and everything connected. So in our class one of the first things we do is we came in here and nothing was set up. The students had to pull all the cable, get it terminated, get connected into the network, and set up their computers.

Anthony Godfrey:
There’s a lot of cable. There’s a lot of cable for anyone listening. It's hanging from the ceiling, it's everywhere, every color.

Mark Ogden:
Yeah, so that's the first thing. That's how I started too was pulling cable, terminating it. Back in those days we were running internet connections to all of the classrooms and so they could start there just with a company pulling cable, terminating it all the way up to building servers, installing operating systems. We focus on CompTIA certifications in here. So we start with Tech Plus, which feeds into Network Plus and then Security Plus. And if they can make it all the way through that process, they can easily get a job out of high school making $60,000 to $100,000.

Anthony Godfrey:
That sounds fantastic. So what types of jobs would they be applying for?

Mark Ogden:
So a lot of the jobs would be probably starting off doing basic support help desk type of work where people call in, they need help with their computers, you work for a company, fixing computers, working with their users, and then work their way up into network administration, network engineering, or system administration, system engineering, building servers, and managing those. All the way up to being like a security specialist where you're doing training for your users, you're implementing systems to protect the network, you're doing penetration testing to see and find holes in systems so that you can plug those and try to keep everybody safe.

Anthony Godfrey:
We do pen tests as a district, maybe we should have your students do pen tests.

Mark Ogden:
That would be super cool. We have a lot of students that are really interested in becoming pen testers. Yeah.

Anthony Godfrey:
Good, good. That's outstanding. And let me ask you this, when you are this good with computers and taking them apart and putting them together and understanding how they work, is that kind of like being a mechanic in your neighborhood where everyone says, "Oh, I know who to call. I know who can help me with my computer."

Mark Ogden:
It definitely can be. Yeah, it could be a good side hustle or even just, yeah, if people know you know how to fix computers, you're very popular.

Anthony Godfrey:
A friend of mine has a similar set of skills and he has a t-shirt that says, "No, I cannot fix your computer."

Mark Ogden:
Yeah, right.

Anthony Godfrey:
These are skills that will come in handy, not just for employment, but making friends and influencing people for sure.

Mark Ogden:
Yeah, and a lot of these students already have experience with that. They're already being contacted by parents, grandparents, and everybody else to fix their stuff. They generally come in pretty well-versed in that stuff.

Anthony Godfrey:
That's awesome. I should have brought my laptop in.

Mark Ogden:
Right, yeah.

Anthony Godfrey:
So, tell me some of the skills that you've learned since coming into the program.

Khanon Curtis:
I have learned a lot about operating systems and how they work and a lot about hardware, especially, putting together computers, what each parts do, how they work. Also, one of my favorite things that I've learned about is networking. I love learning about how the IP addresses work, how they are distributed. Mac addresses, how they're applied to each different computer and each different device. I just love this class overall and I'm so grateful to be a part of it.

Anthony Godfrey:
Your dad must be pretty excited that you like the class as much as you do.

Khanon Curtis:
Yeah, he definitely is.

Anthony Godfrey:
Tell me about some of the things you've learned.

Levi Hansen:
I mean, pretty much the same stuff. I have expanded a lot into learning how to navigate things like Windows and set up all those settings and get them secure for a network and everything like that for an office and whatnot, especially through CyberPatriot.

Mark Ogden:
It's a national competition that the students are doing. They send us images of different computers, Windows Server, Windows Desktop, as well as different Linux distributions. Those have security holes in them that the students need to find and close up and do the updates. So yeah, we've competed in two rounds. We just did the state round. These guys ended up in the top ten for the state their first year. I'm super proud of them. They did a great job and have worked really hard at that.

Anthony Godfrey:
Outstanding. And that's called the CyberPatriot?

Mark Ogden:
CyberPatriot, yeah. It's a national competition that's run by the Department of Defense to help kind of scout for students, but give them the opportunity to learn the skills as well.

Levi Hansen:
I've just learned a lot through CyberPatriot and that's where a lot of my general skill I've gained so far in this class has come from. Just messing around with that and getting images completed through all their challenges and solving all the security issues that they have.

Anthony Godfrey:
So when you are working on cybersecurity issues, do you kind of imagine an enemy like someone who's trying to get in? Is it a little bit of a chess game thinking about, okay, how are they thinking and how can I outsmart them?

Levi Hansen:
Yeah, yeah, it's a bit like that. It's kind of like a Tower Defense game where I'm like setting up my defenses for enemies coming in, I have to plug up all the holes and get all my defenses secured and ready to defend against all the attackers.

Anthony Godfrey:
So there's a little game theory to it to really think about how they might be trying to get around what you set up.

Levi Hansen:
Yeah, pretty much.

Anthony Godfrey:
Have you been talking with your dad about some of the problems that you encounter and that you have in competition?

Khanon Curtis:
Yeah, I actually ask him a lot about it. For instance, when we get the images, we have training rounds and if I can't figure something out in the training round, I'll ask him about it, and a lot of the time he explains to me what I need to do and how to fix it and it helps me in the actual state competitions and rounds and stuff.

Anthony Godfrey:
That's awesome. So you guys won which competition, what level of competition just now? You’re top 10? You’re top 10 in the state? Is that right?

Mark Ogden:
Yeah, actually I think it's top five. I just looked at it before we left and I misspoke. Yeah, they're top five in the state and they're at the top of their division. So there are different divisions and not only are they top of their division, which is kind of the first-year division, but they ended up ahead of several schools that are at higher divisions as well.

Anthony Godfrey:
Stay with us. When we come back we explore some of the projects students have undertaken as part of their cybersecurity course at JATC North.

Never miss an episode of the Supercast by liking and subscribing on your favorite podcasting platform. Find transcripts for this episode and others at supercast.jordandistrict.org.

Break:
Does your student want to become a veterinarian, commercial pilot, programmer? Maybe they want to make a difference as a dental assistant. These are just some of the programs offered as part of Career and Technical Education, CTE in Jordan School District. CTE provides the technical skills needed to prepare students for future employment or a successful transition to post-secondary education. Career and Technical Education provides work-based learning opportunities. We partner with industry experts to offer apprenticeships and internships with students working in the real world at real jobs while going to school. The CTE experience starts in our elementary schools with the Kids' Marketplace and grows through middle and high school. To explore all CTE has to offer in Jordan School District visit cte.jordandistrict.org today and let's get your child started on the pathway to a profession.

Anthony Godfrey:
Alright, can we take a look at some of what you've been doing here?

Levi Hansen:
Yeah, I have to get signed in. Alright. We have a station, we have like four computers, we have four people for station or table. The wire's a bit of a mess, but I assume we'll fix it at some point.

Mark Ogden:
Yeah. That'll be one of their challenges I'll throw at them is I'll come in and cut their wires and make them figure out what's wrong and fix it.

Anthony Godfrey:
That's gotta be fun for you to create the problems that they then get to solve.

Mark Ogden:
Yeah, it's a lot of fun.

Anthony Godfrey:
Alright, Levi, talk me through what we've got here.

Levi Hansen:
Alright, so for our class, our internet might not connect for a little bit. We've been doing what are called capture the flags where essentially there's a secret text, a line of text that we have to find in a file or through some other program that we have to get through. And we just have to follow certain steps to get that flag and then input it in and we get points. They don't really do much, but they're just fun little challenges that teach us how to navigate through files or execute programs or alter programs and files or exploit the web through inspect element and stuff.

Mark Ogden:
The students are through these capture the flag events. The students are learning how to do hacking skills or hacking actions so that then they know how to better protect against that in their future jobs and as well as their life. So they're having to exploit web pages and servers and different things so that then they can kind of see more of the inner workings of these systems.

Anthony Godfrey:
Is it hard for you to be online and not notice all of the security shortfalls in particular websites?

Mark Ogden:
Yeah, it definitely opens your eyes to it. You see that stuff that people just don't normally notice.

Anthony Godfrey:
Yeah, yeah. Okay, let's take a look at this.

Levi Hansen:
So for instance–

Anthony Godfrey:
You're looking for a flag.

Levi Hansen:
Yes, so there's this challenge on PicoCTF called Web Decode. And so when I start the instance, I go to the website and they just have this little website like, "Ha, you're looking for a flag." So I have to right click and go to inspect.

Anthony Godfrey:
And this picture here taunts you.

Levi Hansen:
Yeah, they're taunting me the whole time about finding these flags.

Anthony Godfrey:
And so you hop in and this code means absolutely nothing to me.

Levi Hansen:
This is basic HTML and so you just have your...

Anthony Godfrey:
It hurts when I say I don't understand it and then you say it's basic. Okay, go on.

Levi Hansen:
I just mean it's not a super weird thing.

Anthony Godfrey:
Yeah, I understand. I'm just teasing.

Levi Hansen:
Yeah. And so basically you just start searching...

Anthony Godfrey:
All right, let's go through the basics, yes.

Levi Hansen:
...through all these little things. And so if I go down to...I believe it was properties. I can start looking through the code and look at…certain parts. So like here I found the styling part of the code. And if I'm just searching through I can see they leave little comments about certain parts of the code. Like this part styles the homepage. And so if he keeps going through eventually I might find something that has part of a flag or the fact that they fit in itself inside of here.

Anthony Godfrey:
I see.

Levi Hansen:
And so I just keep going through these little pages and searching for any hints or parts of the flag.

Anthony Godfrey:
Is part of the cyber patriot competition timed? So you're working under pressure.

Levi Hansen:
Yeah, we get about four hours during actual rounds to work as a team to get things done. And so we do have quite a bit of time but it's not like an infinite time to get it all done.

Anthony Godfrey:
And is there a lot of teamwork involved?

Levi Hansen:
Partially, yeah. There's a lot of helping each other out with certain problems but mostly it's you figuring out your own image that you're running.

Anthony Godfrey:
Doing your part of that.

Levi Hansen:
Yeah.

Anthony Godfrey:
Fascinating. Very interesting. And somehow that guy smiling just is all… It's all the worst that he's just smiling at you while you try to find the flag.

Levi Hansen:
Yeah, it's evil.

Anthony Godfrey:
How about you, Khanon? Show me what you've been working on.

Khanon Curtis:
I have been working on creating my own password manager. That is…

Anthony Godfrey:
Oh. Kind of like LastPass.

Khanon Curtis:
Yeah, exactly. Except I hopefully won't get a data breach.

Anthony Godfrey:
Touche. Are you listening LastPass? He's taking it to the next level.

Khanon Curtis:
I'm building my password manager using Python, Rust, and SQLite.

Anthony Godfrey:
Is Pascal involved at all?

Khanon Curtis:
I'm not sure what that is.

Anthony Godfrey:
I'm just kidding. That's a computer language from the 1980s.

Khanon Curtis:
Oh, awesome.

Anthony Godfrey:
I just thought I'd throw something out there, you know?

Khanon Curtis:
Yeah, I actually haven't heard of that.

Anthony Godfrey:
Okay, perfect. I don't think you're going to need to know Pascal.

Khanon Curtis:
I sure hope not.

Anthony Godfrey:
I don't need to know it either. Okay, so tell me about your password manager. You told me the programs that you're using to create it. What's going to make yours different from the others that exist right now?

Khanon Curtis:
So my password manager is going to… It's localized on your device. It's not in the cloud. So if you shut down the password manager, it won't be running. You can't go to the link that has your information in it.

Anthony Godfrey:
I see. I'm very impressed not only with what you are both doing, but also with the passion that you bring to it. What's it like having Mr. Ogden as a teacher?

Levi Hansen:
He's my favorite teacher I've ever had, honestly. He's great at what he does. He helps us a lot. His management of the classroom is great. I love him, honestly.

Khanon Curtis:
I totally feel the same way about Mr. Ogden. He's 100% my favorite teacher. As I said earlier, I look forward to coming to his classes. They're my favorite classes I have that I'm taking. And especially even out of school and after class, I love to do things that we do in this class like Hack the Box or PicoCTF. He's just so encouraging.

Anthony Godfrey:
Well, you're lucky to have a teacher like Mr. Ogden, and you're lucky to have found what you love to do. And you're even luckier that everyone needs your help in this world. Computers are everywhere, and you are going to be essential wherever you go. So thank you very much for spending the time and for being such a great part of JATC.

Khanon Curtis:
Thank you.

Levi Hansen:
Thank you.

Anthony Godfrey:
Thanks for joining us on another episode of the Supercast. Remember, education is the most important thing you'll do today. We'll see you out there.

(upbeat music)

Brenna Miller:
Rolling on the ground in pain 'cause like his burns are so bad.

Richard Clayton:
And that training kicking in, like in a fire instance, somebody being exposed to fire like that, that is the difference between life and death.

Anthony Godfrey:
I'm sure that you guys have heard the word hero associated with this.

Brenna Miller:
Yeah.

Anthony Godfrey:
How does that feel?

Brenna Miller:
From our perspective, like we just did what anyone would have done if they were there.

(upbeat music)

(bell ringing)

Anthony Godfrey:
Hello and welcome to the Supercast. I'm your host, Superintendent Anthony Godfrey. They are former Bingham High School students who were in the right place at the right time and just happened to have the right skills to help.

On this episode of the Supercast, hear how one man is alive today, thanks in part to some teens who didn't hesitate to help a stranger in need, and find out why the teens give credit to the JATC South Fire Science Program for their success in saving a life.

(upbeat music)

We're talking now with my friend, Brenna Miller, recent graduate of Bingham High School, current student at BYU, and someone who was recently involved in quite an amazing experience. Tell me a little bit about what happened in this life-saving event.

Brenna Miller:
Okay, so me and my friends is me, and then Brandon Lockhart, Zach Peterson, James Brown, and Nathan Gillett, and we all graduated from Bingham. We've all been good friends since middle school. We've all gone our ways. We went up Butterfield Canyon, Middle Canyon, same thing, and we were just going to do a little campfire, kind of hang out. We go up there a lot, so we went to do s'mores. We just hang out there a lot.

Anthony Godfrey:
It's somewhere you go frequently with friends.

Brenna Miller:
Yeah, and we'll just go have a little campfire, make s'mores, super fun. So we were up there. There was just a couple of us, not our whole friend group. There was five, and we were making a fire. We had been there for a couple hours, and it was packed. It was hard to find anywhere, any campsite up there, 'cause there's people everywhere. And everyone was riding ATVs and yelling. Just lots going on, very lively, more than normal.

And so we were just chilling, and then it kind of started to get dark, and more people kept driving by, and we were like, "Oh, this is so fun.” And then we kind of started hearing someone start yelling, but it was kind of quiet, sounded kind of far away. And most of us were like, "Okay." There's people yelling everywhere. We were out of campsite next to a bunch of other teenagers that had been yelling all night, and we were like, "Okay." But one of my friends--

Anthony Godfrey:
Had you camped overnight, and is this in the morning, or when is this happening?

Brenna Miller:
This is probably at 10 p.m., and we were gonna leave at midnight, go back home. But we heard yelling, and we all kind of brushed it off, except for one of my friends. He's very into survival and camping. He's very prepared, all that kind of stuff, and he was like, "We're going," and he's waiting.

Anthony Godfrey:
And who is this friend?

Brenna Miller:
This is James Brown.

Anthony Godfrey:
James Brown?

Brenna Miller:
Yeah. All these kids went to Bingham, so all Bingham graduates.

Anthony Godfrey:
Okay.

Brenna Miller:
Yeah. And so he literally runs, he gets in his car, and we were like, "Okay, I guess we're going."

And so we all hop in.

Anthony Godfrey:
And this is just hearing screams and yells from a distance in the midst of a lot of other noise and screams.

Brenna Miller:
Yeah, and so the rest of us are like, "Mm, all right, whatever." But James is adamant that we're going to go check it out. He's like, "Someone needs help."

Anthony Godfrey:
And at this point, do you still wonder whether they actually need help based on the sound?

Brenna Miller:
Yeah, especially 'cause it seems far, and it's like, I don't know, it didn't really seem like it was that big of a deal. It wasn't like screaming for their life 'cause it was so far away. So we hop in the car and leave our fire and everything and drive super fast, get over there, and we see that there's a car kind of in front of a campsite that has hazards on, and we're like, "Okay, that's obviously where we're trying to go." And so we pull in in the car, and immediately you can tell, actually something is very wrong. There's a woman bent over on the ground, and we're like, "Oh my gosh," and she's leaning over her husband, and he looks like he had a heart attack or something. He's laying on the ground, just not moving.

Anthony Godfrey:
And how far away was this from the car? Where you pulled up?

Brenna Miller:
We just drove over the grass and just went right back there, but it was probably 50 yards from the road. So it was deeper back, but we just took the car all the way in, and then one of our friends Zach, he had just graduated from JTech with getting his EMT license, and so he's locked in, ready to go, runs over there. We're like, "Maybe this guy's had a heart attack." It's hard to explain, but it was like, no one even talked about it. Everyone just spread out and just started doing something.

Anthony Godfrey:
You went to work.

Brenna Miller:
Yeah, so Zach and James went over to try and obviously see what was going on. We thought maybe he had a heart attack, and that's why he was on the ground, 'cause we couldn't really tell. But once you walked up, you could really see his clothes were all burnt, his skin was very burnt. You could smell it. It was pretty bad.

Nathan went to go and try and talk to his wife, kinda see what happened, but she was obviously in a big crisis and couldn't really focus, couldn't really talk very much, but she was very concerned about their dog had run away. All in the process, but obviously she's just in complete shock. So Nathan's trying to talk to her, trying to help her find the dog, kind of be a distraction and stuff.

Me and Brandon, our other friend, we start running. I run out to the road to try and talk to anyone, 'cause there's no cell signal. And so we're like, "We can't really call 911 "because we can't call anyone." And so we try and run out to the road to see if anyone that's driving by maybe has service for some reason. And then our other friends ran back to our campsite to just get everything, 'cause we were like, "We gotta go and go put the fire out and stuff."

So Zach was talking to him, trying to understand. We didn't know what happened. Even the whole, after the whole thing the whole night, we still had no idea what had really happened. But he was trying to talk to him, see if he's breathing, what we can do.

We actually did have a lot of help. Some other people from other campsites, a woman came over and gave us a flashlight, so we didn't have a flashlight. And some other people from different campsites came and brought a first-aid kit so we could try and wrap up his hands and stuff, 'cause they were the most burnt. But, so a lot of people did come to help, but everyone was like, "I have to go back to my kids. "I have people here," and whatever. And we were like, "That's okay."

So we tried to talk to his wife and figure out what we should do, 'cause we were like, "He obviously needs "to go to the hospital immediately." And she was obviously just still in shock. We were like, "Okay, we're just gonna take him. "We'll take him, we'll take you. "We'll all drive down." But there wasn't room in the car. And so she was like, "I'm just gonna stay here." It turns out after the fact that they lived right at the bottom of the canyon. So their house was super close by and their children were there.

I got her contact information and we ended up going and getting him into the car. We're picking him up, putting him in the car, wrapped his hand, and we all just slammed into the car and drove down the canyon. And in that time, even though I couldn't call 911--

Anthony Godfrey:
Was he still unconscious?

Brenna Miller:
He was conscious, but not very responsive. He was alive and conscious breathing, but couldn't really talk very much. He was rolling on the ground in pain, 'cause the burns were so bad. And so we got everyone in the car. And in that time, I had, even though we couldn't call 911, like Apple's new update, you can like text them via satellite. So that was great. Plug for Apple. So I had been like texting with someone from the Tooele hospital the whole time and been like, "We're coming. We need someone there. We're bringing in someone."

Anthony Godfrey:
I have to admit, I never would have thought to text 911.

Brenna Miller:
I was desperate, so -

Anthony Godfrey:
Well done. Well done.

Brenna Miller;
I was just thinking of anything. But so we like, fly down the canyon, right? We're trying to get to the hospital, but like we don't have any service, so we can't look at maps that we don't know where it is. But we're just like, well, we're gonna get there.

Anthony Godfrey:
Getting down there as fast as you can.

Brenna Miller:
Yeah, so we get down there and we get to the hospital and we end up--

Anthony Godfrey:
Now we get down there and we get to the hospital. Once you got out of the canyon, now you've got a signal and you figure out where it is.

Brenna Miller:
Yeah, so then we like, look on maps, we get to the hospital, it's really close by. And luckily this was like their local hospital, so that was convenient. And so we like go into the ER and they start trying to talk to us and we're like, “We have no idea. We don't know his name, we don't know what happened, we don't know like how.” We're like, we just got there and this was happening.” So yeah, “Here he is, please take care of him.” It was crazy then, we just like drove home. It was like, okay. They were like, “You guys can go, we'll take care of it.” We were like, “Okay.” And then we just left and we were like, wow.

Anthony Godfrey:
What was the conversation as you're leaving, going home?

Brenna Miller:
Yeah, we're in the car driving home, we're like, “Wow, that was crazy. Like, we just, that was wild. Like he was not okay and we just witnessed that.” But we kind of talked about, we were like, someone brought it up, they were like, “you think we saved his life?” And we were like, “I don't think so.” Like we knew that it was bad, but we like, and everyone was like very much in like, I don't know, like not survival instincts, but like just going fast, doing everything we could. But I don't think we had actually thought about like,

Anthony Godfrey:
You hadn't stopped to process.

Brenna Miller:
Yeah, like was he gonna be okay, you know? But we were like, “Wow, that was so crazy.” But what ended up happening was the next couple of days, I was still in contact with his wife and she was like, kinda told me what was going on, how he was doing. And then she was like, “We left all of our stuff, like up at the canyon. 'Cause they had like full setup.

Anthony Godfrey:
They had left, the family had left all their stuff.

Brenna Miller:
Yeah, they had like a trailer and like all this stuff, like tents and everything. 'Cause they were, their kids were gonna come up the next day. And so they had everything set up and she's like, “We just left it, like, I don't know if it's okay, I don't know if it's still there, like can you go check?” So, I was like, “Okay.”

And so me and my friends went back in the car, drove back up there the next day to like make sure that all our stuff was good and kind of packed stuff up. And then we really didn't hear much about what was going on. Like we kind of got updates occasionally about like, you know, this day he was like being with this doctor and things went well and that sort of thing. But we didn't really contact them until we went up, we ended up getting a citation at the state level, which is really cool. A good citation.

Anthony Godfrey:
Yes, not the bad kind.

Brenna Miller:
Not the bad kind, but the good kind. So we got to like go up when they were like in session and they like talked about us and gave us certificates. And so now we have like a little citation and the family ended up coming to that. So that was the first time we had seen them since then.

Anthony Godfrey:
So how did it feel to talk with them after that, after you'd been through that? Fight or flight, survival mode, emergency mode, conversations, and then you get to see them in a very different scene.

Brenna Miller:
Yeah, it was definitely interesting. Like, what do you say to someone in that situation? You know, like, you're like, “Hi, how are you?” Like, I don't know, you know, we've been in like such a vulnerable time, but we don't know each other.

So obviously like they were very grateful and like so kind and they were like, “Thank you so much.” They had said that like, if it would have been like a couple minutes later, like they think his airways would have closed up and it would have died. Which was crazy 'cause we were like, “Wow, maybe we should have gone even faster. Like, we were--

Anthony Godfrey:
Well, law enforcement actually did indicate that you saved his life.

Brenna Miller:
Which is so crazy. But yeah, so we kind of talked to them there. And I don't know, it's such an interesting dynamic. Like, I don't know, it's kind of strange to talk to someone but it's like, you've seen each other in such a vulnerable state.

Anthony Godfrey:
And that's the only way you know them.

Brenna Miller:
Yeah, and then it was like--

Anthony Godfrey:
Because most of the time, if you're helping someone, you're gonna be helping someone that you know, a friend, someone that you are around anyway.

Brenna Miller:
Yeah, and then we're all like there, like in suit and tie and dresses. And it's like, it was just different. But he was doing really well, like, was healing really well. So they're really grateful but--

Anthony Godfrey:
How much time was there between the incident and then the citation?

Brenna Miller:
Um, four months, three or four months. 'Cause I was in June and the citation was in September, or August, end of August.

Anthony Godfrey:
That's pretty amazing.

Brenna Miller:
Yeah, he was doing really well. So it was crazy, but it was like, yeah.

Anthony Godfrey:
Everyone listening is wondering what happened to the dog. Did you find the dog?

Brenna Miller:
The dog, it was okay. It actually, we did find it. Shout out Nathan. He went and found the dog. All was well.

Anthony Godfrey:
I love that you each kind of mobilized in a different direction. I'm gonna go find the dog, we're gonna help the man who is injured and in distress and needs to get to the hospital. You're gonna text 911. Now I know.

Brenna Miller:
Now you know.

Anthony Godfrey:
Now I know.

Brenna Miller:
If you’re in the mountains and you don't have a signal–
Anthony Godfrey:
Hopefully, I don't need that information–

Brenna Miller:
Hit that line.

Anthony Godfrey:
–but it feels good to have it.

Brenna Miller:
Yes, good to know.

Anthony Godfrey:
And so now, how do you think this has changed? Has this changed your perspective on things?

Brenna Miller:
I mean, it was definitely like very crazy experience and just like, but that could have been anyone. Like, he just stood up and like ended up having seizure and just fell into the fire.

Anthony Godfrey:
Had he had seizures previously?

Brenna Miller:
Like, only really recently. He had a doctor's appointment the following week to go see why that had happened. But it just kind of was like just bad timing that it happened right as he was like standing over the fire.

Anthony Godfrey:
Wow.

Brenna Miller:
So, but I think it helped me realize like, someone has to do it. Like, someone has to step in and like, I don't know. I think you should. There's no reason.

Anthony Godfrey:
We do training for classrooms and we did maybe, it was maybe eight years ago. And what I remember from the training we received from first responders is “Do something.” Don't stand around and think, “Oh, there's an expert coming soon that can really help.”

And that's what you guys did. You dove in and I mean, you had Zach who had some training specific to this situation, but everyone dove in and did what they could in the moment and saved a life as a result. But too often we wait and think, “Oh, I don't wanna make a mistake. I don't wanna mess up.” Or maybe “Someone's scamming me”, instead of just diving into help.

Brenna Miller:
Yeah. And I don't know. I mean, it definitely helped a lot that Zach like had that training and like had that knowledge, which shout out JTech, that's sweet. The high school kids, knowing how to do big things.

Anthony Godfrey:
Exactly. JATC, bringing it home.

Anthony Godfrey:
Seriously, like what we did was things that required no training. It was like, we talked to people, we got into the car, we drove, like those things anyone could have done. We looked for the dog. We talked to his wife, you know, like things that required no training. It just like needed people.

Anthony Godfrey:
And not criticizing anybody around them, but there were other people closer that had not jumped into action.

Brenna Miller:
Yeah, which is fair. It didn't seem-

Anthony Godfrey:
You guys came from where you were and did everything that you could.

Brenna Miller:
Yeah, which I'm glad we heard them.

Anthony Godfrey:
Yeah, that's amazing.

Brenna Miller:
Yeah.

(soft music)

Anthony Godfrey:
Stay with us. When we come back, we'll talk with the Fire Science instructor from JATC South.

(soft music)

Never miss an episode of the Supercast by liking and subscribing on your favorite podcasting platform. Find transcripts for this episode and others at supercast.jordandistrict.org.

(soft music)

Break:
Hello, I'm Sandy Riesgraf, Director of Communications for Jordan School District, and we want to invite you to connect with us. So many exciting things are happening in your child's school, your neighbor's school, in every school here, every day. Don't miss out on following the fun or simply staying informed when there's important information we need to share. Join us at jordandistrict.org, or follow us on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram @jordandistrict. We can't wait to connect.

(upbeat music)

Anthony Godfrey:
We're here at JATC South talking with Richard Clayton. Tell me, you have various titles. Tell me all of the titles that you hold because you're a teacher here at JATC South. You're also with the Fire Department, so.

Richard Clayton:
Yes, I'm employed by Unified Fire Authority who contracts with the school district for this position. At the school, I'm the course coordinator over the Fire Science and EMT programs. In Fire Department, I'm a paramedic specialist, and I've got just over 20 years of experience doing that.

Anthony Godfrey:
Fantastic, and I love that you're here with students. You do a tremendous job with them. Tell us about the courses that you offer and what it entails.

Richard Clayton:
Well, we offer a few. On the Fire Science, we offer the intro courses. The courses that we offer here are the ones that we use for prerequisites to get into the Recruit Candidate Academy at UVU. They're the preparatory courses to go and get your fire certifications. We try to focus those classes on behaviors and professionalism to try to ingrain success into them and try to differentiate them from peers that might be looking for the same jobs. We just wanna make them better.

And then on the medical side, we run an EMT class. That EMT class does result in state licensure and a national certification through National Registry of EMTs. And so that one can lead directly to jobs in many, many medical fields. So I've got kids that have gone everywhere from medical school to nursing school, EMT, paramedic, all throughout the medical world from that class.

Anthony Godfrey:
I want to talk about that. In addition to the students who choose either Fire Science or EMT or other medical professions as a career, there are also students out in the world who've taken your class who don't choose that career but are well-prepared in case of an emergency. Have you heard some stories about how students have been able to respond?

Richard Clayton:
Yeah, every year I get a lot of different stories about students that have done incredible things. In fact, I just got one that from one of mine that's on a mission in Tonga and out on one of the Tongan Islands. And one of the people that they're tracking into had an emergency and they were able to render aid and get ahold of the emergency. But he knew exactly what to do, kept his companion calm, got his companion to go do the correct things.

Anthony Godfrey:
Wow.

Richard Clayton:
And I know the one--

Anthony Godfrey:
And there's the one we're talking about in this podcast where a life was saved up a canyon on a random night where kids are just out having fun. And they responded to some cries out at a distance, which I don't think I would have done in high school.

Richard Clayton;
Well, I can tell you that those kids were special. Some of the smartest ones that I've had, quiet with a really good strength. I remember when I got the article and I read who it was and I saw Zach's name there. And then I read how it proceeded and went, nope, he did it exactly as we teach it step by step. In that case, it was super important because the gentleman that fell into the fire, that our immediate concern is the swelling of the airways. And for them to go directly to the airway and clear airways because that is the greatest risk at that moment. And that training kicking in, like in a fire instance, somebody being exposed to fire like that, that is the difference between life and death. And so he handled that perfectly. The way he laid it out, what they did. I remember watching the video clip going, nailed it. I would have passed him on any of the tests.

Anthony Godfrey:
I've always been impressed with what you do and the environment you create. And obviously, this is knowledge that becomes a part of who they are.

Richard Clayton:
Well, and I don't know if you even know this, but this is where I started. I was in the very first Jordan School District EMT class.

Anthony Godfrey:
I did not know that. That's awesome.

Richard Clayton:
This is completely full circle for me. My entire life was built off of a class like this. And so I'm back teaching the exact class that I took in high school.

Anthony Godfrey:
That's fantastic.

Richard Clayton:
I'm hoping that one of these kids, maybe you will come teach this in another 20 or 30 years.

Anthony Godfrey:
Which gives it that much more meaning for you and for them.

Richard Clayton:
And that's why you find the passion. I remember everything that I did in HOSA that year. I remember going to nationals and it ended up being the career path that I followed and I built and raised a family on it and did all of that. Now I'm back here doing the same thing. So this class just isn't something academic because I know the full impact and where it can lead and what it can do.

Anthony Godfrey:
I'm so grateful we have you here and we'll be back to talk more. We need to do an episode just about the EMT class. So we'll be back and do that.

Richard Clayton:
Anytime.

Anthony Godfrey:
Okay, thanks for the time, and thanks for everything you do for students and our community at large.

Richard Clayton:
Thank you.

(upbeat music)

Anthony Godfrey:
Thanks for joining us on another episode of the Supercast. Remember, education is the most important thing you will do today. We'll see you out there.

(upbeat music)

Julie Beaird:
We're continuing a project where we're making teddy bears to donate to Primary Children's Hospital.

Anthony Godfrey:
So this is a fast-finisher project because they've done their final project. They're diving in and helping out here. That's really cool.

Julie Beaird:
Kids aren't as exposed to sewing as they used to be. I was born in the 70s and my mom made our clothes.

Anthony Godfrey:
Hello and welcome to the Supercast. I'm your host, Superintendent Anthony Godfrey. It is a class at Fort Herriman Middle School which is sewing seeds of success, kindness, and caring for some incredible students.

On this episode of the Supercast, we take you inside a sewing class to experience firsthand some very talented students making teddy bears which will bring comfort to countless children in area hospitals. Find out how this class is teaching life skills and so much more.

We are here with Julie Beaird at Fort Herriman Middle School and we've been meaning to come back for a long time. We were here before for an episode about cosplay and another teacher and the sewing that kids have done to make that possible. But today we're here to talk about a very different project. Tell me a little bit about that.

Julie Beaird:
Okay, well thank you so much for coming back. We love having you. So today a bunch of the kids have finished their final project. So we're continuing a project where we're making teddy bears to donate to Primary Children's Hospital. Just for the kids that when they go to the hospital they’re sick or hurt, and need something to comfort them. So other people donate toys, new toys, and they will accept, as long as it's new, they will accept like the little teddy bears.

So I have a little assembly line going with about seven girls that – they were the fast finishers of their final project. So the boys are great but they aren't as fast as the girls. I have a few that I'd love for you to meet but they're joyfully helping make these bears just because they love to be helpful but also for the kids.

Anthony Godfrey:
So this is a fast finisher project because they've done their final project. They're diving in and helping out here. That's really cool. Now I will say I was also slow in my sewing class in eighth grade but I absolutely loved it. Last time we were here I think I mentioned it to you. I made a golf shirt that I was very proud of with all of the…

Julie Beaird:
Do you still have it?

Anthony Godfrey:
I really meant to look for it. If I find it I'm gonna come show it to you because the thing I remember, and it's funny that I still remember this. Tell me if this is right. It was the the material we had to stretch it as we sewed. I don't remember the name of the material but it was kind of stretchy material.

Julie Beaird:
It’s knit. It’s called knit.

Anthony Godfrey:
It was knit. Yeah so we pulled it and...

Julie Beaird:
It's a challenge to sew on. I'm surprised your teacher even let you try and sew on it.

Anthony Godfrey:
Well, I was very advanced Julie. I mean it was you know.

Julie Beaird:
Eighth grade, wow.

Anthony Godfrey:
There were buttons, there was a collar. It was kind of a big deal.

Julie Beaird:
Kids aren't as exposed to sewing as they used to be. Probably back in your time, my time.

Anthony Godfrey:
The 1900s you can say it.

Julie Beaird:
Yes yes. I was born in the 70s so my mom made our clothes.

Anthony Godfrey:
Yeah.

Julie Beaird:
But by the 80s about 90% of all clothing shipped overseas to me. So it got so much cheaper to just buy clothes in a store like Kmart or something that my mom gave up sewing. So I never really learned till I got to middle school. And then once I got my teaching certificate I realized this is what I really love to do. It's fun to see the little light bulb turn on in their face. Because it is kind of a rare skill it's fun to see them figure it out.

Anthony Godfrey:
Was it during your certification as a teacher that you decided this is really what I want to do.

Julie Beaird:
Yeah.

Anthony Godfrey:
So it kind of lit a spark. And I love seeing this because like you said it is a skill that is fading. Not enough people have the ability to do this.

Julie Beaird:
And it's problem solving at its best. And it's intricate too because it's not what you think. Like right sides together is like sewing 101 but it's not logical to think you turn things inside out.

Anthony Godfrey:
Oh yeah.

Julie Beaird:
You know what I mean.

Anthony Godfrey:
You would think you would align it so that both of the right sides are going the same way instead of facing each other.

Julie Beaird:
Yeah. There's a few things that are just a little bit tricky that help challenge their minds. So I think it's a really fun skill.

Anthony Godfrey:
And the hands on learning isn't something they look forward to in the day I'm sure.

Julie Beaird:
They love it. The seventh graders just beg to sew. And I save it for the end of the quarter because I have I have a new group each quarter because they look forward to it so much. I'm like no you have to wait for that.

Anthony Godfrey:
You have to earn it.

Julie Beaird:
Yeah.

Anthony Godfrey:
You have to earn it. That's really cool. It must be very rewarding to have them come in and start knowing nothing and just see how far and how fast they can advance because I mean as a language arts teacher they all know English. They know how to speak and read and write. And we hope to improve those skills. But you're taking them from zero.

Julie Beaird:
Yeah.

Anthony Godfrey:
Tell me about how that feels.

Julie Beaird:
It feels amazing. Yeah. You totally nailed it because they know nothing. And day one we learned the parts but then they get a so on a paper that has shapes. So they just get to see the way the nail or the needle goes up and down and up and down. And just to get familiar with how a sewing machine works.

And then the next day we learn threading and then the next day we learn sewing scraps and then the next day they get to do a pillow. So by the end of the week or two they have something they created themselves. So it's really awesome.

Anthony Godfrey:
Tell me about the offerings that are available here. So if there's a student who's really interested in sewing they start out in seventh grade with those exploratory classes. So tell me about if you start in seventh grade and you really love sewing. What what's available to you here.

Julie Beaird:
Yeah. So eighth grade I teach all three grades sewing. So seventh is just CCA which is required. And like you said exploratory eighth grade it's an elective. So if they did like it they can sign up for FACS A. We just split it up actually a couple years ago some places in the district still do as one semester class. But we split it up so they can have more time sewing. So Mrs. Grant teaches the B portion of FACS. I teach the A portion. I remember it because B is baking. A is like I always think of the scarlet letter being sewn on the dress.

Anthony Godfrey:
Being sewn on, okay.

Julie Beaird:
They don't know that reference.

Anthony Godfrey:
Nice mnemonic device.

Julie Beaird:
I had to read that in high school.

Anthony Godfrey:
Yeah.

Julie Beaird:
So A is for the sewing. So I get to have them for a whole semester. So we spend a whole month sewing in eighth grade whereas in seventh grade we only do a week or two. And then in ninth grade, this is a ninth grade class. They get to sew the whole semester. So it's it's pretty fun.

Anthony Godfrey:
It's really cool. What are some of the projects that they make besides the bears that we're going to go around and see through the course of a ninth grade year in sewing. What are some of the things that they make.

Julie Beaird:
Yeah. So the bears aren't even something that we do.

Anthony Godfrey:
It's not even part of the curriculum.

Julie Beaird:
Yeah. It's just every year we keep making them because it is a fun fashion finisher project. It's a great donation type thing. We donated to the police department last year. So our resource officer actually we gave them all to him so he could give to families when they go on calls to little kids maybe that are struggling.

Anthony Godfrey:
Yeah, to comfort a child.

Julie Beaird:
Yeah. So we did that last year. But anyway, see this rope that I guess on the podcast you can't see. But this drawstring– not drawstring rope, it's called clothesline. What we used to use for clotheslines before dryers

Anthony Godfrey:
Yeah, I can see that.

Julie Beaird:
We make bowls in here. I learned at a conference. You just sew a zigzag in a circle and you go and go and go and go and go until you have a bowl–

Anthony Godfrey:
–connecting the rope. Oh yeah. That's really cool.

Julie Beaird:
This is one that a student didn't want to take home but I use it for lotion for the kids. He kind of messed it up and it still looked cute. So the rope bowl is a great way to start.

Anthony Godfrey:
Yeah. You would not be able to tell. It starts kind of wider and narrows at the top so it holds things in it well.

Julie Beaird:
Well, he did it narrow at the top but–

Anthony Godfrey:
He's not supposed to? I kind of like the design.

Julie Beaird:
I know! It turned out cute.

Anthony Godfrey:
It turned out. It has a little handle on it.

Julie Beaird:
I know. I tell everyone about him when they're here.

Anthony Godfrey:
Wow.

Julie Beaird:
I’ll have to thank him someday. He'll graduate next year. I’ll have to go—

Anthony Godfrey:
It's such a cool project that even if you mess up it looks cool.

Julie Beaird:
Yes, it still looks cool. Exactly.

Anthony Godfrey:
Sorry, you said he's graduating this year.

Julie Beaird:
He's a junior this year. So maybe I'll go to his graduation next year.

Anthony Godfrey:
Yeah. Yeah. For sure.

Julie Beaird:
Maybe hold up the bowl or something.

Anthony Godfrey:
There you go. There you go.

Julie Beaird:
He probably won't remember but it has been really useful to have.

Anthony Godfrey:
I could assign myself to speak at his graduation and mention the bowl. You know maybe we'll do that.

Julie Beaird:
He would love that, I bet.

Anthony Godfrey:
Stay with us. When we come back more with the sewing class at Fort Herriman Middle School.

Never miss an episode of the Supercast by liking and subscribing on your favorite podcasting platform. Find transcripts for this episode and others at supercast.jordandistrict.org.

Break:
It's giving busy parents a little more peace of mind when it comes to their students getting to and from school. We're talking about Zonar MyView. It's a mobile app meant to enhance the school bus transportation experience for students and their families. The app allows parents to check on their child's school bus location and the estimated time of arrival at the bus stop each day for pickup and drop off.

If you want to join the thousands of parents already using the app, it's easy. All it takes is a few simple steps. First download the Zonar MyView app from the App Store or Google Play. Then visit auxiliaryservices.jordandistrict.org/zonar. That's where you'll find the school access code and directions on how to enter your student's unique ID and learn how to create an alert zone around your child's drop-off and pickup locations.

Let the Zonar MyView app help you stay on top of things knowing when a bus might be running a little late and when to get your kids going or head out to meet them at the bus stop. It's one more way for us to better connect with you.

Anthony Godfrey:
Do you have people come down and say, "I lost a button. Can you help with this repair?" Or bring things from home and say, "Hey, can you help me hem this?"

Julie Beaird:
Yes! Kids are coming in all the time, “Can you fix my hole? Can you do this?" And other teachers too, but mostly it's the kids. I am happy to help because I almost feel like I'm paying it forward.

Anthony Godfrey:
Yeah.

Julie Beaird:
Because before I knew how to sew, I'd go to my neighbor's house. “Will you fix this? Will you help me with these curtains?”

Anthony Godfrey:
Right.

Julie Beaird:
So I didn't get into teaching until I was 40 years old. So I had already been at home with kids for 20, well, 15 years, I guess. Anyway, so I feel like I'm paying it forward by fixing people's stuff.

Anthony Godfrey:
That's really cool. Yeah, that's...

Julie Beaird:
One kid brought me something recently, though, that was all chewed up. It was the bottom of his jeans. And I thought, this is going to be hard. I'm going to need a patch. I said, “I could teach you to do it or you could pay me to do it”. And he's like, “oh, I'm paying you. My dad said it's OK. You just do it.”

Anthony Godfrey:
So he hired you to do it.

Julie Beaird:
Yeah, he hired me.

Anthony Godfrey:
That's awesome. Wow.

Julie Beaird:
I normally wouldn't charge, but that was a tough one.

Anthony Godfrey:
Side hustle.

Julie Beaird:
Yeah.

Anthony Godfrey;
It's almost like being a mechanic, I guess, you know. “Hey, I've got this knock in my engine. Can you help me fix it?” And my pants are torn at the bottom. I need a repair.

Julie Beaird:
People say “Do you go home and sew?” No. Because it's just like a mechanic. Like you wouldn't need a break from your day job.

Anthony Godfrey:
Sure. Sure. So let's go talk to some students and look at this project.

Hi, Lily. How are you?

Lily:
I'm good.

Anthony Godfrey:
And what are you working on right now?

Lily:
I'm actually making a rope with my mom for the Christmas present.

Anthony Godfrey:
OK, cool. And tell me about the process and what stage of the process you're in right now.

Lily:
Well, at the moment I'm just getting it all set up by putting this here and starting to get everything in place.

Anthony Godfrey:
Oh, so you're threading the machine? Oh, wow. It looks like you have done this many times before. You are a pro. You are cranking it out.

Lily:
I actually did this with my grandma over the summer.

Anthony Godfrey:
Oh, really? So you and your grandma have been doing some sewing?

Lily:
Yeah, we did it over the summer.

Anthony Godfrey:
What are some of the things you made?

Lily:
Well, we made clothes for my dolls.

Anthony Godfrey:
You made what?

Lily:
Clothes for my American Girl dolls.

Anthony Godfrey:
Oh, clothes for your American Girl dolls. Very nice. So now you have it all threaded. This is a bobbin, if I'm not mistaken.

Lily:
Yes, I'm going to switch this black now.

Anthony Godfrey:
All right, show me that. So you've got black thread on the bobbin underneath. You’re going to pop that out. Wow, you are fast. It's really good.

Lily:
So this is threaded or else it doesn't work?

Anthony Godfrey:
Thread the needle. Here we go.

Lily:
You take this wheel here and you go in and you just pull it out.

Anthony Godfrey:
Oh, yeah. Okay, you're all set to go. All right. Well, good luck with this project. Let's take a look at it here. Let's see you get started. Okay, I can see the zigzag pattern with the needle there. All right, we're going to head down the track here, but it's great to see you. And good luck. I'm going to come back in a few minutes and see how that bowl is looking.

Lily:
Okay.

Anthony Godfrey:
All right. Hi, Cora tell me what you have here.

Cora:
I am working on the bears that we are sending to the Children's Hospital. So I just finished on selling some of the hearts.

Anthony Godfrey:
So you're putting on the heart and the nose, the eyes. Are the eyes hand stitched?

Cora:
Yes, the eyes are hand stitched.

Anthony Godfrey:
Okay. And then you have a tummy right there as well. Okay, very nice. Looks great. Are these polar bears? They look polar.

Cora:
Just teddy bears in general.

Anthony Godfrey:
Just teddy bears. Okay. So this is the front of the bear.

Cora:
Yes.

Anthony Godfrey:
And this is an assembly line set up.

Cora:
Yeah.

Athony Godfrey:
So is this your responsibility to put all of this on the front of the bear?

Cora:
Now, I think we're all just doing kind of like what is left to do. So I was going to work on putting on the backs.

Anthony Godfrey:
Okay.

Cora:
And then stuffing them.

Anthony Godfrey:
Shall we go do that?

Cora:
Sure.

Anthony Godfrey:
All right. Here are the backs. They've been all cut out and everything ready to go. So we're here at the machine. You're all loaded up. The bobbin has a white thread in it.

Cora:
Yes, it does.

Anthony Godfrey:
So you're set to go. So you're going to lay the back over the–

Cora:
–front of the bear.

Anthony Godfrey:
Over the front of the bear. Right. Because then you have to turn it inside out. Man. Okay. You’re pinning it together. You're doing this quite quickly. Obviously, you're a skilled professional at this point. Very used to the creation of bears. How does it feel to be making these bears knowing that they're headed to help kids at Primary Children's?

Cora:
It makes me really happy to know that we get to help people in need at this time of year, even though sometimes it doesn't feel like we're doing a lot. We're just making tiny bears. It can really brighten people's days when they see them, when kids see them at the hospitals when they're waiting in the emergency room.

Anthony Godfrey:
Absolutely. Something their own that's very, that's unique. Everyone is unique and they get to keep it. All right. Let's see. You're getting started there. And it's a different kind of shape to make. So there's a lot of twists and turns as you make this.

Cora:
There are.

Anthony Godfrey:
Oh. Going at a good pace there. You're farther in than I would have thought. Is that a?

Cora:
It's a 5/8 seam allowance. So it's the usual seam allowance.

Anthony Godfrey:
A 5/8 seam allowance. Take out the pin as you get to that. As you're sewing, tell me what is it like to be in Ms. Beaird's class.

Cora:
It's a really fun class. I love Ms. Beaird. She's a great teacher. She is super fun and just great at teaching what she does. Her assignments are really fun and they don't get boring ever.

Anthony Godfrey:
So is this the class you look forward to during the day?

Cora:
Yeah.

Anthony Godfrey;
You've had it for three years now, right?

Cora:
Yes, I have.

Anthony Godfrey:
Well, that's a pretty good endorsement for any teacher that you want to make sure you have all three years that you're here at Fort Herriman.

Cora:
Yeah. And then we're going to stop it right here so we can--

Anthony Godfrey:
Oh, yeah.

Cora:
--stuff it.

Anthony Godfrey:
I almost-- I didn't even think about the fact that you needed to stop so you could stuff it.

Cora:
Yeah. And then just snip the threads and then you trim it up and sew and then you stuff it and then you're done.

Anthony Godfrey:
All right. That looks awesome. That looks great. So you've got the little red heart and the mouth and– Yeah, that's really cool. Very cute. Well done. And it's soft. It's very soft and nice. Yeah, personalized too. Well done. Thank you very much for letting me watch that. I know the kids are going to love them.

Lily, we're back. We went and visited another student. And I can already see this rope bowl is really taking shape. I love the look of the stitching. I didn't realize how prominent that stitching would be. And the colors on the thread, the rainbow colors of the thread and the zigzag pattern, it looks really cool. I have no doubt your mom's going to love it.

Lily:
I know.

Anthony Godfrey:
It's coming together really well.

Lily:
Yeah, it really is.

Anthony Godfrey:
OK, well, thanks. Merry Christmas. Have fun.

Lily:
Merry Christmas.

Anthony Godfrey:
Thank you again for letting us visit today.

Julie Beaird:
Thank you for coming back.

Anthony Godfrey:
This is such a cool project and such a great class.

Julie Beaird:
Thank you.

Anthony Godfrey:
I love your passion for it and the opportunities for these kids. As I talk with them it's obvious how much they love having your class specifically, but also learning sewing as well. So thank you very much for being here.

Julie Beaird:
Thank you, Mr. Godfrey.

Anthony Godfrey:
So fun to be back.

Julie Beaird:
Yeah, I appreciate it. Thanks for coming.

Anthony Godfrey:
Thanks for joining us on another episode of the Supercast. Remember, education is the most important thing you will do today. We'll see you out there.

Sterling Hunt:
It's go, go, go from the time we roll out of bed until late at night.

Evelyn Marler:
For the last couple of years, we've donated $10,000 to Make-A-Wish.

Sterling Hunt:
But you know what, we're doing it to support our community. We're doing it to support the students.

Evelyn Marler:
Around to elementary schools in our district, especially in the Copper Hills community, donating funds from our “PAWS for our Cause” Winter Charities.

Savili Simanu:
And it's just a way for our community and our school to get together too.

Anthony Godfrey:
Hello and welcome to the Supercast. I'm your host, Superintendent Anthony Godfrey. It is one of many December charity fundraisers happening in schools throughout Jordan School District.

On this episode of the Supercast, find out what drives students to raise hundreds of thousands of dollars to help others in need over the holiday season. At Copper Hills High, “PAWS for a Cause” helps students give back throughout the entire year. Join us as we travel with them as they award checks to some of our local elementary schools.

Marianne Johansen:
Ladies and gentlemen, students of the Majestic Elementary, please welcome the Copper Hills Student Body Officers.

>> [APPLAUSE]

Rae Garrison:
We’d like to donate $3,500 to your guys' school.

>> [APPLAUSE]

Marianne Johansen:
Is that awesome or is that awesome?

>> [APPLAUSE]

Marianne Johansen:
$3,500 to Majestic Elementary. That is a big round of applause.

>> [APPLAUSE]

Anthony Godfrey:
We're at Majestic Elementary Arts Academy. We're gonna hop on the bus with all the student government officers from Copper Hills High School and talk with them about “PAWS” for a Cause and what they're doing today, giving out money to those schools in the feeder system and beyond who have some needs just for the school to use in whatever way they need the money during this holiday season.

Emily:
Come on board.

Anthony Godfrey:
We're talking now with three of the officers from Copper Hills that are on the bus going from school to school to provide this great financial support to schools in our district. Introduce yourselves and tell us a little bit about the project.

Zoe Hein:
I'm Zoe Hein and I'm the senior class president.

Savili Simanu:
I'm Savili Simanu, I'm the public relations SBO officer.

Evelyn Marler:
And I'm Evelyn Marler and I'm SBO president and we're going around to elementary schools in our district and especially in the Copper Hills community, donating funds from our “PAWS for a Cause” winter charity.

Anthony Godfrey:
Now for those who don't know, Evie, tell us a little bit about “PAWS for a Cause”. What does that involve?

Evelyn Marler:
Yeah, so it's a charity ran by our student government in our school, Copper Hills. We collect money from our students and just from different charities or from different fundraisers that we do. And we are able to use it throughout that next year to put it right back into our community, providing Christmas and helping with funeral and hospital bills and with people in our community.

Anthony Godfrey:
What are some of the things that are done to raise money? I know there's a ton of creativity in getting people's attention and raising those funds.

Zoe Hein:
One way is we do odd jobs where we go door to door through the month of December and we do chores or simply just get donations.

Anthony Godfrey:
And what are some of the oddest odd jobs that you've heard about people doing? I know there are some interesting things that you get asked to do at homes.

Zoe Hein:
I would say the weirdest one I know is going to the basement to do some laundry.

Anthony Godfrey:
Doing laundry in the basement?

Evelyn Marler:
Yes, I've also wiped some walls.

Anthony Godfrey:
Wiping down walls.

Evelyn Marler:
Yeah, I've wiped some walls.

Anthony Godfrey:
Doing somebody's laundry, you really get to know a person.

Evelyn Marler:
Yeah.

Anthony Godfrey:
Did you feel a deeper connection after doing their laundry in the basement there?

Zoe Hein:
Yes.

Anthony Godfrey:
Okay, how about for you? What are some of the things you remember doing as part of odd jobs?

Savili Simanu:
I've heard someone having to fix someone's dishwasher. I've never-

Anthony Godfrey:
Fixing the dishwasher?

Savili Simanu:
Yeah.

Anthony Godfrey:
I didn't know the highly technical skills involved in odd jobs.

Savili Simanu:
Yeah, we'll do it. We'll do it for you. We'll figure it out.

Evelyn Marlar:
Base level skills. We do what we can.

Anthony Godfrey:
HFAC technician, whatever it takes.

Savili Simanu:
Yeah.

Anthony Godfrey:
Whatever it takes. What does it mean to you to see the response from these students here at Majestic?

Evelyn Marler:
It was super exciting. They seemed really excited. They were super energetic. We were able to go to Majestic first and they had their assembly and the kids were super cute. But it's super awesome to know that we're helping them with the things that they need and they just deserve anything that we can give them.

Anthony Godfrey:
I got to see all those faces lined up there in the gym as they're all lined up watching you guys come in. And what made you want to give the money to schools in the area? What was the decision-making process there?

Zoe Hein:
Discussions, and we had a lot of meetings about how we would spend the money. And we realized this was a need for our community.

Anthony Godfrey:
That's what I love about these fundraisers is that you're so thoughtful and intentional about making sure that you're really talking about where you want that money to go. And that's a big part of the fundraising that you do is making sure that people understand the impact that money will have. What are some things that you have in store this year? I know that that kicks off just after the winter break. So what's scheduled for this year's “PAWS for a Cause”?

Evelyn Marler:
Well, first up we've got our Paws for a Cause assembly just on December 3rd, ran by Zoe, our senior class president. So she's got a lot of things in store there.

Anthony Godfrey:
Any spoilers there that you can give us? No, we got a bus full of people, you can't tell.

Zoe Hein:
[LAUGH] Well, we have just our performances, we have ballroom performing, Madrigals. And we have our 505, we try to raise $500 in five minutes to kickstart the “PAWS for a Cause”.

Anthony Godfrey:
500 in 5, that's awesome. Is that a tradition? Is that something you've done before?

Zoe Hein:
Tradition.

Evelyn Marler:
Yep.

Anthony Godfrey:
And are you able to get there most of the time in five minutes?

Evelyn Marler:
Yeah, it ends up working pretty well. I mean, sometimes the funds go down for the rest of the day because people empty their pockets, but it's okay. We get our goal for that day.

Anthony Godfrey:
Do people come prepared with mad stacks of cash?

Evelyn Marler:
Yeah, I feel like it's a lot of coins too.

Anthony Godfrey:
A lot of coins, okay. Well, as long as you get to $500, however you get there. So after you launch, what are some of the other activities that you have planned?

Savili Simanu::
We have school activities like the Muffin Man. He'll go around each classroom and-

Anthony Godfrey:
The Muffin Man.

Savili Simanu:
Yeah, and he'll-

Anthony Godfrey:
Do you know the Muffin Man?

Savili Simanu:
Yeah, I do. He lives on Grizzly Way.

Zoe Hein:
On Grizzly Way, yes.

Anthony Godfrey:
Yes, very good. What does the Muffin Man do?

Savili Simanu:
He'll come to each class and you can buy a muffin for $1.50. And yeah, and then there's Grizzly Got Talent, where anyone can sign up and show their talent for the school and our after-school activity. So there's just so many things like spirit nights where we can all spend money there. And we'll all go partially to the business we work with and to ”PAWS for a Cause”.

Anthony Godfrey:
So the spirit nights are where you partner with a restaurant.

Savili Simanu:
Yeah, we've partnered with Costa Vida.

Anthony Godfrey:
Okay.

Savili Simanu:
Yeah, a lot of places.

Anthony Godfrey:
And so they've partnered with profits from that night when people go eat there, go to “PAWS for a Cause”.

Savili Simanu:
Yes, and it's just a way for our community and our school to get together too, so.

Anthony Godfrey:
Well, I love the partnerships that you create. It's really activating the community and pulling them into it because it's just another example of how you can't do it alone. You just need to make sure you connect with people and help them understand.

Anthony Godfrey:
Well, we've talked our way to Columbia Elementary. The bus just stopped and we've got a couple of dozen student government officers here ready to give out another check. It's really exciting to see this and it's a great way to kick off this fundraising season.

Student:
So we are some cheerleaders in the mascots from Copper Hills High School. I'm the student body officer, vice president. This is the president right here. But today we decided to do something special for your school. So we do this winter charity event called “PAWS for a Cause” where we just get back to the community. And this year we decided to donate $3,500 to your school for just really any of the needs that you guys need.

>> [APPLAUSE]

Keith Klein:
First of all, we can always use money. And I have four things that just popped into my head that we can use this money for. We're super excited and super thankful, grateful, and surprised. So thank you so much for coming across Bangerter and helping us out. That's awesome.

Evelyn Marler:
Glad to help.

Keith Klein:
Thank you.

Evelyn Marler:
Thank you guys.

>> [APPLAUSE] [MUSIC]

Anthony Godfrey:
Stay with us. When we come back we'll hear madrigals from Copper Hills High School performing some holiday favorites.

Never miss an episode of the Supercast by liking and subscribing on your favorite podcasting platform. Find transcripts for this episode and others at supercast.jordandistrict.org.

Break:
Are you looking for a job right now? Looking to work in a fun and supportive environment with great pay and a rewarding career? Jordan School District is hiring. We're currently filling full and part-time positions. You can work and make a difference in young lives and education as a classroom assistant or a substitute teacher. Apply to work in one of our school cafeterias where our lunch staff serves up big smiles with great food every day. We're also looking to hire custodians and bus drivers. In Jordan School District we like to say people come for the job and enjoy the adventure. Apply today at employment.jordandistrict.org

Anthony Godfrey:
What are you most looking forward to for “PAWS for a Cause” this year?

Evelyn Marler:
I'm most looking forward to, I really enjoyed our Make a Wish. We donated, for the last couple of years, we've donated $10,000 to Make a Wish. And we get to have a kid assigned to us that we get to grant their wish. It's really awesome to meet them, get to know them, and help them with something that they really want, they really deserve.

Anthony Godfrey:
So it becomes really personal to make that direct connection. It's not abstract, there's a kid you get to know.

Evelyn Marler:
Yeah.

Anthony Godfrey:
That's awesome. How about for you?

Savili Simanu:
I would say the same, the Make a Wish. Our public relations officer, we keep in contact with them. And it's a way, I think we have a girl this year, and it's a way we can help accomplish her wish.

Anthony Godfrey:
Do you know what her wish is?

Savili Simanu:
She wants to go to Japan, but yeah.

Anthony Godfrey:
Okay, cool.

Savili Simanu:
It should be fun.

Anthony Godfrey:
Yeah.

Zoe Hein:
I think mine would be Sub for a Santa, where we get to go shopping personally and pick out, it could be coats or shoes, but for kids in our community.

Anthony Godfrey:
Wonderful, a lot of great things happening. Thank you for making this possible and for focusing on our schools. As someone who works with the schools, I know how big the need is. So it makes a huge impact. And to see you guys there, it's a great example to these elementary students. So you have, now I was there with you at Majestic Elementary Arts Academy for stop number one. How many more schools are we going through today?

Evelyn Marler:
We've got nine more today, so.

Anthony Godfrey:
You've got a full bus of people who have been very quiet for this interview.

Evelyn Marler:
Yeah, we've got our whole student government crew here along with cheerleaders.

Anthony Godfrey:
Cheerleaders, mascots, you've got the whole gang.

Evelyn Marler:
The whole gang.

Anthony Godfrey:
Plus some key staff from the high school–

Evelyn Marler:
Principal Garrison and Hunt, yeah.

Anthony Godfrey:
–from the high school faculty at Copper Hills, our principal. Let's talk with Principal Garrison here. Tell us a little bit about what this means to you as a school leader to see students stepping up like this.

Rae Garrison:
I'm amazed. Last year was my first year at Copper Hills and I was blown away with the amount of work the students put into this from start to finish. And then also a piece I really like is that it is year-round. It's a year-round effort. The students hear about needs in our community and we're able to tap into the funds raised to help our own community. So I thought that was really cool to see not only money going to charities like Make-A-Wish, but also being able to respond to more immediate needs. And it just so happened that this year we had some funds left, so we thought it might be really cool to kick things off by going and supporting our feeder elementary schools who might not have the same opportunity to fundraise the way these high school kids are able to do. But I tell you, they work their tails off to get the funds.

Anthony Godfrey:
Yeah, it's a ton of work. You can see it in their eyes, the lack of sleep by the end of December when they've been working so hard. We've got Emily at the helm driving us from school to school. Let's throw the mic over the seat there after she takes this left-hand turn. Emily, what does it feel like to get to be a part of this and get him from school to school for such an important day?

Emily:
No, it's really cool. It's fun to be a part of it and I always love, anytime there's anything going on in the schools, I love to be a part of it. But to see these kids giving away and hearing what they've done all year just to keep this up is pretty remarkable and I feel special to be here.

Anthony Godfrey:
From an assistant principal point of view, Sterling, what does it look like in December at Copper Hills High School?

Sterling Hunt:
It's go, go, go from the time we roll out of bed until late at night. And so it's, but we're doing it to support our community. We're doing it to support the students. There's never a boring day at Copper Hills High. I mean, here it is Monday morning and I'm riding around town on a bus, giving away what, $35,000 to deserving schools. It's awesome.

Anthony Godfrey:
It's a beautiful day. Well, thank you everybody for what you're doing to make this possible. Thank you guys for talking with me. Good luck for this “PAWS for a Cause”. I know it's a lot of time and effort, but obviously worth it and such a big impact. So thank you very much.

Evelyn Marler:
Glad to help.

Savili Simanu:
Thank you.

Copper Hills Madrigals singing “Winter Wonderland”

Anthony Godfrey:
Thanks for joining us on another episode of the Supercast. Remember, education is the most important thing you'll do today. Have a great break. We'll see you out there.