Author: communications

Anthony Godfrey:
Hello, and welcome to the Supercast. I'm your host, Superintendent Anthony Godfrey. They followed in the footsteps of their father, dedicating their lives to careers in education. On this episode of the Supercast, we meet four sisters who recently retired after spending a combined 100 years in the classroom. It is a century of work among siblings who made a big difference in the lives of students throughout Jordan School District.

We are here at Westvale Elementary to interview four sisters. One of whom has retired, three are retiring this year, and all have worked for Jordan School District for a long time. So I'm gonna ask them each to introduce themselves.

Margaret Chandler:
I'm Margaret Chandler and I am teaching at West Hills Middle School, and I'll have 24 years in with the district.

Evelyn Marse:
I'm Evelyn Marse and I'm the one that is already retired. But I have 40 years in and I finished up at Riverton High School.

Pennie Lovato:
Pennie Lovato. I am retiring with 40 years and I am at Herriman High School.

Cathy Sullivan:
Cathy Sullivan. And I'm at Westvale Elementary right here. I've only put in 15 years with the Jordan District.

Anthony Godfrey:
Now, Marilyn Richards turned me on to this story and she calls you the Quilter sisters. Why is that?

Evelyn Marse:
That's our maiden name.

Anthony Godfrey:
Oh, the Quilters. Oh, very nice. Yes. And how does she know all the Quilter sisters?

Pennie Lovato:
She taught me in junior high at West Jordan Middle School. 7th grade PE classes.

Anthony Godfrey:
She told me about a remarkable seventh grade PE student that she taught. That must have been you Pennie.

Pennie:
I'm sure it was.

Anthony Godfrey:
I have no doubt. How did the rest of you know Marilyn?

Cathy Sullivan:
I went to school with one of her sisters. And that's kind of how I knew her.

Evelyn Marse:
I actually had Marilyn as my ninth grade PE teacher at West Jordan Middle. And I've worked with Marilyn when she was a vice principal and when she was a principal.

Margaret Chandler:
Well, and then when I got out of college, my first teaching position was at West Jordan Middle and she was a teacher there. And so we taught together for seven years while I was there.

Anthony Godfrey:
Wow. So, you guys know her in lots of different ways. And she has been my boss in various ways. She was principal when I was an assistant principal at Jordan High School. And now of course she's on the Board of Education and decides whether I get my next contract every time, along with the other six Board members. So, we all have a close connect with her. That's awesome. Tell me each of you a little bit about where you've taught and what your education journey has been in Jordan District, and in other districts

Margaret Chandler:
I've always been in the Jordan School District. Started at West Jordan Middle School and taught there for seven years. And then I was having a family and I stopped and tried to see if I could run a preschool business to stay home with my little ones. I did that for about five years and that just didn't pan out. So then I got back into the district and taught at Indian Hills Middle School when they were still part of our district for five years. And then I jumped out again and ran a preschool business very successfully for 15 years. And then I jumped back in again and went to West Hills Middle School. Kim Baker was the principal at that time and hired me on. And so I've just been there ever since.

Evelyn Marse:
Okay. So boy, I think about it, I started back in 1980. I always tell people, when I talk about all the schools I've been at, I would get like the seven year itch. I would just go, I just need to look at something different, different windows, different students, different walls, something. So I taught seven years at Midvale Middle, and I had the opportunity to teach with my dad. That was, that was one of the best opportunities ever at Midvale Middle.

Anthony Godfrey:
I was principal at Midvale Middle years after that.

Evelyn Marse:
Years after that, I was gonna say, yes.

Anthony Godfrey:
So what did you teach? And what did your dad teach?

Evelyn Marse:
Dad taught math and I was special ed. I've always been special ed. So yeah, I mean, it was fun and challenging. My dad was old school. He didn't believe such things as learning disabilities. He thought that they were just play classes. I finally convinced him, you know, when he was struggling with a student. Why don't you just refer the student? Let's test him, let's work. And he started going through that process. And I would tell him about the testing and where the student was at and he'd go, ‘oh, that would make sense why he is not getting it.’ I mean, he started to understand special ed. So that was, it was such a growing experience for us. So that was, that was fun.
After that I went to Mount Jordan Middle, I think I spent eight years there. And then Marilyn hired me at South Jordan Middle. I loved it there, but an opportunity came up to go to Genesis that was by the prison for the Youth Correctional Program. And I jumped at that because I wanted something so different and that was exciting. That was way exciting. So I just spent five years there and then I went to Riverton, finished out. That's where I stopped. I went, I don't think I wanna move one more time. So I finished out my last 12 years at Riverton.

Anthony Godfrey:
And you retired, how many years ago?

Evelyn Marse:
I retired in 2019 and then I took a year off. And then they called me back and said, ‘we don't have enough online special ed teachers. So would you be willing to teach outta your basement for a year?’ So I did. It was challenging. And I have to say, I would do that one again.

Anthony Godfrey:
Really?

Evelyn Marse:
That was such a learning experience.

Anthony Godfrey:
Okay. Well, I'll keep a note of that.

Evelyn Marse:
There you go.

Pennie Lovato:
Keep her in mind. Okay, so I started out teaching elementary and also it's always been special ed. And I decided that after six years of elementary, that I felt like I needed something more. So then I tried a self-contained classroom at Jordan High, the old Jordan High. Did that for a couple of years and decided that wasn't my gig. So then I transferred to Hillcrest High and did a Resource setting and felt like that was my niche. And so I stayed there for, I don't know, 19, 20 years at Hillcrest High, then transferred to Riverton High and then Herriman High.

Anthony Godfrey:
Were you ever at Riverton at the same time together?

Evelyn Marse:
We were there together. And darn that finally came down that said we couldn't teach together any longer.

Anthony Godfrey:
That nepotism rascal got in the way.

Evelyn Marse:
Because I mean, come on, we had different last names.

Pennie Lovato:
Although we did teach right next door to each other.

Evelyn Marse:
We don't look alike.

Pennie Lovato:
No, uh huh. No.

Anthony Godfrey:
So what was it like teaching next to each other? Were you able to kind of share a little bit?

Evelyn Marse:
Oh my gosh, it was wonderful. It was like teaching with dad. It was like, this is such a great experience.

Pennie Lovato:
It was wonderful to have some of the same students and go and brainstorm, you know, what will work? How can we reach the student? So it was fun to collaborate.

Anthony Godfrey:
So you're not only all educators, but you've also been able to be educators together. That's exciting. And you're retiring from Herriman High School, okay.

Cathy Sullivan:
I taught 43 years ago at Santaquin Elementary. I was determined, I wanted my kindergarten and that was it. They were the ones that offered me a kindergarten. They were kind of booming then. And so I had a large number, 60 plus kids come through my two kindergartens and I was the only kindergarten teacher. Loved it, just literally loved it. Then I married and we moved up here to this valley. I taught half a year at East Midvale Elementary and then had some health issues and had to quit as the family started coming on. I didn't get back to teaching until my oldest daughter said, ‘Mom, you're wasting your education.’ And I went, oh my gosh, you sound just like your grandpa. And so I did what I needed to and I came back. I interviewed all over this district and I had just, you know, you go by that gut feeling. And I thought, oh my gosh, this is Westvale. This is where, you know, I started in West Jordan right here. So I said, okay, I'll interview with Kathe Riding. And Kathe Riding said I walked in and I said, you know, ‘I was the first sixth grade class here.’ And she says, ‘Really? Well, how does this school feel?’ And I said, ‘It feels great. It feels like I'm coming home.’ And over the last 15 years, I would not have gone anywhere else. I loved it. Taught kindergarten, and then Brenda Anderson asked me to go to first grade. And then she asked me before she left, come back to kindergarten and I was like, ‘Oh yes. Oh yes. Of course.’

Anthony Godfrey:
So you got to end at Westvale in kindergarten.

Cathy Sullivan:
Yes. And I'm finally going to graduate kindergarten.

Anthony Godfrey:
Well, congratulations. Wow. It's been a long journey. Now you said 43 years?

Cathy Sullivan:
No, just it was 43.

Anthony Godfrey:
No, I right. just since Santaquin. Yeah.

Cathy Sullivan:
Yeah, since Santaquin.

Anthony Godfrey:
So 43 years. That's the 70s, right? Wow. Just checking. Just had to put a number to that. Now we're here.

Cathy Sullivan:
I'm a little bit old.

Anthony Godfrey:
Because we're here at Westvale, I actually have this binder that has a picture of you in your class. What year was that? What year was that?

Cathy Sullivan:
I don't recall.

Anthony Godfrey:
1967- 1968. Does that sound familiar?

Cathy Sullivan:
I remember my teacher, Ms. Olsen.

Anthony Godfrey:
Yeah.

Cathy Sullivan:
She was actually in our ward together.

Anthony Godfrey:
Well, let's take a look there.

Cathy Sullivan:
Okay. I am right there on the top row.

Anthony Godfrey:
Do you look familiar there? Look at that. How about that?

Cathy Sullivan:
I know, short hair still.

Anthony Godfrey:
Short hair, yeah. Do you remember any of these people?

Cathy Sullivan:
Actually I did.

Anthony Godfrey:
Tell me about them. This one right here.

Anthony Godfrey:
Yeah, what about him?

Cathy Sullivan:
He was Mr. Peterson's son.

Anthony Godfrey:
Big man on campus?

Cathy Sullivan:
He was, he was. He loved basketball and everything. And then there was a group of us that when Mr. Peterson was giving us our math times tables and we were trying to beat each other's time. Oh my gosh. So competitive. And I had no idea I was that competitive. It was crazy.

Anthony Godfrey:
Wow. So did you beat him out?

Cathy Sullivan:
Only once or twice. He had, I mean, it was his father.

Anthony Godfrey:
Yeah. Fair enough. He had a bit of advantage.

Cathy Sullivan:
He had inside help. Yeah. And then Evelyn is in there someplace. I did see Evelyn.

Anthony Godfrey:
Now wait, what grade would you have been in Evelyn? Let’s take a look.

Evelyn Marse:
I would've been, third grade? Fourth grade?

Anthony Godfrey:
Third grade. Alright, let's turn back.

Evelyn Marse:
Okay. Wait, wait, wait. These people look really familiar.

Anthony Godfrey:
We're just leafing through those class pictures for those who are listening.

Evelyn Marse:
There I am.

Anthony Godfrey:
Oh, there she is. Look at that.

Evelyn Marse:
Oh my word.

Anthony Godfrey:
Is that a sweater vest?

Evelyn Marse:
No that, no, it was a dress.

Anthony Godfrey:
Oh, it's a dress.

Evelyn Marse:
You know that made it look like there was a little shirt under it. Yes, I have the groovy glasses going too. And look, my hair does kind of look the same. We all got pixie cuts.

Anthony Godfrey:
Yeah. Looks good. Is Pennie in here?

Evelyn Marse:
Pennie, you should be in here. You were just a couple.

Cathy Sullivan:
And Margaret should too.

Evelyn Marse:
So you would, if I was fourth, you would've been first.

Pennie:
Second.

Evelyn Marse:
No, second.

Pennie:
Second. There I am, up at the top.

Anthony Godfrey:
Oh, there she is.

Pennie:
I got my little sailor dress on.

Anthony Godfrey:
Your sailor dress.

Evelyn Marse:
I was gonna say she didn't have the same haircut.  She had a little pony tail.

Pennie:
I had a pony tail.

Anthony Godfrey:
Do you remember the sailor dress?

Pennie:
Oh yes, I do.

Anthony Godfrey:
Yeah, it is funny how we remember the outfit.
When we come back more from the sisters and their combined century in education.

Break:
Hello, I'm Tracy Miller, President of the Jordan School District Board of Education. There are seven members on the Board of Education, one in each voting district. We are committed to listening and serving our constituents as we work together to provide the best possible learning environment for the students we serve. As members of the Jordan Board of Education, we believe it is our duty and responsibility to: increase student achievement; provide parents with the choices they deserve and desire; recognize and reward quality in educators; empower school leaders through policy governance and professional development; and communicate with the public, legislators, business leaders, cities, and parents. We invite you to get to know the Board member who represents you in your voting district, and to please join us at our monthly board meeting held on the fourth Tuesday of every month. Or listen from the comfort of your home, on our live stream. For more information and to find your Board member, visit jordandistrict.org. With parent and community input and support we will continue our work to give students every opportunity to succeed in Jordan District schools and beyond. Thank you for your support. We look forward to seeing you soon.

Anthony Godfrey:
What made you all retire at the same time? The three of you? What was the impetus for that happening? Who's responsible? Because we're losing you all at once.

Margaret Chandler:
Well, I'm finally old enough, 65. I felt that I can start getting insurance, another place. So, I was carrying the insurance for my husband. So just hanging in there and just getting enough years in.

Anthony Godfrey:
And Pennie, is it just coincidence that you decided to retire at the same time?

Pennie Lovato:
I just felt like I had reached 40 and that was my max. Magical number.

Anthony Godfrey:
Fair enough, yeah. I'd say four decades, you've earned it.

Cathy Sullivan:
I didn't know if I ever wanted to retire to be very honest with you. And then my husband said ‘Now, Cathy, we're going to retire together and we'll have lots of fun gardening and whatever.’ And I'm like, 'oh boy.' And so he retired this year in March, the end of March. And so I'm following suit like he asked. I'm like, 'you know what? This is a good year to go out on. It really is.'

Evelyn Marse:
I thought it was because I'd made retirement look so wonderful.

Anthony Godfrey:
Oh yeah, yeah. That's right. Now  you've forged the path, so what is your advice?

Evelyn Marse:
Oh my gosh.

Anthony Godfrey:
Retire for a year and then go back to work?

Evelyn Marse:
Yeah, you might need a break. You might need a break from retirement. I think I need a break from retirement.

Anthony Godfrey:
Okay. Fair enough. Yeah.

Evelyn Marse:
Might have another year in me. But you know, we were looking at this. We kept adding up years, and adding up years and we finally came up with, between dad and all of us. We have 148 years in Jordan School District. And then between the other years that we're taught, it's just over 155 years in education.

Anthony Godfrey:
Wow. That's amazing. Well, we're all grateful. So many of them were in Jordan School District. Tell me about your dad.

Evelyn Marse:
Oh my gosh. He was one of those teachers, I watched him do this a few times. He loved, he loved his team. I mean, he had a great math team, but they were such pranksters. I mean, I'd walk down the hall with him and all of a sudden he'd just lean over and flip off lights in somebody's classroom and I'd hear ‘Mr. Quilter, turn those lights back on!’ you know, because they all knew what he would be doing.

When you didn't win in the drills on math, I'm shocked. Oh yes. Because I mean, dad drilled us. We were lined up. We know our times tables. We don't need a calculator or flash cards. And you know, he was the man that would just say, ‘just read me the scores.’ The end of the quarter would come and he'd go, ‘just read me the scores.’ And we'd read him the scores out of the book for a name. And he never used a calculator. Of course we had one over there because we wanted to prove him wrong and he'd say, okay, this is the amount.

Anthony Godfrey:
And he'd add it in his head.

Evelyn Marse:
And he'd add it in his head. And it was like, what the heck? You really can do this, can't you?

Margaret Chandler:
Well, he was a mentor to us because we would come home from college and we would sneak in and sit in the back of his classroom. And we would observe him and how he went about teaching, and how his fairness with the students, how he talked to them, how he was stern. But they were able to joke and learn in that environment. He was a mentor to all of us.

Pennie Lovato:
I don't think he ever thought all of us would stay in teaching as long as we did. Because I remember him telling me, I mean, he was born in 1931, so it's the old, you get married, you have kids. And so when we were all starting to go to college, he's like, and we're going eventually we'll go into education and he's going well, that's okay. That's a good one to fall back on. So, you know, if you graduate, you graduate, if you don't, you don't. But if you graduate and something happens to your husband and you can't work or whatever, then you can fall back on teaching. It wasn't that he thought it was going to be our life profession.

Anthony Godfrey:
148 years later.

Pennie Lovato:
I know. I know. And, but for me, I felt like I found the gift I was given. I loved teaching. And I would do it again if I could go with the wisdom that I have now and all the tools. I don't wanna start out as a brand new teacher with nothing in my tool belt. Because I'm sorry, those first year teachers, they might have tricks, but wisdom comes from a lot of experience, trial and error and pain and anguish. If you don't think you're gonna get back, then you're in the wrong profession.

Anthony Godfrey:
Tell me what you've liked most about teaching.

Cathy Sullivan:
The lights coming on in their eyes. When you see a student that finally you've worked and worked and suddenly they get it. I had one student. I have to tell this, I had one student. He could not get zero plus anything is gonna be that number. He couldn't get the zero secret. And I worked and worked and worked. And finally I was like, ‘Okay, Scott, what is 10 plus zero?’ ‘10.’ Oh my gosh. I think you've got it. And I said, ‘you've got a three day weekend coming. I'm gonna check you Monday morning. I'm gonna check you and see if you've got it.’ And sure enough, Monday came and I said, ‘Scott, what's one plus zero?’ ‘One.’ ‘What's 10 plus zero?’ ‘10.’ ‘What's 100 plus zero?’ ‘100.’ And I said, ‘Scott, I'm gonna pick something really hard. What is 1 million plus zero?’ ‘1 million.’ Oh my gosh. You've got it. And the whole class is cheering.

Anthony Godfrey:
Yeah, that's awesome

Cathy Sullivan:
Yeah, it's really cool.

Anthony Godfrey:
I thought 10 plus zero was a hundred. So I've learned something. I've learned something. Pennie, what did you love most about teaching?

Pennie:
I think I have loved it because in special ed with some of the students, we start with them in 10th grade and then I might have them in 11th grade and 12th grade. I have enjoyed seeing that progression through 10th, 11th, and 12th. The development, the growth, to see where they were and to have conversations with the students about, do you remember 10th grade and where we were and look at you now in 12th grade. I have enjoyed watching that development.

Anthony Godfrey:
And having students three years in a row. You're able to see that, yeah.

Pennie Lovato:
And the relationship, the relationship that's developed in those three years.

Anthony Godfrey:
Sure, Evelyn?

Evelyn Marse:
Well, I agree with Pennie. I think that, you know, especially in high school, relationships are just a little more adult, a little bit, but a little more adult. But I think with all of that, I mean through my teaching, I'm one of those, let me give you a bit of wisdom. Let me give you a little bit of wisdom today. A little bit more. Let's talk about how your life could pan out and what you need besides school. So, I would give students bits of wisdom and I love the fact that I have run into so many students since then that have graduated and they'll go, 'Mrs. Marse, you were right. You were right. I listened to you. This happened to me. And I thought, this is what Mrs. Marse told us would happen. And this is what we should do. I listened to you.' And they thanked me and I'm like, okay, everything was worth it, all the pain, the anguish, the tears, the prayers that beat my head against the wall. It's all worth it.

Anthony Godfrey:
That's very rewarding to hear that. Yeah.

Anthony Godfrey:
Margaret.

Margaret Chandler:
Well, I teach Family and Consumer Science. And I think the thing that I found so enjoyable is that I'm teaching the students life skills. Skills that they're gonna use the rest of their life. And they’re lab classes. And maybe classes that some students excel at, math or English or, you know, science, maybe they're not so sharp with the hands on. And then I have other students that are more hands on and they excel and they progress. And it starts their time to shine. And it's, it's just wonderful to see that the skills developed with the foods, and child development, with clothing, and sewing. And that's been very rewarding to see that.

Anthony Godfrey:
So what are your plans now? What happens now that you've retired from such great careers and I mean, you have a few days left, but what's ahead for you?

Pennie Lovato:
I think we're gonna connect with each other more. Even though we're in the same valley, we're so busy, we've been so busy that we haven't spent as much time as we want to with each other. And I think connecting with our families, grandkids and setting our own time schedule when we get up in the morning, you know.

Anthony Godfrey:
Do you need a recording of the bell from school to kind of set your day? Because I think we could arrange for that if you'd like. Kinda wean you off of it gradually.

Margaret Chandler:
I don't think so. I think we're gonna be okay.

Evelyn Marse:
Gonna go cold turkey, aren't you?

Anthony Godfrey:
Now, you talk cold turkey. You're ready to just shut it down. Okay. Fair enough. When I first went to the district office and there were no more bells to guide my day, I'd stand up every once in a while and just kind of walk out to the door of my office and my administrative assistant would say, ‘The bell just rang didn’t it?’ and I'm like, ‘Yeah. Yep. It did.’ So if you do that, you're not alone. Now when we walked in, we are in Cathy's classroom. How long has it been since you've been in Cathy's classroom?

Pennie:
Never.

Anthony Godfrey:
Never in Cathy’s classroom?

Pennie:
Never. We've never been in Cathy's, she's never been in ours. No.

Margaret Chandler:
Oh, I think Cathy, I've been here in one of your classrooms, but I don't know if it was this exact room.

Cathy Sullivan:
It was probably the one across the hall. It was the bigger one. When I came back from first grade to kindergarten. This is the room they put me in and I love it. I mean, it's big enough. Westvale’s got such a weird layout. It's kind of like a spider with legs.

Anthony Godfrey:
It is a different kind of school that's for sure.

Evelyn Marse:
No, we don't really get to each other's classrooms. Like I said, when Pennie and I were with each other teaching at Riverton, we were in each other's rooms all of the time. And I've been over to Herriman a few times, but, but otherwise, no, that's why we are not as connected as we'd like to be. And I think we all kind of like each other now. Maybe not so much growing up but, but I think we kind of like each other and we like each other's company. So that will be kind of nice to do more things together.

Anthony Godfrey:
That’s awesome. I’m very grateful for the 150 years that your family has given to Jordan School District. And I know many, many students and families are as well. So thank you.

Evelyn Marse:
You're welcome. 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.

Anthony Godfrey:
Hello and welcome to the Supercast. I'm your host, Superintendent Anthony Godfrey. She has an undying love for teaching and the students in her care at Riverside Elementary School.

On this episode of the Supercast, we sit down with third-grade teacher Olena Bradford, who was born and raised in Ukraine and now calls Utah home. Find out how her school community has surrounded Olena with love and support during a very emotional time, and how Ms. Bradford remains passionately committed to her students and classroom while finding ways to help family and friends impacted by war in her homeland.

We're here with Olena Bradford at Riverside Elementary. Just to talk about your experience as a teacher and you have had quite a year, haven't you?

Olena Bradford:
Well, it was an interesting year and we had many great things going here in school in Riverside. And also there are many different things that are happening in the world right now.

Anthony Godfrey:
You're from Ukraine. Tell me about coming here to the United States and growing up in Ukraine.

Olena Bradford:
I came to the United States about 15 years ago and when I came here, I did not speak any English. I've learned English here. In Ukraine, I was attending the Ukrainian school, so everything was in Ukrainian, all the subjects. After graduating from the high school, I attended the Pedagogy University in Izmail, Ukraine in the south. It's one of the most south points in Ukraine, on the border with Romania.

I was working in school since 1993. I was working on my doctorate degree at Odessa University at the same time. Later on, I became an assistant principal of the school in Ukraine. So I was combining administrative and coaching responsibilities for elementary school in Ukraine.

Anthony Godfrey:
Now, today marks 100 days of war in Ukraine. Tell me about the impact on your family and your friends.

Olena Bradford:
I think this war affected everyone in this world, not only people in Ukraine, but people in so many other countries. Everyone who is standing up right now in Ukraine is being extremely brave and being an example to me. The president of the country is like a model for me how to be a grateful leader and stay with the people, every person, support, stand up, and protect everyone who you're responsible for.

Anthony Godfrey:
We have seen a lot of examples of bravery, courage, and leadership coming from Ukraine. And I do think the world has been impacted as a whole by those positive examples. It's just a tragic situation and devastating damage and death. But I was first made aware of you because people were so amazed at your ability to stay focused on teaching and students in such a terrible circumstance. How are you able to do that?

Olena Bradford:
I think that thinking about every student in my class helped me to be focused and help each of them because my kids are here and they need me. They need my support and they need my help.

Anthony Godfrey:
We have Olenna's principal, Mike Trimmel, here. Mike, tell me about Olenna's dedication to her students during this difficult time.

Mike Trimmell:
Absolutely. Olena, if I didn't know her personally and know what her and her family were going through, you would never know that this was affecting her. She is so dedicated to her students.

She comes in early when I get in. And the first thing, instead of talking about what's going on in the world, she's asking about students. How can we support this student? She's asking about strategies. “How does Think-Write-Pair-Share work?” She's so focused and dedicated on the students that you wouldn't know that there was something else going on in her life. It's absolutely amazing.

Anthony Godfrey:
I also know that the entire school is getting a boost from your energy and your focus. We've all had a very difficult few years, but it puts it in perspective when I think about what you must be going through, having, I understand, a brother in Ukraine and family and friends in Poland that are struggling to survive and to get by. People have been inspired by you and your dedication and as a result have found paths through you to help other people, to rally around you and to rally around others. Can you tell me about the support you've had from the school?

Olena Bradford:
I'm really grateful for kindness and support of every student in our school, every teacher, every staff member. Because from the very beginning, from the very first day of war, I had people coming to my classroom, giving me hugs, leaving the small, very short notes, lifting me up. And reading those notes really helped me to go from one day to another.

Also, in our school, I think our school leaders, Mr. Trimmel and Mr. Price, have done so much for me. They organized the whole entire event for us in the faculty room with the whole room decorated in Ukrainian style, with cakes made by kids, made by students, by using Ukrainian recipes. One of our teachers, Ms. Medina, was playing violin and she learned, especially for this day, the Ukrainian melodies that she played. That was absolutely touching. On that day, I received many notes from every member of our school, with just full of kindness and full of love.

That meant a lot for me because at that point I was really struggling with my feelings. It was really, really hard. But having this support helped me to go through this difficult time and accomplish everything that I needed this year and be helpful to my students. That meant a lot for me because at that point I was really feeling, I was really struggling with my feelings. It was really, really hard. But having this support helped me to go through this difficult time and accomplish everything that I needed this year and be helpful to my students.

Also, as a whole entire school, we helped some specific families in Ukraine. We were able to buy the minivan to deliver food to families in the south of Ukraine who are struggling and have no food, especially during this hard, difficult time. Also, not only people in our school, but people from the district reached out to me and they donated money to make this project happen. So I appreciate everyone's willingness to help people who are far away.

It is really important for me when I talk to family and friends in Ukraine to pass this passion, to pass this positivity and vision of life, because many people in Ukraine really feel like no one cares. It's their fight and they're alone for many different reasons because there are many difficult circumstances being bombed and being shot. But for me, even showing small videos about what happened in my classroom, what happened in our school, what are we doing now, the steps of buying this minivan and collecting the addresses and delivering this food to different people really helps to lift them up over there and show them that everyone matters.

Anthony Godfrey:
It's really inspiring that people have come together like that and supporting you personally has also had an impact on friends and family you've been able to share that with. And for people to buy a minivan and to continue to buy food and supplies to help those who are impacted by the war is just incredible. Not surprising because that's the type of people that we have. Mike, tell me about the event that was held.

Mike Trimmell:
Yeah, so we came together as a staff and just decided that we needed to wrap our arms around Olena and make sure, I think we were giving her notes and passing by the classroom, but we wanted to come together collectively and just show her how much we care for her and for the people of Ukraine. And so we had teachers, support staff, parents, PTA members all come together and make Ukrainian flags out of construction paper. One parent went and bought, I don't know how many dozen sunflowers, which is a flower that is known in Ukraine as a ray of sunshine, and decorated the whole room in sunflowers. Another staff member looked up recipes and with students created Ukrainian desserts. Mrs. Medina-Ferrone learned Ukrainian music on her violin.

We just decided that we were going to have an emergency meeting. Everyone knew except for Olena. So we had this emergency meeting in the staff lounge, which we never do. And so we all crowded in the staff lounge and as soon as Olena started walking down the hallway, we queued Mrs. Medina-Ferrone to start playing the music and I could see the look on Olena's face like, "Wait, what's going on?" And then when she came in, we all just embraced her and gave her hugs and words of support, enjoyed some Ukrainian desserts and just enjoyed each other's company. We just really wanted to wrap our arms around her and make sure she knew in a real tangible way that she is loved and that we care for her and support her and her family abroad.

Anthony Godfrey:
What an incredible outpouring of love and support. That's incredible. Fantastic.

Stay with us. When we come back, more with our incredible teacher, Olena Bradford.

Break:
Do you simply love learning online? We can't wait to have you join the amazing teachers in our brand new Jordan Virtual Learning Academy. In Jordan Virtual Learning Academy schools, we offer innovative, fun, and flexible online learning with daily real-time instruction from teachers. Enrollment is currently open for all K-12 students in Utah. Start on the path to personalized virtual learning success now at connect.jordandistrict.org. That's connect.jordandistrict.org.

Anthony Godfrey:
I understand you have a brother still in Ukraine. Tell me how he’s doing.

Olena Bradford:
Currently, we have people who are helping him since my brother is blind, so he always needed some people around him to help him with different things. Running errands and doing other things. Just for now, it costs more than it cost before because prices for everything gone way high over there. At the moment, I'm capable of doing it. It's difficult. It's not easy, but they are doing everything that we can for him.

Anthony Godfrey:
I wish your family and friends safety and peace as soon as possible.

Olena Bradford:
Thank you.

Anthony Godfrey:
Let's talk more about teaching. Utah and Ukraine and the United States. Tell me the differences between school and Ukraine and the U.S.

Olena Bradford:
There are some differences and some similarities. The students are the same. Everything is the same. Math is still math. It doesn't matter where. In Ukraine or here in the United States. One of the differences would be in Ukraine, we have elementary, middle and high school in the same building. When I was assistant principal, I was all over the elementary.

Another difference is that the day broke up a little bit differently. One thing that I like about the schools here in the United States is that we have a specially dedicated time for interventions. RTI. Over there, at least when I taught 15 years ago, we didn't have that specific amount of time dedicated to the interventions, specific targeted interventions to lift up each student, to support each student. We did it in a different way, but it was during the tier one instructional time.

Anthony Godfrey:
Mike, I understand that there was a professional development experience around English language learners that Olena was involved with. Tell me about that.

Mike Trimmell:
We have a high population of English language learners at Riverside Elementary School. We also have dual immersion Spanish. Olena is a very empathetic teacher and she loves her students so much. We wanted the rest of the staff to understand what English language learners are hearing and dealing with on a daily basis. We thought if we use Spanish, that might not work because half of the staff speaks Spanish. We have a Ukrainian teacher who speaks Ukrainian. I asked Olena to develop a lesson so that in a staff meeting, she would teach math, which is a universal language, kind of.

She taught a math lesson in Ukrainian and asked them questions that no one could answer at first. Then she added visuals and manipulatives. The types of things that we know work for English language learners to help support their language development. She, by the end of the lesson, was able to have teachers answering math questions in Ukrainian with all of the visual supports that she provided. It was a great opportunity to use her strength as a teacher, the language that she brings, the culture that she brings to our staff, and also to help us as a staff become more empathetic to what our English language learners are dealing with on a daily basis in the classroom.

Anthony Godfrey:
What a great experience and deep learning because when you experience that, it's very different from thinking about how to connect with students. When you put yourself in the situation, now you're thinking shifts and you're really able to see it from someone else's perspective.

Mike Trimmell:
Absolutely.

Anthony Godfrey:
That's exciting. No other Ukrainian speakers on the staff, huh?

Olena Bradford:
No.

Mike Trimmell:
We had one trying to speak a little bit of Russian, but it just didn't–

Olena Bradford:
She used Translator.

Mike Trimmell:
One pulled out their phone and was using Google Translator. Cheating a little bit. It was a great– I would say it was probably the single best professional development we did this year, and she was a large part of that.

Anthony Godfrey:
Yeah. What a great activity.

Olena Bradford:
Yeah.

Anthony Godfrey:
Tell me what you love most about teaching.

Olena Bradford:
I love my students. I like each of them every single year. Each personality, they're all different. They're all unique. They are all special to me. And my goal as a teacher is to help them to become lifelong learners, just like me. I'm a lifelong learner.

Mike Trimmell:
Absolutely you are.

Olena Bradford:
I'm learning. And I want them to know how to find answers to the questions that they will have in their own life. Not only academic questions, but how to manage their own life, how to make a decision based on information, be able to find the reliable source of information. Dig deeper and then make the ethical decision in their life, because our life is full of making decisions, points, when we are thinking, "What should I do at this situation? How do I know that this is the right choice?" So I would say my main goal is to prepare each of my students for a real life, this way, and become critical thinkers. Always think. Always do your own research. Find the reliable source of information to verify your research and your choice.

Anthony Godfrey:
You're obviously doing a great job of preparing them for real life. Thank you. We're very fortunate to have you here in Jordan District and here at Riverside Elementary. So thank you for sharing your experience and skills with our students.

Olena Bradford:
Thank you.

Anthony Godfrey:
And for lifting the community and lifting the school.

Olena Bradford:
Thank you.

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.

Anthony Godfrey:
Hello, and welcome to the Supercast. I'm your host, Superintendent Anthony Godfrey. They have made memories to last a lifetime, sharing a love for learning, fostering great friendships and building a foundation for a great future. On this episode of the Supercast, we sit down with members of the Jordan School District Graduating Class of 2022 to find out how they are feeling as they head into a whole new chapter of their lives.

Alex is here from Riverton High School. Alex, tell me about your graduation speech.

Alex:
Awesome. Yeah, I auditioned to give a speech and I got in. So I use the Burj Khalifa, the tallest building in the world as a metaphor. It took 12 years to build and I use it as a metaphor basically to explain that we are the project spent on by thousands of people and unlimited resources to create these wonders in 12 years. And so, I love metaphors, and that was the one I chose.

Anthony Godfrey:
And it's a good metaphor. There are a lot of people who contribute to the growth of seniors and to where you arrive.

Alex:
Exactly. Yeah.

Anthony Godfrey:
Can you tell me about some of those people?

Alex:
Yeah, of course. Some of my greatest mentors in high school have been Mr. Briggs. He was my history teacher last year and he is just so energized and then enthusiastic about everything he teaches and really just involves his students. And also my theater teacher, Mr. Eaton also is just an awesome example of how to work hard and really just like dive in head first into everything you do.

Anthony Godfrey:
Tell me about some of your favorite classes over time. You talked about history and drama.

Alex:
Yeah. So yeah, I act and so I love my acting classes. I've been able to take a lot of them. I've been able to be on MDT, the Music, Dance, Theater class. It's the audition, you could call varsity, program at Riverton. And that's been an incredible experience to work with 28 other students and just, you know, all share our love we have for theater. It's been an incredible experience, we get to put on three shows a year. And so we get to where we're always busy at Riverton.

Anthony Godfrey:
And that's a power packed combination of talents. That's not, I can just sing or I can just dance or I can just act, that's everything put together.

Alex:
Yeah. It's the triple threat for sure.

Anthony Godfrey:
What will you miss most about school?

Alex:
I'll miss, I mean, the structure for sure. Having it built in and having somewhere to be and having something to do all the time. And also just like the comradery and the constant feeling that everyone is looking out for you. Cause I definitely feel, at least at Riverton, we have a very good community feeling. I constantly feel like, I don't know, there's always someone I could turn to. There's never been a moment where I'm like, ‘oh, I don't have anywhere to turn.’ If it's a teacher, an advisor, a VP you know, friends, I, you just always have someone to look to. I think the way we can find other people to look to as we go on, but it's kind of sad to close that chapter, the book and move on. It's a little bit surreal.

Anthony Godfrey:
The connections don't go away, but they change. Yeah. It's a great way of putting it. There's a schedule. There's something you're expected to do, you know, what's next, and you have a connection to people to help you help you get there.

Alex:
Yeah, no, it's nice for sure.

Anthony Godfrey:
Would you read a portion of your speech for me?

Alex:
Yeah, of course. Yeah.

‘Don't you see? We are the 12 year project, the work of thousands; faculty, students, coaches, friends, and family have worked to shape our todays and our tomorrows. So many have given of themselves to give us the tools so that each of us, in due time, may challenge the sky. As we go on to become the greatest creators of all time, I challenge you to never be content with mediocrity. To never falter with the wind in your face. To never take lightly the time and effort the people in our lives have taken and given to construct you. Finally, my fellow graduates, my friends, let us realize that the sky is no limit because for us, anything is possible.’

Anthony Godfrey:
Challenge the sky. I love that. That's great. Yeah. What's next for you?

Alex:
First I'll be serving a mission for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

Anthony Godfrey:
Where are you headed?

Alex:
I am headed to Kansas, Wichita.

Anthony Godfrey:
Kansas, Wichita. Nice.

Alex:
Yeah, I'm so excited.

Anthony Godfrey:
Have you been to Kansas before?

Alex:
No, no, I have not. I hear there are tornadoes and lots of open fields.

Anthony Godfrey:
And when you return, you'll be able to make jokes about not being in Kansas anymore, endlessly.

Alex:
I am so excited for that.

Anthony Godfrey:
As a  theater person, you'll have, you know, particular cred when you do that.

Alex:
I will abuse the privilege. And then after that I'm headed to Utah State, most likely, unless things change, to pursue a business something. Maybe marketing, just something in the business field probably.

Anthony Godfrey:
But you have time to figure that out.

Alex:
Exactly. Yeah. That's the best thing about it.

Anthony Godfrey:
Well, you're in a great spot and I'm glad it's been such a great experience. I've really enjoyed talking with you. I wish you the best.

Alex:
Thank you so much.

Anthony Godfrey:
I'm speaking with Valentina from Copper Hills High School. Hi Valentina, thanks for talking with me this morning.

Valentina:
Thank you for inviting me.

Anthony Godfrey:
You're speaking at graduation. Tell me about your speech.

Valentina:
Basically I talk about the memories that we create from school and we're going to like, remember after school and even after college and all that stuff.

Anthony Godfrey:
Could you share some of it with me?

Valentina:
Yeah, sure. I think one of my favorite sentence, it's a word that I found on the internet, and it's ‘the flapping of a butterfly's wings in Ecuador can cause a hurricane in Texas. I know it sounds a little bit absurd, but that is exactly what happened to us. The whispers of the past that said ‘Study, keep going. You can do it’, became hurricanes and changed our lives. And all these events that have made us be here today. It's funny how for years we counted on vacation days, but this time it was a little different. We waited to finish school for so long that now at the end, we see how much we're going to miss it.’

I don't know. I think in my personal opinion, I have really good memories with some teachers. And I think like right now, when I see that, like I'm almost graduating, I think where I'm going to really miss, like having those times with those teachers and the classes of my classmates.

Anthony Godfrey:
Can you tell me about some of those teachers and some of those experiences?

Valentina:
I think like the teacher that I have most connections with were my two dance teachers that I have Miss Jennifer Fulger and Miss Anna Bay. They were like, like their personality was really similar to mine and I feel like they were like my family more than just teachers. And most of the time when I had trouble, I laid on them, like to talk to them. I really feel confident with them.

Anthony Godfrey:
That means a lot to have a relationship like that where you can have support from, from a teacher in that way. Tell me about some of your favorite classes from K-12. What were your favorite classes and grades?

Valentina:
I always had like straight A's or maybe right now I have like a B in Food class. I'm really bad at Foods. But I think my favorite class would be like Dance of course, and Ballroom. Maybe business classes, like Business Office or Economics. I'm taking college classes, and I have like an A I know that, Marketing or Retailing. Yeah, those are my favorites.

Anthony Godfrey:
It sounds like you had a wide variety of great experiences at school.

Valentina:
Yeah.

Anthony Godfrey:
What's next for you?

Valentina:
I'm planning to study at the University of Utah. And then later on maybe work at, I don't know. I was planning on the headquarters of Disneyland, something like that.

Anthony Godfrey:
That sounds like a great ambition. Can I get a couple of passes to Disney World?

Valentina:
For sure.

Anthony Godfrey:
Okay, great. I appreciate the hookup. Now, you've danced for how many years?

Valentina:
Since I remember I've been dancing. Yeah.

Anthony Godfrey:
Yeah. What's your favorite kind of dance?

Valentina:
I will say like contemporary.

Anthony Godfrey:
Okay.

Valentina:
But now that I'm taking like ballroom classes, I never took them since junior year, and I really like Salsa or Bachata, they're my two favorites.

Anthony Godfrey:
Are you going to continue dancing beyond high school?

Valentina:
I hope so.

Anthony Godfrey:
Yeah, that's great. What are some of the things you would say to students who are just starting out in high school? What advice would you give them?

Valentina:
Just create a balance between studying and also socializing. I think those two are really, really important during your school years. So like, keep your grades up and also like have time to enjoy with your friends or with your community. I think all those stuff are really important.

Anthony Godfrey:
Sounds like you've been able to strike a really good balance between those two.

Valentina:
Yeah.

Anthony Godfrey:
Tell me about some of your friends. Do you wanna give a shout out to anybody?

Valentina:
To, I don't know, my best friends Anna, Patricia.

Anthony Godfrey:
What what's Anna been to you during high school?

Valentina:
She's been like a sister to me. Like every time that I've been like on my best or in my worst, I've been there for her and she's been for me. Like we always been together and I don't know, I feel like a really good connection with her.

Anthony Godfrey:
Sounds like you're fortunate to have each other. Well, I wish you the very best and I'm excited to hear your speech.

Valentina:
Yeah. Thank you.

Anthony Godfrey:
Congratulations.

Valentina:
Thank you for inviting me.

Anthony Godfrey:
Stay with us. When we come back, we'll hear more from members of the graduating class of 2022.

Break:
Hello, I'm Tracy Miller, President of the Jordan School District Board of Education. There are seven members on the Board of Education, one in each voting district. We are committed to listening and serving our constituents as we work together to provide the best possible learning environment for the students we serve. As members of the Jordan Board of Education, we believe it is our duty and responsibility to: increase student achievement; provide parents with the choices they deserve and desire; recognize and reward quality in educators; empower school leaders through policy governance and professional development; and communicate with the public, legislators, business leaders, cities, and parents. We invite you to get to know the Board member who represents you in your voting district, and to please join us at our monthly board meeting held on the fourth Tuesday of every month. Or listen from the comfort of your home, on our live stream. For more information and to find your Board member, visit jordandistrict.org. With parent and community input and support we will continue our work to give students every opportunity to succeed in Jordan District schools and beyond. Thank you for your support. We look forward to seeing you soon.

Anthony Godfrey:
We have Owen here from Herriman High School. Owen, would you mind sharing some of your speech with us?

Owen:
Yeah, of course. ‘Everything we did was an exchange. My lab group and I collaborated and thought through everything together to attempt to understand our very confusing experiments. If you did not understand the difference between exothermic and endothermic reactions, how to do a titration without making it oversaturated, or the importance of significant figures, you just had to ask and someone would be willing to help you. We worked together as lab partners like athletes, musicians, or actors work together to make something better than any one person could create. I hope I remember to value the people in my classes, workplaces, neighborhoods, and family. And I hope that all of you will try to do the same.’

Anthony Godfrey:
That's a great message. We rely on each other. And you've learned to rely on others through high school.

Owen:
Yeah, for sure.

Anthony Godfrey:
Tell me more about that.

Owen:
Yeah, so I’m my  graduating class’s Valedictorian and I was trying to think about what message to write about. And I was just thinking about how my success is not just the product of myself. My success is really just the result of me and the people around me who helped support me throughout the four years of high school. So I just wanted to talk about how we should be more grateful and like show our gratitude for those in our lives for helping us bring guests to where we are today.

Anthony Godfrey:
That's a remarkable perspective. I was at the Herriman Senior Awards night and I saw you walk across the stage quite a few times. And for you to be focused on other people and their assistance and their role in getting you to where you are is really commendable.

Owen:
Yeah. I really try to make sure that everyone in my life is happy. And it's just been a very big goal of mine for a long time.

Anthony Godfrey:
You have a lot of accomplishments behind you already. What do you have in store after graduation?

Owen:
I will be attending the University of Utah. I will be majoring in biochemistry and then I will get a minor in Chinese and psychology.

Anthony Godfrey:
Have you been taking Chinese?

Owen:
I have, yeah.

Anthony Godfrey:
From what age?

Owen:
Since I was six. I’ve been in Chinese immersion since 1st grade.

Anthony Godfrey:
Great. What's your favorite phrase in Chinese?

Owen:
Probably just like classic Huānyíng dàjiā. That just means like welcome everyone. Just because like throughout all of elementary school, that's just how our teachers would start most of our lessons and it's just welcome to everyone. I really liked it and it's just simple.

Anthony Godfrey:
So not only have you studied Chinese for a long time, but you obviously enjoy it since you're going to pursue a minor.

Owen:
Yeah, I love it. My best friend is actually an immigrant from Hong Kong, China. So I've been trying, really trying to incorporate like the Chinese culture into my life for years now. And it's, yeah, I just love it. And I wanna learn more about it.

Anthony Godfrey:
Have you been?

Owen:
I have, yeah. I went in 2015 with my family when I was like 10.

Anthony Godfrey:
Wow, that's incredible.

Owen:
It really was.

Anthony Godfrey:
And did it feel good to have the chance to use the language in China?

Owen:
For sure. I mean, it was obviously pretty challenging considering I was only 10 at the time.

Anthony Godfrey:
For sure. Sure.

Owen:
But yeah, it was a really life changing experience to be able to actually use something I'd been learning for the past five years.

Anthony Godfrey:
What has drawn you to biochemistry as a major?

Owen:
I've always really been in love with science, but I think the biggest reason I decided on biochemistry was my AP Chemistry teacher. Just because that class really drew me in and I really loved all of the content. It was one of my favorite classes last school year.

Anthony Godfrey:
And what is it about biochemistry content? Is it that you understand the world in a different way or what?

Owen:
I think it's just a very interesting perspective on the world because I think chemistry as a whole is a very overlooked subject, and chemistry, especially biochemistry is like literally everything. And I just think it's interesting to learn about how the world works on such a small level.

Anthony Godfrey:
The whole world is made up of chemistry.

Owen:
Yeah, exactly.

Anthony Godfrey:
Yeah. What are some of the things that you'll remember most about your K-12 experience?

Owen:
Probably just the people. I've had incredible people throughout my life, and they helped raise and support me, and they mean the world to me.

Anthony Godfrey:
Do you wanna give any shoutouts to anybody?

Owen:
Probably my chemistry teacher. Jessilynn Morton. She's an incredible woman. She's also our school's yoga teacher. So she's very versatile.

Anthony Godfrey:
Yoga and chemistry. Wow.

Owen:
Yep.

Anthony Godfrey:
That's impressive.

Owen:
Yeah.

Anthony Godfrey:
She's almost as impressive as Chinese and biochemistry.

Owen:
Yeah.

Anthony Godfrey:
You’ve got a great future ahead. Thanks for taking the time to talk with me.

Owen:
Thanks for having me.

Anthony Godfrey:
We have Easton from Valley High School here. Easton you're speaking at Graduation this year.

Easton;
That's correct.

Anthony Godfrey:
Tell me some of what you're gonna be sharing with the class.

Easton:
A lot of it is kind of talking about how we are moving past this big chapter in our lives and it's now time to move on to a different path. Like we've been working towards school for 12 years now and it's probably, like everyone says, it's one of your first biggest achievements and now we're all finally leaving the nest. So it's time to move on to bigger things now.

Anthony Godfrey:
Would you like to read a little portion of it?

Easton:
Yeah. So I have this one paragraph it says, ‘Author, Ken Poirot said “Today is the opportunity to build the tomorrow you want.” I think that's an important takeaway for all of us to remember. As long as you have the will and determination to pave the path for your future, there's no roadblock big enough to stop you. When you're in times of doubt, always keep in mind that you've all endured your own individual hardships, yet, you've come out on top. All your years of going to school support this. There have been times that it seemed hopeless, never ending, unbearable, or even just an all around undoable task. However, we all conquered the odds and proved to ourselves just how capable and tenacious we are. Don't lose that tenacity now that you're graduated. Much like everyone's favorite fictional boxer used to say, “It ain't about how hard you get hit, or it ain't about how hard you hit. It's about how hard you can get hit and keep moving forward.” So keep moving forward. Never stop moving forward in the face of adversity. sSow the world how unwilling you are to quit.’

Anthony Godfrey:
Great. Inspiring.

Easton:
Thank you.

Anthony Godfrey:
Tell me about your time in school. What are some of your favorite memories from school K-12?

Easton:
Let's see. When I was, I guess a sophomore, I transferred over to Alta High School. And that's where I met and one of my closest friends, that I'm still best friends with today. And I can't really say I necessarily enjoyed going to school until I came to Valley. It was the first school that I wasn't miserable when I woke up in the morning, and I was looking forward to seeing all my teachers and just, yeah, being there. It's a good place to be for me.

Anthony Godfrey:
What was it about Valley that made it such a good connect for you?

Easton:
The schoolwork wasn't as overwhelming and they always tell you that the teachers there, they actually care about you. Like actually have connections with them. I'm friends with them and they're just really easy to, I guess, have a relationship with and thrive there.

Anthony Godfrey:
So it was connections with teachers that made the difference at Valley.

Easton:
Yeah, I would say so.

Anthony Godfrey:
What interests are you pursuing next?

Easton:
I want to go to a trade school in Orem called MTECH and I either want to become a mechanic or go into web design. I think those seem super interesting.

Anthony Godfrey:
Wow. That's a wide range of skills.

Easton:
Right? I think that'd be super cool.

Anthony Godfrey:
Yeah, that's great. Everybody needs someone that can fix their car and fix their computer. That's right.

Easton:
That’s right. Yeah, I get both ends of the deal.

Anthony Godfrey:
You're gonna be very very important.

Easton:
Thank you.

Anthony Godfrey:
How does it feel looking back on a K-12 experience? What advice would you give to other students?

Easton:
I would say don't do what I did and start procrastinating and letting school work build up. Just get your schoolwork in while you can, so you can get good grades and it doesn't screw you over later. And also, just make the most of it because there are definitely times that I am gonna miss about. Cause I know school is definitely gonna be easier than going in the workforce and being an actual adult with responsibilities. So yeah, just make the most of being able to spend hours with your friends and doing, I guess, pretty easy school assignments and stuff like that.

Anthony Godfrey:
Great advice. Anyone you wanna give a shout out to?

Easton:
I would just say my friend Keegan. He was my only friend when I transferred to Alta. I was too scared to talk to anyone, but yeah, me and him became super great friends and like I said, we're still best friends to this day. And so I just really appreciate him being there for me. And yeah, we've been through a lot together.

Anthony Godfrey:
Sounds like you have a lot of years of friendship together ahead of you.

Owen:
Yeah, that's right.

Anthony Godfrey:

All right. Well, it's great meeting you.

Easton:
You too.

Anthony Godfrey:
Thanks for the time.

Easton:
Yeah, thank you very much. I appreciate it.

Anthony Godfrey:
We wish every student in the Graduating Class of 2022 the very best in the next chapter of their lives. We will always remember them as students who possess incredible strength and perseverance.

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

Anthony Godfrey:
Hello, and welcome to the Supercast. I'm your host, Superintendent Anthony Godfrey. He will be running up warped walls, attempting notoriously difficult rope climbing, and racing through gravity defying obstacle courses. On this episode of the Supercast, we head to the gym with Mountain Ridge High School senior Tyler Kurtzhals. Tyler is training to become the next American Ninja Warrior on the TV show, which premieres on Monday, June 6th. Find out what it takes to make it as an elite athlete in an extremely difficult and demanding sport.

We are here at the Impact Ninja Gym with Tyler Kurtzhals talking about his American Ninja Warrior quest. Tyler, thanks for taking time with us.

Tyler Kurtzhals:
Yeah, thanks for having me.

Anthony Godfrey:
So you're a student at Mountain Ridge.

Tyler Kurtzhals:
Yep.

Anthony Godfrey:
What year are you?

Tyler Kurtzhals:
I’m a senior.

Anthony Godfrey:
So you're a senior at Mountain Ridge and I know you've been an American Ninja Warrior fan for a long time. Tell me about when you started watching and what got you interested in this. And then I want to talk about what's ahead for you.

Tyler Kurtzhals:
So I got interested when I was eight years old. I was just scrolling through the recorded list of TV shows on TV and my mom had recorded this show called American Ninja Warrior. It was just a super cool, giant playground to me at the time. As a kid, I would climb on just about anything you could think of: trees, hallways, doors. I would climb on doors. And it just looked so much fun. It was like a giant playground for adults with extreme obstacles. And I was hooked from age eight and started competing when I was about 14 years old.

Anthony Godfrey:
Now we've been watching it as a family. My two boys really like it. We've watched it for years as well. And it is a lot of fun to watch and cheer for certain people. So can you describe a little bit more to those who may not have watched American Ninja Warrior, what it involves?

Tyler Kurtzhals:
So, American Ninja Warrior is an obstacle course TV show. It starts with a qualifying round where they call about 500 participants to a certain city and then they film five separate qualifiers. Out of each qualifier, the top 30 go to another city for the semifinals. And then out of each semifinal, the top 15 advance to the National Finals in Las Vegas, where there are four obstacle courses. And if you complete all four stages, you can win a million dollars.

Anthony Godfrey:
Who is your favorite American Ninja Warrior? Would you say?

Tyler Kurtzhals:
I think one of my favorites is probably Daniel Gil.

Anthony Godfrey:
I remember Daniel.

Tyler Kurtzhals:
Yeah. He's got really long hair. He's a worship leader from Houston, Texas. He's just really inspiring because he like, he's a man of the people. He's really close to his community. He was really uplifting. He's a super nice guy. And plus he's one heck of a Ninja too. I mean he's scaled the Mega Wall, which is an 18 foot version of the warped wall. If you get it in one try you get $10,000 and I'm gonna be trying to follow in his footsteps later this year. I'm gonna try to go for it if I get there.

Anthony Godfrey:
So let's talk some more about you as a fan before we talk about you as a competitor. Now I seem to recall that you have attended some of the American Ninja Warrior competitions, maybe in Las Vegas? Is that right?

Tyler Kurtzhals:
Yeah. I've been to Vegas to watch the filming three times and I've been to one of the qualifying filmings once.

Anthony Godfrey:
Now I have to ask this because as I watched it, I saw that there's a pretty small crowd at those events or it seems that way. How did you get to be part of the crowd? Did you have to sleep out and camp out to get in line or how did that work?

Tyler Kurtzhals:
There's this website, it's called On Camera Audiences and they basically distribute tickets for all sorts of TV shows like America's Got Talent, Wipe Out, American Ninja Warrior. And basically the tickets are pretty much free, they're like first come first serve though.

Anthony Godfrey:
So, you get a free ticket, but then you have to be there and show up and be one of the first people there in order to get something out of it.

Tyler Kurtzhals:
Yeah, exactly.

Anthony Godfrey:
Okay, so tell me about your path to being a competitor.

Tyler Kurtzhals:
So, when I was younger, I didn't know exactly that there were, there's actually a lot of like local leagues and stuff with Ninja, like all across the nation. I had no idea. So the first comp I actually did was the junior TV show. So there's another TV show called American Ninja Warrior Junior. Where it's two side by side courses and kids are brought on, ages 9 to 14, and they race. First one to the end wins.

Anthony Godfrey:
Now the adult competition is timed.

Tyler Kurtzhals:
Yeah.

Anthony Godfrey:
So that there's only one person on the course at a time. And then you compare times with each other.

Tyler Kurtzhals:
Yep.

Anthony Godfrey:
But it was side by side competition for the youth league?

Tyler Kurtzhals:
Yes.

Anthony Godfrey:
Okay. And, so when did you first compete in that?

Tyler Kurtzhals:
2018. I was 14 years old. I applied for it having no real idea if I was gonna get on or not. And then probably April of that year, I found out I was gonna get on it. And then I did my best to train for it. I hadn't been to a Ninja gym very much beforehand. So that ended up being my first experience competing. And that really opened me up to a lot of the leagues all over the place. And I was able to go spread my name a lot more.

Anthony Godfrey:
So where all have you competed?

Tyler Kurtzhals:
Just about everywhere you can think of really. The furthest I think I've gone, was probably Florida or Connecticut.

Anthony Godfrey:
Okay. Wow.

Tyler Kurtzhals:
I’ve gone all the way to the East Coast to compete, gone to probably all four corners of the country.

Anthony Godfrey:
And you have a competition coming up soon. Tell us about that.

Tyler Kurtzhals:
Yeah. I'm actually competing on Season 14 of American Ninja Warrior next week.

Anthony Godfrey:
Wow. That's amazing. That's really cool. So when will that air?

Tyler Kurtzhals:
Probably sometime in June, they haven't announced airing dates yet. But it films all next week for qualifying. And then if I keep doing well, I'll keep advancing and going to more filmings to try to get further and further into the competition.

Anthony Godfrey:
So this isn't junior.

Tyler Kurtzhals:
Nope.

Anthony Godfrey:
This is just the straight up competition.

Tyler Kurtzhals:
This is the big show.

Anthony Godfrey:
Wow. That's pretty amazing. Now, as I watched the show, there were some people who talked about camping out to try to get on. Is that kind of like a wild card option that people have to get on? That's a different path from yours, right?

Tyler Kurtzhals:
Yeah, it used to be before COVID they would allow it, but it was called the walk on line.

Anthony Godfrey:
Oh, okay.

Tyler Kurtzhals:
So people who didn't get accepted would wait up to like a full month in a line outside of the set. Just to get a shot to compete.

Anthony Godfrey:
Yeah. But you've built your name up and you're able to just get on the show.

Tyler Kurtzhals:
Yeah. So the other way to get on the show is the application. So it's like eight pages of like questions and stuff. And then you have to submit a two to three minute video explaining.

Anthony Godfrey:
I remember watching the videos about ‘I'm doing this for my father and he watched me train’ and that sort of thing.

Tyler Kurtzhals:
Yeah.

Anthony Godfrey:
There were kinda some heartfelt, touching stories about how people are overcoming adversity in their lives to be able to be part of it.

Tyler Kurtzhals:
Yeah, basically tell them your story. And if they're interested in you and want to do a bigger scoop on you, then you've got a really good shot of getting on the show.

Anthony Godfrey:
But you've gone through more the competitive path to show that you're a real competitor and someone who can advance.

Tyler Kurtzhals:
Yes.

Anthony Godfrey:
Okay. Stay with us. When we come back more with Tyler and we talk to his mom about supporting her Ninja Warrior son through the highs and lows of competition.

Break:
Do you simply love learning online? We can't wait to have you join the amazing teachers in our brand new Jordan Virtual Learning Academy. In Jordan Virtual Learning Academy schools, we offer innovative, fun, and flexible online learning with daily real-time instruction from teachers. Enrollment is currently open for all K-12 students in Utah. Start on the path to personalized virtual learning success now at connect.jordandistrict.org. That's connect.jordandistrict.org.

Anthony Godfrey:
As someone who's watched the show, I'm very interested to hear more behind the scenes about how you've prepared. So, we're here at the gym, as you can hear in the background. And there are all kinds of contraptions here that really, to me look more like they're designed for torture than exercise. But fortunately for you, I suspect they look like fun. So, can you show me some of the exercises that you've gone through to prepare?

Tyler Kurtzhals:
Yeah, sure.

Anthony Godfrey:
Let's describe what you're gonna do and then let's see.

Tyler Kurtzhals:
So typically the first round will have like six obstacles. Three of them tend to be upper body and then three of them are lower body and it always ends with the warped wall, which is this big ramp.

Anthony Godfrey:
Here's the warped wall. Tell me about your technique for the warped wall.

Tyler Kurtzhals:
So the best technique for the warped wall is to plan out your steps. Usually on the show, they allow about 10 feet of run up before the wall. So like probably that's where I'm standing now. And usually when I get to the foot of the wall, I try to look up and find the bar on top. And then cuz usually your body is gonna follow wherever you're looking. So if I find the bar, my body's just gonna go straight up.

Anthony Godfrey:
So the lesson here is look. You have to keep your eye on your goal.

Tyler Kurtzhals:
Yeah.

Anthony Godfrey:
In order to get there.

Tyler Kurtzhals:
Look where you wanna get to.

Anthony Godfrey:
So for, for those who are listening, it's a very, very steep ramp that he's trying to run up. And by steep, I mean like 90 degrees in the air ramp and then he's gotta grab a bar at the top and pull himself up. And how high is the wall?

Tyler Kurtzhals:
This one's 14 feet. The one on the show is 14 1/2 feet. And then they also have the Mega Wall, which is 18 feet.

Anthony Godfrey:
And that's the one where if you scale it, you get $10,000 on the first try.

Tyler Kurtzhals:
Yep.

Anthony Godfrey:
Okay. Well, are you ready to show me what you've got on this?

Tyler Kurtzhals:
Sure.

Anthony Godfrey:
All right. How many times, before we do this, before you do this. Let's be clear, it's you doing this.

Tyler Kurtzhals:
Yeah.

Anthony Godfrey:
How many times have you scaled the wall like this would you say?

Tyler Kurtzhals:
Way more than I could count honestly. They're in just about every competition that I do.

Anthony Godfrey:
Alright. Let's see.

Anthony Godfrey:
My gosh. You just leapt up there. It's like nothing.

Tyler Kurtzhals:
Yep.

Anthony Godfrey:
I don't mean to suggest that it's easy, but you make it look easy. Holy cow.

Tyler Kurtzhals:
It gets easy after a while.

Anthony Godfrey:
Wow. That's a tough one because it takes some precision.

Oh my heavens. You skipped, you just went every other hook. That was quickly done. Oh my Gosh. I really can't get over how fast you've scaled up that.

Tyler Kurtzhals:
Thanks.

Anthony Godfrey:
That is something. So is this like in the competition?

Tyler Kurtzhals:
So this one's actually a little bit different than the competition. So, on the show, the gaps between the rungs are a foot, 12 inches, and these gaps are 8 inches. That's why I was skipping that.

Anthony Godfrey:
So that's why you doubled up, but that's still farther than you're going to have to go in competition.

Tyler Kurtzhals:
Yeah. We have another salmon ladder over there that's the right size.

Anthony Godfrey:
I see. Now, I just kind of can't get over how fast you can do that. What is your persona? What is your name? Your character, or are you just you? What's your outfit? I mean, what's your look for the show?

Tyler Kurtzhals:
So, mostly what I'm wearing right now is actually what I'm gonna be competing in. I’ll have different shoes because these aren't really competition shoes. But my nickname in Ninja is TK Ninja Tricks. It's basically for all the stupid, like tricks that I'll do at comps. Like for example, in my last comp I made a really good save on an obstacle and I ran off the platform and did a flip.

Anthony Godfrey:
Oh wow. So do kids at school know about this and your friends know about this, I assume. And what do they think of your being an American Ninja Warrior?

Tyler Kurtzhals:
They think it's pretty cool. It's a really unique thing. There's not a lot of Ninjas out here. And they think it's really cool to see someone just going after their dream at school. I feel like a lot of people don't really follow their dream very much. They have a really big dream in their head and then kind of just set it aside for like money or something they think will make them happy or something like that. So it feels really cool. It gives me a really good sense of power and makes me feel like I'm inspiring a community a lot. And most of the people at school think it's awesome.

Anthony Godfrey:
Well, I think it's fantastic and I love that you have dedicated the time and effort that you have to making your dream come true. Tell me what kind of practice schedule you have.

Tyler Kurtzhals:
So right now I train about four days a week, usually for two hours per training session. Basically each day is kind of separated into different disciplines in Ninja. Like one of the days is balance. Another day is strict upper body like holding a lock off. A lock off is like where you hang with your arm bent, whether it's off of one arm or off of both arms. Or I'll do like technique or just like power, like training certain moves, like bigger throws. Usually I'll run 'em all in courses together. Like I'll compile all the obstacles together and run probably 10 obstacles in one course and just have fun.

Anthony Godfrey:
All right. Let's talk with your mom Stacy about what it's like to be a Ninja Mom. Tell me about your part of this journey.

Stacy Kurthzhals:
It requires a lot of dedication to travel. There's not a lot of competitions locally, so they’re a lot more on the east coast than there is out here. So we get a lot of frequent flyer miles cause we have to fly back and forth quite often. Initially for him there wasn't anybody to train him. So that was really hard because there was nobody that did it out here. There were actually no gyms when he started. So he kind of trained himself, but then finding places and getting him more access to things has been, you know, one of those things we've had to do.

Anthony Godfrey:
Did you kind of know early on like ‘yeah, this is gonna take hold. This is what he's gonna do.’

Stacy Kurthzhals:
Yeah. He had some really natural skills at it. And as we started getting him into competitions and seeing what he did compared to people who had actually trained, we knew that he was actually really good at this and I've never seen a kid at 12 years old who put their heart and soul into training and never quit. And that was something that he's just really dedicated to it.

Anthony Godfrey:
It's really impressive. Just talking to him, it's very clear how much he loves this and how much he has dedicated himself to it.

Stacy Kurthzhals:
Absolutely.

Anthony Godfrey:
Is it hard to watch as mom? Does it make you nervous? Or have you developed the same cool, collected, demeanor that your son has?

Stacy Kurthzhals:
It depends on which kind of competition it is. If it's a local competition, I don't worry. Not a big deal. When he gets into some of the bigger ones that he does, I definitely get the nerves. It's not about his ability. It's more of, he wants this so bad and he gets one shot. And so I don't wanna see him disappointed for any reason.

Anthony Godfrey:
Well, that's the difficult thing when I watch. And when I even think about watching you, Tyler is that there's no margin for error. It's not like basketball where you can miss all kinds of shots and still have an amazing game. You miss and it ends.

Stacy Kurthzhals:
One shot.

Tyler Kurtzhals:
That’s the name of the game.

Anthony Godfrey:
That's the name of the game. All right. Thank you so much for taking the time to talk with me. I'm really excited to watch you in this competition. I can't wait. And I'm really proud of the work you've done. It's really exciting to see everything you've put into this. And I really like your chances.

Tyler Kurthzhals:
Yeah. Thanks for having me. That means a lot.

Anthony Godfrey:
And Stacy, thanks for letting us come and talk with you guys and good luck on your part of the journey as well.

Stacy Kurthzhals:
Thanks. The mom nerves will be there, but I'll be okay.

Tyler Kurtzhals:
Oh, she's gonna be louder than the whole audience in the entire crowd.

Anthony Godfrey:
I bet she will.

Tyler Kurthzhals:
She is the loudest fan ever.

Anthony Godfrey:
I love that. And now I'm remembering that there's a part kind of before and after where they say here's mom watching and they show, you know, holding your hands, like, oh my goodness, shaking and yelling. And so I look forward to watching that as well.

Stacy Kurtzhals:
You'll probably hear me all the way here in Utah.

Anthony Godfrey:
That's good, that's good.

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.

Anthony Godfrey:
Hello, and welcome to the Supercast. I'm your host, Superintendent Anthony Godfrey. They were already excelling in math and science early in elementary school. By the time they hit high school, their love of learning was paying off even more, paving the way for a very promising future. On this episode of the Supercast, we sit down with three Herriman High School students. All three are Sterling Scholars in STEM and all three were recently recognized statewide for their incredible achievements in math and computer science.

We're here at Herriman High School meeting our Sterling Scholars and we're now talking with Madelyn. Madelyn, introduce yourself.

Madelyn:
Hi, I'm Madelyn. I'm the Skilled and Technical Sciences Sterling Scholar at Herriman High.

Anthony Godfrey:
Skilled and Technical Science. Talk to me about what that entails.

Madelyn:
So for me, it's a mix of woodworking and computer science. I use mostly computer science, that's what I wanna go into in my career. But I also do woodworking and that also uses a lot of computer science. Like for example, on the CNC machine in the wood shop, which cuts wood pretty much, I use like code. You put the code into the computer and so the machine knows what to do. So stuff like that is my passion.

Anthony Godfrey:
Okay. So you just blew my mind very quickly. Woodworking and computer science are two things I don't necessarily put together and they're definitely not a part of my normal day. And what did you call the machine? A C+C Music Factory?

Madelyn:
A CNC machine.

Anthony Godfrey:
Oh, a CNC machine. And tell me what the CNC machine does again, and how that relates to computer science? You're programming the machine to cut the wood in a certain way?

Madelyn:
Yes, pretty much that's it. So yeah, you just type it into the computer and it does what it's supposed to do. It cuts the wood into the shapes you want it to be.

Anthony Godfrey:
Okay. Time to set modesty aside. Why do you think you're the Sterling Scholar in this area?

Madelyn:
I feel like I'm a strong scholar just because I'm so well rounded. Like I do theater, I do FBLA, I do business, I do karate. Like I do just a lot of different things. And then the thing is that like, I'm really passionate about like, computer programming, wood shop, business and stuff. I feel like that kind of like, set me higher. And so yeah, I feel like that's why I got the Sterling Scholar.

Anthony Godfrey:
That is quite a combination of skills. Which of those do you think you want to pursue the most?

Madelyn:
I would say computer programming. That's definitely where my passion lies. I wanna go into data sciences, which is like database development and stuff like that at UVU. And so that's my plan.

Anthony Godfrey:
How does someone your age get turned on to database science with the passion that you just expressed?

Madelyn:
Well, I first got into like computer science and database, I think it was like sophomore orientation. We were like walking around the gym and all the different like tables and stuff and I saw some robots. I'm like, 'yo that's cool.' And so I went to talk to the teacher and he convinced me to take one of the classes. And so I just started taking coding classes throughout high school. And then just this semester I took a database development class and I was like, 'wow, I love this. This is so cool.' It's just like, has all the like elements that I really enjoy, like design and creativity. And then I also like still following like rules. So it's still like satisfying and stuff. So yeah, I dunno. I really like it.

Anthony Godfrey:
So creativity within a certain set of rules that'll make things work like they need to.

Madelyn:
Yeah, I would say so.

Anthony Godfrey:
So where are you headed after high school?

Madelyn:
I want to go to UVU, which is Utah Valley University and study computer science and data sciences. And then I hope to go on a mission for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints and then get married and have a family and maybe start my own business. We’ll see what happens.

Anthony Godfrey:
Great. What kind of business?

Madelyn:
Just like a database development or like database security or like ethical hacking would be so cool. So yeah, that would be like my dream.

Anthony Godfrey:
Ethical hacking. Meaning when companies hire you to show the weaknesses in their system.

Madelyn:
Yeah. So basically they'll hire you and you can go in and kind of see whatever you want to, try to get into their system and to make it stronger. So bad people can't do that.

Anthony Godfrey:
If someone had acted in all of these roles, I would be impressed, but you've actually done all of these things. That's very impressive. And I like your chances for having a successful business of your own.

Madelyn:
Thank you.

Anthony Godfrey:
Thanks for talking with me and good luck with everything.

Madelyn:
Thanks for having me.

Anthony Godfrey:
We're talking with Addie. Addie, introduce yourself.

Addie:
I'm Addie. I've been going to Herriman for three years. Obviously I'm a senior. I won the Computer Science Sterling Scholar, which has been a crazy ride, but has taught me so much. I do a lot of things outside of school. I work and I dance and it's kind of crazy, but it is what it is.

Anthony Godfrey:
You work, dance and do computer science.

Addie:
Yeah, it's a lot isn't it?

Anthony Godfrey:
Tell me what kind of dance do you do? I do more interpretive dance. A little bit of jazz, but when I was younger, how about you?

Addie:
So I do point ballet, which is what you go to see if you were to go and watch Ballet West. I dance on my toes and it's a lot of work, but I love it.

Anthony Godfrey:
How's your pas de duex?

Addie:
Oh, it's amazing.

Anthony Godfrey:
I thought it might be.

Addie:
My partnering. Yes.

Anthony Godfrey:
Very good. So tell me what is it that drew you to computer science?

Addie:
Well, to be honest, I kind of stumbled on it by accident. I tell everyone taking a photography class was the best mistake I ever made. As a sophomore I signed up for a photography class. Didn't love it so much. And I went to my counselor and was like, 'you gotta get me outta here. I'll take anything.' And so she's like, 'well, the only class open is computer science.' And I said, 'all right, I guess I'll give it a shot.' I took it. I fell in love with it. I love the teacher. He's an amazing guy. And I just love the logic of it. Everything about it just seemed to click with my brain.

Anthony Godfrey:
Tell me what you like about the teacher.

Addie:
He is the most supportive guy. So he has a doctorate degree from Stanford for computer science. So because of that, Herriman gets to have so many college computer science classes that no other high school in the district or even the state has, which is amazing. I feel so blessed for this opportunity to be on such an accelerated track. He tells us all about the experiences he's worked in the field. Like it's really inspiring to see how he's worked hard and how he's made a difference in people's lives.

Anthony Godfrey:
It really is amazing the impact that one teacher can have.

Addie:
Exactly. I think if I would've had any other teacher, I might not be on the same track I am now. But he really put that passion for computer science in me, and now I wanna take it just as far as he did.

Anthony Godfrey:
The experience you've described is exactly what I hope for, for every student. That by whatever means they stumble upon something that they're passionate about. That's why we provide this range of classes for everyone. I love how photography was the best mistake you ever made. Did you tell the teacher that was a great mistake to make?

Addie:
I don't think I've told the photography teacher.

Anthony Godfrey:
Probably a good policy. And the photography teacher is a great teacher I'm sure for those who are passionate about that.

Addie:
Exactly. It wasn't my thing, but someone could stumble upon photography and that would be their path.

Anthony Godfrey:
So where do you plan to go from here?

Addie:
I am heading up to Utah State in the fall to major in computer science. Hopefully the dream is to become a systems analyst for a company. I’ve set my bar high right now. Hopefully I'll make it there, but we'll see what the future holds.

Anthony Godfrey:
I would imagine that that is well within your reach. It's something that I know that we need a lot more of out there. What would you say to someone who's considering computer science, but it maybe sounds intimidating?

Addie:
I would say, just give it a shot. There's a lot of very basic level classes that you can take. And I think even if you don't pursue computer science, I think everyone should take at least one. It teaches so many skills that you can use outside in your life. It's problem solving, logic, how to work well with others. I use those skills in everything else that I do. It's not just computer science. So even if you take it, you try it, you don't love it, you're still gonna learn a whole bunch of skills that you can use and apply to whatever you are passionate about.

Anthony Godfrey:
Logic, working well with others. Those are the skills we're really trying to achieve.

Addie:
Exactly.

Anthony Godfrey:
So how does dance influence your computer science passion? Do the two ever intersect or overlap?

Addie:
They really do. I use computer science in my dance world because I am a teacher as well. So I use the skills I've learned in computer science to learn how to be a better teacher, and stay organized, and help people get better. But then I also think ballet, and that creativity side of it, really helps me in computer science because I can be more creative in how I solve a problem. It's not just only left sided brain, do X, Y, Z. I learn how to take this complex problem and use that creative side of my brain and try different solutions. And they really intermingle well. You wouldn't think that ballet and computer science kind of go together, but for me it has that creative side and then also the very structured logical side and they click together.

Anthony Godfrey:
Madelyn mentioned a similar thing with woods and computer science because there are certain rules you work within, but that allows for greater creativity.

Addie:
Exactly.

Anthony Godfrey:
And it sounds like that's true of dance and of computer science also.

Addie:
Yes.

Anthony Godfrey:
And I love how you talk about being a better teacher because of that. It probably allows you to think logically and how you lay out one step and then the next one in an order that will allow the student to really learn what to do. So you teach dance, is that correct?

Addie:
Yes, I do.

Anthony Godfrey:
And what age group do you teach?

Addie:
I teach 12 to 18 year olds.

Anthony Godfrey:
What do you like most about teaching?

Addie:
As a dancer, I know that it can be very challenging sometimes both physically and mentally. And so as a teacher, I get to see the other side of it. Where you gotta push these girls, even when they're tired. But I see them progress. And when something clicks or they do something right, I see it light up on their face and it's so amazing for me to watch because I know that exact feeling. But then I love to see that I'm able to do that for other people as well.

Anthony Godfrey:
When you're able to push people to do things they didn't think they could do. That's very rewarding.

Addie:
Exactly. It is very rewarding. I love it. It takes up all my time, but I think it's worth it.

Anthony Godfrey:
You're using your time very well it sounds like, and I wish you the best in college in just a few months.

Addie:
Thank you so much.

Anthony Godfrey:
Stay with us. When we come back more from our amazing Sterling Scholars.

Break:
Do you simply love learning online? We can't wait to have you join the amazing teachers in our brand new Jordan Virtual Learning Academy. In Jordan Virtual Learning Academy schools, we offer innovative, fun, and flexible online learning with daily real-time instruction from teachers. Enrollment is currently open for all K-12 students in Utah. Start on the path to personalized virtual learning success now at connect.jordandistrict.org. That's connect.jordandistrict.org.

Anthony Godfrey:
We're here with Simon, another Sterling scholar at Herriman High School. Simon, introduce yourself.

Simon:
I am Simon. I like math, like to code and I don't know, just trying to get ready for college I guess.

Anthony Godfrey:
You like math and you like to code?

Simon:
Absolutely.

Anthony Godfrey:
Tell me what you like about math.

Simon:
It's always one answer. It's right or it's wrong and there's always kind of a procedure to get there. It's problem solving skills.

Anthony Godfrey:
Tell me what you want to do with math going forward.

Simon:
I'd love to be an engineer. Aerospace has always fascinated me. I'm like, ‘Hey, maybe I could actually work in rockets someday.’ But robots, really cool artificial intelligence. I love how technology is kind of improving the world we live in, giving people more options, helping us explore, improve science, understand medicine and I definitely plan to pursue all of this. I haven't decided fully yet exactly where I want to be because there are so many options and they're all really cool. I guess I'll see where I end up when I go to college.

Anthony Godfrey:
You are going to have a lot of options, I have no doubt of that. Tell me, do you remember when you first really latched onto math and you realized you were good at it?

Simon:
I think the first case I can think of was first grade. I was homeschooled that year, it was when my family moved and so me and my sister were homeschooled. She's a year older than me, and I remember I loved the math curriculum part of the homeschool enough that I finished my entire course in half the year. So my mom just gave me my sisters, and then I finished that as well that year. Which made second grade really easy because I've done all the math, cause I went back to the public school that year. But yeah, like I just loved it. Like, I looked forward to doing my math each day.

Anthony Godfrey:
And you've enjoyed mathematics ever since. Tell me about the Sterling Scholar process for those who may not have gone through it, what's involved.

Simon:
So it's funny. I didn't even realize until this year, even though I've been thinking about it for years. I didn't realize that it went farther than just school. So I was like, okay, I'll take the Sterling Scholar of Herriman High. That'd be cool. Then I realized you can compete against people all over the state. And so you kind of show off everything you've accomplished, everything you've done in mathematics. I was able to say that I've done competitive mathematics in sixth grade. I was able to say that I've been a math tutor. I have been a math coach for a junior high school team back in my freshman year. It all comes together. You show leadership, service. I was able to talk about choir and track and field. It's all about who you are as a person. The way you work hard to accomplish things to kind of prepare you for the future, all the skills you picked up, and just the ways that kind of puts you ahead in your category.

And then of course mathematics just comes down to what you know, what you don't know. The interviews, the two I went to, there's a problem on the white board and you walk in, they say solve it and talk out loud as you do it. So they can, even if you get it wrong because of nerves, which happens, they just analyze your problem solving process. They wanna see that you have those problem solving skills. Because that's what mathematics is. That's what mathematics teaches. And so the Sterling Scholar process is a bunch of different levels, but it's all just evaluating what you've done, what you know, and it's really cool because you get to meet other people who love the same things you do. You've also gotten really far ahead. And I thought that was really cool.

Anthony Godfrey:
It's very impressive. That part of the process is just walking up to the whiteboard and solving a problem. That's high pressure with some experts in the room watching how you do it and not just whether you get to the right answer, but how you get there, and what your process is.

Simon:
It does. It's very high pressure.

Anthony Godfrey:
That makes it all the more impressive that you got to where you are. I'm envious of your math skills and your passion for it. It's exciting that you've reached this level. What's next? You wanna be an engineer? Where are you gonna study?

Simon:
Brigham Young University currently. I was accepted and I plan to attend there and study math, computer science, maybe some engineering. They have a really cool engineering building I took a tour of and I'm very excited to go there. I'm going to decide as each year comes, what interests me the most, what I'm gonna pursue as I get to try hands on experiences and get to actually apply everything I've been learning for the past 12 years of my life.

Anthony Godfrey:
Well, I congratulate you again on everything you've accomplished and I know you have great things ahead of you.

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.