Supercast

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:
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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.

Anthony Godfrey:
Hello, and welcome to the Supercast. I'm your host, Superintendent Anthony Godfrey. It is a school that provides training for special education students in character education, independent living and vocational skills to last a lifetime. On this episode of the Supercast, we take you to the South Valley School where we meet an amazing young man who is about to graduate. A student named Jonathon, who is making his way in life thanks, in part, to skills he learned at South Valley. Jonathon's positive attitude is contagious and to be in his company is a real treat. Here is Jonathon's heartwarming story.

We're at South Valley School and I'm finally getting the chance to talk with Jonathon. How are you today?

Jonathon:
I'm doing quite good. How are you?

Anthony Godfrey:
I'm good. Jonathon is about to finish up his time here. You and I met back at a meeting early in the year with all of our student body officers from our various high schools.

Jonathon:
Across the, across the Jordan District.

Anthony Godfrey:
Exactly.

Jonathan:
At the Capitol.

Anthony Godfrey:
I feel like we hit it off right away. Do you agree?

Jonathon:
I can say the same.

Anthony Godfrey:
Okay. You're a great conversationalist and as we were up at the Capitol, when we had speakers come in, nobody listened more intently or had better questions than you. You really seem to connect with the people that you talk with. Why do you think that is?

Jonathon:
Because I want to have a better understanding, a better understanding of what's going on around me. I like to know what's going on here. What the plans are, why things are this certain way, you know, I like to have a better, better understanding of things, cuz then I can have better knowledge of what's what.

Anthony Godfrey:
I really like that. And one of my slogans for the district, I've asked all employees to be curious and you live that.

Jonathan:
Yes I do.

Anthony Godfrey:
So, tell me what are some of the things that interest you Jonathon?

Jonathon:
Well, one of the things that interest me is the opportunities.

Anthony Godfrey:
Okay.

Jonathon:
And the education that we give to all of the students.

Anthony Godfrey:
Tell me some of the things that you've learned here at South Valley,

Jonathon:
Friendship.

Anthony Godfrey:
Friendship. You know, when I talk with people from South Valley, that's what they talk about a lot. The relationships and friendships that they create. What are some of the friendships you've been able to enjoy here?

Jonathon:
Well, one of the things that I enjoy a lot is how nice and kind everyone is in this school. They help out with whatever you may need to help, to help transition into the adulthood of life.

Anthony Godfrey:
Can you think of some times that's happened for you here?

Jonathon:
One of the things that I have personally learned in this school is to be open with people and to share some thoughts, some ideas and to not only open my ideas, but listen to other people's ideas and opinions.

Anthony Godfrey:
Well, like I said, you're very good at that and I'm impressed and you've opened up to me. We were talking a little bit about your work. Tell everyone about the work that you do.

Jonathon:
I'm a courtesy clerk at a grocery store called Harmon’s and it's close by my house. I help pack up groceries for the customers.

Anthony Godfrey:
Now, when you say the phrase courtesy clerk, it really takes me back because back in the 1900s, I was a courtesy clerk.

Jonathan:
Really?

Anthony Godfrey:
I was a courtesy clerk in high school. It's so funny to me that they're still called courtesy clerks. They used to call us baggers. Does anyone ever call you a bagger?

Jonathon:
Well, that's what it used to be before I applied for the job as well. Like a month or so ago before I even applied there, they were still calling us baggers, but they recently changed it to courtesy clerk because we do more than just bag up groceries.

Anthony Godfrey:
That is correct.

Jonathan:
I also, if the customer wants ice for any size, I go over and get the ice for them.

Anthony Godfrey;
Sure.

Jonathan:
If they want a car, a car side lift, well, I help put the groceries in the vehicle for them. I do that as well. So there's a little more than just bagging groceries for the customers and putting it in carts for them.

Anthony Godfrey:
What do you like about being a courtesy clerk?

Jonathon:
What I love is how I can meet some new faces and just, and it's overall just small talk too as well.

Anthony Godfrey:
Yeah.

Jonathon:
My managers have told me just to just do some small talk to see how their day's going and everything.

Anthony Godfrey:
Yeah.

Jonathan:
And I'll go over and as they coming up, paying for their stuff or say, ‘Hey, how you doing?’ You know, ‘how is your day?’ You know, that's pretty much it. Just little small talk.

Anthony Godfrey:
Yeah. It's interesting. I read a book a long time ago that talked about the importance of small talk. Small talk actually helps us find things that we have in common. Talking about the weather, talking about things you might be bagging up and you say, ‘Hey, I like this too.’ It makes a connection. And like I said, you're very good at making those connections.

Jonathon:
I've just flat out joked before where I would see them getting a Vanilla Coke or White Cheddar Cheetos. And I'll jokingly say, ‘Hey, that's my item.’

Anthony Godfrey:
Because it's something that you like.

Jonathan:
Yeah.

Anthony Gofdrey:
You and I have had very similar experiences as courtesy clerks. So your time at, South Valley School’s coming to a close, this is your final year.

Jonathon:
Yes, it is. I'm gonna be graduating when the school year ends, that's gonna officially be it for me.

Anthony Godfrey:
So what's next for you?

Jonathon:
Well, what's next for me is that I'm gonna work on getting my driver's license because once I get my license, then I'll have the freedom to go pretty much wherever I want. Also, another thing I'm gonna be working on is completing my GED.

Anthony Godfrey:
Great. I love that. Two great goals. Are you gonna continue to work at Harmon's?

Jonathon:
Probably for a long time, at least another five to six years.

Anthony Godfrey:
Good. It's good. I love being at a grocery store. Everybody comes through. Now tell me which Harmon’s you work at.

Jonathon:
It's the one in Cougar.

Anthony Godfrey:
Oh, the Cougar Lane, the Kearns one kind of close to, just north of the airport.

Jonathan:
Yes.

Anthony Godfrey:
Okay. Awesome. Well, people can get lots of courtesy from the best courtesy clerk around stopping by in Kearns.

Jonathon:
They sure can. They noticed right away, within two months, that I was a good worker, cause I'm fast and efficient.

Anthony Godfrey:
And you connect to people. You've gotta have all three.

Jonathon:
You do.

Anthony Godfrey:
Now, I like to talk to graduates about advice. What advice do you have for people?

Jonathon:
To never stop believing in their dreams.

Anthony Godfrey:
Good.

Jonathan:
That life can be challenging at times, but that's the whole, I feel that's the whole point of it in all my years. And especially coming here to this specific school that there's always obstacles everywhere you go.

Anthony Godfrey:
Yeah.

Jonathan:
You know, it's like that song from Miley Cyrus you know, there's always another mountain, you know? And she talked about how sometimes you just have to accept defeat, but what's most important is getting back up on that horse.

Anthony Godfrey:
It's very inspiring Jonathon.

Jonathon:
And all of the motivations that I've heard over the years when I felt down, one of the things is short but simple, that says you can either get up or give up, you know.

Anthony Godfrey:
Getting up makes a lot more sense. That's very touching. That really rings true for me, Jonathon.

Jonathon:
And I hope it'll ring true for others too in this school.

Anthony Godfrey:
Yeah. I think it will. I think it will. You really embody that, you're a very positive person. How do you manage to stay positive all the time? Like you do, we all get down. How do you stay so positive?

Jonathon:
I just go with the flow of things. One of the things I've learned, and especially in this classroom right here is just to glow with the, you know, go with the flow. If you mess up, it sucks, you know, own it, but just, just keep moving on.

Anthony Godfrey:
It's gonna be a lot easier for me to go through my week. If I keep that, uh, attitude in mind, that's really smart.

Jonathon:
Well, it's just part of, it's just part of nature as well. If a horse is all wild and galloping and stuff, there's just no way you can hang on. It's just, it just is what it is. You know, you can't hang on and sometimes that's life and sometimes that's you, but regardless what choice it is, it's not a matter of how many times you fall. It's the amount of whether or not you choose to get back up or not.

Anthony Godfrey:
You get back up on that horse. But I also like what you said, you can't tame every horse.

Jonathon:
No, you can’t.

Anthony Godfrey:
So some of those you have to just walk away from.

Jonathon:
Some things you just have to just accept.

Anthony Godfrey:
Accept the way it is.

Jonathon:
Sometimes those, sometimes every win's not a win. Sometimes a lose is just a lose. It may hurt, it may suck, but that's, I feel like that's the whole point of it.

Anthony Godfrey:
Well, I sure appreciate your wisdom today, Jonathon. You're quite an individual. You're very well rounded in your thinking. You think about other people, you think about yourself.

Jonathon:
I always have empathy for others.

Anthony Godfrey:
Yeah, you really do. So I've been impressed with you from the start and that just deepens the more I get to know you. Sorry.

Jonathon:
No, you're good.

Anthony Godfrey:
You're quite miraculous. You're quite a guy. Sorry. I'm only crying Jonathon because I think you're pretty remarkable.

Jonathon:
Oh no. It's all good, man.

Anthony Godfrey:
It's just, I think you're quite a guy. I think you're quite a guy.

Jonathon:
I'm holding back myself too. Believe me.

Anthony Godfrey:
Yeah, no you're good. You're good. You know, you're leaving South Valley School. Tell me about a time that others have helped you when you've been here.

Jonathon:
There was, one of the people that had helped me was my old teacher Bob. And what I liked about Bob was that he's not only a great teacher, but he helps guide us into independent life. Just like with this class right here. But with this class it takes it a step up. And one of the things he always told me was to just, you know, keep going. You know, just keep moving.

Since I'm part of, you know, DSPD, I'm still special needs and everything. I would have, a little bit of time ago, I would have this one on one thing where a staff person from a community organization or whatever would come over and would help me out with whatever one may need. So one of those people that first came was named Michael. And at first I was very introverted. I just wanted to stay in my room all day. I didn't wanna do anything, but eventually he got me slowly but surely, he got me to come out the house and we ended up doing things together and we were having, you know, fun and all. I still hang out with him from time to time to this day.

Anthony Godfrey:
It's hard for me to imagine you being introverted, Jonathon.

Jonathon:
I think it's hard for anyone to believe that I'm introverted because I'm so better now at being sociable, compared to I was a couple years ago, per se. Even the first year starting in the school, I probably wouldn't be anywhere as good socially compared to where I am now.

Anthony Godfrey:
Well, I think that's a great lesson that we can change, that we can improve, that we can grow. Because so many times we tell ourselves things about ourselves that keep us from that type of growth that you just described. Oh, I'm this type of person. I'm not that type of person.

Jonathon:
I've honestly compared myself way too much in life. I've looked at myself unharshly and harshly at times.

Anthony Godfrey:
I know you have a lot of great things in your future. I really look forward to seeing you at Harmon’s now that I know where to find you. I'm really glad to know there's gonna be a way for us to stay connected.

Jonathon:
Just be sure not to bug me and disturb me from all my work.

Anthony Godfrey:
Now I'll tell you Jonathon, I promise to buy things and then go through your line to make sure that we are connected without distracting from your professionalism.

Jonathon:
But hey, if things get a little too much, like, especially around the holiday season, it's all good.

Anthony Godfrey:
Tell me your parting thoughts about South Valley School.

Jonathon:
One of the things I love is the whole opportunities we give to all of our students overall. We help educate them in whatever level they may be in, in whatever level they may be in. It could be a physical disability where they may be in a wheelchair. It could be a mental or psychological disability. One of the things I personally have is that I have a learning disability, which means that I need a lot more learning on something. Especially if it's something new, compared to the average person.

Anthony Godfrey:
What I like though, is that you give yourself the time and it doesn't make you less curious or less engaged. You just know what you need to do in order to learn what you wanna learn.

Jonathon:
In fact, that's what made me who I am today. That specific thing in fact. Because since I had to look at something a lot more closer, I had to really make sure I'm getting what I'm getting. And that's why I'm generally a deep thinker and deep questioner as a whole. And by having extra push, extra juice, into looking at a specific theme or topic or whatever it may be, helped make me the one of who I am today.

Anthony Godfrey:
Well, the result is quite remarkable. I know you have a lot of growth and great opportunities ahead of you as well. It's been an absolute delight talking with you and getting to know you. And I am thrilled that I know exactly where to shop, to stay connected. And Jonathon, I think you're quite a guy.

Jonathon:
I can say the same to you.

Anthony Godfrey:
Stay with us. When we come back, we're joined by Jonathon's mom and some staff at South Valley School.

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 Rita Bouillon, the principal at South Valley School and Codee Flores, a teacher, Jonathon's teacher. Tell us a little bit about South Valley School and about the class.

Rita Bouillon:
So at South Valley we have students' ages 18 to 22. And our job really is to prepare them to be great citizens in their community. So we work with them on getting jobs, learning UTA, learning to be independent to a different level than they've ever been given the opportunity before.

Anthony Godfrey:
And Codee, tell me about the class and, and about Jonathon in the class.

Codee Flores:
Our class, like Rita said, is to prepare the students for life after the school is over. I mean, they've gone to school for all these years. There's a life out there that they're ready to get to. And this class is preparing them to get jobs, to learn how to use the public transportation, to be better community members. That is our goal for all of our students.

Anthony Godfrey:
And is there a sense of urgency for students who are turning 22, they're about to graduate and maybe they connect a little bit more with the content of the class because they think, ‘Hey, this is coming fast and I better make sure that I'm ready.’

Codee Flores:
I feel that they do, and especially in this classroom. It's kind of like Jonathon said, a little bit of a step up for him even. We hold them accountable, we treat them as adults and we really focus on what they can do and letting them fail is part of that. We can't always do everything right. And we learn from all of our mistakes every single time.

Anthony Godfrey:
This is a really remarkable school, and the progress that students make when they come here is really amazing. Angela, you're Jonathon's mom, tell us about Jonathon.

Angela:
Where do you want me to start?

Anthony Godfrey:
There’s a lot to cover.

Angela:
Yes. Well, to give you a brief background, because I'm just really proud of how far he has come, and South Valley has really been a big part of that. But Jonathon's a twin and they were both born four months early. And so they were extremely behind, developmental disability disorder is what they were diagnosed with. So what that meant was, Jonathon has come a long ways. So just to give you a good idea, in the first grade he was still wearing pull-ups, he was drinking out of a sippy cup and he wasn't eating food, and he didn't give eye contact. And so that’s severe and of itself at that age. And then he went from there to here over the years, from having a lot of guidance from family and great support, you know, people in the community. But really it’s Jonathon, just always, you know, pushing. The song that he brought up about the mountain. A lot of times I thought of that as kind of an analogy, because I felt like as soon as I'd pushed them a bit and as soon as the twins, especially, you know, John specifically, cuz we're talking about him, but as he would get to a certain top of the mountain, you know, a certain scale, there'd be another one right there behind him. I was constantly pushing him and he didn't always like it, but he's always taken the bull by the horns and just keeps going.

Anthony Godfrey:
Well the combination of your pushing and his determination, it's incredible. The progress that Jonathon's made and he's quite something.

Angela:
Yeah, I have three disabled children and they're all amazing that way. And I can't say that I'm perfect at knowing when to pull back and when to push forward, you know. I've been blessed that I’m able to do that, but I believe that it's because of them that I'm able to do that. They let me know. You know, like when you're growing up, back in our generation, parents would say, ‘because I told you so’, or ‘you can't eat in the living room’ cause you know, all these great things. And you think when you're a kid that when you grow up, you're gonna say that to your children. Well, it wasn't the case. My kids keep me very accountable. And you learn that you have to lead by example, especially individuals who are a bit challenged.

You know, you kind of have to walk the walk right along with them. Jonathon though, what's amazing about him specifically is that I don't even have to really do that. He does it himself. His goals for being a student body officer was from the first year he was here. He knew he wanted to work at Harmon's four years ago and he would let people know that those are his goals. So sometimes people feel like they need to push him to help him get to those goals. But he's pushed himself. So he'll like take a step out and then, oh this is too scary. I'm gonna go back in and then he'll step out. So Jonathon has like, always been really good about determining when he can do something. And when he can't, he has role models to look towards and his brothers. What he likes, what he doesn't like, and he determines his own path.

He is very introverted. That's one thing that not too many people know about him. He still is, but I think coming here has really got him out of his shell because it's forced him to really be sociable, you know. Not just work hard academically or on his skills, and he's starting to enjoy himself. This last year has been huge because he's, instead of like, ‘I need to be sociable cuz this is what I'm trying to work on.’ It's been, ‘I'm just having a good time. I'm really enjoying.’ And when he said friendship, that's actually how I see it too, is that friendship's been like the biggest thing that he's really learned and come across this year.

Anthony Godfrey:
Well, congratulations on raising an incredible son.

Angela:
Thank you. I don't know that I have any credit for that.

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. Teacher Appreciation Week is an opportunity for everyone to honor educators for their dedication to a job that changes lives. On this special "Teacher Appreciation Week" episode of the Supercast we find out what it takes to be a teacher with an inside look at the District's Teacher Education program offered at JATC South in Riverton.

We're here with Brenda Straley, the teacher in the Teacher Education program at JATC South. Thanks for taking the time.

Brenda Straley:
Thank you, Dr. Godfrey, thank you for coming in.

Anthony Godfrey:
Tell us about this program. Many people may not realize that we have a Teacher Education program for students who want to be teachers.

Brenda Straley:
Yeah, so we've had this program for gosh, 14 or 15 years now, and I've been doing it for 13. Essentially, you know, we started out with the idea that we needed paraeducators. I think Todd Quarnberg was the one that originally started this. Then we slowly moved into really focusing on being Special Ed and general ed teachers, because obviously we see a need in our district and across the nation for teachers. One of the focuses for this program is that hands on ability to see things hands on. I really feel like if we had the switch of 80% of our time was spent working with a mentor teacher and 20% in the classroom learning things, then we'd be able to have teacher retention and be able to have those real opportunities to learn the things that are gonna happen in your classroom because you know, most teachers leave because of behavior management and they don't learn that.  So being in the practicums two days a week is an important part of this program where they get that hands-on learning. They work with a mentor teacher and are able to really see what it's all about.

We have Introduction to Education 1010, which is an introductory course that all colleges require of students. FHS 1500 is a three credit class and that's Human Growth and Development. And then SPED 1000, which is through Utah State University.  That is combined with the practicum, learning about Special Education, working with kids with disabilities.

Anthony Godfrey:
Wow. What a great start for kids who are interested in teaching. I love that they have that opportunity while they are still students. Do you think they look at their teachers differently as they're going through this program?

Brenda Straley:
They do. Some of my favorite comments are when I teach them about proximity control, and the teachers in their class will go around and stand by them as they're not paying attention. And then they look at their teacher and say, ‘I know what you're doing. It's called proximity control.’ Sorry teachers. That was me.

Anthony Godfrey:
Secrets out, secrets out.

Brenda Straley:
But yeah, they definitely look at their classes differently and they have more compassion for their teachers. Because they see what goes into being an educator, and they see how hard that teacher works, and how much time they put into a lesson plan.

Anthony Godfrey:
Teachers are taken for granted, there's no question about that. So for students to have that experience and to really see things from the other side, I wonder if every student ought to do a little bit of that so they can appreciate their teachers a little bit more.

Brenda Straley:
I think that's a good idea. Yeah.

Anthony Godfrey:
Tell me what draws students to the program. What do you find makes them want to be teachers as you talk with them?

Brenda Straley:
Gosh, you know, that's a really good question. I think they want to change the world. They come in with this idea of, they want to make a difference in kids' lives. Across the board that's what it's about. And sometimes they come in because a teacher made a difference for them. Sometimes they come in because they didn't have a teacher that made a difference for them. And I talk about that myself, and I say, ‘You know, I got into teaching because I was that student, and I didn't feel like I had a teacher who really understood me and liked me very much.’ And I was like, I'm gonna do something different. I really love high schoolers. I think they're the most amazing humans. And so I see kids getting into education, either wanting to make a difference or, you know, just being somebody that is there for students.

Anthony Godfrey:
Lots of great reasons to become a teacher and to have them reflecting on that at this age is just really exciting. What do you find that students think is most challenging about being a teacher when they first start?

Brenda Straley:
I think they're nervous about being in the classroom and behavior management is probably a big one. Being able to prevent the behavior, so I talk a lot about that. We want to manage our restaurant, we want to manage things. We want to make sure we prevent things from happening. And that's always really hard for students. And also that balance of wanting to be liked by the students. So important for a lot of future teachers.

Anthony Godfrey:
I remember being a student teacher, I was not much older than the high school students that I was teaching.

Brenda Straley:
Oh yeah.

Anthony Godfrey:
And my cooperating teacher that I was teaching under and learning from, my mentor teacher, was at the end of her career. And so I was just starting out and it was really strange to teach students that were just a few years younger than me. Do the students in your class teach all grades or do they mostly focus on elementary to start? Tell us a little bit more about that.

Brenda Straley:
Yeah, so mostly preschool to ninth grade. They often wanna go into the high school and I'm like, you guys already know what it's like to be in high school. I'm pretty sure that we can just have you in, you know, elementary. And so what I do is the first practicum that they do is whatever they want. So it's their comfort zone. For some reason, everyone wants to be a second grade teacher. I don't know. So they all go to second grade and then they're like, okay, now it's time to shake it up. Now I want you to go outside of your comfort zone and you're going to something that you are not excited about doing, or you're afraid to do. And that's where growth happens. So then that usually is middle school, bless those middle school teachers. And they do middle school and they either decide they love it or they hate it. And then I encourage them to go into a special education classroom so that they have experience with working with kids with disabilities. And I let them know as well that any class you're in, you're gonna have many students with disabilities in your class. So you might think you don't, but you do. Those invisible disabilities.

Anthony Godfrey:
And helping them understand that being a teacher means focusing on the needs of each individual student in class is is a really great message for them.

Brenda Straley:
Absolutely.

Anthony Godfrey:
What would you say to students who are considering being part of this program?

Brenda Straley:
Absolutely do it. Even if you don't wanna be a teacher, you can find out if you do or don't. That's just as exciting to me as, you know, if somebody comes in my program and they're like, I wanna be a teacher. And then by the time they're done, they don't, that's just as exciting. That's really important. And that's what we're here for at JATC. That's what we're here for in CTE and Career Development is to give students opportunities to try on different hats and see what's gonna work for them. Because the only way you're gonna know is if you try it. We have so many great programs that you can just kind of try one on.

Anthony Godfrey:
And I think that's a great point. Maybe you join this program and find out you want to be a teacher, or you find out that you didn't want to teach second grade after all, and you do want to teach a different grade. I loved teaching eighth grade myself. Or you find out that it's not for you. And finding out it's not for you, like you said gives you different perspective on other careers you might consider and you learn something about yourself, no matter what.

Brenda Straley:
Absolutely.

Anthony Godfrey:
Well, I love that you're doing this program. We love our teachers and I love that you're helping us find even more among our own students. And this is a great start for them to be on the path to a wonderful career and a rewarding career as a teacher. So thank you for doing that.

Brenda Straley:
Thank you, Dr. Godfrey. This is a great program. And I just really, I feel it's an honor to be able to teach and do this program.

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 students from the Teacher Education program at JATC South, introduce yourselves.

Brooklyn:
I'm Brooklyn.

Jacqueline:
I'm Jacqueline.

Bode:
I'm Bode.

Anthony Godfrey:
Tell me, why are you taking this class?

Brooklyn:
I have a passion for social studies. I always knew I wanted to do something in that field. And my mom wants to be a teacher too. So we both have kind of decided to go down this path together.

Anthony Godfrey:
So your mom is pursuing a career in education also. And what does she want to teach?

Brooklyn:
The same thing, she's going to USU online and she's really close to finishing her degree. So it's been really cool to see her do that.

Anthony Godfrey:
So she's a little bit ahead of you.

Brooklyn:
Yeah, definitely.

Anthony Godfrey:
Yeah, that's good. She's forging a path. You can learn a lot from her, get some materials from her. Awesome. Why did you decide to take this class?

Jacqueline:
I decided to take it because I really wanted to just broaden my spectrum and like really understand what teaching is and what it's like to be in the education system. And it's given me the opportunity through practicum and interviewing with other teachers. And it's been really great.

Anthony Godfrey:
And what are some of the things that you've learned being in this program?

Jacqueline:
I've learned that teaching is not as easy as it sounds and there's a lot more than it looks. Teachers really dedicate their lives and their wellbeing to the students. And I think that's very important to consider.

Anthony Godfrey:
What is it that you want to teach?

Jacqueline:
I want to be an elementary teacher, fifth grade, probably.

Anthony Godfrey:
Great. And tell me why you decided to join the program.

Bode:
So originally I applied to the school with like the goal of going to Computer Programming, but I applied for Teachers Ed as well as a backup, because I always like helping people. That's always something I love doing throughout my entire life. So I didn't get Computer Programming, but I did get this class. And so over the course of it, I've grown a lot more passionate about helping out kids with their education and being able to be there for them and be a facilitator and also to help know that they're cared for and have a space to learn.

Anthony Godfrey:
What are some things that you learned that maybe surprised you?

Bode:
I guess I learned that both that maybe teachers deserve a little bit better, but also that teachers have a lot more than I thought too. It's like both those things at the same time, because I know that teachers have a lot more skills that they learn than I originally thought, and that they have a lot more things to do and that, so they have a lot more ways to connect with students and to be able to give them what they need in order to succeed in the class.

Anthony Godfrey:
And what do you want to teach?

Bode:
I'm kind of split between a lot of things right now. But right now, if I go into high school it would either be chemistry or astronomy. And if it's Special Ed it would probably be elementary, maybe like something like Severe Special Ed for like sixth grade, which is where I'm volunteering right now actually.

Anthony Godfrey:
Yeah. So you have a wide range of options ahead of you.

Bode:
Yeah, I do.

Anthony Godfrey:
Now, many people may not realize that there's a competitive aspect to being in this program. There are state and national competitions and you guys are participating at the national level. So tell me about that.

Brooklyn:
I competed in the division called Creative Lecture. It's like public speaking, but it's supposed to be around like a Ted Talk type of style. I chose that because I feel like I'm really good at kind of talking to people. Like, I'm not good at reciting off like a memorized speech. And so I thought that would be better for me because I'm really good at like talking and explaining myself through. And so that's the division I chose and I think it turned out really, really well.

Anthony Godfrey:
And you're going to Nationals.

Brooklyn:
Yeah, I'm going to Nationals. So I think I did a good job picking a division.

Anthony Godfrey:
What's your topic?

Brooklyn:
It was on what schools can do to help kids struggling from the pandemic. So like helping kids with their social and emotional health.

Anthony Godfrey:
And what category did you compete in?

Jacqueline:
I competed in Children's Literature Pre-K. So I was the illustrator of the book, my friend Abby, she wrote the book and it was just very, very fun going through and finding careers. So we titled our book Careers in the Alphabet and we wanted to really talk about that even though it's a Pre-K book. We wanted to like start broadening children's spectrums like about what's in the world, what you can accomplish and what you can go through. There's a lot of jobs and there's a lot of opportunities that are misrepresented and not really talked about in schools. I think it's important that kids are exposed to lots of different careers and lots of different things so they can really feel passionate about what they're doing.

Anthony Godfrey:
Is being an illustrator something that you want to do long term?

Jacqueline:
An illustrator would be a very good job. Yeah. I really do enjoy art.

Anthony Godfrey:
What category did you compete in?

Bode:
So I competed in Exploring Support Services Careers. So I had to job shadow someone who does a non essential teacher, like support service for students in the school. So I did an SLP at a preschool who helps out with children who struggle with pronouncing certain parts of words.

Anthony Godfrey:
And what did you learn through that experience?

Bode:
Oh, I learned a lot. I learned that it's really, really fun. I learned that a lot of people in support services, especially in schools, have a much more flexible like schedule and like curriculum that they have to teach and that they get a lot of support from the school to do what they need to do.

Anthony Godfrey:
Well, great. Well congratulations on making Nationals and good luck back in DC.

Students:
Thank you.

Anthony Godfrey:
Tell me your names.

Kylie:
I'm Kylie.

Aubrey:
Aubrey.

Kali:
I'm Kali.

Markelle:
I'm Markelle.

Speaker 8:
I'm Elinor.

Anthony Godfrey:
What makes each of you want to be a teacher?

Kylie:
I really like people paying attention to me. Like, I think it's really fun but also, I just, I wanna see like myself making a difference in the world.

Aubrey:
Mine actually came from when I was a little kid. My mom was a preschool teacher and that really kinda like, you know, little kids think, oh, I wanna be just like mom, like just like dad or whoever. And as I grew older and saw more examples of like the impact teachers can have on students and just even the impact that they have on their students' learning, I really want to do that. Cause I think education is really important for kids and I want them to understand that not only is it important, but can be fun. It doesn't just have to be here, we're gonna sit at this desk and we're gonna take the notes and just move on.

Kali:
I've always wanted to be a teacher when I was little. I wanted to because I love bossing people around. But ever since fourth grade I had a really inspirational teacher who taught me to be myself and how to inspire others. And so just ever since then, I've been so inspired by her and I've wanted to be a teacher just like her, who can just help shape the students of our future.

Markelle:
I actually didn't wanna be a teacher until about 10th grade because I always liked the idea of being a veterinarian. And then I had somebody tell me you're really patient with people and I think you'd be like a teacher. And then I started thinking about it and then the aspect of changing his child's life really pushed me over to want to be a teacher.

Elinor:
Both of my parents are teachers and I saw how much they learned from the students and how much they taught the students and made an impact. And how like my mom was having students from, I don't know, however many years ago like contact her and be like, ‘Hey, I'm getting married. You should come.’ And so like, just like the connection, like in building with the students, like I wanted that and making an impact.

Anthony Godfrey:
You've all hit on really important and rewarding aspects of being a teacher, especially having everyone pay attention to you, you know, that's key. I'm really excited that you want to be teachers and you're all hired right now on the spot. So that's exciting for me that I just recruited five more teachers. So tell me about competition. I did not realize until a few years ago that there were teacher competitions. Tell me what category you competed in and a little bit about that.

Kylie:
So I was competing in lesson delivery and like lesson planning and delivery. And I taught a lesson about like how to crochet. I got third place, which is kind of cool, but it was really fun and really eye opening, just like to see the learning process of something I've been doing, like for the past 12 years. Just being able to see people starting out and I didn't win, but that's okay because I think that the process of it was really cool.

Anthony Godfrey:
And that's really the trick of it, is helping someone else get good at something you're already good at.

Kylie:
Yeah.

Aubrey:
So my contest, well not contest, competition was researching learning challenges. So this one was more, it was a partnership. So my partner was Braxon, but he's not here right now. And what we did is we went and we researched. The topic this year was visual impairment and the challenges they could have with learning and just in general, but also what could we do to help make it better? Like what are some possible solutions? And we ended up getting second place and that was pretty exciting.

Anthony Godfrey:
Great. Congratulations.

Kali:
All right. So one thing I just wanna say is I had no idea Educators Rising was even a thing until being here at JATC South and I want more people know about it because it was really an amazing opportunity to just better develop my skills. So I did public speaking and I kind of talked about in my speech, just the achievement gap between white, Black, Hispanic, and low income students. And just how schools and teachers can just improve equality within schools, especially after the challenges that came from virtual learning. Just doing all of that research really opened up my eyes to a lot of things that I hadn't recognized within teaching. And it also just bettered my personal philosophy about teaching.

Markelle:
So I also did public speaking. The topic this year was what are the gaps that people have had between white, Black, Hispanic and low income learning through virtual schooling. Our task was to come up with solutions as to what we could do to fix that. I loved learning and researching about different solutions and different things that people have done and kind of implementing them into my own. And then I made sure to mention, you know, the issues with like school funding, because none of this would be possible without teachers. And so I think, out of my whole speech, that was something that I loved so much was being able to tell the judges, you know, this school funding is such a big thing that nobody really ever tends to realize unless you're in education. So, I didn't place, which is totally fine. As long as I got my message across, I'm fine.

Anthony Godfrey:
And you learned a lot.

Markelle:
I did. I learned a ton.

Elinor:
So I wrote a children's book with a partner named Gracee, she's not here right now also. But we wrote a Kindergarten through 3rd grade children's book called Alphabet Animal Party. And like our focus was kind of it was ABC. So we had a different animal for each letter of the alphabet and they were all coming together to create a party for their best friend. And we just wanted to kind of put across the message that like, it doesn't matter who you are, where you came from, but coming together and creating something for a friend can bring unity.

Anthony Godfrey:
Great message and a great experience I'm sure. Well, you're all fabulous. I'm so impressed. And it's been a real pleasure talking with you and good luck in your career. I look forward to seeing you in just a few years.

Students:
Thank you.

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