Supercast

Anthony Godfrey:
Hello, and welcome to the Supercast. I'm your host, Superintendent Anthony Godfrey. They will be running, climbing, jumping, crawling, and making their way through mud, all to benefit kids in the classroom. On this episode of the Supercast, we dive into the Jordan Education Foundations Challenge Obstacle Run, which is being held on Saturday, May 14th at Veterans Memorial Park in West Jordan. Find out why it has become one of the most popular obstacle runs in the state resulting in fun for families and a big win for teachers in Jordan School District.

We are fortunate to have the director of the Jordan Education Foundation here, Mike Haynes. Mike, how are you doing?

Mike Haynes:
Well, thank you. Great to be here.

Anthony Godfrey:
You're always doing well.

Mike Haynes:
Well, thank you.

Anthony Godfrey:
And it's always great to be wherever you are. You're always so positive and ready to go. And we have Jason Casto, the past past president of the Jordan Education Foundation and longtime contributor and foundation board member. Thanks for joining us.

Jason Casto:
I'm glad to be here.

Anthony Godfrey:
Two of the most positive, energetic people I know, and I'm not exaggerating. And I know a lot of positive, energetic people.

Jason Casto:
I agree with you. It always is nice to be where Mike is at.

Anthony Godfrey:
That's right. You’re both so energized and happy because you get to do so many great things for kids and for teachers and for the employees of our district.

Jason Casto:
You’re right.
Anthony Godfrey:
One of the ways you accomplish that as a Foundation is through the Challenge Run.

Jason Casto:
Absolutely. The Challenge Run.

Anthony Godfrey:
It's one of the ways that we mark time. You know, one of those markers is that as spring comes, I know that the Challenge Run is approaching. It's something I always look forward to and we haven't been able to do it with COVID getting in the way. This is really an exciting thing that we're back in business.

Jason Casto:
Yeah. Two year hiatus. We're so excited to be back.

Anthony Godfrey:
We see people of all ages participate. Talk to me about who can come to this event and enjoy it.

Jason Casto:
Yeah. So I do wanna say very strongly right out of the gate that sometimes people hear an obstacle course and they think, all right, I'm out. You know, they might think of some of the extreme sports that we see kind of in our communities or on TVs. And this is not that. This is not the kind of obstacle course that you have to train for. We want to give people the idea of doing something fun. Doing something a little different, not your typical 5k or one mile walk or that type of thing. A little bit different, but not so intense that you feel like, all right, I have to have a training regimen going in. Anybody can do this. It's for the whole entire family. We say, you know, eight and up, but all in all honesty, we've had as young as a parent carrying their child in a little harness on their chest. And so we want everyone to feel welcome. You can really engage with the obstacles or hey, if this happens to be one that you don't want to go through the mud pit, you can go around the mud pit.

Anthony Godfrey:
I think Brené Brown, that's a quote from Brené Brown.

Jason Casto:
That’s it exactly.

Anthony Godfrey:
You can go through the mud pit or around it. I don't know something like that. Yeah, there really is an ability for people of all ages, and athletic ability to really enjoy it. You can, like you said, you can decide how much you engage with various obstacles. And there's a lot of work that goes into setting up a really exciting course. And so it is a challenge run. You challenge yourself and see how much you can get out of yourself in this run. And that's part of the fun of it.

Jason Casto:
Yeah. Maybe I can describe a little bit some of the things that they're gonna go through. So the run is done at Veterans Memorial Park in West Jordan, and it incorporates the whole entire park, including the rodeo grounds. The rodeo grounds and that area back there is kind of where most of the obstacles are.

Anthony Godfrey:
Is bull riding a part of it, or have we eliminated that?

Mike Haynes:
That's a good idea.

Jason Casto:
We had that on the table and it just slightly got voted down.

Anthony Godfrey:
Okay. All right. Fair enough. Fair enough.

Jason Casto:
So some of the things that you'll do is there's the before mentioned mud pit. We always have a mud pit that people, you know, kind of tredge themselves through. Then inside the rodeo grounds, there are a whole bunch of cement barricades. So there's kind of a high hurdling of cement barricades. There's a sandbag carry where you gotta pick up sandbag and carry it kind of down and back. There's an army crawl. So crawling underneath the army net, which is super, super fun. Then we go inside where the cattle are normally held during the rodeo. And we kind of do a zigzag through there. We have a spiders web worth of rope that we tie. So you have to kind of wind yourself and weave yourself through there. There's some climbing underneath the bleachers. There is the Superman water slide towards the end where you get a running start and with the aid of water and soap, slide all the way down the hill. That's a highlight both from a fun standpoint and from a picture standpoint.

Mike Haynes:
Yes, there's where our highlights come from.

Jason Casto:
Our best pictures come from that, unquestionably.

Anthony Godfrey:
And we've had a drone taking pictures if I’m not mistaken.

Jason Casto:
Yes, indeed. We have, again this year, we’ll have several drones that will be there taking pictures of the whole event.

Anthony Godfrey:
So we’ll be well documented.

Jason Casto:
Well documented, absolutely.

Anthony Godfrey:
We want to have everything up front. Okay. After the slip and slide, sorry, I interrupted your rundown of the obstacle course.

Jason Casto:
Well, we finish with a 120 foot long blowup obstacle that people kind of jump and climb through, which is a fun way to finish towards the finish line. There's a couple of other things in the back area, way out in the back fields, where you stop at a station and you use a sledge hammer to break a brick. I mean, hey, when do you get a chance to do that? Everyone wants to swing a sledge hammer.

Anthony Godfrey:
So if there's any anxiety or frustration in your life, this will cure it.

Jason Casto:
Yeah. You hear about the rage rooms where you gotta go, you know, and pay some money to bust a computer up. Hey, you could do this and a bunch of other stuff.

Anthony Godfrey:
And, and if you feel like your kids are getting too much screen time, get 'em out into the challenge run.

Jason Casto:
Exactly. And after the break brick with the sledge hammer, there's also a station where you stop and you use a slingshot and a paintball to hit a target. I mean, just fun stuff.

Anthony Godfrey:
Stay with us when we come back, find out why participants will also be dancing the day away to great music as I DJ the event. More fun with the Jordan Education Foundation coming up next.

Break:
Hello, I'm Stacee Worthen, Secondary Counseling Specialist for Jordan School District. Do you know all the ways Jordan School District counselors can help you and your students? School counselors play such an important role in our schools. They provide parents with resources to help guide their children in academics. They provide support with the mental and social well being of students in our schools. And if you are in the process of preparing a student for college, or just beginning the conversation of higher education, now is the perfect time to reach out to your child counselor. We can assist with college applications and college readiness. I encourage parents and guardians to schedule an appointment and get to know your student's counselor. Together, counselors and parents can help develop plans and strategies for students to succeed long after they leave Jordan School District. Reach out! We're always here to help. You can find us and learn more at counseling.jordandistrict.org.

Anthony Godfrey:
I do have a role in the challenge that I'm quite proud of.

Jason Casto:
Yes.

Anthony Godfrey:
And that is I get to DJ the event. I assume that I'm on the docket again this year?

Jason Casto:
We also assumed that, so I'm glad to hear that. If the official invitation hasn't been extended, consider it officially extended.

Anthony Godfrey:
No, I'm planning on it. I've been working on my classic rock playlist with some new tunes for the kids as well. You know, what all the youngsters are listening to these days. But yeah, I like to mix it up and create a good sonic environment in which to challenge yourself and to complete the run. I like making people listen to the music I choose, really is what it comes down to.

Jason Casto:
Yeah. That classic rock list. That’s my favorite part of it.

Anthony Godfrey:
And I know Mike's penchant for RATT and other, you know, hair bands from the 80s.

Mike Haynes:
Anything where an air guitar is appropriate.

Anthony Godfrey:
My real goal is when I put a song on and then I watch for the groups of teenagers and see that I'm getting a reaction.

Jason Casto:
That's fun. That's when you know you've hit the mark.

Anthony Godfrey:
Ultimately, then the next song is for Mike. When he breaks into air guitar then I know I've hit my mark once again for the range of audience. But it really is fun. And, as I mentioned, the group of teenagers, there are teams that can be formed and schools can form teams. So tell us about how that works.

Jason Casto:
Yeah, that really defines the structure of the race. Remember the point is to get money into classrooms for teachers and students. So the way that we do it is we have teachers sign up, teachers do it for free. So teachers are given a code so that they can create a team for free. So when they sign up, they create a team. A school can create a team, or a single teacher can create a team, or a group of teachers can create a team. And then as the community in general starts to sign up for the race, they are required to select a team. So someone might say, ‘Oh, I would like to select a team of, you know, Herriman High School or South Jordan Middle School. Or they are joining because some specific teacher has said, ‘Come and participate, come help me get money for my classroom.’ Then they'll join that specific teacher's team. And so we definitely do it all around teams. The bigger the team, the bigger the grant that the teacher gets. So that's our goal for teachers to build as big of teams as possible. The school that has the highest participation, whatever school by a percentage has more participation than any other, they're the big winner. They're the Challenge champions. They get a trophy. We have a traveling trophy every year. The winner gets their name on the side of the plaque and the big trophy. And they get a $2,500 grant for their school.

Anthony Godfrey:
That's fantastic! That can make a big difference for a school.

Jason Casto:
Yeah, absolutely.

Anthony Godfrey:
And all of the money that comes from the challenge run goes to schools and to teachers. All of that is distributed.

Jason Casto:
Yeah, absolutely. All the money that comes in is distributed to the teachers for their classroom grants.

Anthony Godfrey:
Now as a runner in the event, you receive prizes. We have great sponsors that are there after the event. Great food. As DJ I expend a lot of energy.

Jason Casto:
And you need to replenish that energy.

Anthony Godfrey:
I need yogurt. I need sparkling colorful beverages. And all of those are available. Talk a little bit about that. And there's a shirt. So what do people get besides the sense of community and the chance to challenge themselves?

Jason Casto:
When you sign up, you do get a shirt, and so you're asked for your shirt size. So everyone will get a Challenge Obstacle Run shirt. And then, just as you mentioned, there are a lot of businesses that wanna participate and be part of this. So every year we have many that are there that are giving away freebies to the runners. We will have Chick-fil-A there that will be giving away breakfast sandwiches. Other places will be there, like in the past we've had In-N-Out Burger. Because after the race, there's kind of a festival atmosphere. There's rock climbing walls and trampolines. And we have mascots from the various Utah sports teams and from the various high schools. And so there's a lot of activity going on there. Things like face painting and then the different businesses will be there giving away free food. And so always things like ice cream, like Creamies and Fat Boys and Dannon and Pepsi have both been big sponsors in the past and will be this year, providing drinks, free drinks, you know, other types of treats and food. And no one goes away hungry.

Anthony Godfrey:
I remember hearing from runners over the years that this was the best event for the after run swag and food and everything else. I remember I got a phone case from Mike Haynes. We had a booth with all these phone cases that a vendor had donated. You just never know what you're gonna find. I spun the wheel at the In-N-Out booth and got a little sippy cup thing.

Jason Casto:
You definitely will come away with a big, you know, haul of swag from this event.

Anthony Godfrey:
Yes, you'll have to have some energy left to carry everything to the car that you end up with after your race. So do folks sign up for the race.

Jason Casto:
So if you'll go to J E F challenge, so J E F for the Jordan Education Foundation, JEFchallenge.org that will direct you right to the signup. It’s super easy to sign up, a very simple process. Enter your information and then select your team and you are ready to go.

Anthony Godfrey:
We'll include all of this information in the show notes as well, but tell us date, time, location and then that web address again.

Jason Casto:
Yeah. So JEFchallenge.org. It's May 14th. So we're about three weeks away. So Saturday, May 14th, we start at 9:00 AM. The run lasts for about an hour. We kind of stagger start times. Most people get through the course in about, you know, 30 to 45 minutes. And then from about 10, 10:30 to noon, that's kind of the festival after. It's in West Jordan City at Veterans Memorial park. The address of that is 1985 West 7800 South. So basically on the south west corner of Redwood Road and 7800 South.

Anthony Godfrey:
And what does it cost to sign up?

Jason Casto:
It's $20 to sign up. When you sign up, you get the aforementioned stuff that we talked about, all that good stuff. And you also are given the opportunity if you have someone in your network that can't participate or can do more than just simply sign up, every teacher who creates a team is given a fundraising team as well. And we encourage and ask for people to also do donations. So hey, you can come and run and have a great time to support your teacher. And you can also do a donation that will go directly to that teacher as well. And it's just a nice, simple way to do it. The whole signup process, you can contribute and sign up all the same site, very simple.

Anthony Godfrey:
And one of the things that I've always been so impressed with is the amount of effort that the Foundation puts behind this. When you described all those obstacles, that's the Foundation putting together this route, putting together everything that you've described, but you also visit every school to talk with the faculty and to be sure that they know about creating a team and how they can make this a fundraising event for their school or, or for their grade level.

Jason Casto:
So one of the things we love, it gets us into all the schools. As board members of the Foundation, our goal is to be visible and be in the schools. And so we try to do that all year. This event is another, you know, chance to be there. And that is true. We have been in a faculty meeting at almost every single school in the District, letting them know about it. If you happen to be listening to this as a teacher and you missed our faculty event or were not there, please consider this your reminder about it. And if you use Teacher2022 as a code, that's your code to sign up for free.

Anthony Godfrey:
Okay, great. So the code is out there.

Jason Casto:
Cheat code out. Cheat code out.

Anthony Godfrey:
It’s been revealed. Our listeners get all kinds of perks, that's just one more perk that they get. I just want to reemphasize that about the Foundation. The Foundation is made up of community members, business owners, people who are just interested in helping the District. Some have kids in the District, some don't, and it's just a desire to help lift teachers, lift students, lift our employees and help provide support. And it's very, very inspiring. One of the most rewarding things that I do is to get to associate with Foundation members and see the dedication that they put into our District. It shows how important Jordan District is to the community. And it shows what a great community we have to provide us that level of support year after year, day in and day out. And it means the world. So thank you.

Jason Casto:
Well, thank you, absolutely. That, that perfectly, what you said describes me. I had children that all went to the school district and I wanted to be a part and a contributor. And you know, that was 13 years ago. I particularly had one teacher that made a miracle of a difference in one of my son's lives. And I thought, how can I give back? My kids are all grown now and have long stopped being in school, but I love the District and want to help. And there's a lot of people like me. There's other people that aren't on the Board, that are actively engaged in their school. And every year we are out and people get involved and then they ask, what can I do next year? Our committee and those who are participating just continue to grow because there's a lot of people who love teachers and students and want help.

Anthony Godfrey:
And it's like you said, it's based on those miracles that happen because a teacher cared about a child and went the distance to help them no matter what it took. And like you said, there are many, many people out there who want to help and it's inspiring to see the Foundation continue to support us as they do. So thank you for that. Give us the web address just one more time, Mike.

Mike Haynes:
So JEFchallenge.org

Anthony Godfrey:
To everybody out there, sign up, become a part of it. It's a blast. It's a great way to give back. And it won't feel like you're giving back because you get every bit of value out of that $20. It's a great morning for you. And just mention that you listened to the Supercast, come up and find me. I'll play your song for you. After I play Mike's hair metal for him. There you go.

Mike Haynes:
There you go.

Anthony Godfrey:
I gotta take care of him first, but you're next. Come talk with me and we'll get your song on. Thanks again for taking the time and thanks for everything you do for the foundation.

Mike Haynes:
Thanks for having us.

Jason Casto:
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.

Anthony Godfrey:
Hello, and welcome to the Supercast. I'm your host, Superintendent Anthony Godfrey. He put his thoughts into words in a high school essay assignment, several months in the making. On this episode of the Supercast, a Riverton High School student, his mom, and teacher share some powerful lessons learned from the essay assignment. And we find out how one caring and compassionate teacher is impacting lives.

We're at Riverton High School with DeSean. He's a junior at Riverton, and he's done a project writing about his life, talking about some of the difficulties that he's gone through. And I want to talk with him about the project and about some of the things that he's learned as a result. We're also here with Shasta Burton. Shasta, tell us your role in working with DeSean and a little bit about the assignment to start with.

Shasta Burton:
Sure. So DeSean was in my virtual language arts class and we had a journal prompt that he responded to that was really inspiring to me. And so I made an offer to have a project replace some of his other assignments that he was missing and it just kind of blew up and turned into a really amazing thing.

Anthony Godfrey:
Tell me about your initial reaction to what he wrote.

Shasta Burton:
I was excited because he was completing an assignment and so there was some celebration there. And then as I was reading his response, I realized that there was a lot going on here that we could talk about. And really help him find himself again in school and getting him to participate more and just making sure he had his voice.

Anthony Godfrey:
And that's really what an effective assignment is about. Helping a student find their voice and helping them really discover something authentic about themselves. And so it's that authenticity and an assignment that can really lead to something. So I'm glad that you took the initiative and saw that there was something there so that you could pull DeSean into maybe a deeper exploration of what was going on with him.

Shasta Burton:
Yeah, absolutely.

Anthony Godfrey:
So DeSean, tell me a little bit about what it felt like to have your teacher ask you to explore this. Did that surprise you after your initial assignment?

DeSean:
Yeah, I was in shock. I didn't know what to think. I wasn't expecting it to like turn into that. I just did an assignment. So it was just really shocking to me.

Anthony Godfrey:
Tell me why this assignment sparked for you a little better than some others did.

DeSean:
I think the assignment was like a big thing in my grade. I don't know. So I just emailed her. I was like, ‘Hey, can I just write about my dad's addiction and his journey?’ And she's like, ‘yeah, that's fine.’ And so that's kind of just what I did it on. And like I have like all his journals and letters. So like I just wrote it off what he was saying how his life is.

Anthony Godfrey:
So tell me about what that was like. Tell me about how you learned about your father and some things that you learned about him and what you've learned for yourself as a result.

DeSean:
What I've learned from him is that I know what is right from wrong and that you should never pick up drugs. It's a really hard subject to talk about. Like, I don't know, he wasn't really there, so I don't know how it is to like grow up with it and stuff like that. So like when I did write it and like when I did get to meet him, like it was a good, it was a good time. Like we got really close, but like once he like died, it was just, I don't know, it kind of just turned. I think that's what the assignment really helped me change, because I've changed so much as a person from that. Just opening up about his life and how it has taken a part on me.

Anthony Godfrey:
I know it may be the difficult to talk about, but tell me about your father.

DeSean:
So from like what his journals that he wrote has said it's like, it's just like talking about how he grew up. Going over those, I do see how he had a really hard life. I didn't really know him. It was like seventh grade when I found out who my father was. And then like, I didn't want to meet him until I knew he was clean and sober, so I didn't. Then like him and my mom, like kinda reconnected and stayed in contact.

Anthony Godfrey:
And how long ago did your father pass away?

DeSean:
Almost two years ago.

Anthony Godfrey:
As you wrote the project, did it make you feel more closely connected to your father?

DeSean:
It did because I kind of just, it felt like I understood what he was going through and like how hard it was. Reading all his journals and his letters, it kind of did make me feel closer to him because those are the only things that I had of him. So like I could just read those and like kind of just, I had that connection with him. Like we kind of just got closer through me getting closer with his personal items.

Anthony Godfrey:
So really it was his writing and your writing, both that brought you closer together?

DeSean:
Yeah. Maybe it's like his plan for me to be his voice. Cuz like, I don't know his, I was just maybe his voice.

Anthony Godfrey:
We also have Laura here who is DeSean's mother. Laura, tell us how did this assignment change to DeSean?

Laura:
It meant a lot because I know the impact it's had on DeSean. He has been able to talk about things more. He's asked questions more and getting into his assignment, gave him a chance to explore what it's really like to be a child of somebody that's an addict and not know where to go or where to turn. And it gave him an option to kind of let those things out and vent in a way that maybe he and I couldn't relate to at the time. He and I relate great and we have a good connection. But I think going through something as traumatic as losing somebody and in that way to addiction, that it helped him kind of release those feelings and be okay with talking about things. And gave him a little bit more hope in life in general.

Anthony Godfrey:
Have you seen changes in DeSean since he wrote this and since he's been through what he has?

Laura:
Yes. This last year's been a complete full circle. He went from being quiet and depressed, sad, lonely to happy, outgoing, wanting to go to school, wanting to go to work, setting goals for himself and accomplishing those goals. And it's kind of given him more of a sense of communication. We can talk about things that maybe other people don't feel comfortable talking about because we've had that traumatic loss. He would ask me questions throughout the assignment and I would just push him to be open and honest and feel it and know that feelings are okay.

Anthony Godfrey:
That's the best kind of assignment that involves family, that has the support of a parent. And that really helps you explore yourself and understand yourself better. Your mom talked about some goals. What are your goals for the future and, and what are your plans?

DeSean:
I really want to graduate high school, which is kind of hard for me right now. I just want to be able to be successful in life. That's really just my end goal is just to be successful and in the future to be a father to kids and to get that connection, cuz I didn't grow up with that. So that's kind of what I want to set, is to be a good father figure too.

Anthony Godfrey:
I think that's a good combination and you're in the middle of your junior year. So there's time for you to accomplish whatever you need to to graduate from high school. So we'll help you. However, we can Stay with us. When we come back, DeSean reads an excerpt from his life changing essay.

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.

DeSean:
So I'm gonna talk about the first time I met my dad.

Three years later, I finally met him. I was a nervous 15 year old. My mom had given my dad my phone number with my permission. He texted me March 26th, 2020. I received the text saying ‘DeSean, Hi it’s Wendell.’ I was shaking, had the jitters. I anxiously responded establishing the roots of a relationship.

Anthony Godfrey:
Okay. Any advice for anyone out there who may be struggling, trying to get through difficult circumstances trying to graduate?

DeSean:
I would just say like you kind of just have to have the positive mindset. It's hard. I get it, it's hard. It is really hard like losing your dad through high school is, and it just takes a toll on you. And then like with other kids growing up, with them going through like addiction, they might not know what to do or like what to say. It's just like not a thing to keep quiet about. Like you have to speak up about it and let others know what is happening so they can at least try to help fix it.

Anthony Godfrey:
I admire that you were willing to not only write about your circumstances and the difficulties that you'd been through, but also to share that with us today for the podcast. So thank you very much for taking the time to talk with me and I wish you the very best through the rest of high school as you get to graduation and beyond.

DeSean:
All right. Thank you. It's a pleasure being on the show.

Anthony Godfrey:
Shasta. How does it feel to see an assignment of yours, and an assignment that you expanded, be so impactful in the life of a family and of a student?

Shasta Burton:
I really feel honored. At first it was really intimidating because it's such a sensitive topic and I wanted to be careful at the same time. Like we have this project with these standards and the things that we have to focus on. And how do I merge this with such an important story that needs to be told? And how do I approach helping him be a better writer without taking away from his story or making him feel like his voice is being squashed? It was intimidating for me because I wanted to do right by DeSean and his mom and his dad. So it was humbling. It was honoring. It was intimidating and I'm just, I'm really grateful to be here. And it's so exciting to see DeSean and the connections that he's been willing to make. The empathy he has for his father.

Anthony Godfrey:
Laura, any final thoughts about the project or the progress that Dashaun has made?

Laura:
I am very proud of this kid here. He's gone through a lot in the last two years from, you know, moving to a new school and having everything new, to losing his father, to falling way behind on online school. Having a teacher just give him the opportunity to expand himself and open up has changed him completely. He's a hardworking kid and he's got a lot of goals and a lot of things on his plate that he manages to do, but it's brought him out of his shell and it's given him a chance. He communicates better from this project. He talks to us more. We have good communication. It may not be the funnest of times sometimes, but I mean it's really helped him to be able to communicate not only with his family, his teachers and let people know like I'm not doing okay or I am doing okay and asking those questions.

Anthony Godfrey:
Communication is the key to having great support and giving everyone the chance to help you and for you to help them. I'm really impressed with your progress and wish you the best going forward.

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.

Anthony Godfrey:
Hello, and welcome to the Supercast. I'm your host, Superintendent Anthony Godfrey. It is an academic program that has been getting Utah kids excited about history for 30 years. We're talking about the Utah History Fair. On this episode of the Supercast, we find out how some Daybreak Elementary students use their knowledge and talents to take first place and qualify for the State History Fair competition. It is a competition that involves more than 10,000 students from Utah. Proving that the process of learning about history is a whole lot of fun.

We're here with Ramsay O'Connor, one of the sixth grade teachers here at Daybreak Elementary to talk about the Utah State History Fair. And you have a few students who are advancing through regionals to the state competition. Tell me about what made you want to get students involved in this and what that process has been.

Ramsay O'Connor:
So I've been doing history day at Daybreak for, I think this was maybe my third year doing it. So I'm a lot better at it. The first year was kind of trial and error and then with COVID we took two years off. And then this year I wanted to do it again. And since we had that Walk to Read enrichment group time all the sixth grade teachers decided that would be a really good project for some kids that need enriching. So we started with about 30 kids and then I think I had about seven groups compete and two groups made it to the state competition.

Anthony Godfrey:
Well, congratulations first of all, that they've advanced. So tell me about the structure of it. There's a theme for each year and then are there certain categories within which they can submit? And what are their options in terms of a project?

Ramsay O'Connor:
So there's a theme every year. We talked a lot about first choosing a topic that's interesting to you. And so we started with finding a moment in history that you find interesting; world history, local history, American history, they could choose whatever they wanted. And then talked about the categories; an exhibit, a documentary, a website, a paper, which nobody chose, and I think that was it. Those were the oh, and a live performance, which no one chose that either. Then yeah, they just go from there. They pick their category. And then we kind of talked about once they narrowed in on the moment in history that they were most interested in, then we talked about narrowing it down to really meet the theme. And we worked a lot on what's a thesis to help develop their project.

Anthony Godfrey:
I love the deep, personalized learning that happens as a result. They get to pick their topic, they get to pick the medium that they're most comfortable with, and then they get to work with someone else. Teamwork is involved and competition doesn't hurt. It sharpens your focus a little bit and you want to do well. On Friday is the state competition and you have two teams that advance to that level?

Ramsay O'Connor:
Yep. This is the first time I've ever had teams make it to the state level competition, so I'm really excited and proud of them. I'm excited for all the kids that participated because they did great. But to have kids go to the state, I'm really excited because I've never done that before or helped kids get to that point.

Anthony Godfrey:
Well, I wish them the very best and I'll look forward to hearing how things go and thanks again for taking the time.

Ramsay O'Connor:
Of course. Thank you for coming.

Anthony Godfrey:
I'm here with students at Daybreak Elementary who have competed in the Utah State History Fair. Now that is not just the history of Utah, but it's a history fair generally and you got to pick your topics within certain categories. So we're gonna talk with each of the three teams that are represented here. So let's start with the two of you. Introduce yourselves and your project for me.

Lyla:
I'm Lyla.

Isla:
And I'm Isla.

Anthony Godfrey:
And tell me about your project.

Lyla:
We did it on the causes of the French Revolution.

Isla:
We thought it'd be a good topic because it's like in a different part of the world, which is fun to explore. And we decided to do the causes because that's a lesser known part of it.

Anthony Godfrey:
And after this project, what is your opinion of guillotines?

Lyla:
Well, the Reign of Terror was like not exactly a fun part in history and guillotines in my opinion are very bad.

Anthony Godfrey:
Yes they are. And dangerous. So the tell the people who don't know what the Reign of Terror is, what was the Reign of Terror?

Isla:
It was a time in the French Revolution kind of close to the end where thousands of people died because people were like getting really radical and violent during the French Revolution. Not what they wanted, but it just got really violent and tons of people died, they were beheaded.

Anthony Godfrey:
Yeah. You were saying the nicer term died, but your partner here reminded you that they were actually beheaded. Back to the guillotine issue that I brought up earlier. So talking about history, we are really supposed to learn from history and it's supposed to inform what we do now. So what did you learn from the French Revolution that we might need to think about right now in current society?

Lyla:
Well, it was a lot about like the government and how like everything should be fair. You shouldn't be like ranked on like depending where you were born. Yeah. Like you'd be born into a certain category or a state and depending on that, you would be treated unfairly.

Isla:
When it wasn't even your fault.

Anthony Godfrey:
So in other words, we want to be sure that people no matter where they're born or what the circumstances are around when they're born, that they have as much opportunity as anyone else. Would you agree with that? What was the theme of the history fair that made you want to choose this topic?

Lyla:
The theme was Debate and Diplomacy and the French Revolution goes with that kind of, because it was a big debate. The Estates General, which we focus on a lot, and that's what caused the French Revolution. So we decided to choose that because it matches the theme really well. And it also has some diplomacy in it at the end when they make peace and form a new government.

Anthony Godfrey:
Now you chose to do a website. There are lots of different things that you can do to demonstrate your knowledge of this part of history. Why did you choose a website?

Isla:
Well, we thought it would be a fun, new thing to explore. Like in grades in the past we'd often do like boards and it would be fun to try something new. So we decided on a website. We thought it'd be easy enough, but still fun. But actually it was very difficult, but in the end, we figured it out.

Anthony Godfrey:
So do you want to continue to study more and more history? Did this spark your interest and do you want to become a webmaster now?

Lyla:
This has made me more interested in history. I like learning about what happened earlier and how we can learn from our mistakes, but I don’t think I wanna be a webmaster.

Isla:
Yes, I agree there.

Anthony Godfrey:
Okay. Maybe a queen, but not a webmaster. Okay. Shall we sing the French National Anthem together? Allons enfant de la patrie Okay. Never mind. All right. Thank you very much. And I'm excited to visit your website. You can share the URL with me a little later and I'll check it out.

Stay with us. When we come back more with the students from Daybreak Elementary.

Break:
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Anthony Godfrey:
Introduce yourselves and tell us about your project.

Ann:
I'm Ann.

Yolanda:
And I’m Yolanda.

Anthony Godfrey:
And what was your project?

Ann:
Our project was about Separate but Equal, Plessy versus Ferguson, and the failure of that. The failure of the whole cause. And because we were following the theme Debate in Diplomacy and we found Plessy versus Ferguson, because we wanted to tie into something that had to do with civil rights.

Anthony Godfrey:
And what did you learn through the process?

Yolanda:
I learned that there was other people, not just like Rosa Parks or like Martin Luther King Jr. I learned that there was other people that also had a part in the civil rights movement and like what was going on during that time. Like how people were being separated because of their color and their race.

Anthony Godfrey:
Tell me about some of the circumstances you learned about that you weren't aware of previously?

Yolanda:
Well, I was never aware that people had to like go to different schools because of their color. I was like not really aware of that. I was only aware of how people couldn’t go to the same restaurant or drink from the same fountain.

Anthony Godfrey:
So as an elementary student right now, is it hard for you to imagine that in the past?

Ann:
Yes and no, because we have dived into the whole segregation part and we've seen like, even for us as black people, we feel like a little portion of what like some of the people endured during that time. And like we believe that if Ruby Bridges, if she could endure all the hatred and like racism she was getting during that time, then a child can, you know, learn about it, if she had to like endure it.

Anthony Godfrey:
So is it inspiring to think that someone your age can have such a positive impact?

Yolanda:
Yeah, it is inspiring because I know I wasn't like born during that time, but get to knowing it through, like right now it's very inspiring.

Ann:
I think it is very inspiring that even though we might be really young and all that, we can help be a big part by learning about the things that happened in our history. So history doesn't repeat. And I think that as young people learning about it, because some older people or some people around the world, they don't take the time to learn about this history. And as young people and learning about the history of black people and segregation and the racism that was in America during that time, it is very inspiring that we can do that.

Anthony Godfrey:
Tell me about your specific project. It was a display board, is that correct? And I used the proper term of course. Right? Exhibit? Oh yes, exhibit. Pardon me. Tell me more about your exhibit.

Yolanda:
Well, the exhibit, it has like a bunch of information and a lot of pictures about like what was going on and then it like goes toward like Plessy and the court case.

Anthony Godfrey:
And as you were putting together the pictures and putting together the exhibit, did that deepen your understanding of the circumstance as you decided, how to place all of that and what to include?

Ann:
Yeah, and I felt like when we did the exhibit, with our story, Plessy versus Ferguson Separate but Equal. Why we did the exhibit exactly is because we wanted to show our pictures. All our pictures had a meaning behind it. And when each picture we put down, we took it in through our brain and just like, oh, this is what happened. Some of the pictures we used were like hateful and we really understood everything that we were putting on there. And how it tied into the debate and diplomacy.

Anthony Godfrey:
This is a project you'll remember.

Yolanda:
Yes.

Anthony Godfrey:
I thought it looked great and it reminded me of kind of a museum display that you might see. So does that interest you at all helping bring history alive for other people?

Yolanda:
It does interest me, but I also have like my mind on like other things.

Anthony Godfrey:
Okay. What is your mind on?

Yolanda:
Like astronomy and stuff like that?

Anthony Godfrey:
So you're looking well beyond this orb. Well done. Yeah. My son wants to be an astronomer too.

Ann:
I feel like I would, after the history fair, I might wanna do it again. I think that it's really important for us to learn about our American history and all the things that went into place with what happened. Because of Plessy versus Ferguson, Separate but Equal, it was a failure since it was, it was basically a court case where it was justifying racial segregation and it was saying it's okay for races to be separate. We're still being equal, giving them equal rights, but it wasn't like that.

Anthony Godfrey:
And you've made a great point and everyone here has made a great point that we don't automatically learn from history. We have to be deliberate about seeking that out and seeking to understand what happened in the past and what lessons we can learn and what mistakes we need to avoid. Great. Well, thank you. Sounds like an awesome project.

Nora:
I'm Nora

Emma:
And I’m Emma.

Anthony Godfrey:
And tell me about your documentary. What was the topic?

Nora:
The fight for voting rights.

Emma:
The Voting Rights Act of 1965.

Anthony Godfrey:
Yeah. And tell me what you learned about the Voting Rights Act of 1965.

Nora:
It's a lot more complicated than I think people realize. Everybody talks about the Civil Rights Act because Martin Luther king Jr. Had a lot to do with that. But the Voting Rights Act was really important because it opened the way for people to actually be able to have the rights that the Civil Rights Act gave them. Emma:
Yeah. It gave that population of people of voice essentially, to change things that they thought were unfair. And probably prevented quite a few things that probably would not have been so great if the Voting Rights Act was not passed.

Anthony Godfrey:
So because the Voter Right Act was passed, other great things were able to happen in society and other progress was able to be made.

Nora:
Oh for sure. We would be a very different society today if the Voting Rights Act hadn't been passed. The struggles that happened then are still going on today, but that opened a lot more doors for people of color and just everybody.

Anthony Godfrey:
Tell me, what are some of the lessons for today that we can learn from your project?

Emma:
Probably just that everybody is important and everybody needs that chance to be able to say what they believe and what they think should happen.

Nora:
And don't be jerks.

Anthony Godfrey:
Don't be jerks. Don't be jerks. What surprised you as you learned about the voting rights act?

Nora:
Probably the Selma to Montgomery March. It was this huge march of a lot of people from this little town called Selma to the capital of Alabama, Montgomery. And it was just, it was kind of scary to realize how rude people were to the marchers and how just how mean they were.

Emma:
Yeah. And it kind of brings a different understanding to it because of the importance that was to those people, because they marched it like three different times and they knew what was gonna happen. And they like still went out there and did it. So it brings of different like appreciation for those people.

Anthony Godfrey:
It seems like this was a very impactful project for you. Do you think this is something you'll never forget?

Nora:
No, probably because I was so scared the day of the competition.

Anthony Godfrey:
It's the terror of competition. Yes. We've all felt that in various ways. But it sounds like it went well.

Nora:
Yeah.

Anthony Godfrey:
Now does this make you want to be aspiring filmmakers? Have you texted Ken Burns? What is your plan?

Nora:
We talked about if we ever did this again, doing a website because the documentary was like, we have to get this whole recording done, this whole recording done and find like million pictures. So we're thinking a website next time.

Emma:
Yeah. But also sorry, just one thing to add. Yeah. Sometimes for me, somebody talking about it has a bigger impact than me reading an article. So if I were to do it on something that is very impactful or important to me, I would do it on, I would do a documentary again, just because of the influence that it has, at least in my mind. It was also super fun.

Anthony Godfrey:
Yeah. So do you have a greater appreciation for the work it to takes to create a documentary? If you watch a documentary, are you going to appreciate it more now?

Nora:
Oh yeah, definitely!

Anthony Godfrey:
It's inspiring. I need to go like bust out my history books because you guys have taught me a lot today. Thank you very much for taking the time and good luck to those of you who are competing at state this Friday. So congratulations on great work and the deep type of learning that we're looking for every day. So that's fantastic. Great work you guys.

Thanks for joining us for 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. You could say they are in a class all their own. On this episode of the Supercast, we meet two award-winning teachers who go above and beyond every single day. They are educators credited with changing lives and having a significant impact on their school communities.

We're here with Andrea Hinojosa, a teacher here at Copper Hills High School, and we're talking with her about an award she was just nominated for by a colleague. Tell us a little bit about that.

Andrea Hinojosa:
It is the Life Changer of the Year Award.

Anthony Godfrey:
And is that now at a national level? Is that what I understand?

Andrea Hinojosa:
Yes, it is. I think there's about 800- 900 nominees nationally.

Anthony Godfrey:
Well, teachers are life changers there's no question about that. So I'm really excited that you're nominated. Tell me about what happens now. When do you expect to hear back whether you've advanced?

Andrea Hinojosa:
I think the timeline is May. They've got a committee that goes through the applications of former winners. That's my impression. And they go through the applications or the nominations and they choose the winners.

Anthony Godfrey:
Well, from everything I've heard about you, you have a great shot at it. And either way, it's an honor that someone would think of you that way. I know that you're changing lives just based on what I've read about your teaching. Tell us about what you teach here first of all.

Andrea Hinojosa:
I teach AP US History and US History II, so I teach juniors.

Anthony Godfrey:
I always loved teaching juniors when I was at the high school level. What do you love about teaching and teaching history specifically?

Andrea Hinojosa:
So AP US History is definitely my happy place. I love that course because it keeps me challenged as an educator. I can't afford to be complacent because we have that exam that keeps us all kind of on our toes. So I just, I honestly, I love lesson planning, like getting in the zone and planning out how things are gonna go even down to the minute. It's a creative process that I really, really enjoy. And that class in particular, because it's not so much me telling the kids what to think, but how to think. So it's not a lecture based course 100% of the time, right. Because they have to learn how to analyze the documents. They have to learn how to extract the information. They have to learn how to think like a historian. So strategizing how to help them develop those skills. But then I also kind of really like the game of how to help them earn more points on the exam, right? It's kind of like a puzzle and I really enjoy kind of strategizing and creating, oh, this is gonna sound so nerdy, but like geeking out over building proficiency skills. That will, you know, help them get the most amount of points with the, this is also gonna sound awful, the least amount of effort. Because in this timed environment where they only have 60 minutes to collect these seven points, so, how can we max that out with without overexerting ourselves, if that makes sense.

Anthony Godfrey:
I think it's great that you focus on strategy and content because it really is about both. And if you're just thinking content the rest of your life, then you can't make the most of what you know, or even your skills. Strategy is a really important part going forward.
Tell me, does it change a lot from year to year what you're gonna be covering? Tell us about that. For those who don't know, there's a lot of training and preparation that goes into being an AP teacher.

Andrea Hinojosa:
Yes and no. I would say it depends. I mean, there's a lot of training available for AP teachers, but we have to seek out that training. I have to give a little plug to my department or sorry, my district wide PLC. I work with three phenomenal teachers within our district. Laura Taylor at Riverton, Kelsie Berrett at Mountain Ridge and Caitlin Ackley at West Jordan. And we have, I dare say, one of the most highly functioning PLCs within our district. I've worked with these teachers, Laura Taylor, since the day I got this job. I reached out to her and she and Jenicee Jacobson kind of took me under their wing and gave me everything they had. And we've been working together ever since. So everything I'm able to accomplish is honestly because I have a team of teachers behind me.

Anthony Godfrey:
It makes all the difference to be able to work with great colleagues and feed off of each other and get those great ideas.

Andrea Hinojosa:
Absolutely.

Anthony Godfrey:
Tell me about why you decided to become a teacher. That wasn't your first career path.

Andrea Hinojosa:
No, it wasn't. I wanted to be a teacher. So I had an amazing eighth grade teacher, US History, when I was in middle school and she made me wanna become a teacher. But honestly, when I got to college the sad reality is that income became an issue for me. And I know that like, especially back then, teachers didn't make a lot of money. And so I went in another direction. At the time, I was about 28 years old, I was not in a professional happy place. And so I really kind of had to sit down and think through like, what is the perfect profession for me? And just like, what qualities am I looking for in a job? And teaching fit the bill. I went back to school when I was 28 years old, got another degree in social science education and got my first job teaching when I was 31. So I've only been here for 11 years, but it definitely is my professional happy place.

Anthony Godfrey:
Well, I'm really glad you made the switch. What was it about your eighth grade social studies class that made such an impact? Tell me about that teacher. Tell me about that class.

Andrea Hinojosa:
So her name was Mrs. Reed. I just remember her making it just so interesting. And I wanna say that was the first year my parents invested in a computer, you know, like the really big dinosaur that was $3,000 and it was hard for them to afford it. But Mrs. Reed had like these guided notes that we would do with all the activities. And I remember recreating them on my parents' brand new computer so that I could use them when I became a teacher. You know, like she just really got me interested. I remember specifically being really interested in the civil war based on what she presented. I don't know, like, she just made it fun and interesting.

Anthony Godfrey:
You had a high school teacher that impacted you as well.

Andrea Hinojosa:
I did. Mrs. Ballard at Skyline High School.

Anthony Godfrey:
Tell me about Mrs. Ballard.

Andrea Hinojosa:
She is a quirky, quirky little lady and she is just amazing. She never wore the same outfit twice in a school year. That was one of her things.

Anthony Godfrey:
Now I'm just gonna pause right there because people who have not taught before don't realize how significant that is. Because I remember as a teacher, students know everything that you own. And I remember students commenting ‘Mr. Godfrey, your shoes and belt match. and most men can't pull that off. So well done.’ And I thought, wow, they are watching every single thing I do. So for you to remember that is really kind of funny to me because that's one of the things I remember about being a teacher is just that kids knew. They're like, ‘oh, that's my favorite tie.’ They always knew what your wardrobe was. but she always wore something different, all year.

Andrea Hinojosa:
All year. I can't even imagine what her closet looked like.

Anthony Godfrey:
And what else do you remember about her?

Andrea Hinojosa:
Well, I was able to go back and student teach with her actually when I became a teacher, because I wanted to learn from her. She really had been one of those teachers that inspired me and I wanted to kind of emulate her. And I do a lot of things in my classroom today that I learned from her. So one of the things I really remember from my student teaching experience was the trust that she gave me. She really I mean, she mentored me certainly, but she also gave me the confidence to know that I was doing a good job and that I could do it. So she really, you know, took that step back and let me do what I do. And that trust, I think, really helped me become who I am as a teacher. Because I had been her student, I had that relationship and I already had that level of trust with her. I knew that she would take me down a good path and that she would really mentor me. I wanted to make sure I was working with a teacher that I respected, that I knew I could learn from, that I knew would really teach me how to be a better teacher.

Anthony Godfrey:
Tell me about how you impact lives as a teacher. I know that's the biggest reward.

Andrea Hinojosa:
It is, and it's why I'm here. And honestly, my very, very wonderful colleague who nominated me for this award, did so I think this year in particular, because as you know, it's been a rough couple of years and it's hard. It's been hard to know that we are making a difference. And so she used this opportunity to show me, and I'm sorry, I'm probably gonna get a little emotional. But she wanted to make sure that I was aware that even if things aren't the same this year as they were in years past, that I'm still making a difference, you know? And I think we may not hit every kid. We may not even hit every class. Right. But, we keep showing up and we keep trying. You know as a former teacher, like we go home and we sit with it and we think about like, what could I have done differently? What could I have said differently to make that situation better? Those are the things I need to hold onto in these years that are rough. Is that I still care. I still wanna come back and I still wanna do better. You know, I don't wanna give up.

Anthony Godfrey:
These two years have been so difficult and this year has been, I think, the most difficult I can remember and you've described well some of the reasons for that. You're right, we hold onto that when we go home and we worry about the kids and we worry about whether we're having an impact. The difficulty is, you don't always see that immediate impact. It's not like you look over the assignments or you stand at the front of the class and you get this constant feedback that you're having this lifelong impact. But I'm sure you've been surprised sometimes that the students that have come back and shared that with you when you didn't really realize just how much you were impacting their lives.

Andrea Hinojosa:
Yes. I love that. In fact, just maybe a week or so ago, I got an email from a former student that's in college who emailed and just wanted to check in. And you know, those are really, really nice reminders that what we do does make a difference. Even if we can't see it in the moment.

Anthony Godfrey:
You work very hard as a teacher, you're very organized. There's lots of content. There are lots of skills that you're teaching them, but when they look back on your class, what do you want them to remember?

Andrea Hinojosa:
That they were loved. I mean, I honestly, at the end of the day, I don't care about the content. I know, I’m sorry, that probably sounds horrible. I'm here to teach them content. I'm here to teach them skills and I want them to get that. But at the end of the day you know, that's not what matters to them. They need to feel loved and cared about and valued. And, I will help them pass. I don't care about that. I don't care so much about the grade as I do about them as people. So I hope that they know that I cared and that I do take it home with me and that I do think about it and it does bother me, you know, when we have negative interactions or things don't go the way I planned them to go because I care about them.

Anthony Godfrey:
It's obvious that you care a lot about them and that you love your students. It's a real honor to sit and talk with you about it. And it's really thrilling that we have a teacher like you here at Copper Hills. I just appreciate everything you do to have an impact on students.

Andrea Hinojosa:
Thank you.

Anthony Godfrey:
Stay with us. When we come back a conversation with Riverton High School's Carl Perkins Service Award winner, Trudy Pecorelli.

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 at Riverton High School talking with Trudy Pecorelli, who is the recipient of the 2022 Carl Perkins Service Award at the Utah, ACTE Conference. So the Career and Technical Education Conference for the state. First of all, congratulations on winning this award.

Trudy Pecorelli:
Thank you.

Anthony Godfrey:
It's really exciting. And I have to say, we posted about your receiving this award. We posted your picture a little bit about the award and it took off on social media. You have a lot of fans out there.

Trudy Pecorelli:
Thank you. I pay 'em well.

Anthony Godfrey:
Well, you have a large budget because you apparently paid a lot of people. There was a lot, there was a really strong response. This award is not based on Carl Perkins, the 1950s rocker that sang Blue Suede Shoes before anybody else did. It's based on your contribution to the community, your demonstrated leadership in providing programs and activities that promote student involvement in community service and just being an all around great teacher, connecting to kids and providing them amazing opportunities. So tell me a little bit about, tell me what you teach here at Riverton. There are a lot of things that you do at Riverton High. What do you teach? What do you coach? Tell us everything you do here.

Trudy Pecorelli:
I was the first head coach here in 1999 and I was the head volleyball coach till 2011. And then I stepped down from that and that's when I was put in the classroom. I was in regular Health, but then I went to CTE and now I teach Intro to Health Science and Emergency Medical Responder, Yoga and Aerobics. And I do Driver's Ed after school. And I am the assistant Girls Golf coach.

Anthony Godfrey:
That's pretty amazing. You've got a long list of things that you're doing here. So let's start with the fact that you reinvented yourself halfway through your career. What drew you to these CTE classes that you've been teaching for over a decade now?

Trudy Pecorelli:
Well, when I stepped down from being the head coach that pretty much took me out of the gym. So I was given the opportunity to start teaching different classes in the classroom instead of just always being in the gym, because I was teaching Lifetime Fitness, Lifetime Sports, Team Sports, Weights classes, and stuff like that. So it was just a great opportunity because I did have that background in health as well.

Anthony Godfrey:
Tell me about the EMT class. What's involved? What are some of the things that a student comes away with from that class?

Trudy Pecorelli:
I've been working with Richard Clayton down at the JATC down here and he's the one that teaches the EMT course. And so with that, we wanted to kind of give the kids a baseline, a better baseline before went down to do the Emergency Medical Technician. And so now we're offering Emergency Medical Responder here, Health 1200, through SLCC. So the kids do get concurrent credit as well. When they leave here, they will be first aid certified. Recently I was contacted by OSHA when we went to the ACTE Conference where I presented the National Library of Medicine win their displays. I was contacted by OSHA, because they found out that I was an EMT to help prepare a 10 hour course for public health professionals.

Anthony Godfrey:
So you’re an EMT.

Trudy Pecorelli:
I am an EMT.

Anthony Godfrey:
So this may be the safest interview I've conducted in a long time.

Trudy Pecorelli:
Let’s hope.

Anthony Godfrey:
So tell me more about your presentation. I did hear that you presented at the National Conference just a few weeks ago.

Trudy Pecorelli:
Yeah, the one in New Orleans. Yeah, I presented the National Library of Medicine. John, I’ll have to look up his name, sorry, came to Denise Abbott. She is the HOSA state representative, to put together the presentation for the National Library of Medicine. And so Denise was contacted and we were able to come together and create a Nearpod to teach the students. And that's where we've presented at all the conferences. We wrote up lesson plans, so even if you have a sub plan for that day, that's something that the kids can follow along with. There is a self-paced guide as well as a teacher paced guide on how to use this Nearpod.

Anthony Godfrey:
Great.

Trudy Pecorelli:
And so with that, they can become a Level I Ambassador or a Level II Ambassador learning how to use the MedlinePlus.

Anthony Godfrey:
And what is MedlinePlus?

Trudy Pecorelli:
It's the National Library of Medicine’s website. You can go on there and look up anything and it's accurate. Most people will say they'll just Google something. Well, that's not always the most accurate information. This is the most accurate information for health purposes. So if you have something, like my mom was diagnosed, so I went to the National Library of Medicine and was able to look up treatment options and everything for her.

Anthony Godfrey:
I learned something new just now. That's great. Yeah. That's great. Tell me, why did you want to become a teacher in the first place?

Trudy Pecorelli:
I've just always had influential teachers in my life. I'd stay after school, like, you know, the class nerd, whatever to talk to the teachers. Miss Ostermiller was phenomenal, and then I had great coaches all through junior high and high school that just kind of directed me. I've always been like active and wanting to participate in sports and stuff. And this just gave me an avenue to continue on that.

Anthony Godfrey:
What were the sports you participated in high school?

Trudy Pecorelli:
I lettered in volleyball and basketball and track and softball.

Anthony Godfrey:
I've said this in the past, I just wish people like you could have thrown one sport to people like me. Just gimme one of those to be good at, you know. That's fantastic. So tell me, what is it that you love most about teaching now?

Trudy Pecorelli:
Just seeing how much opportunity kids have these days. It's amazing! Like, I'm into the help field obviously, but there's other avenues that the kids can find a niche in and just explore. Which is a great opportunity for them because we didn't have that near as much back in the day. For example, like my youngest son loves Auto and he's been able to just thrive in the auto industry thanks to great teachers like Jay Hales here, that has just given him that niche in life.

Anthony Godfrey:
Like we've talked about, you teach a wide variety of classes. Is there some essential element that you hope kids take from all of your classes regardless of what they're enrolled in?

Trudy Pecorelli:
One thing about me I guess I could say is, I'm very passionate about what I do. For a kid to come up and say,’ Hey, I'm still participating in yoga,I  found it down at the gym.’ So after they leave high school that they're still participating and still active, that's that end. And anything in the classroom that they can walk away with, especially with a life skill.  I've been CPR certified since I was 12 years old and it's very important to me that people know that. People I know have had to use CPR and it has saved lives. So that to me is my passion. That if I can just help somebody get a little bit of passion for what they like especially again, the medical field and aim them in that direction, I feel accomplished.

Anthony Godfrey:
Well, I just admire that you, throughout your career, since you were 12, getting CPR certified, you've cared about health. You've cared about physical wellbeing. And more than that, you've cared about making sure that students have great experiences. And you've been curious and intentional about jumping in and doing new things and then turning those experiences into opportunities for the students you serve. So that's very inspiring and I appreciate your taking the time and I really appreciate everything you're doing for the students here at Riverton High.

Trudy Pecorelli:
Thank you. This has been fun.

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:
Welcome to the Supercast. I'm your host, Superintendent Anthony Godfrey. They are out in the rain, sleet, snow, and ice, even when it is sunny and nice, protecting students from harm. We're talking about school crossing guards. On this episode of the Supercast, we meet one of the many heroes helping to get students safely across busy streets, to and from school, each and every day. Hear how one amazing crossing guard recently saved a young life.

We are here outside Eastlake Elementary School talking to Lorena, one of the crossing guards. Thanks for taking time with us.

Lorena:
Yeah, my pleasure. I'm glad to be doing this.

Anthony Godfrey:
How long have you been a crossing guard for Eastlake Elementary School?

Lorena:
I've been a crossing guard here for 11 years.

Anthony Godfrey:
And what made you want to start as a crossing guard? What interested you about that?

Lorena:
It was just a really fun part-time gig. I had little babies at the time, and so I could bring them with me in my car. Sit in my car for a little bit, cross kids. It’s just a good part-time job as a mom. And then I just, I started really loving my kids and just stayed here.

Anthony Godfrey:
Well, kids start their day with you. You're really the first person that they see outside of the house. The first adult they see on their way to school. Tell me about what that means and what kind of relationship you're able to build as a result. Morning!

Lorena:
Good morning guys. The kids are awesome. Most kids are bright and, you know, ready to start their day. Good morning. How are you? Some kids are not morning people and they just kind of drag their feet. But yeah, I've seen kids grow up and seen little brothers and sisters come on towards the end, for as many years as I've been here. So it's been kind of nice.

Anthony Godfrey:
Well, 11 years would take someone from kindergarten to being able to drive. I know that you wouldn't see them past sixth grade, but do they ever stop back by and you see them through the neighborhood?

Lorena:
Yeah. I actually have one family who is really close to where I would park for crossing and they stop every now and then to say hi. And they're like, “Oh, hi!” and they know me and yeah. Their oldest, that I started crossing, she's I think a sophomore or a junior in high school now. It’s nice.

Anthony Godfrey:
Wow, that's really cool. So when you see kids in the morning, can you kind of tell whether they've had a bad start to the day already sometimes and you can check in with them?

Lorena:
Oh yes. All the time. We laugh when we say good morning and it's a ‘Good morning!” or grumble. Some kids tell you their whole life story in a matter of the 30 seconds that we cross them. And some kids just kinda drag their feet.

Anthony Godfrey:
I can imagine, but it shows you how nice it is for kids to have a connection with someone they can share that with. What are some of the things that kids will tell you about their morning on their way in?

Lorena:
Oh, one little girl loves to share whether or not her grandma woke up in a good mood or not. And so it's fun. And she'll say, ‘she was great today’. Yesterday she told us something about the dog barking and so everyone was in a bad mood.

Anthony Godfrey:
Wow. So you get the weather report on grandma every morning. How things are going to go. Tell me, do kids recognize you out in the wild as well?

Lorena:
Sometimes they do. I'm really bundled up. I get very cold. I'm a very cold person. So sometimes all you see is my eyes. And so they look at me kind of wondering, I know you from somewhere, but most of the time I do, I get recognized and they say hi.

Anthony Godfrey:
So being a cold person, this is kind of a tough job. You're outside. It's a beautiful morning right now, but it's still a little crisp. So for a lot of the school year, you've really got to bundle up, I would think.

Lorena:
Oh yes, I wear at least 16 layers every day. It’s a little exaggerated.

Anthony Godfrey:
16 layers. That seems right. You can adjust to the moment that way.

Lorena:
Yeah, no, I do. I bundle up really well. And sometimes I ask myself why I continue, why I'm standing out in the freezing cold, but it's something I've grown to love. And as long as I'm bundled up and it's 45 minutes of my day.

Anthony Godfrey:
What are the hours that you work?

Lorena:
So we start at 8:25 to give our early birds a little cushion and then end at 9:05 to give our late birds a cushion as well to get crossed.

Anthony Godfrey:
And then after school what time are you here in the afternoon?

Lorena:
So, I'm only a morning crossing guard.

Anthony Godfrey:
Oh, okay.

Lorena:
I still have kids that need rides everywhere, so I've only done mornings and then I sub every now and then for afternoon crossings. But I only do mornings.

Anthony Godfrey:
I guess I kind of assumed that everyone would do mornings and afternoons, but that would work out nicely. You'd do the morning and you're set for the day. Okay. Now, I understand that you had a close call in the recent past.

Lorena:
Yes. Yes, I did.

Anthony Godfrey:
Tell me about that. What happened?

Lorena:
It was just a regular morning. We were crossing kids towards the end of our crossing. We have a double crossing, so my other crossing guard, Heidi, was on her side and I was crossing on my side. Thankfully Heidi yelled, “Hey, Hey, Hey!” So I was able to turn my head and as I turned my head, this driver was just driving through. She was zoned out, didn't really see us in our big yellow jackets and our big stop sign. I had to kind of jump in front of the car as the student was walking. She was walking through, she was like between both of our crossing zones. And so thankfully I was just there at the right time.

Anthony Godfrey:
When you describe that, jumping in front of a moving car, that is instinct. That's just that protective instinct of that child kicking in.

Lorena:
Yes. You know, I didn't think about it. I just knew that I had to get the driver's attention. Thankfully, she wasn't going very fast. She was just rolling through. I really think she was zoned out. She didn't see anything. She didn't see any one of us. And so when I got her attention, she was able to slam on her brakes.  A lot of people that drive through here, every now and then they just roll through our stop signs or roll through and we have to give them a nice wave and let them know we're here. And it's hard, especially when you're running late or when you are trying to get through. And we are trying to just make this safe for the kids and trying to teach the kids at the same time. ‘Hey, let's not just run through, or please get off your bike.’ And so it's a difficult spot to be put in to stop the kids and stop the cars at the same time.

Anthony Godfrey:
How did it feel jumping in front of this car afterward? I mean, you did it in the moment. You didn't think about it. The girl was safe as a result of your actions. How did that feel after that happened? And you walked back to the corner?
Lorena:

I just said, thank God that I was there. Okay. And then we moved on. It just happened so quickly. We get a lot of loud cars. It just happened so quickly that I didn't really think about it until afterwards. I was a little shaken up, but then my day just kind of continued. And I was, I was just grateful to be there and to have the student cross safely. And that was it.
Anthony Godfrey:
And the child's mother sent you a letter, is that right?

Lorena:
Yes. She sent me a letter. I kind of had completely forgotten about the incident. That was just, I guess it's just part of the job. You just have to move on or else you can't really do your job correctly. And so she stopped me and she gave me some gloves, which was really cute.

Anthony Godfrey:
Oh, that's nice.

Lorena:
And then she did, she wrote me a letter. She said that her daughter really remembered the incident, and it kind of made her whole day. She came home, talking about it. And so she signed it, a grateful mom.

Anthony Godfrey:
That's incredible. Very impactful obviously for you to save that child. But on top of that, she'll never forget it. And neither will her mom, that's for sure.

Lorena:
Yeah. Yeah. So I was, I was just grateful to be there at the right time. We see any close calls with cars or, you know, things that we're not able to get to as fast as we would like to get to. So I was just grateful to be there. And I was grateful for my other crossing guard who was able to notify me, cuz my back was actually turned to the car.  I turned my back. I look the other way to make sure other cars are stopped. And so I was grateful for my partner,  because if she didn't yell, then I wouldn't have been able to turn around and stop the car.

Anthony Godfrey:
Well that emphasizes the teamwork that's required for it to keep kids safe.

Lorena:
Yeah. It definitely is. Our four-way stop is definitely a team work here. This is Maddie.

Anthony Godfrey:
Hi Maddie.

Maddie:
Hi!

Anthony Godfrey:
How are you?

Maddie:
Good.

Anthony Godfrey:
Do you remember the day that car was coming your way?

Maddie:
Yeah.

Anthony Godfrey:
Can you tell me about it?

Maddie:
So I was walking my scooter and the cross guard was out. And I think this girl wasn't paying attention and then she jumped in front and helped me.

Anthony Godfrey:
And how did that feel to you that she would jump in front of a car for you?

Maddie:
That made me really, really happy.

Anthony Godfrey:
Yeah. And you told your mom that day and what did your mom think of that?

Maddie:
She was very, very happy.

Anthony Godfrey:
And so your mom wrote a letter that you brought to the crossing guard. Right? What else did you bring her?

Maddie:
We got her a gift card.

Anthony Godfrey:
Oh, that's very kind. That's very kind. What grade are you in?

Maddie:
2nd.

Anthony Godfrey:
What do you like most about school?

Maddie:
I just like my teacher. She's really, really nice.

Anthony Godfrey:
Who's your teacher?

Maddie:
Ms. Staley.

Anthony Godfrey:
It sounds like you're surrounded by lots of nice people, your mom, crossing guard and teacher. That makes for a good day. Doesn't it?

Maddie:
It does.

Maddie:
I love your pink hair by the way.

Maddie:
Thanks.

Anthony Godfrey:
Have a great day.

Maddie:
Okay.

Anthony Godfrey:
Well, thank you very much for taking the time. And thanks for the work that you do keeping kids safe, coming to school. It's so important and I've come to value it even more as Superintendent as I travel around the District. We couldn't do it without you and it means a lot. So thanks for taking the time that you do over more than a decade. That's awesome.

Lorena:
Yeah, it's my pleasure. I love these kids and I'm in awe of crossing guards that have a bigger crossing than me because that takes a lot of diligence and a lot of time as well. So I really admire all the rest of our crossing guards as well.

Anthony Godfrey:
Okay. I only have one last question. Do crossing guards tell why did the chicken cross the road jokes?

Lorena:
No we don't, but I do have a lot of dad jokes that I keep in my back pocket to try to get kids to smile.

Anthony Godfrey:
All right. All right. Throw me a dad joke.

Lorena:
Oh no, I'm on the spot. Why did Cinderella get kicked off the baseball team?

Anthony Godfrey:
I don't know. Why?

Lorena:
Because she kept running away from the ball.

Anthony Godfrey:
Okay. Very good. Thank you. Thank you.

Lorena:
It’s my pleasure.

Anthony Godfrey:
Stay with us. When we come back, hear from more crossing guards who simply love the job of keeping kids safe.

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:
Heidi, you yelled. That's the reason Lorena was able to see that there was a car coming, a child in the way and jump in between. Describe that for me.

Heidi:
I just expected this car to stop and it wasn't, so I hurried and yelled out to Lorena as fast I could. I didn't know if I should throw my stop sign or what else, but a yell was all I could do right then.

Anthony Godfrey:
And what did you yell?

Heidi:
Like, ‘Hey, there's a car! Stop!” I didn't know if I was gonna get Lorena's attention or the car, if they could hear me through their window, but just a loud ‘Hey, stop!’ You know?

Anthony Godfrey:
So do you see a lot of phones out when people are driving?

Heidi:
Yeah, constantly. Yeah.

Anthony Godfrey:
And not just connected to Bluetooth, like in their hands.

Heidi:
In their hands, looking at the screen as they're driving right here around the school. Yeah.

Anthony Godfrey:
Well, it's a good reminder. Keep your eyes on the road and make sure that you're paying attention to what's going on around you.

Heidi:
It can be very quick. You don't know.

Anthony Godfrey:
We're here with Deanne who oversees crossing guards for South Jordan City. How are you? Thanks for joining us.

Deanne:
Yes, absolutely. Thank you.

Anthony Godfrey:
Tell me how many crossing guards are there in South Jordan? We have a lot of schools in South Jordan.

Deanne:
We do. Okay. You're putting me on the spot. Let me think. We have 32. 32 crossing guards.

Anthony Godfrey:
32 crossing guards.

Deanne:
Yep. And we have probably 11 that’re subs. And then the rest are just like your regular. They do like a morning and an afternoon, or sometimes just a morning shift or sometimes just an afternoon shift. So Heidi does both. She does a morning and an afternoon. And then Lorena just does her morning shift and then Megan has an afternoon shift, but then she's also a sub that will fill in a lot of times for guards in the mornings.

Anthony Godfrey:
So Megan, you've worked at a lot of different schools, a lot of different intersections. Tell me what you see at different intersections in different schools.

Megan:
Oh goodness. I was gonna say they can be busier. They can be not as busy.

Deanne:
So's there's some schools that have the flashing lights. You have to get there ahead of time and you turn on those flashing lights. We’re there usually before the buses come, before the parents are starting to drop off kids to get those lights and stuff on, we make sure that we get our cone in the proper place for the traffic, to kind of help do traffic. Sometimes we cross some streets that are like a four way, a four lane. And a lot of times we just have one guard. So we have to be very cautious of making sure that we make eye contact with the driver before we actually start crossing the street to make sure that they see us and we see them. And then once we make sure we have our traffic under control, then we will use, you know, hand motions and kind of wave the kids on. So that once we have the traffic all stopped and everybody sees us, then that's when we wave the kids on to go ahead and cross with us.

Anthony Godfrey:
So you probably get lots of questions about where the regular crossing guard is.

Megan:
Yes I do. Yep.

Anthony Godfrey:
They're always wondering, so where are they? What's going on?

Megan:
Yes. If I'm subbing in the mornings, they're, you know where’s so and so, and, I don't quite know. You know, they could be at a doctor's appointment. They could be on, you know, vacation.

Anthony Godfrey:
So you're just ready to leap into action every morning when a substitute is needed.

Megan:
Yes. Yeah. Deanne's really good about letting me know, usually the night before. We're good about letting her know if we're gonna be somewhere, unless you're sick and you just wake up sick with sick kids or, you know.

Deanne:
A lot of times those sick ones, if they call me and they are out sick, then that's usually where I will go and jump in and fill in those spots because it's such short notice.

Megan:
You’re good about that.

Deanne:
Super short notice when they call in and they've got sick kids or they're, they've been up all night.

Anthony Godfrey:
What are some of the misconceptions about crossing guards that you hear?

Megan:
A lot of people assume that I work for the school. So they'll come and they'll expect me to know all the school stuff. And I only do for this school because my daughter goes here. But last year I was like, I have no idea. So that's a big misconception. We don't work for the school. We work for the city.

Deanne:
For the police department, we actually work for the police department. Yeah.

Anthony Godfrey:
Right. And I actually get that same question sometimes about crossing guards. It's kind of like when you're shopping in a store and people think that you work there.

Megan:
When you're wearing red at Target.

Anthony Godfrey:
Exactly.

Deanne:
Because I think they see it's like a volunteer job. So I think they think that we're just like here to volunteer, which we do. We love it, but it's actually, you know, you actually get paid for the shift that we're here. Each shift is about a 35 to 40 minute shift and we get paid $15 a shift. So it's actually not bad. Like when I started doing it, my daughter went to Welby and one of my friends that worked for South Jordan City, she's like, you seriously should sign up and be a crossing guard. She's like, you are here every morning dropping your daughter off. You're here in the afternoon, picking her up. And I'm like, oh yeah, maybe I should. And so I did. And really you just kind of get paid to take your kid to school.

Anthony Godfrey:
Do there tend to be openings now and then?

Deanne:
We always have openings. We would love to have even a few more subs, you know, just to kind of be able to use a few more, to fill in our spots.

Anthony Godfrey:
How would someone apply if they're interested?

Deanne:
Do, you know what, if they just go on the South Jordan website and you can go down to job applications, or job opportunities I think is what it is. And you can just click right there and it will take you right to it. You actually are applying to be a crossing guard sub, is what the position is. We always have regular spots that if you wanted to do like a regular morning or morning and afternoon or vice versa. So, we kind of like to start them as a sub just to kind of give them a feel for, you know, the different corners. And then we try to do our best to work in like which school is close to their home, where do maybe their kids go. Different things like that. We try and take that into consideration so that it's not, you're driving all over South Jordan to get to your spot when you live on one end and you have to drive clear to the other end.

Anthony Godfrey:
Do you have some crossing guards that have just no connection and decide that, you know, I want to drive in and do it?

Deanne:
Yeah. Oh yeah Lorena she doesn't and same with Sarge. Like Sarge actually, you know, he's an older gentleman and he doesn't have kids that actually go there. He doesn't even really live there. He started there because he lived closer, but he's moved. But now he's just like a staple over there. I don't know if he can ever leave. And Lorena too, she just kind of comes in.

Anthony Godfrey:
And once you get the nickname Sarge, you kind of want to keep coming back. I mean you’re in charge.

Deanne:
You kind of have to. He's in charge.

Anthony Godfrey:
Yeah, no question.

Deanne:
He is the man in charge. Like I said, when he was out sick, that corner really did not run the same without him because he knows everybody by name.

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.