Originally published on Teachers’ Voice, August 18, 2017

“The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing.”

Edmund Burke

This Won’t Be Easy

Important conversations never are. But our students — and colleagues — learn as much from what we do (or don’t do) as what we say (or don’t say). The events that transpired in Charlottesville, Virginia are likely weighing heavy on your students’ hearts and minds, just as they are on yours. …

I am lost.

I guess I could sugar coat it and pretend that it’s a lesson, or that I’ll be better, stronger for it in the end. I suppose I could wax poetic about the thrill of the journey or say there is no destination at all — that I’m simply on my way to something bigger. But that wouldn’t be honest.

Although I imagine that each of these things holds within it a seed of truth, today I am just lost. …

My goddaughter, Dylenah, turned 11 this January. She is bright, creative, kind, energetic, sassy, and beautiful… and she has already conquered more obstacles than many people face in an entire lifetime… and it is extraordinary to watch.

She loves purple, peacocks, and pirouettes…

She sings Bob Marley in the car…

Why You’re Wrong On American Law… Again

Yesterday, during your morning constitutional and roughly two hours before you arrived at Trump National Golf Club for your 65th visit to a golf club (54th confirmed golfing activity)since the inauguration at a cost of approximately $72,392,178 to American taxpayers so far…

PA Lawmakers Move to Recreate a System of Inequities, Paralyze PA Public Schools, and Possibly Even Increase Your Taxes in the Process

This is long, but bear with me. . .

How do we fund Pennsylvania’s schools in a way that is fair and equitable to taxpayers, school districts, and the students they serve, and also provide all students in our Commonwealth with a 21st century, high-quality, competitive education?

Excellent question.

But PA lawmakers like Dave Argall and Mike Folmer still don’t have the answer.

Before we get into the thick of it, you should know a little bit about me for context…

It’s been an extraordinarily long two weeks.

As Executive Orders, and #AlternativeFacts wiz by at a breakneck pace, I’m a bit overwhelmed. I know many of you are, too. The environment is noxious with a tense and divisive political dynamic and there is no end in sight. The anxiety is palpable.

After experiencing the Women’s March on Washington D.C., I feel more hopeful. I’m seeing people coming together to support one another and find solutions through shared values, belongingness, and community. I’m making amazing, inspiring new friends and I’m reconnecting with like-minded people who have been absent from my life for far too long. …

January 27, 2016

To begin our second week, I add the song Brave by Sara Bareilles. (Genius Lyrics)As I scrolled through my Facebook feed this morning, there, in the middle of the outcry and outrage about Trump’s Executive Order indefinitely suspending admission of Syrian refugees into the U.S. …

January 20, 2017

This Friday was different than the others. When I woke I realized it would be just a few hours until Donald would take the Oath of Office and become the 45th President of the United States. The thought alone rattled me and, later, brought on a migraine of epic proportions. I needed an outlet so I turned to music to find a song to help me express the emotions I was feeling. Barry McGuire’s Eve of Destruction is where I landed. Arguably the most pivotal protest song of the 1960’s, it was “a love song…