A Little About Me
My Educational Journey
Having grown up in the area, I am a Battle Ground native, a 2001 graduate of Harrison High School and I am a proud product of Purdue University, graduating in the class of 2007 with a bachelor’s degree in Elementary Education. My tenure at Purdue kicked off in 2001 however, with me majoring in Computer Graphics Technology. This juxtaposition of education and technology would serve me well later down the road, but at the time I struggled mainly due to me being colorblind. This challenge led me to explore other avenues, and eventually I found my calling. While at Purdue, a job opportunity presented itself and when I began working part-time at the Ben and Maxine Miller Child Learning Center on Purdue’s campus, I knew instantly I needed to be in a classroom.
I’m Going to be a Teacher
On graduation day, I was excited to see that Martin Jischke, President of Purdue at that time was actually handing out the diplomas as I was looking forward to shaking his hand. Then, I realized once he had finished with the masters students, he went and sat down and passed the torch off to the deans of each school. Well, this didn’t sit well with me, so as I walked across that stage, I ended up turning right, instead of left to go down the stairs, and I walked right up to him and said, “I wanted to shake your hand too.”
He stood up and looked me in the eyes and said, “Congratulations! What are you going to do now?”
With all the boldness of a college graduate, I said, “I’m going to be a teacher!” And the rest is history.
My First Class
Upon graduating, I secured my very first teaching position at Wea Ridge Elementary School in Tippecanoe School Corporation teaching a second grade class. Being one of eighth second grade teachers that year, Wea Ridge was exploding at the seams and was identified as the largest elementary school in the State of Indiana that year, topping out at over 1,000 students. Here, I was lucky enough to work for two wonderful administrators, Principal Tim Schirack, and Assistant Principal Courtney Wildoner. I didn’t know it, but Courtney would turn out to be one of the most impactful individuals in my teaching career further down the road.
On the last day of school that year, Tim came into my room and asked what had happened. As all of the students were leaving the building with smiles and excitement for summer vacation, my students were walking out in tears. I had taken all of the pictures throughout the school year and made a video with them and created DVDs for each student to take home with so they could look back on all the memories we had made together throughout the year. I didn’t know it, but those videos were so meaningful to those kids, that I had one student reach out this year again to see if I still had a copy of it as hers had cracked from wear and tear.
A Short Jump Across the Pond
Beau’s “Kids”
A Welcomed Reunion
That summer, I decided that I wasn’t quite ready to settle down yet, being somewhat adventurous like one, Mr. Bilbo Baggins. To the chagrin of my parents who live locally as well, I packed up my bags and moved to England! My plan was to spend a year teaching abroad, traveling, and learning about other cultures around the world. I was so excited! I got to school and was in my classroom at the end of our first teacher work day when our assistant head teacher, Mark Austin walked in and he calmly explained that I would need to not come back the next day as there had been a paperwork issue with my visa and I would need to sort that out prior to returning.
Twelve days. I was in England for twelve days before I had to leave the country.
The visa issue was something that needed to be sorted out domestically, so it was a short trip. But, I went back! And I’m glad I did too, because the group of students who would become known as “Beau’s kids” dramatically changed my life and my educational trajectory.
The primary schools in the UK keep their classes in cohorts all throughout their tenure. This particular group had gone through six teachers in the two previous years. There was no consistency for them, they felt anyone who walked through that door to be their teacher was going to walk out just as quickly. So, I decided to prove them wrong. At the end of the year, I had built such strong relationships with that group of kids that I was asked to loop them for a second year. I gladly accepted the offer! And then, thanks to unforeseen circumstances, I was able to loop them for a third consecutive year, which was great for me, and everyone else because after spending three years with me, I don’t think any other teacher would have been able to handle them!
You can already see that my plan to spend one year in the UK had changed a little. And thanks to meeting my beautiful wife, Aliya, I opted for a fourth year before moving back to the great State of Indiana in the summer of 2012.
My former assistant principal, Courtney Wildoner had just accepted the principal position at Dayton Elementary School and thanks to her, that’s where I landed as well. I landed a gig as a fifth grade teacher, and it was a natural spot as I had progressed all the way up the elementary ladder while in the UK.
At the end of Year One at Dayton, I was asked to take over the 4th and 5th grade self-contained high ability program, a move that in my mind was absolutely legendary as it gave me the freedom and the flexibility to be as creative in my curriculum and pedagogical practices as I wanted. And trust me, I wanted to be creative! I was literally having the time of my teaching life! While at Dayton, I was inspired by 2nd and 3rd grade HA teammates, Sarah Walter (now Sarah Emerson). Sarah and I couldn’t have been more different from one another. She was organized, efficient, and her class ran like a well-oiled machine. I was goofy, scatterbrained with a million ideas for fun lessons flowing out of my head every minute, and that’s how my class was run each day. Needless to say, it took about 9 weeks each year for the kids to adjust, but I can tell you that once they settled in, man it was so much fun teaching and learning together!
Educational Heroes
Sarah is one of my educational heroes. She is a rockstar teacher and just an absolute presence as a human being. The best professional development I ever received as a teacher was the self-directed learning that I would carry out on my prep time as I would walk into her classroom and just sit and watch her teach. I would do this in many of the teachers’ rooms at Dayton as they were all so inspiring to me. It felt like an educational utopia for me to learn from people like Liz Miller, Jessica Jones, Kris Clute, Carol Grady, Lori Wainscott, Carol Howard, and Pam Schidler. They were so inspirational to be around and the way they loved those children was so inspiring for me.
A Golden Apple for the Teacher
The HA position was the perfect fit for me. In 2015, I was so honored to be nominated by one, Riley Dempewolf for the Golden Apple Award, which I ended up winning and was even more excited to learn that I was the first teacher in Dayton History to receive this award. Something that is no longer true however as Pam Schidler (2022) and Sarah Walter (2024) are now also recipients. After winning the award, my wife told me in not so many words that I should probably begin pursuing admin as our family had grown a little bigger in the last year as we had welcomed our first child, Duke, to the world in 2014.
So, I set forth working on my master’s degree, and in August of 2016, I graduated from Purdue, again. I began looking for admin positions, and I applied and interviewed for a few. But, before making my departure from Dayton Elementary School, there were a few additional milestones that occurred.
The Technology Driven Classroom
The Flipped Classroom
The Connected classroom
Having a desire to infuse my classroom with as much technology as possible, I began writing grants like crazy. I was inspired when I learned about the First Lego League, so my first grant was for a Lego Mindstorms Robotics set. When it came, I was somewhat underwhelmed trying to think about how I could use this with all 24-26 of my students. So, I kept writing and in four years, I ended up having 13 Mindstorms sets, and I even wrote grants for Kindle Readers for each student in my class so they could all literally have a library at their fingertips.
In addition to this, I decided to flip my classroom instruction and I created a series of 115 math lessons that I uploaded to YouTube so my students could watch them and learn in the comfort of their home. This meant when they came to school the next day, I could provide small groups and individualized support much more freely.
I also began looking for opportunities to have my students learn from and connect with people outside our classroom and around the world. I felt it important for them to recognize that education does not simply occur in a classroom, but rather it happens everyday if you open your mind to learn from your life experiences as well. So, we started connecting with classrooms across the country as we would play Mystery Skype to learn about the geographical features here in the United States.
Experiential Learning
Connecting with Authors
We would connect with our favorite authors as I challenged my students to reread and fall in love again with their favorite stories and book characters. We would then use the ceiling tiles as a canvas for them to recreate the covers of their favorite books which we would then share via social media with their authors who were often willing to reach out in response.
We would analyze articles written in the New York Times and then reach out to their authors with questions and thoughts on their writings. These interactions demonstrated to my students that there were people across the world willing to support them in their knowledge building and their pursuit in learning about the outside world.
Bringing the Classroom to Life
I attempted to exploit as many experiential learning opportunities as possible for my students. I be1gan inviting people in for them to learn from as well. The curator for the Kurt Vonnegut Library and Museum came to talk with us about the legacy of Vonnegut. Mayor Roswarski was kind enough to join us as well as we explored the nuances of local government, and Dave Bangert joined as well when we wanted to learn more about some of the work he was doing in writing about Bob Foerester being a finalist to be the first teacher in space.
Rube Goldberg in Real Life
In the midst of learning about simple machines through a full-class Rube Goldberg project, I had another moonshot idea. What if I could get my students to connect with Purdue’s Rube Goldberg Team? So, I reached out, not knowing they had just won the world championship and that they had just recently been on the Jimmy Kimmel Show with their Machine. And, believe it or not, they responded, and they were not just willing, but excited to bring their machine… right into our classroom! It was amazing!
Project-Based Learning
All of this work was framed under what I call Project-Based Learning, though I didn’t call it that then. I was just teaching the only way I knew how, with excitement, passion, and with all the energy I could give. These experiences led to one incredible unintended outcome. As my students engaged in these projects, they began to independently recognize problems and challenges in their world and problems they could tackle independently with the ultimate goal of helping others in what I have termed empathic design.
My World in Color
Now, you may have noticed there hasn’t been much color to this point, and that was purposeful as my students began to use this idea of empathic design to identify a problem they saw was sitting right in front of them, something previously mentioned, I am colorblind. I would always joke about it in front of them, or I would highlight it as a difference that I was born with, as we all have unique things about us that make us different. One day, I was asked to come to my principal’s office without notice. As I sat down, talking with Courtney, I was somewhat confused by the situation. But my mind was put at ease when we walked together into the library to see all of my students huddled together in what I had assumed was a baby shower as my daughter Azriel was about to be born in the next couple of weeks. My heart was overflowing with gratitude however when my students presented me with my very own pair of colorblind glasses! Their method of revealing this was nothing short of exceptional as they themed the entire reveal around Harry Potter preparing for a quidditch match.
I write all of this, in hopes that you, the reader, will see and feel the immense passion that I have for teaching, for teachers, and for students. This passion shows through in all the work I was doing, and what I currently do each day. A passion which I would bring forth in this role as board member as well.
An Unexpected Move
Having only looked into administration previously, this opened my eyes to the fact that there were many different paths in the field of education one can take. So, I began looking and I applied for a position as the Elementary Math and Science Specialist, a position which I was offered and gladly accepted in the summer of 2018.
Working at the Department was an amazing experience for me as I was able to learn from a broader group of educators across the state, and able to explore how educational policy was developed and the impact it had on teachers across Indiana. It was truly eye opening for me, and though my head was spinning, I was like a sponge, absorbing a better understanding of the field of education in a greater capacity.
While working for the Indiana Department of Education, my main work was supporting teachers in building their capacity for mathematical instruction focused on the 8 Effective Teaching Practices of Mathematics designed by the National Council of Teachers of Mathematics in their book, Principles to Actions. I conducted full-day teacher workshops which we called our Math Extravaganzas across the state, often presenting to groups of 75+ educators.
In addition to this work, I was tasked with developing the first iteration of the Elementary Math Framework for the State of Indiana, a resource that has continued to grow and be used by teachers state-wide ever since. I served on item development committees for the iLearn Assessment and I collaborated with the Teacher of the Year for Indian as we built the first Science Framework as well.
This work, and the connections I made in this role led me to my current position which I started the week of lockdown in 2020. Needless to say, the transition at that time was nothing short of unique as the entire world was learning how to navigate online communication. Teachers globally were now engaged in something since termed as Emergency Remote Instruction, as this was not something most had been trained or prepared for.
Director of STEM Learning for EES Innovation
Now, here I sit as the Director for STEM Learning for EES Innovation, and as I type this, I know that there is no way possible for me to convey the amount of educational experiences I have had in this role in order to do it justice, but I will however attempt to do my best. My boss, and my friend, Dr. Mike Langevin has collected some of the best education minds in Indiana, and we have set out to change the educational landscape for our partner schools. Many of our team formerly worked for IDOE, in various capacities, and our projects are constantly shifting as educational policy, graduation pathways, the Indiana Graduates Prepared to Succeed Dashboard, standards revisions and updates, and grant releases, dictate much of our work.
I have supported schools in carrying out Comprehensive Needs Assessments which informed their School Improvement Plans. This process mirrors that of any school wishing to develop their own strategic plans which will align their district mission and vision for the upcoming 3-5 years and has since been replicated into what we have termed our Learning Prioritization Plan which has seen much success with nearly two dozen districts across Indiana.
However, my main work the past four years has been highly focused on STEM and STEM Programming in schools. The Indiana Department of Education, in 2015 began what they call their STEM Certification Program. And since 2020, my team and I have helped more than 30 schools in Indiana earn this designation. This past year, IDOE recognized a new cohort of 20 schools as STEM Certified, 14 of which (70%), my team and I had partnered. The ultimate highlight here occurred in the fall of 2023 when our partner school, Beveridge Elementary School in the Gary Community Schools won the STEM Educational Excellence Award as the top STEM Elementary in the State of Indiana, an award that West Lafayette High School had also won the previous year.
Back to School
In 2020, I also applied to attend Purdue… again. This time however, they didn’t seem to want me back, which ended up being an absolute blessing in disguise. When I was turned down to Purdue’s Curriculum and Instruction program, I wanted to explore what else was out there, and I am so thankful I did because I found the perfect program for me. Indiana University houses one of the top programs in the country for Instructional Systems Technology in their Department of Learning, Design, and Adult Education. And so, in the fall of 2021, I went back to school, and am proud to say that I will begin dissertation work in the fall of 2024 with a focus on bridging instructional practices with Artificial Intelligence models in something we have termed an AI-Infused Classroom.
The work carried out in my doctoral program has aligned so well with the work in my professional life, often blurring the lines between the two. And it’s incredible to reflect on the way in which my role has pivoted from providing STEM and PBL-focused professional learning opportunities for teachers, to identifying ways which technology and AI can be used to support school and district leaders.
If you Do what’s best for Teachers, they will Do what’s best for kids.
With that, I have brought you up to date with me, the work I currently do, and much of my professional and educational backgrounds. I will then wrap up with the following reflections. Much of my philosophy of education has been informed by two comments from two highly influential individuals in my life. First, Mike Pinto, the Principal of James Cole Elementary School who was also one of my fifth grade teachers, lives his role by the following precept: Do what’s best for kids. The flip side of this came from my principal and friend, Courtney Wildoner who is now working for Franklin Covey and the Leader In Me program. Courtney took this idea and flipped it into: Do what’s best for teachers, and they in turn will do what’s best for kids. While technology and artificial intelligence are exciting and the prospect of what their role plays and will play in classrooms is constantly evolving, as a leader, I feel that if we always keep teachers and students at the heart of everything we do, and we allow our passion for education to constantly overflow into the lives of others, we will always do great things!
