Who's Behind the Bulldog?

This week’s guest is Social Studies facilitator and JCEA building rep David Holt.  This semester, David co-teaches two sections of Integrated American Studies with Lindsey Hewett and Reinelle Abrazado.  He also teaches World Studies. In this episode, David digs into his role as an AR and identifies some pivotal areas where we as a school are moving in the right direction as well as areas of growth.  He discusses how he and his co-teachers and co-planners of American Studies have found a process to embed everyone’s opinions in order to find true compromise and allow for authentic integration. Thanks for tuning in to this week’s episode!

This week’s Bulldog is art teacher Ciara Pias.  This Spring, Ciara is teaching Drawing and Painting, Advanced and Intermediate Drawing, and co-teaching AMPED on Algebra with Isaac Tafoya.  She has a student teacher this semester as well, Karyn Wilks. In our conversation, Ciara talks about how she provides voice and choice for her students, creates a space that is safe to make mistakes, and prioritizes showing students how much she cares about them as strategies to build engagement and inspiration.

This weeks guest is 10th grader Emilio Medina.  This is an incredible episode that really digs in to some big topics related to social-emotional learning.  Emilio is in the process of starting a new student group called "Outreach" and he talks about his ideas, inspiration and why it's so important for the students in our school.  If you can spot four analogies throughout this episode, email Mr. Jensen for a special prize. Also, you'll notice the new artwork for this podcast.  This is original Bulldog artwork by none other than Emilio himself. Thanks, as always, for tuning in.

This week’s bulldog is Ryan Ogi.  This semester, Ryan co-teaches both World Studies with Mr. White, American Studies with Mr. White and Ms. Abrazado as well as AP U.S. History. In our conversation, Ryan talks heavily about the relationships that he has built while at Arvada.  He discusses his remarkable co-teaching partnership with Mr. White and how they found developed a system that works for them through reiteration.  He provides some valuable tips and tricks for staying sane in this remarkable year of remote and hybrid learning. Thanks for tuning in to this week's episode.

This week’s bulldog is Science facilitator and department chair Laura Schoenfeld.  This semester, Laura is teaching Chemistry, Chemistry Honors and AP Chemistry. In our conversation, Laura shares about her unconventional path into teaching and why teaching is such a good fit.  She shares some of her learnings in supporting students and not taking everything too seriously.

This special edition of Who's Behind the Bulldog continues the conversation about what has been working, not working and ideas still to try to help make the hybrid learning experience as effective as possible for our students. Thanks so much to Hannah Doran and Sergio Yanes for facilitating this awesome discussion with staff!

This week’s guest is 10th grade student Austin Jackson. Austin is a student who moved to Colorado last year from Mississippi and loves his experience at Arvada High School.  He talks about some of his favorite things about Arvada and some of the differences between here and Mississippi.

Today's guest bulldog is math teacher Jason Ziegler.  This spring, Jason is teaching Geometry in Construction, Algebra II, and AP Calculus. In our conversation, Jason discusses many of Arvada's recent successes and touches on a bit of the history.  He digs into the benefits of Restorative Practices both for a school as well as a society.  He also talks about math instruction and some of the ways he overcomes the challenges faced by teaching the subject. Thanks for tuning in to this week's episode of "Who's Behind the Bulldog" with Jason Ziegler.

Today's guest is Assistant Principal slash Activities Director Mark Abling.  Previously, Mark was a Social Studies facilitator at Arvada and a variety of of other schools. In our conversation, Mark opens up about how his life was impacted by a near-death soccer experience when he was in high school.  He discusses how Arvada has changes in his time here, including the impact that New Tech and Restorative Practices has had on our culture.  He also talk about his unexpected path into education and how the things he prioritizes as an educator are shaped by an inequitable system. Thanks as always for tuning in to this week's episode of Who's Behind the Bulldog.

Today's guest on Who's Behind the Bulldog is English Senator and theater director Steven Mathis.  Steven teaches Hip Hop as Literature, Acting and Stagecraft, Film Studies and Directing and co-teaches American Studies with Nick Floerchinger and Darcy Botham. In our conversation, Steven talks about his experiences and one of three black members of staff, how our country can improve in the recruitment of black educators, and how this is connected to the Black Lives Matter movement.  He discusses using voice and choice, cultural representation and human-centered approaches in his classroom and opens up about some past mistakes that have shaped his current mindsets in education. Thanks, as always, for tuning in to this week's episode of Who's Behind the Bulldog.

Today's guest is Special Ed teacher and department chair Matt Katzman. In this episode, Matt discusses how his Toyota Highlander represents his dynamic personality.  He talks about the need to be flexible and adaptable, how he's proud of many of the projects he's been able to co-plan with various teachers and about some of the strategies he uses to individualize education for students. Thanks for tuning in to today's episode!

This week's guest is World Language and Student Council facilitator Keila Castorena. Hear Keila talk about how she prioritizes making connections with students and providing them with a caring heart.  She discusses her origins in El Paso, Texas and how color guard eventually led her to a profession that never bores her - teaching!  She also talks about some terrific engagement strategies and what she's learned in the remote setting works best for students to provide consistency and let them know she cares.

Check out the SPECIAL EDITION of Who’s Behind the Bulldogs - it’s FULL of great advice to support ELL students in the remote setting from our wonderful ELL team!

This week’s guest is Sara Milius. Sara is a Special Education teacher.  This year, Sara is co-teaching sections of Geographic Studies, Physical Science, Algebra I and Geometry. In our conversation, Sara talks about her time in Minnesota and what led her to become a Special Education teacher.  She also discusses projects she has used in the past, including a Civics projects she has previously used, and what she’s looking forward to this year.  She also talks about her views on equity in education and provides advice for other educators. Thank you for tuning in to this week’s episode of “Who’s Behind the Bulldog.”

Today’s guest on Who’s Behind the Bulldog is Joel Carda.  Joel is one of our ESL teachers at Arvada and this year teaches ESL English 1, ESL 1 / 2, Lit Accel 2 (Bicycle Maintenance), ESL 3 / 4 and ELL Support. In our conversation, Joel discusses his history from working in the airlines in ground service to teaching English overseas in Japan and Thailand to becoming an ESL teacher here at Arvada.  He shares about his love for teaching the students at Arvada and why he’s so proud of the music program he has developed with his ESL students.  He describes Teaching Proficiency through Reading and Storytelling (TPRS) approach and how this has transformed his teaching. Joel is an amazing educator and I hope you enjoy today’s episode of Who’s Behind the Bulldog.

Today’s Bulldog is Roger Griffin. Roger is our Dean of Culture at Arvada and also teaches a remote section of Algebra I this year. In our conversation, Roger talks about his deep care for our students and how his belief that all students can learn shapes his approach to teaching.  He discusses many of his learnings over his time at Arvada and how he’s come to realize that we need to approach each situation differently and that the key to success is building trusting relationships with our students.  He offers up some advice to help cope with the changes with remote learning and that we need to ground ourselves in growth over perfection as we navigate these tricky times. Thank you for tuning in to this week’s episode of Who’s Behind the Bulldog?

We’re very excited to welcome our first student interview in this week’s episode of Who’s Behind the Bulldog.  I had an opportunity to speak with Arvada High School Senior Mandy Yang. In our conversation, Mandy talks about what she loves about Arvada and what makes learning interesting for her.  She talks about her family and Hmong culture as well as her extracurricular activities.

Today’s episode of Who’s Behind the Bulldog features Olivia Andrew.  Olivia co-teaches Geographic Studies with Rachael Powell as well as Introduction to Business.  She is also the head volleyball coach and coaches club volleyball on the side. In our conversation, Olivia shares what led her to the Culturally and Linguistically Diverse Education Program at CU-Denver and how the hope of closing opportunity gaps and understanding the education system as part of this program helped shape her identity as a teacher.  She opens up about how her exposure to culturally diverse literature opened her mind as a person of color who presents as white and how that changed her identity and worldviews. She talks about her strong connections to our students and how Arvada is where she really developed her own voice as an educator.  She also shares about her learning experiences and parallels between coaching volleyball and classroom instruction, particularly in the arena of creating safe spaces and building relationships.

Today’s guest on Who’s Behind the Bulldog is Arvada’s new vocal music director, Michaela Rael.  Michaela teaches concert choir, chorale and modernaires. Beginning this week, she will also be co-teaching the GT seminar at Arvada with Joe Ventola. In our conversation, Michaela shares about her passion for music and how she persevered through challenges in college to pursue this passion.  She discusses why Arvada stood out to her in her job search and how she prioritizes equity in music education and plans to embed student voice and choice in the program. Michaela shares that she is excited to get to know the staff at Arvada High School so please take a moment to introduce yourself if you haven’t yet had the fortune of meeting one of our newest Bulldogs.

This week’s episode is with Shannan Corman.  This year, Shannan teaches Physical Science and Biology. In our conversation, Shannan talks about how he’s wired to make honesty and openness his approach in connecting with students.  He talks about his excitement for his new freshmen physics classes and prepping students for the next few years of science.  Shannan also addresses how Restorative Practices has influenced his learning recently and provided opportunities to grow stronger relationships with students in the face of conflict.