Cart
0
your cart
No items found.
Product is not available in this quantity.
Remembering Our Why
With the launch of the making champions of change website I found myself reflecting on my why. As many of us do throughout our careers in education, remembering our why allows us to refocus on the next hurdle we are facing: The next school year, the next grading period, the next evaluation meeting, or the next meeting with a tough family situation. We rarely revisit our why in times of celebration and remind ourselves of the good we, as educators, have done for students and communities.
For the first blog on this site, I felt it fitting to share my why with you. Although most subsequent blogs will share research and best practice, this blog I write as an informal invitation to begin a beautiful relationship of curiosity together. Just like many educators, my why is fundamentally the same but the way it has been shown and applied has changed with the shifting roles and responsibilities of the job titles I held. On the basic level, I strive to create positive change in education.
How did I get there, you might ask?
During my third year of college, on track to be a mechanical engineer (struggling mentally but on track), I found myself taking an education elective course on culturally responsive teaching. This course required 10 hours of fieldwork, something that was not shared until registration had already closed. I was upset. How was I going to fit this in my crazy schedule! I was assigned an afterschool program where I was asked to tutor math. Well, I ended up with close to 40 hours (4 times the requirement) there over that course because I loved supporting those students. They showed up there by choice, to get help with content that was not being explained in a way that was accessible to them, from outdated textbooks and teachers who were not being trained in culturally responsive pedagogy. They deserved better. I wanted to be someone who made it better for these kids, for the kids in my future classroom, and more. That was the beginning of my decision to fight for positive change in education.
Changing from engineering to math and adding a credential program increased my graduation timeline but it was worth it. The students were worth it, they deserved and continue to deserve better. In my first classroom I worked on a budget as all teachers do to create a math classroom that students were excited to come into and learn. Some of the posters on my walls were handmade by me that summer before my first year, and I still have a few for the walls of my office to remind me of why I continue to fight for them.
Collecting Knowledge and Adjusting with Best Practice
Throughout my career, I have been guided by site and student needs. At my first campus students needed Tier 2 behavior support. I attended training and stepped up to be the Tier 2 coach who, alongside an amazing team, built a successful Tier 2 and eventually Tier 3 behavior intervention system using PBIS. This knowledge pushed me into my next role as a climate and culture coach and specialist where I pursued knowledge in restorative practice, implicit bias, MTSS, trauma informed care, relationship building, social emotional learning, universal screening, data analysis, and so much more to ensure I had what it took to support the many schools in my charge.
As a site-based administrator I learned more about coaching and mentorship, effective professional development, and school-wide climate and culture practices. As a district administrator I needed to learn to ask bigger questions and understand streams of funding to ensure sites had what they needed. All these efforts come back to one foundational idea. What is needed to make things better for students? How can we create a safer, more inclusive, equitable educational experience for the students in our schools? While the lens may have shifted the why has always been the same. With the launch of this website, I want to confirm that the emphasis is still on the work of positive change. You will see blogs and resources that will push you to question your practice but know it is out of love for the students we teach. I cannot wait to see what amazing things we will do together.
Author of this Blog:
Dr. Morgan Goering started her journey in education in a middle school, mathematics classroom in southern California. She has been in education for over a decade serving as a classroom teacher, department chair, site-based PBIS coach, instructional coach, climate and culture specialist, vice principal, assistant director of student support services, and educational consultant. Morgan is a passionate educator seeking the ability to support and create positive change in education. As a true forever learner, she holds four degrees expanding her knowledge in education: a bachelor's in mathematics, a Master’s in Instruction and Curriculum Development, a Specialist Degree in Education Administration (K-12 Principal Licensure), and a Doctorate in Education Teaching, and Learning. She understands that the realm of education will continue to change with the ever-changing students and educators in our nation’s classrooms. Supporting educators is something in which she will continue to be invested.
