"The whole people must take upon themselves the education of the whole people and be willing to bear the expenses of it. There should not be a district of one mile square, without a school in it, not founded by a charitable individual, but maintained at the public expense of the people themselves." -- John Adams

"No money shall be drawn from the treasury, for the benefit of any religious or theological institution." -- Indiana Constitution Article 1, Section 6.

"...no man shall be compelled to frequent or support any religious worship, place, or ministry whatsoever, nor shall be enforced, restrained, molested, or burthened in his body or goods, nor shall otherwise suffer on account of his religious opinions or belief; but that all men shall be free to profess, and by argument to maintain, their opinion in matters of religion, and that the same shall in no wise diminish enlarge, or affect their civil capacities." – Thomas Jefferson

About Me

HISTORY

I was born and raised in the West Rogers Park neighborhood (aka West Ridge) of Chicago. I attended Philip Rogers Elementary School (K-8) and graduated in 1966 from Sullivan High School. I lived in Chicago until I went to college at Indiana University in 1966. After I graduated with a degree in Religious Studies in 1970 my wife and I lived in North Park in Chicago while she attended Northeastern Illinois University.

In 1973 we moved to the Fort Wayne, Indiana area and have lived there ever since, raising three children. In 1975 I earned my teaching credentials from Indiana University in Fort Wayne (now Purdue Fort Wayne). I earned an M.S. degree in elementary education, an endorsement in Computer Education (K-12) in 1991, in Reading (K-12) in 1994, and trained as a Reading Recovery teacher through Purdue University in 1996. In 1975 I was inducted into Kappa Delta Pi, International Honor Society in Education.

CAREER

During my career, I taught grades K, 1, 2, 3, 4, 6, Reading Recovery, and worked as a reading diagnostic specialist. I worked in four different elementary schools beginning in the 1975-1976 school year and retired in June 2010. During one of my years as a teacher, I also taught graduate-level reading courses at IPFW. Since retirement, I taught one semester at IVY Tech Community College and volunteered with first and third graders at several local Elementary Schools (Harlan Elementary, Huntertown Elementary, and Cedarville Elementary).

I documented my "life" in elementary schools, from Kindergarten through volunteer, in the following posts:

As a student
Rogers School 1953-1962 (K-8)

As a teacher
Sunnymede Elementary School, 1975, Student Teaching
Coesse Elementary School, 1976, Kindergarten
Monroeville Elementary School, 1976-1987, Grades 1 and 3
Woodburn Elementary School, 1987-1991, Grades 2, 3 and 4
Harlan Elementary School, 1991-2010, Grades K, 2, 6, Reading Recovery
Volunteer experiences at Huntertown, Harlan, and Cedarville Elementary Schools -- 2010-2017

AFFILIATIONS

Besides blogging here I run/coordinate blogs for community and professional organizations. See HERE.

I am a member of the Indiana State Teachers Association – Retired (ISTA-R) and the National Education Association (NEA). I have been a member of ISTA and NEA since 1975. During my years as a teacher, I was a building representative, committee chair, state delegate, and local officer.

I am also a member of the following organizations:

The Northeast Indiana Friends of Public Education (NEIFPE)
Kappa Delta Pi
Phi Delta Kappa
The International Literacy Association (ILA)
Reading Recovery Council of North America

I have no political party affiliations. Since the Clinton administration, the Republicans and Democrats have worked together to weaken America's public education system through charters and vouchers Both major parties have apparently sold out to corporate education "reform," apparently for the money.

I support public schools and write about issues that public schools and public school teachers face, particularly the abuse and misuse of standardized tests, the privatization of public education, and the deprofessionalization of the education profession.

Please feel free to comment.

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