Make Orwell Fiction Again. Now that is a catchy quote, and a clever play on the Trump campaign’s famous slogan. I was listening to Elon Musk on a recent Joe Rogan podcast. He turned the phrase during that show. How appropriate given that today is Inauguration Day. Let’s take a […]
Tommorrow, We Have a New Sheriff In Town
I am going to unapologetically take a victory lap tomorrow. I will be as humble as possible. But ya’ll, I am tired of seeing our nation’s history erased and painted over(and Kingsport folks, you all know exactly what logo I am referring to…) as if it never existed. Donald J […]
What are school vouchers? A primer…
I believe that school choice should be a basic freedom. The basic premise of school vouchers(aka individual student vouchers) is that some of your tax dollars are returned to your family. Then, you take that money and choose which school that you want your child to attend. Here is the […]
Kingsport BOE at Odds with Republican Governor Lee and President-elect Donald Trump
The Kingsport BOE voted 4-0 last night to stand in the way of Republican and conservative public education policy. In short, they voted as a block of Democrats. Terribly unwise. Those are about the only words I have for what the Kingsport BOE passed last night. I couldn’t disagree more […]
7 NE TN Mayors Endorse School Vouchers…
WJHL is reporting that 7 NE TN mayors have endorsed Governor Bill Lee’s voucher process. Will it pass? I don’t know. lt didn’t last year. I certainly support the voucher process as discussed in two previous posts from earlier this week(listed at the bottom of this page). Mayors from Carter, […]
When Your Chickens Come Home to Roost
It ain’t pretty when your chickens come home to roost. In education, we are often guilty(far too guilty) of not policing our own. Examples of that would be ineffective teachers left to damage student learning year after year. Unprofessional behavior left unchecked. Superintendents that love the Baldridge Award more than […]
Valuing Uniqueness: What Albert Einstein, Walt Disney, and Steve Jobs Can Teach Us About Creative Learning Environments
We had a superintendent several years ago who wanted cookie cutter students, cookie cutter teachers, and cookie cutter buildings. Everything from instructional delivery to minimalist classrooms to pacing…the same. Our school system was treated as a business. Our people were treated as human capital. The classrooms which once fostered creativity […]
Pro-Voucher Talk: School Systems Are Not Businesses and Our Tax Dollars Are Not Their Earnings
The power rests with the people. Our tax dollars are…ours. If you want to make a teacher angry, refer to them as human capital. That sounds proprietary in nature. School systems do not own people. Not students, not parents, not faculty, not anybody. The power of school systems should rest […]
School Vouchers: If your product is good, then why force people to stay in your system?
School choice. Republican Governor Bill Lee faces opposition from his own party in Northeast Tennessee. Or does he? The people who are the strongest opponents to school choice are those who run public education systems. Why is that? Take a minute and read this by the Kingsport Times News about […]
Black History Month February 2025: An Essay about True Professional Diversity and Its Vital Importance to Our Schools
After I finished this essay, I realized that I am not gonna be able to say all that I need to say in one post. This will be the first of what I hope will be several essays about the value of true diversity – not the forced kind but […]