mortiz093

My feet have finally landed and are now firmly planted eager to begin a new chapter. It’s been a whirl wind of excitement and change. After 25 years of teaching, I am embarking on a new career. To say that this was a tough decision would be an understatement. Honestly, I am not a crier, but I cried the last three weeks of school—at the drop of hat. I didn’t even recognize myself! The thought of leaving a school that I loved, colleagues who have seen you through the good, bad and the ugly--and my students (well you know, it was like a death). I mourned the thought of not walking though the door to my classroom, I mourned the loss of the family that I had become an integral part of, and I really mourned the thought that I was losing my identity as a teacher.   It’s not that I wasn’t excited about my new role, or that I feared making new friends, but it was what I was leaving behind. I had a career that I was crazy in love with. With every breath, I was a passionate educator who wante...

bal·ance ˈbaləns/ noun 1 .  an even distribution of weight enabling someone or something to remain upright and steady. "slipping in the mud but  keeping  their  balance " synonyms: stability ,  equilibrium , steadiness,  footing "I tripped and lost my balance" verb 1 .  keep or put (something) in a steady position so that it does not fall. "a mug that she  balanced on  her knee" synonyms: steady ,  stabilize ,  poise ,  level "she balanced the book on her head" Even distribution of weight, keeping things in a sturdy position so that it does not fall over-- sounds simple enough, right? But balancing all that life asks of us can be very difficult, downright elusive on many days.  Admit it! You ARE envious of the person who seems to have it all together. They appear to be perfect. They exercise regularly, they are widely successful in their careers-- and they have the perfect family. You scratch your head--and ask yourse...

Are we out of the line of fire yet?  In the past two decades, educators have been in the line of fire from politicians, parents, tax payers and even administrators--and we are exhausted! We have weathered storms that described us as lazy and greedy, along with incompetent and irrelevant. These disparaging assertions have borne new ways to evaluate teachers with expensive evaluation tools and programs to determine if teachers are truly making the cut. So what's the verdict? Not much has changed! Since the inception of new evaluations methods and tools, many claim that there is not much change, but that there are new hurdles to jump and hoops to go through. Great teachers are still great! Evaluation tools can assist in dialog about teacher performance between the administrator and the teacher, and that's a great thing, but is it genuine dialog that will result in meaningful change-- or just better observation scores? Great teachers do not rely on formal observations to deem them...

This blogpost is dedicated to Allyson Apsey, a fellow member of the #compelledtribe bloggers and author of   The Path to Serendipity . She got me pondering about how life happens because of us! Truth be told, I don't think the word serendipity had crossed my lips often in my life time. I've heard the word, surely, but couldn't quite grasp the true meaning of it--and certainly I hadn't thought that life was full of serendipitous moments. Full disclaimer: I am a person who believes that you make your luck by working hard, following a set plan and being resilient. And--while all of that is true, I've recently discovered the thing called "serendipity" exists and plays an integral part in what happens in life! Another tidbit about me, I am full of energy My brain doesn't seem to shut down.  I am always thinking and moving. As a veteran teacher of 25 years, I kinda got this teacher thing down. Now, don't get me wrong-- great teachers are reflective and ...

Cue John Hiatt, Have a Little Faith in Me for background music because this song rings true with me! For the record, I was quite a happy little camper as a classroom teacher, with no real big dreams or aspirations of more, when my principal suggested that I sign up for Twitter to follow a certain educator who was killing it. So, reluctantly, I did...with no idea what I was getting into; boy was I surprised!! Baby Steps I stepped cautiously during my first year in building my PLN. Slightly reticent about following people, hanging back and re-tweeting things that resonated with me...when all of the sudden, I stumbled upon this amazing group of women leaders,#WELVoxer, who immediately took me under their wings and helped me recognize the leader lurking inside of me-- and I have never looked back. Jennifer Hogan, Lisa Dabbs and Deb Campbell, along with many others, became my tribe! We had an awesome experience of presenting together at ASCD #Empower17 last year in Anaheim.  Talk about ...

As the end of the year comes and the new year is on the horizon, we pause and look back. We may be disappointed that we did not accomplish the things we set out to, we may have experienced a really tough year and can't wait to ring in the new year, or we may have had the best year of our lives--but we should always reflect. Reflection is a key component in growing. As Dr. Phil says "you can't change it until you own it!" We must come face to face with our personal and professional failures and successes. Ask yourself the following questions: What were the highlights of this year? What were the low points? What should I have done more of? less of? Did I honor my commitments to others? myself? Did I step forward? step outside of my comfort zone? Did I love others as I should? Did I forgive? Did I spend time with who matters most? Did I learn and grow? or am I stuck? What changes should I make to have the best years ahead? What scares me?  What are my passions? Do I make...