Be A Funky Teacher Podcast

In this episode, I take a deeper look at what we commonly call the teacher shortage and ask whether the shortage itself is really the problem—or whether it is a symptom of something deeper happening within the profession. After 24 years in education, I’ve watched the conversation change from schools receiving huge numbers of applicants to districts struggling to fill classrooms.

I explore several factors that may be contributing to this shift, including working conditions, student behavior, leadership, compensation, workload, support, public perception, and the cost of becoming a teacher. I also reflect on what changed after COVID and why respect for educators belongs in the teacher retention conversation.

I talk about the importance of both new and veteran educators. When experienced teachers leave, schools lose more than employees—they lose professional judgment, institutional knowledge, leadership, and mentors for the next generation. When young teachers leave after only a few years, I believe we should become curious about what happened instead of immediately questioning their commitment.

Ultimately, I argue that we cannot recruit our way out of a retention problem. Recruitment matters, but so does creating a profession where talented educators can build meaningful, sustainable careers. Instead of only asking where we will find more teachers, I believe we also need to ask what will help great teachers want to stay.

• The teacher shortage as a symptom
• Recruitment versus retention
• Why teacher expertise is not disposable
• What changed after COVID
• The shrinking teacher pipeline
• Losing veteran and early-career teachers
• Building a profession where teachers stay

• Teacher vacancies may point to deeper problems.
• Recruitment alone cannot solve a retention crisis.
• Veteran teachers carry expertise schools cannot easily replace.
• Early-career departures should make us curious about why teachers leave.
• Filling a position is not the same as building a great teacher.
• Strong schools need both new educators and experienced educators.

In this episode, I explore the difference between teacher burnout and moral injury, a concept that helped me better understand what many educators may be experiencing. I also share how my longtime mentor, Dr. Tangela Sylvester, encouraged me to explore the idea more deeply and gave me language for something I had already been wrestling with.

I explain that burnout often feels like exhaustion, depletion, and emotional fatigue, while moral injury can feel more like knowing what you believe is right for a student but being unable to consistently do it because of circumstances outside your control. I’m careful not to diagnose anyone or suggest that every educator’s experience is the same.

I also reflect on how this tension can show up in real classrooms through limited time, competing responsibilities, testing demands, student needs, lack of resources, and the constant challenge of balancing authentic learning with accountability. Naming these realities is not about complaining or lowering expectations—it is about understanding what educators may be carrying.

I close by emphasizing that teachers are not victims and that this conversation should lead to greater compassion, better questions, and stronger support. Understanding burnout and moral injury does not solve every problem, but it can help us begin healthier conversations about teacher retention, student success, and hope for the profession.

• Teacher burnout vs. moral injury
• Dr. Tangela Sylvester’s influence
• When professional values clash with reality
• Why naming challenges is not complaining
• Supporting teachers supports students
• Understanding as the beginning of hope

• Burnout and moral injury are not the same experience.
• Moral injury can involve conflict between values and circumstances.
• Caring deeply can create significant emotional weight.
• Understanding educators’ experiences can build compassion.
• Better understanding can lead to better support.

In this episode, I begin an important new series by asking a difficult question: why are so many good teachers leaving the profession? I want this conversation to be honest without becoming negative, because I love teaching and believe deeply in the importance of strengthening the profession rather than tearing it down.

I reflect on the educators I’ve watched walk away over the years, including experienced teachers and young people who decided not to continue in education. What concerns me most is that many of the teachers leaving are deeply committed educators who care about students, continually work to improve, and carry an enormous amount of emotional weight because they take the work seriously.

I also explain why teacher retention is bigger than an employment issue. When great teachers leave, students lose mentors, schools lose experience, communities lose trusted adults, and future teachers lose people who could have helped guide them. Supporting teachers and supporting students are not competing priorities—they are deeply connected.

I close by making clear what this series will and will not be. I’m not interested in blaming parents, administrators, policymakers, or teachers. I want to understand what educators are carrying, talk honestly about the challenges, and continue looking for hope. The next conversation will explore the important difference between teacher burnout and moral injury.

• Why talented educators are leaving
• Teacher retention as a community issue
• The emotional weight of caring deeply
• Supporting teachers supports students
• Honest conversations without blame
• Beginning a new series rooted in hope

• Many outstanding teachers are reaching their limits.
• Caring deeply can carry a significant emotional cost.
• Teacher retention affects entire communities.
• Supporting educators directly benefits students.
• Honest conversations can create pathways toward hope.

In this episode, I celebrate two beginnings at once: another school year and episode 300 of the Be a Funky Teacher podcast. When I recorded my first episode, I never imagined reaching this milestone, and I’m proud of what those 300 episodes represent—300 opportunities to encourage educators and talk about a profession I truly love.

I reflect on how the podcast has evolved from individual episodes built around whatever was on my heart into deeper conversations and connected series. Those conversations have also become the foundation for future books, including Be a Funky Teacher and Teaching in an Age of AI, while reminding me that the podcast itself will always come first.

I also look ahead to the next major weekday series, which will focus on the challenges facing teachers and why I believe teachers are not broken—they are carrying tremendous weight. Saturday Stories and Sunday School for Teachers will continue, and I’m also working to make classroom resources more consistently available while exploring a possible Be a Funky Teacher YouTube show.

As I begin my 24th year in education, I’m excited about another group of students and another opportunity to grow. Episode 300 isn’t a finish line. It’s the beginning of a new chapter, and my challenge for educators is not only to think about what students should learn this year, but also who we want to become as educators.

• Celebrating episode 300
• Beginning my 24th year of teaching
• How the podcast has evolved
• A new series focused on supporting teachers
• Saturday Stories and Sunday School for Teachers
• Books, classroom resources, and a possible YouTube show

• Meaningful work is built through consistency.
• Reflection helps educators continue growing.
• Relationships remain at the center of teaching.
• Teachers need honest conversations and hope.
• Episode 300 is the beginning of another chapter.

In this episode, I reflect on how quickly summer has passed and the importance of slowing down to appreciate the people who matter most. As my family prepares for an eight-day cruise with friends we first met on a cruise two years ago, I’m reminded how simple conversations can grow into lifelong friendships.

I share why family memories require intentionality and how every season of life teaches us something. This summer has been filled with lessons from travel, family gatherings, professional learning, and watching my children continue to grow into young adults.

I also reflect on the importance of balancing excitement for the future with gratitude for the present. A new school year is approaching, and while I’m looking forward to new students and new opportunities, I don’t want to rush through the moments that make today meaningful.

As I close this final summer check-in, I encourage you to invest in relationships, make memories, and appreciate the season you’re living in. The greatest blessings in life are rarely destinations—they’re the people who share the journey with us.

• Preparing for a family cruise
• How friendships can begin unexpectedly
• Lessons from a summer of experiences
• The importance of intentional family memories
• Looking ahead without rushing today
• Episode 300 is just around the corner

• Every season of life has something to teach us.
• Family memories are created intentionally.
• Friendships often begin with simple conversations.
• Gratitude helps us appreciate the present.
• Relationships are life’s greatest investment.

In this episode, I reflect on one of the beliefs that has shaped my entire career: learning never stops. As I prepare to travel to Lincoln to help write science assessment items for the state of Nebraska, I’m reminded that even after more than two decades in education, I still have so much to learn.

I share how learning happens in many different places. Conferences, classrooms, family experiences, travel, podcasts, outdoor adventures, and conversations all continue teaching me important lessons. Some of the most meaningful learning in life happens far beyond a traditional classroom.

I also reflect on the connection between curiosity, humility, and growth. Experience matters, but experience alone is not enough. Great educators continue reading, asking questions, listening, reflecting, and remaining open to new perspectives.

As I look ahead, I’m grateful that I have not figured everything out. Learning keeps life interesting, keeps us humble, and helps us become better educators, parents, leaders, and people. The goal is not to arrive. The goal is to keep growing.

• Preparing to write state science assessments
• Why great teachers remain learners
• Lessons from conferences and experiences
• Students and family members as teachers
• The relationship between humility and growth
• Staying curious throughout life

• Learning does not end when school ends.
• Experience matters, but curiosity drives growth.
• Some of life’s greatest lessons happen outside classrooms.
• Humility creates room for continued learning.
• The goal is not arrival—the goal is growth.

In this episode, I reflect on how quickly life moves and why milestones give us an important opportunity to pause. This summer, Kristine and I celebrated our 20th wedding anniversary while our daughter Mya traveled to Washington, D.C., to present a children’s book project at a national conference.

I share how moments like anniversaries, competitions, birthdays, graduations, and family trips help us recognize how far we have come. They remind us that the years move faster than we expect and that our children grow up before we are ready.

I also reflect on how meaningful memories are often created through ordinary experiences. Road trips, family dinners, conversations, photographs, and shared adventures may not feel significant in the moment, but they often become the stories we treasure later.

As I look back on this summer, I keep returning to one message: make the memory. Celebrate the milestone, take the trip, attend the event, make the call, and spend time with the people who matter. Someday often arrives much sooner than we expect.

• Celebrating 20 years of marriage
• Mya’s national conference experience
• How quickly children grow
• Why milestones help us pause
• Ordinary moments that become lasting memories
• Making time for the people who matter

• Life moves faster than we often realize.
• Milestones give us a reason to pause and reflect.
• Meaningful memories are often created in ordinary moments.
• Relationships matter more than possessions.
• Don’t wait for someday to make the memory.

In this episode, I begin a new series of weekly summer check-ins by reflecting on a family canoe trip through the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness in northern Minnesota. With nine family members carrying everything we needed, paddling across lakes, and navigating difficult conditions, the experience reminded me that meaningful memories are not always built through comfort.

I share how the trip required everyone to contribute, work together, and depend on one another. The physical challenges, changing weather, portages, and simple routines of wilderness life helped strengthen our connection and showed me once again that shared challenges often bring people closer together.

I also reflect on what the experience taught me about young people, resilience, gratitude, and growth. My children were capable of more than I sometimes realized, and the trip reinforced that resilience develops when people are given opportunities to face challenges and work through them.

As I look back, I am grateful we took the trip—not because it was easy or convenient, but because it was meaningful. My hope is that this episode encourages families and educators to create experiences that stretch people, build connection, and become part of the stories they carry for years.

• Beginning weekly summer check-ins
• A family trip to the Boundary Waters
• Shared challenges and stronger relationships
• Helping children build resilience
• Gratitude for simple things
• Creating meaningful family memories

• Difficult experiences often become meaningful memories.
• Shared challenges can strengthen relationships.
• Young people are capable of more than we realize.
• Resilience develops through real experience.
• Growth often happens beyond comfort.

In this episode, I pause to reflect on how far Be a Funky Teacher has come and where this journey is headed next. What began a little over a year ago on my way to the National Teacher Leadership Conference has grown into nearly 300 episodes centered on teaching, leadership, relationships, humanity, student voice, and hope.

I share why I’ve decided to slow the podcast down for a few weeks and move from daily episodes to weekly summer check-ins. I’m not stopping or disappearing. I’m simply giving myself space to rest, spend time with my family, reflect, and prepare for the next season of this work.

I also share updates about my upcoming books. I’m now working toward releasing the first Be a Funky Teacher book in late October, followed by Teaching in an Age of AI in the spring. These projects are another way for me to encourage educators and remind them that their humanity and influence still matter.

As I look ahead, my mission remains the same. I want to help educators feel encouraged, supported, and hopeful while continuing to make a difference in my classroom, my school, and the larger education community. The conversation isn’t ending. It’s continuing in a new way.

• Reflecting on nearly 300 podcast episodes
• Moving to weekly summer check-ins
• Choosing rest without abandoning the mission
• Updates on two upcoming books
• Continuing to encourage educators
• Looking ahead to the next season

• Slowing down can support long-term growth.
• Rest is not the same as giving up.
• The mission of serving educators remains unchanged.
• Teachers still need encouragement, hope, and community.
• The next chapter can look different without ending the journey.

In this episode, I reflect on what happened when I took one of the biggest leaps of faith in my teaching career. After spending 22 years in South Sioux City, I stepped away from a place filled with relationships, memories, credibility, and comfort to begin again at Winnebago Public Schools.

I share the uncertainty that came with starting over and the lessons I learned along the way. I discovered that experience travels with you, relationships still matter most, trust must be earned again, and some of life's greatest opportunities are waiting on the other side of uncertainty.

I also reflect on two deeply meaningful gifts—a seed bead necklace from a student and his mother and a Mr. Funky Teacher beaded medallion created by my students with help from Ms. Shipman. Those gifts represented far more than objects. They represented connection, trust, belonging, and acceptance.

As I look back on the year, I'm grateful I was willing to take the leap. My building changed, my community changed, and my routines changed, but my purpose came with me. This experience reminded me that when we genuinely care, serve others, and believe in young people, we can make a difference wherever we are.

• Leaving South Sioux City after 22 years
• Beginning again at Winnebago
• Experience and purpose travel with you
• Earning trust in a new community
• Meaningful gifts of belonging
• Growth on the other side of uncertainty

• Leaving something good can still be the right decision.
• Experience travels with you when you begin again.
• Trust must be earned through consistent relationships.
• Meaningful gifts can represent belonging and acceptance.
• Some of life's greatest blessings wait beyond uncertainty.