Welcome to Season 2 of the Essential Element Podcast! For this first episode Christian and Zach sit down with Van DeGoede, previously the art and design teacher at IDEA and now at SOTA. Van shares about art's place in education as a whole, his journey into to art and then into education, and even a bit about the future of art with coming technologies.

We're starting season 2 of the Essential Element how we start our school year at SOTA, SAMI, and IDEA; at camp! Christian and Zach take a moment to welcome you the new season and share some of their memories from the early days at this very same campground. Listen now to find out what makes starting the year with camp so special and catch a glimpse of the activities on our camp recap reel on Instagram.

This week Christian chats with Zach to recap some favorite moments during the first season of the Essential Element, touch on taking a break, and discuss some of the hopes for the future of the podcast and how it can showcase more about mentorship strategies happening at the Elements schools. 

Featuring original music from SOTA Graduates Abbey Meysenburg and Ellia Coggins.

Visit elementsofed.org for more information.

This week Christian invites a handful of students from the NextMove Internship Program to share their experiences with learning to work outside of the school environment. Students share what it was like forming relationships with supervisors and colleagues, how they met worksite expectations, what they were able to bring to the table for their worksites, and how the experience has help shaped their future goals. This episodes is a compilation of three student sessions to get a wide range of voices.

Learn more about the NextMove Program here: www.tacomaschools.org/departments/cte/internships/next-move

Featuring original music from SOTA Graduates Abbey Meysenburg and Ellia Coggins.

Visit elementsofed.org for more information.

This week on The Essential Element, Christian sits down with SOTA teacher, career counselor, and mentor Jordan Villalpando to talk about what students post high futures can look like, the importance of seeing each student as an individual, and making sure students find out what they truly enjoy doing so their can make plans with purpose.

Featuring original music from SOTA Graduates Abbey Meysenburg and Ellia Coggins.

Visit elementsofed.org for more information.

This week on The Essential Element, Christian invites IDEA teacher, mentor, and pilot Jen Flonacher to talk about her hope for creating impactful experiences in schools. Jen is passionate about instilling confidence in her students and finding ways to improve the representation in STEM.

Featuring original music from SOTA Graduates Abbey Meysenburg and Ellia Coggins.

Visit elementsofed.org for more information.

This week on The Essential Element, Christian sits down with SOTA alumni, teacher, and mentor Jessie Fouts to share her experience of going full circle from mentee to mentor. Jessie talks about putting teachers at the center of decision making in schools, prioritizing their mental health, and about how a truly pivotal experience she had has a mentee has shaped where she is now.

Featuring original music from SOTA Graduates Abbey Meysenburg and Ellia Coggins.

Visit elementsofed.org for more information.

First, we want to thank everyone who made it out to our first Live Community Night at Alma Mater last week! The Partner School teachers and the Elements of Education team really felt the warmth of this community. Thank you!

This week on The Essential Element, Christian sits down with SAMI teacher and mentor Stephanie Skaggs to talk about mentorship and what it means for the future of our community. Stephanie shares how she invests in our young people while in the classroom, about why mentorship is important, and what that looks like while also playing the the role of a teacher.

FREE LIVE EVENT NEXT WEEK! If you enjoy the show, are interested in learning more about the Mentor Framework, or just want to meet some awesome Tacoma Public Schools community members, join us for our free live event on May 24th at Alma Mater. Tickets and more information here: https://bit.ly/PartnerSchoolTickets

This week we shake up the format a bit with the invite of Zach Varnell, current Elements of Education Co-Director, previous teacher at SOTA, and an important player behind the scenes of the Essential Element.

Featuring original music from SOTA Graduates Abbey Meysenburg and Ellia Coggins.

Visit elementsofed.org for more information.