Jordan Supercast

By Jordan SupercastEducation Self-Improvement Kids & Family Education for Kids

Jordan Supercast episodes

April 08, 2021 Episode 82: “Latinos In Action” Making a Difference Every Day at Copper Hills High
They are role models making a big difference at Copper Hills High School and in the community. We are talking about students in the “Latinos In Action” program.
On this episode of the Supercast, we visit a “Latinos In Action” class and talk to some amazing students who take great pride in who they are, where they are going in education and the good they do for others on a daily basis.
Audio Transcription
Anthony Godfrey:
Welcome to the Supercast. I'm your host, Superintendent Anthony Godfrey. They are role models making a big difference at Copper Hills High School and in the community. We're talking about students in the Latinos in Action program. On this episode of the Supercast, we visit a Latinos in action class and talk to some amazing students who take great pride in who they are, where they're going in education and the good they do for others on a daily basis. We're here with Ms. Oda at Copper Hills High School, the advisor of Latinos in Action. And you have a couple of classes as well. Tell us a little bit about Latinos in Action for those who don't know what it is.
Ms. Oda:
All right. It's a class as well as a club primarily for Latino students, but we allow anyone to join if they're interested. And we focus on education, leadership, service, and culture. So as a class, we will learn about cultures from the Latino communities we'll learn about each other. Usually this year is that's the case cause of COVID, but normally we go and tutor at neighboring elementary schools and they are paired with other elementary students and help them with their reading skills and sometimes their math skills. And so that's actually one of their favorite parts of being part of LIA is being able to interact with the younger students and kind of be those roles
Anthony Godfrey:
Or a lot of activities at the school, but also outreach to the community. Tell me a little bit about that.
Ms. Oda:
Yeah. I mean, being part of the class is more than just showing up to class. There's a lot expected of them to participate in other socials that we may have in service projects and fundraisers. So yeah, some of them are within the school, but also just to help the community in general.
Anthony Godfrey:
And some folks might think that this is just something unique to Copper Hills, but the Latinos in Action is highly organized at the state level. In fact, I was supposed to pre-COVID attend a conference and an event for students and for the advisors. Explain the organization and really what it's about.
Ms. Oda:
Yeah. It actually is a really big program and now reaches outside of Utah. It's also in other states such as Florida, California. I'm not exactly sure all of them, but there are quite a few now, and it's had a really positive effect on students. They're really able to embrace their Latino culture and be proud of it. But also gain confidence in themselves academically and their skills. And so they're able to help them gain confidence to join other parts that of school culture that they may not have joined previously.
Anthony Godfrey:
So by being part of Latinos in Action, it may be a launchpad to be involved in a lot of other things at school and to connect in other ways.
Ms. Oda:
A lot of my students especially my officers who show leadership and LIA have re branched out and become really great strong students in other subjects as well.
Anthony Godfrey:
How many members do you have.
Ms. Oda:
Between the two classes we may have around 70. And we also have more students that are part of the club, so maybe they couldn't fit it in their schedule and so they may attend the socials and other activities.
Anthony Godfrey:
Just talking with some of the students. They definitely live up to the name, Latinos in Action. They don't sit around and plan and think about things. They take off and they get things done. And it's incredible the number of things they have going on at the school and out in the community.
Ms. Oda:
Yeah, it's true. Honestly, as an adviser, I am here just to advise. They do everything. I'm here to be the adult in the room and they take over and I love it. It's really impressive how they just take charge and make it what it is. You may have noticed, I'm not Latina. I don't speak Spanish. I volunteered to do this. I actually was the LIA Advisor at Pason High School for one year and then I transferred schools. When I came here, I actually told them that I was interested in it. I think it's a really important organization. I, myself am half white, half Japanese. And so although I don't fit in necessarily the Latino culture, I think it's really important for people to be proud of where their family may come from, their differences and how they can use that as their strength. So, although I am not Latino myself, I really enjoyed this program.
Anthony Godfrey:
And the sense of belonging this created, it's not just within Latinos in Action. It's a connection to the broader school community.
Ms. Oda:
Yeah. And I've seen how their friendships within here have reached out to other classrooms and stuff. And so it is nice to see. But they always say, if you're part of LIA, you're part of the familia, the LIA familia. So it really is like a family. And you can see in the beginning of the year, it may be a little awkward. People don't know each other. But by the end of the year, you can tell it's a completely different class.
Anthony Godfrey:
And that's what we hope for every student, that there's some way to connect some way to identify yourself with school. Whether it's band, whether if it's athletics, it's a club, it's some connection. And this provides a connection that then creates other connections beyond this.
Ms. Oda:
Yep. It's true. I see it, the catalyst for a lot of things.
Student:
And so for my presentation, I picked through the course discussion. So first there's different channels you can take. But then one of the most that attracts most toys is late. And you could tell, it takes about four days, but obviously there's places you've stopped to eat or sleep and stuff. And then at the end, there's much be too, which it to be believed a religious place for Inca leaders. And then it was only discovered like besides the people that were around there until 1911 by an Explorer. And it takes a lot to be found because that was his purpose to try to be hidden.
Student:
Cuba is an island located in the Caribbean sea. The size of 40,000 square miles with a population of 11,000,300, 317,818. Cuba has many different habitats from mountains, forest to jungles and grasslands.
Anthony Godfrey:
Tell us about the presentations that the students were doing in class today.
Ms. Oda:
So they were able to choose any of the Latin American countries and then a topic within that. So like today we had some presentations about Peru and Cuba. A lot of my students are Mexican or Venezuelan and we've got some students from other countries as well, but they're doing a lot of the other countries that we don't know as much about.
Anthony Godfrey:
Is this kind of to expand their view of the number of really Latin American countries?
Ms. Oda:
Yeah. Because the culture differ so greatly from each other and we've also been practicing learning where all the different Latin American countries are. We know of different people that are like, Oh, I'm from Guatemala. And you're like, well, where exactly. So we're learning those right now too. And so that's been actually pretty interesting because when you understand where countries are in relation to the others, you actually understand a lot more about the cultures.
Anthony Godfrey:
Well, thanks for letting us spend time with you and thanks for everything you're doing for Latinos in Action.
Ms. Oda:
Well, thank you. It's been fun.
Anthony Godfrey:
Stay with us to hear more from students who are part of Latinos in Action.
Break:
If you're ready to start your child on the path to personalized learning, we are ready to help. The Jordan Virtual Learning Academy is coming to Jordan School District in the 2021-22 school year. Three new schools will be opening as part of the Academy, Rocky Peak Virtual Elementary School, Kelsey Peak Virtual Middle School, and King's Peak High School. Each school will have their own principal and teachers and each will give students a choice in their own learning. The schools will offer synchronous learning, which is teachers providing real time, live online instruction and asynchronous learning where teachers provide videotaped instruction for learning on a student's schedule. To register your student in the Jordan Virtual Learning Academy, visit http://connect.jordandistrict.org.
Anthony Godfrey:
I'm here with the officers of Latinos in Action. Hi everybody. Let's meet all the officers.
Student:
Hi, my name is Kiana Tapia and I'm one of the vice-presidents. What we do is mostly focus on being the big brother or the big sister. We like to be the person to welcome people into the club to make sure they know they're included. We also work with fundraisers. But for the most part, we do focus on just making sure people know that they have a place here and that they're welcome.
Student:
Hi, I'm Elizabeth Fuentez, I'm the Education Leader. What we do is introduce colleges here around the state, just so the students can get to know what universities or colleges are available to them, and also the scholarships that can help them.
Student:
Hello. My name is Kim Robles. I am President of the Latinos in Action. My position consists of taking all these ideas and bringing them all together to see how it flows best because we have eight great minds here. And you know, sometimes we need someone to collect all of our thoughts. And I also help promote the club and go around and encourage members in LIA to participate as much as they can and members outside to join.
Student:
Hi, my name is Ari Valenzuela and I'm the other Vice President for Latinos in Action. And we just oversee all the other positions and make sure that everybody gets the help they need. And if they need help with organizing socials or service activities, we're there to provide that support.
Student:
Hi, my name is Daniela Garcia. I am the Service Officer. I am in charge of making sure that we have the service activities provided for the community and outside of the community. I get the ideas going and then I come up with things that we could possibly do and then, whether or not they're approved, then we could do them. And it seems like a good turnout. It's really wonderful.
Student:
Hi, I'm Brian Siradi. I'm the LIA Secretary. My job is really just to kind of summarize the whole LIA. If there's notes, those are mine. I need to take the notes and if there's money involved, I need to take care of the money. I just kinda help everyone else. So if the person needs help, I'm there. If the Vice-President needs help, I'm there. You know, I really just, I'm here as a support.
Anthony Godfrey:
It sounds like everyone has that perspective. If something needs to be down, I'm going to jump in and do it.
Student:
Hello. I'm Daniella Custello, and I am the Historian. I help make the memories in this club. I am in charge of the Instagram account. I take pictures of any social, any activities that we're doing, which helps let people know what we're doing in these classes, and also let people have the memories that we're doing in here. We've been previously doing birthdays, which helps. People know that we care about them.
Anthony Godfrey:
I just pulled this up. Let's pull up your Instagram account or let me find you on the ground as the kids say. All right, let's pull up your account here. Talk me through this. What's this picture right here?
Student:
So at our school, we do a culture assembly recently, what day was it? Just last week, March 2nd. We did like five different dances. There's a video here.
Anthony Godfrey:
Where were the dances from?
Student:
We do the dances from there was we did a Merengue that was just all girls. And then we did a Kombia that we had with couples. And then we did a Caborita that would also couples. And then we did Salsa as well with a couple too.
Student:
This is this year's peanut butter jelly sandwich that we made. These are just the ones that we did in class. So we usually just do groups and then we just make them and we do different ones. So we'll do all peanut butter. We'll just do all jelly and then we'll do a mix of both. And then this is a group of us that we went to downtown. A lot of us drove there. We take a truck together and it's really fun because we get to see a lot of like different people.
Anthony Godfrey:
I'm impressed with all the things that you have going on. You live up to the name, Latinos in Action.
Student:
Yeah, we do. We, we do whatever we can do to help out anybody around us. We can, we want to support our custodians. So we helped by cleaning the school for a couple of months.
Anthony Godfrey:
And Daniella, tell me about the service that Latinos in Action has been doing.
Student:
This year, what we've been doing recently has been a lot of the homeless activities, especially because of the whole COVID situations. Last week we did a whole homeless feeding. We made peanut butter and jelly sandwiches. It was over 150 or so and we all went downtown. We walked around and we gave them out to the homeless. We gave them water bottles. It came with chips or granola bar, sweets snacks, plus the peanut butter and jelly. Other activities that we've done are homeless hygiene kits that have face lotion, tissues, shampoo masks, and just like things that will help them. If they can't get to sanitary places, that way they can keep clean. For the last month we did a Thanksgiving situation. We would give them kind of like a small meal that they could enjoy Thanksgiving by themselves. We've done car washing, just for the communities that they can get the car wash without having to pay them the money that they're supposed to. And most of them are just community guidelines. We've done some where we do snow shoveling. That only lasted a day because all the snow melted away. And then there was no snow. We have also done fleece blankets and stuff that would tie them together. And we'll donate them to either the homeless, to animal shelter, because animal shelters do need some for the animals to keep them warm too.
Anthony Godfrey:
It sounds like you haven't just done service from a distance, but that you have actually delivered the product that you've put together and delivered it right to the homeless. How does that feel?
Student:
It feels nice knowing that they have someone, so that they know that we care, that they're heard and it feels nice seeing the brightness on their face. They'll give us a little blessings. I can I give a blessing toward real? And it's just like saying that we are just so, so thankful for what we're doing for them.
Anthony Godfrey:
Sounds like this changes students' focus and they may be service-minded long after they're no longer part of Latinos in Action.
Student:
I'm actually friends with some of the other graduates that were in Latinos in Action. And they tell me how they're dong in college. They're doing other service-based activities, whether it's for a club or for an organization or for themselves with their own ideas. Oh, you can put that into LIA and make it bigger than what it is.
Anthony Godfrey:
Congratulations on the great work you're doing. It's awesome. What would you say to someone who's considering being part of Latinos in Action or starting Latinos in Action at their school?
Student:
I would say totally do it. It's something to get you to try a lot of things. This club is very good. You don't even have to be Latino. If we're being honest, it's just a club for everyone to get involved, to get to know people and really break out of your shell and help your community.
Anthony Godfrey:
What are the benefits for someone who decides to be part of Latinos in Action?
Student:
Latinos in Action really like opens you up. At least for me, last year I was super shy. I didn't talk to anyone. I had like one friend and now it seems like it's a second home to me. I really just loved being with Latinos in Action because it just helped me meet a lot of new people in different cultures and just opens up a different world for me.
Anthony Godfrey:
I think you've described it really well. What a lot of people are worried about coming into high school is who am I going to know? How am I going to make friends? Latinos in Action is an instant connection. It sounds like.
Student:
Yeah. It helped me a lot because I wasn't in it last year. But I had a friend that was a leader and I love to help a lot. She knew that I loved it, so I would help out. And they noticed that I was helping a lot. So when I applied, they saw me as as a person that actually is willing to do stuff in this class, which made me really happy because I just love helping people. And I didn't think I was even going to get this position because I wasn't even in the class last year and it's helped me open up a lot more and find more friends that are willing to invite me to places. A lot of times I was never really invited to anything other than this year, when I got into this class. I made a lot more friends that are willing to talk to me, invite me to things. So it's helped me a lot.
Anthony Godfrey:
Other thoughts?
Student:
I feel Latinos in Action is also a well-known organization and it's not just here in Utah, it's all over the country. Because we're based in Florida and California, it's very national. And so I feel that Latino in Action does bring the opportunity to many students. lFor our LIA Conference at the end of the year, they have different competitions in which tLIA students can go and compete and they can win scholarships and they can win money for submitting an art project or submitting a short film. And so they have so many different categories in so many ways that we can put ourselves out there and really be involved in the community.
Anthony Godfrey:
You guys are so impressive. This is awesome. Thanks for spending time with me. This is fantastic. What a great celebrity class. Thanks for joining us on the Supercast. Remember, education is the most important thing you'll do today. We'll see you out there.
20 min
April 01, 2021 Episode 81: An Assistant Principal’s Passion as Level 7 Local Google Guide
You could say she is an assistant principal with great taste. When Adrienne Yancey isn’t in schools helping to educate students, she is educating perfect strangers, reviewing restaurants as a Level 7 Local Google Guide.
On this episode of the Supercast, Superintendent Anthony Godfrey finds out what it takes to be a Local Google Guide and why it is a passion for this assistant principal. He even heads to a local restaurant that is all the rage right now to do a taste test and give the food his own Google review.
Audio Transcription
Anthony Godfrey:
Welcome to the Supercast. I'm your host, Superintendent Anthony Godfrey. You could say she's an assistant principal with great taste. When Adrienne Yancey isn't in schools, helping educate students, she's educating perfect strangers, reviewing restaurants as a Level 7 Local Google Guide. On this episode of the Supercast, I find out what it takes to be a Local Google Guide and why it is a passion for this assistant principal. We visit a local restaurant, which is all the rage right now, to do a taste test, and I give the food my own Google review. I love to highlight some of the interesting people that we have working in our district. And we have many of them today. I have the good fortune to talk with Adrienne Yancey here at Eastlake Elementary School. Thanks for taking the time to talk with me.
Adrienne:
I'm so happy to be here.
Anthony Godfrey:
You're a foodie.
Adrienne:
Yes, I'm a foodie.
Anthony Godfrey:
I wish I were a foodie. I just love food. And I want to find out all about what got you here. Let's talk about you and Google and food. How does all of that connect?
Adrienne:
I love to do reviews on Google and it just started as a hobby, just pictures here and there of different restaurants that I've visited with my family, and I would add what I liked about that place and include a few pictures and it just built from there. My family, they're pretty into this hobby that I've developed as well.
I've really tried to stay positive, especially with local businesses. I don't want to ruin someone's business or give a negative vibe about a place. I always try to look for something positive. I had an experience just recently where I went to a donut shop. My family and I have been on a doughnut kick for the last couple of years. If you want to know where the best apple fritter is or the best buttermilk bar, you just need to ask me.
Anthony Godfrey:
I want to know where both of those are, so go ahead.
Adrienne:
We tried a new as a fairly new establishment and went in with high hopes because they have other businesses that have done very well. So unfortunately, a few of the doughnuts we got were raw inside, so there were some raw dough. That was one that I got some beautiful pictures, but the product wasn't necessarily one that I'd want to review yet. I contacted the business and I told them about my experience. I was kind and I was well received because, obviously, that isn't to standard and they wouldn't want a review on Google highlighting a mistake. So I don't ever want to throw a business under the bus, especially with my reviews. Because I've done so many, sometimes they'll stay at the top of a business, it might not just be based on timeline. So for that I did contact the business. They refunded the amount that I paid for the mixed dozen and I'm going to give them another try.
Anthony Godfrey:
Now that you've mentioned donuts, I do have to know, where are the best apple fritters?
Adrienne:
Okay, so you have to go to Mirror Lake Gas Station, it's in Kamas and the apple fritters are as big as your face. They're huge.
Anthony Godfrey:
As big as my face? That's an accomplishment.
Adrienne:
They're worth the drive. So that is an amazing place.
Anthony Godfrey:
Where's the best buttermilk bar? My wife loves buttermilk bars.
Adrienne:
The two best places I feel like in the valley are Banbury Cross, and then Lehi Bakery. The Lehi Bakery ones are enormous.
Anthony Godfrey:
I love all of those places. The Lehi Bakery has the square donuts, right?
Adrienne:
Yes.
Anthony Godfrey:
Thank they do melt in your mouth. They just run down the back of your throat. There's no chewing involved.
Adrienne:
Exactly.
Anthony Godfrey:
I could talk donuts all day with you. Tell me about what it means to be a Google reviewer.
Adrienne:
Okay. So anybody can review businesses on Google. If you go to Google Maps to find a restaurant or a bakery, whatever you're looking for, you can even review locations of, parks, anything. So you go on Google Maps to that place, and then if you scroll down, it gives you the option to add a review.
Anthony Godfrey:
And I've added a review or two, I think.
Adrienne:
Yeah, so it's based on a five star rating and you can decide how many stars do you think that establishment or place merits, and then you can write a detailed review or a simple review. You also have the option to add pictures.
Anthony Godfrey:
And is it the pictures that got the drew attention to your reviews? What do you think made your reviews take off?
Adrienne:
I don't know. Maybe. I do think that the pictures have helped. I think that you get more views on your reviews if you're willing to take the time to add photos. So I would say that that has been helpful based on how many reviews I've done and the number of pictures I've posted. I've hit a Level 7 Local Guide status.
Anthony Godfrey:
A Level 7 Local Guide. That sounds like something from Dungeons and Dragons. You roll the dice and you're a Level 7 Local Guide who helps people find the best pie in the castle or wherever.
Adrienne:
Exactly. I have almost a thousand pictures posted.
Anthony Godfrey:
And review every time you travel as well?
Adrienne:
Yes. So, like you, I'm a destination foodie as well. I do a lot of research. I know where we're going to eat. I don't have a spreadsheet itinerary, but I definitely have a spreadsheet with different places that I want to try when we travel.
Anthony Godfrey:
Destination Foodie. I've not heard that term. Can I be a Destination Fast Foodie? Is there such a thing as that?
Adrienne:
Yeah. You definitely could be a Destination Fast Foodie, but I do like to look for unique places as well. So whether it's donuts or the best Mexican food in the area, I always try to find l something that's unique when we travel.
Anthony Godfrey:
Tell me about your background that got you interested.
Adrienne:
I started cooking as a little kid and I was always encouraged by my parents. My mom was a really laid back mom, so it was okay if I made a big mess in the kitchen and we always had flour, sugar, and eggs on hand so I could bake anything that I wanted to. And so when I got to high school, I had the opportunity, I went to Bingham. Through Salt Lake Community College, there was a Culinary Program. So at the end of my day, I got to go over to Salt Lake Community College, either on the UTA bus or if I had a car, I drove. I started expanding there and I worked my senior year downtown at The Roof and The Garden. And then I expanded into the Lion House. So that'd Beehive Group, and I learned a lot there. And I decided I wanted to go to culinary school.
So I moved to Denver right after high school and finished an Associates Degree. During that time, I worked for an Italian bakery and for the Hyatt Regency Hotel. And I moved with my job to the Hyatt in Houston when I was 20 years old.
Anthony Godfrey:
Wow.
Adrienne:
So I was really a go getter and I wanted to be a master chef. The thing is about that though, when sometimes when you take your favorite hobby and make it your career, it kind of takes the passion out of it. I felt like I needed a little more variety and I knew that I wanted to extend my education and do something that or I wouldn't be doing necessarily the same thing every day.
Anthony Godfrey:
Right.
Adrienne:
And I found it in education.
Anthony Godfrey:
Being an assistant principal at East Lake elementary, I'm sure affords you a new adventure every day, like you were looking for.
Adrienne:
It does. It does my, there isn't one day that is the same. I get to deal with, you know, different kid personalities and teachers and administration and the district. And I've learned a lot, even in this short time.
Anthony Godfrey:
Well, we're very glad to have you, and I'm very glad to be here with you today to try some pie from Flake Pie Company. Now I told my wife I was doing this today and she was quite excited at the idea that I would get to be trying some Flake Pie. Let's just start the review right now. I really liked the packaging. Is that a seafoam green there? Tiffany blue. Maybe that's a tiffany blue box.
Adrienne:
Their logo. Yeah. It's inviting.
Anthony Godfrey:
Oh, I just opened it and I can smell the crust and it smells really good.
Adrienne:
I know what these are. This one is key lime.
Anthony Godfrey:
Is that banana cream right there?
Adrienne:
This one is the banana, but that has a meringue instead of whipped cream.
Anthony Godfrey:
What was this called? It's something clever. You Lime Up in My Life or what is it?
Adrienne:
Yep.
Anthony Godfrey:
Let me look at the, let's see. Oh, Sweet Child of Lime.
Adrienne:
Okay. Is it raspberry fields?
Anthony Godfrey:
Raspberry Fields Forever.
Adrienne:
And then this one is like B -A-N-A-N-A.
Anthony Godfrey:
So is it like bananas, like Gwen Stefani would spell it out?
Adrienne:
Yes. But something that's unique about this one, in Utah we're generally used to banana cream pie having a whipped cream topping. And this one is meringue, which is more common in the South.
Anthony Godfrey:
Wow. Oh, to admit that I don't normally eat things with bananas in them. I don't trust those phantom seeds that they have in them, but I'm all in today. I'm going to go for it.
Adrienne:
Okay. What do you want to start with?
Anthony Godfrey:
A Sweet Child of Lime.
Adrienne:
So this one has the graham cracker crust. Yeah. This one has the graham crust.
Anthony Godfrey:
I'm going to dive right in there on that one slice.
Adrienne:
Okay.
Anthony Godfrey:
I lost a little bit of crust.
Adrienne:
Yeah.
Anthony Godfrey:
Talk me through what's coming to mind here as we scoop this out.
Adrienne:
Okay. So if this is an authentic key lime. Generally it's probably just regular lime juice that they made this with. Now a key lime, they are tiny and they really do come from.
Anthony Godfrey:
Does that look like a little key lime slice on time?
Adrienne:
Yes. It looks like a real key lime. Well, it could be, or it could just be a regular lime, but regardless key limes are really tiny and they're hard to juice. If they bought key lime juice that's totally possible to. So it's usually condensed milk and lime juice and not much else. So let's see how it let's see how it is. I think the filling, the texture is really good. It's sweet. I don't think I could eat, well maybe I could eat the whole pie.
Anthony Godfrey:
The texture is pretty fantastic.
Adrienne:
It is really smooth and creamy.
Anthony Godfrey:
But the crust really is moist, overly moist. These are all individual pies. These are maybe the size of, I don't know. What's that the size of?
Adrienne:
I want to say they're 4" tins. The size of the tin is. based on the bottom. It might even be 3" tin, but they're individually sized.
Anthony Godfrey:
But perfect for sharing. Wow. I am going to have another slice of that despite the overly moist crust.
Adrienne:
Okay.
Anthony Godfrey:
But after we tried the others. Do you cleanse the palate in between, do I need some European spring water or anything to cleanse in between?
Adrienne:
That would have been nice.
Anthony Godfrey:
Well, I'm sorry we don't have that.
Adrienne:
Yeah, me too.
Anthony Godfrey:
All right. So now we're going for Raspberry Fields Forever, right?
Adrienne:
Yes. Raspberry Fields Forever.
Adrienne:
Okay. If I remember correctly, it's supposed to be Strawberry Fields Forever, right?
Anthony Godfrey:
It is. Yes, John Lennon would object, I'm sure.
Adrienne:
Oh, this one's a little bit softer.
Anthony Godfrey:
It is softer. Do you view that as a negative or is that okay?
Adrienne:
It might just be. We'll have to see if you think it's just because it's warm, you know, like maybe it's been out of the fridge for a few minutes.
Anthony Godfrey:
Oh, that might be so in fairness, perhaps we aren't getting it right from fridge.
Adrienne:
The crust isn't quite as wet.
Anthony Godfrey:
I'm tasting the crust more on this. It's a dryer crust and it's really, really good.
Adrienne:
It's so good. The flavor is so good.
Anthony Godfrey:
Yeah, the flavor jumps out at me on this one. What's something I could say that would make me sound like a foodie? I detect notes of graham cracker. Would that be kind of a foodie thing to say?
Adrienne:
I would say buttery. The tartness of the berries cut the richness of the cream. I think this one would taste delicious together with the lime, the raspberry lime. I think that would be delicious.
Anthony Godfrey:
Sweet Child Raspberry. Hmm.
Adrienne:
That one's good. That is good.
Anthony Godfrey:
Wow. Yeah. I see a repeat performance on both of these. All right. Okay. I have not had anything with banana in it for a very long time. So I figured this is probably the right time with some southern meringue on top. Let's have a little B-A-N-A-N-A Cream Pie.
Adrienne:
I think banana is hard because you don't get it fresh, then the bananas discolor and they could be too soft.
Anthony Godfrey:
Wow. This is not bad. I'm having a second bite already. What do you think?
Adrienne:
I like it.
Anthony:
And I do like you like the crust?
Adrienne
I like the crust. I think it's a good thickness. It's cooked all the way through.
Anthony Godfrey:
That meringue seems to have a nice texture to it and gives a little bit, but it holds up.
When we come back, it's time for lunch, Ms. Yancey and I had to a local hotspot for a taco taste test.
Break:
If you're ready to start your child on the path to personalized learning, we are ready to help. The Jordan Virtual Learning Academy is coming to Jordan School District in the 2021 year. Three new schools will be opening as part of the Academy, Rocky Peak Virtual Elementary School, Kelsey Peak Virtual Middle School and Kings Peak High School. Each school will have their own principal and teachers and each will give students a choice in their own learning. The schools will offer synchronous learning, which is teachers providing real time, live online instruction and asynchronous learning where teachers provide videotaped instruction for learning on a student's schedule. To register your student in the Jordan Virtual Learning Academy, visit http://connect.jordandistrict.org
Anthony Godfrey:
All right. We're now here on location in a restaurant. And Adrienne's going to tell us a little bit about this restaurant, what it's called and why we're here.
Adrienne:
Okay. So it's called the La Casa Del Tamale and we're in West Valley. And I found this place on Instagram. One of my friends that did a review and took some really great pictures. I've been excited to try the Birria Tacos with consomme for awhile because they've been popping up at different restaurants all over the valley. This little place, I don't think it's been open very long. That's a great ambience in here. And I think it'll be really fun.
Anthony Godfrey:
Chips and salsa or a win already. And I'm looking forward to trying this dip taco. Actually a former student of mine, on his Instagram story showed that he'd made this at home and it looks like you cooked the meat and then use the sauce and blend some vegetables. Do you know the process for creating it?
Adrienne:
Yeah, I think the meat is stewed, so it's in a pot of cooking liquid, and then they take the meat out and shred it and then use the broth with the vegetables and use that as your dipping sauce.
Anthony Godfrey:
And then the stewed meat goes into the taco and then you dunk it, right?
Adrienne:
Yes. We want to try the Tacos Birria with consomme.
Anthony Godfrey:
Let's make it three orders. These chips and salsa actually are really good. If the salsa, I can't put my finger on it. You probably can, but it's a little bit different from what I'd normally expect.
Adrienne:
It is. I think the texture is like tomato soup, but then it has really good flavor.
Anthony Godfrey:
Yeah. It's about 11:15. We tried to beat the crowd and the restaurants already mostly full. They do have some spaces left, but I bet it's going to fill up quickly and we have a table of construction workers over there, and that says to me, this is going to be a great place.
Adrienne:
There were people waiting outside for the doors to open, so that's a good sign to follow.
Anthony Godfrey:
I liked being an insider here on the early end of a trend. So that is a deep, rich sauce and there's a lot of taco and we both get four tacos each. All right. Should we get a picture of this?
Adrienne:
Oh yeah.
Anthony Godfrey:
This is a really deep, rich looking sauce. What would you call it? Is it a consomme?
Adrienne:
Okay, so the cooking liquid in a crisp shell on the taco piping hot, this looks fantastic. Oh, so good.
Adrienne:
So good. Nice crunch on the shell. The meat is so tender.
Anthony Godfrey:
Very tender, but a chunk dropped in. I'll get it when the consomme gets consumed. Somehow my shell is still crispy, even after I've dumped it in the consomme.
Adrienne:
Did you try it with the lime?
Anthony Godfrey:
I didn't put any lime on it.
Adrienne:
Oh, this is, it's really good. I think that it is meeting my expectation. So I think one of the things they do as well, they dip the shell into the consomme before they crisp them up on the grill and that's why they have that beautiful reddish yellow color.
.Anthony Godfrey:
Yeah, it does look great. Let's kind of summarize. We started with pies and started with dessert. What's your recommendation?
Adrienne:
I really enjoyed Flake. I thought that the pies that we tried were good. I think the banana was my least favorite, but it wasn't bad. I loved the raspberry. I loved the key lime.
Anthony Godfrey:
I thought the crust was good. It was a little bit different on all of them. And I would definitely go there.
Adrienne:
I would go there again and I would recommend it.
Anthony Godfrey:
Now let's talk tacos. Let's talk tamales. What do you say about this restaurant?
Adrienne:
So the tacos are phenomenal. The consomme is so flavorful and delicious. You literally could drink it when you're done dunking your tacos. The texture of the shells were perfect. They weren't too crunchy, but just crisp enough that had a great texture and it held the texture the whole time that we were eating. The tamales, I think were good, but I was so full from the tacos that I didn't give them very much attention.
Anthony Godfrey:
Yes. The tacos are the star of the show and I've had a lot of Mexican food, but this is unlike anything I've had before. The consomme taste is fantastic and the texture and flavor was just fantastic, out of this world.
Adrienne:
The beef is so tender. This was a delicious meal, so I would highly recommend this place.
Anthony Godfrey:
Casa Del Tamale and Flake, both highly recommended.
Adrienne:
Thumbs up, both thumbs up.
Anthony Godfrey:
Well thanks for joining us on another episode of the Supercast. I'm going to clean my plate. Remember, education is the most important thing you will do today. You'll see out there.
23 min
March 25, 2021 Episode 80: Copper Hills High School Girls Wrestling Team Makes History on the Mat
They are considered pioneers in their sport, making history throughout the state of Utah. Girls high school wrestling became a sanctioned sport for the first time this year and at Copper Hills High School it is a season filled with success.
On this episode of the Supercast, we stop by the wrestling room at Copper Hills High where the girls wrestling team is still talking about their first-ever state tournament. Several of the girls walked away with state championships and the team placed second overall. They are girls in a league of their own - literally making history during Women's History Month.
Audio Transcription
Anthony Godfrey:
Hello and welcome to the Supercast. I'm your host, Superintendent Anthony Godfrey. They are considered pioneers in their sport, making history throughout the State of Utah. Girls' high school wrestling became a sanctioned sport for the first time this year, and at Copper Hills High School, it was an exciting season filled with success. On this episode of the Supercast, we stopped by the wrestling room at Copper Hills High, where the girls wrestling team is still talking about their first ever State Tournament. Several of the girls walked away with State Championships and the team placed second overall. They are girls in a league of their own, literally making history during Women's History Month.
We're here at Copper Hills High School with the girls wrestling team coaches. I'm going to let them introduce themselves, and we're going to talk about this sport that was just sanctioned this year by UHSAA.
Coach:
Hi, my name is Coach Hatch. I've been a coach in here at Copper Hills for 12 years. This is my first year with the girls, as expected, because it's the first year they've been sanctioned. It's been a lot of fun and a great learning experience.
Coach
Hi, I'm Cheryl Flowers. I'm the Assistant Coach here at the girls wrestling team and I've coached other sports here a couple of years. My daughter wrestles, so I joined this team.
Coach
Hi, I'm Scott Post, Head Coach here at Copper Hills High School. I'm excited to be here and to share our excitement for the sport with our girl wrestlers.
Anthony Godfrey:
Cheryl, tell me, what other sports do you coach?
Coach:
I coached basketball a couple of years back, but I stopped doing that because I was a mom first. Now my kids have all grown more and I've got my last two in the high school here. So I decided to help with the wrestling team when my daughter decided to wrestle.
Anthony Godfrey:
How does it feel to coach your daughter in wrestling the first year that it's sanctioned?
Coach:
Oh, it's an amazing experience. These girls are amazing. And to have my girl on the team, it's been fun. She's watched her brother. She's had four older brothers that have wrestled here at Copper Hills and to watch them, she kind of came in with a little bit of an advantage, you know, watching her brothers wrestle.
Anthony Godfrey:
That's exciting. What were some of the hesitations you had going into it and how do you feel about those now?
Coach:
Well, in the past, it's been a real male dominant sport, right? And watching these girls start to go up the lines in the State of Utah, some of these girls that have been amazing throughout the State. She's watched them do it, because we've gone to all these tournaments, watching these girls wrestle and she's like, mom, I just want to try it. And I said, okay, let's try it and see where it goes. And she actually is pretty good at it. So we thought, okay, why not? You know, but it's a hard sport to be against boys with. And now that it's sanctioned for girls, it's opened it up for these girls that wouldn't want to wrestle boys.
Anthony Godfrey:
Her older brothers are big fans .
Coach:
Very much so, very much. They love her and they support her one hundred percent.
Anthony Godfrey:
What would you say to parents who are thinking about encouraging their daughters to be part of this or whose daughters have asked to be part of it?
Coach:
Just come try a practice, right? Let them roll around on the mat, see how they like it. See if it's something that they'd be interested in. It's been really interesting to watch the different kinds of girls that are coming out. Like they said earlier, they'd come from all walks of life, different sports, dancers and everything. I would encourage any girl that wants to even try it to just to come try it, roll around on the mat. We're welcomed. They're welcome at Copper Hills at any time. We'll take anybody just to show them. We want to build a sport statewide.
Coach:
Of course, up until this year, my oldest daughter, who's a senior on the team. She wrestled on the boys team and was competitive, did a really good job wrestling on the boys team. But with that being sanctioned, they gave them a whole new opportunity to share their love for a sport with a bunch of girls that weren't used to it yet. So that's been fun. Let's start running fireman's, so hit that lead leg, right? Heavy hand as you're coming in on that, and let's start running four or five fireman's in a row and then switched back over. And I don't care if we're dumping it or launching it, but I want to go fireman after fireman, after fireman and we'll come around and help you guys out as well as we're running through those.
Anthony Godfrey:
Will you describe a fireman now as you've told them to do that?
Coach:
Yes, they run in and grab them. So traditionally, if you think about a fireman and there's a fire, that poor fireman has to put your listless body over his back and carry you down a couple flights of stairs and save you from that burning building. And so essentially that's what it is. You get a good tie up, and we shoot the opposite hand underneath, grab those legs, pull down on the other side, just like you're carrying them. But as opposed to pick them up and running around, you throw them to their back. The reason we're working this focused on today is girls actually in college and in the Olympics wrestle was called freestyle, a slightly different version of what's wrestled in high school, which is called folk style. And so we're actually now going into our freestyle season. There are a handful of girls here that have had some opportunities and offers from colleges to go wrestle. And and so as we're going into freestyle season, we want to focus on moves like this in folk style. If you hit this move, it's worth two points. If we do this in freestyle, because you take them from their feet to their back, it's worth four points.
Coach:
Go for the hip. Yeah, no, it's fine here. Right? We've captured the arm here on this other side. We always want to make sure we keep that arm and never let that go.
Student:
Fireman's my least favorite moves.
And why is, Fireman's your least favorite?
Student:
Love fireman. Love them, but I don't like putting people over my shoulders.
Anthony Godfrey:
Okay. So yeah, I could see that at first it's a little uncomfortable, but then you - I just don't even know how I would start to do that. That's impressive that you guys can even do that. Tell me your name. I

Student:
I'm TT.
Anthony:
And you are Kara. How have you enjoyed wrestling? Did you just start or how long have you been wrestling?
Student:
My first year, so it's all new to me. I think it's pretty fun. It's amazing.
Student:
This is my first year too. I joined because I thought I needed to do a high school sport. Can't get into high school, not doing anything. And I love it so much. It's just phenomenal, such a fun year.
Anthony Godfrey:
It's fun to be involved. And you've got to find something to connect with school. I've heard that there's a real family feel and that happens really fast. Tell me about that.
Student:
I love to talk, but I don't get like sister close with people. But when I met these girls, the first day I walked in, our coach's youngest daughter was like, mom, and she starts whispering to Mrs. Pace. And then Mrs. Bass comes over. She's like, your hair looks one of our Barbies. And that moment I was like, this is family. Like, I love you girls so much. They're all funny. They're all protective. You know, they'll make good choices. They're great girls.
Anthony Godfrey:
That's awesome. Have you guys had a good support from the school? From the student body?
Student:
Oh yeah. All those things. I think most everybody knows who we are.
Anthony Godfrey:
It is Women's History Month and you ladies have made history. How does that feel?
Student:
Every day I walk into the high school, well, every other day, and I look at the trophy case and I'm picking out which trophy case should be ours because we, this is our first year and we've done so much. Like it's the practices, it's the new varsity jackets that are going to be passed down forever and ever. It's going to tournaments and walking out First Place. It's standing up to other people who are like, oh, girls wrestling is weird. And you know, it's big, it's a lot of pressure on our shoulders. And I think we've made a lot. We've made too much history, like too much for us to handle. So we need more girls to come. So they can help us blaze the trail.
Anthony Godfrey:
You are blazing a trail. There's no doubt about it.
Coach:
However, if we have one more circle on that, that angle is going to be there. And what that hand up with, pull on, pull that right. Create that angle. Half the body, attack the weak side. Let's go High C and then let's leave it in that low leg lace. And if you want to walk them through what we're doing out here and we'll get after it. That's what's unique and different about it is in folk style. There's a lot of stalling. You're staying in that position. Nothing's happening. There's no scoring. It kind of comes a little bit slower.
Anthony:
I've observed that.
Coach:
Whereas in freestyle, there's a lot more action. It's a lot more consistent. And that's why we only wrestled folk style down in the United States.
Anthony Godfrey:
Yeah.
Coach:
Everything in the Olympics has Greco or freestyle. And free style really benefits those that are being aggressive and that's what's made Copper Hills actually really unique this year is all of our girls learned from the moment they walked in the door is we're going to attack. And everything that we are going to do is going to be through the whole idea of attacking you. Look at some of their wrestling gear. We put attack on everything because we're going to be aggressive. We're going to dictate the match. And we want our opponent responding to us. Someone's got to react to someone who's reacting to who? We want to make sure the word dictates that action.
Anthony Godfrey:
So with certain athletes, some muscle groups may be better developed than others. And with wrestling, you pretty much have to have it all working for you, don't you?
Coach:
Absolutely. And I can attest that my daughter's on the team and she's a competitive volleyball player and she also does track. And after about the first week of wrestling, she said dad I am using muscles I didn't even know I had.
Anthony Godfrey:
So among many other good reasons for being a part of the wrestling program, it prepares you well conditioning and and toughness and all of that for any other competition you might be involved in.
Coach:
Oh, absolutely. And I'll be honest with you, and this is going to sound funny, but girls are more willing to learn. I think boys come in with, Hey, we already know what we're doing. And these girls have been like sponges. I mean, you teach them or show them things and they literally just soak it right up. They've actually been easier to teach and coach than the boys now, they don't have that pride side, right? There's a mental difference, right? When we're guys, you teach a move.
Yeah. Coach, I'm doing that, you go over to the corner and try to just fake it. Whereas girls ask questions that, they are different. Why, what angle? And at first, when we first started coaching girls, years ago it was, are they stalling? Why are you asking all these questions make jokes? You know? And then I started realizing they really want to know the exact points to what really makes that move unique.
Anthony Godfrey:
It's a genuine desire to know, not just what to do, but why am I doing it? And how can I do it?
Coach:
Exactly.
Anthony Godfrey:
Stay with us. When we come back with the team, find out how wrestling is having a positive impact outside of the sport for the successful.
Break:
If you're ready to start your child on the path to personalized learning, we are ready to help. The Jordan Virtual Learning Academy is coming to Jordan School District in the 2021-22 school year. Three new schools will be opening as part of the Academy. Rocky Peak Virtual Elementary School, Kelsey Peak Virtual Middle School and Kings Peak High School. Each school will have their own principal and teachers and each will give students a choice in their own learning. The schools will offer synchronous learning, which is teachers providing real time, live online instruction and asynchronous learning where teachers provide videotaped instruction for learning on a student's schedule to your student. In the Jordan Virtual Learning Academy, visit http://connect.jordandistrict.org.
Students:
I'm Brooklyn Face. I'm Emma Williams. I'm Anya Hat, I'm Meridian Grand Prix, Bradley Graham, PT Onsot, I'm Karen LLloyd, Kimberly Flours. I'm Alyssa Pace.
Anthony Godfrey:
I am so impressed with what I've seen and I just think it's awesome. And maybe people picture girls wrestling and they wonder what that's like. Well, I can tell you is it's a lot of toughness and a lot of learning and man, a lot of hard work and you guys are doing great. Let me ask you this right off. Have you had some injuries this year? Tell me about some of the injuries you've had right here.
Student:
I started off the season kind of with an injured hip and throughout the year it kinda got worse. And then there was this one move that Brooklyn really, really likes and it messed up my shoulder. So that was fun.
Anthony Godfrey:
Okay. That's good. Tell me about competing in State. The first year that girls wrestling was sanctioned at the high school level. I know this isn't the first year wrestling for all of you, but tell me how that felt, being part of that.
Student:
Pretty weird going from knowing every single girl wrestler in the entire State of Utah to showing up to State and just seeing so many like new girls, so many girls I'd never seen before. It was just as big as the boys tournament. And it was awesome. I was so excited to be there.
Anthony Godfrey:
So you were surprised to see so many from around the State participating, right?
Student:
It was a lot different than it had been in the other years. So it was different, but I wasn't surprised. I love wrestling so much. So why wouldn't every other girl love it so much?
Anthony Godfrey:
How many years have you been wrestling?
Student:
Six, I think. I don't know, a long time.
Anthony Godfrey:
You all seem to be having a great time at this. Tell me, what you love most about wrestling.
Student:
Honestly, it's the confidence boost. I walked in here and I thought I was pretty confident. And then you start doing the practices and learning new things and you're like, oh, this is really hard. But then you get the hang of it and you start getting in the mentality, I can do hard things and it just completely changes how you see yourself, I guess.
Student:
I really liked making friends with season. I talk a lot. And so when we got to go meet other teams. I was like, okay, well we'll have two options. Be rude or go make friends. And I made a lot of friends this season. I know there was probably a girl on every team laughing. That's a really good thing that when we were on like a big family, we're like cousins, even though we're all different teams and we all like our competition, but we're all playing for the same goal.
Student:
Before there weren't as many girl wrestlers, until this year, and so they put a little side tournament of three or four girls wrestling. And so this year it's really fun to see lots more girls joining the sport. There's just more people to wrestle and so it's really fun.
Anthony Godfrey:
Do you think it will continue to grow?
Student:
Yeah, for sure. I think this year was a good jumpstart and it was a little tricky with COVID and some parents were like, Oh, I don't know what are girls wrestling? What's that? But now that it's kind of a real thing. I think next year everyone will be like, Oh yeah, girls wrestling is a thing. That's awesome. I want my girls to be a part of that. So I think it will just keep jumping and growing as it goes on.
Anthony Godfrey:
Can I ask you if that's a wrestling black eye?
It is. It happened last weekend at my tournament.
Anthony Godfrey:
That looks like it was a little bit gruesome. Tell me what happened at your tournament.
Student:
So I went up to Logan for Showcase Qualifiers Tournament and I got the take down and it was freestyle. So I was working for the gut. The girl tried to defend it and hit her head up super hard and right into my eyebrow. And it like instantly blew up. I won the match though.
Anthony Godfrey:
So I'm just going to say, you kind of had an Incredible Hulk kind of thing happen after that. And she got to the mat pretty quickly, I'll bet.
Students:
I didn't get the points that I wanted to, I was a little flustered, but I did end up winning, like 16 to 6.
Anthony Godfrey:
Watching the practice that does not surprise me. Tell me, what do you love about wrestling?
Student:
The competition and the confidence boost I got. It really helps with softball and wrestling.
Anthony Godfrey:
Yeah. So you play softball as well?
Student:
Yeah.
Anthony Godfrey:
What's harder?
Student:
Wrestling.
Anthony Godfrey:
What else are you involved in?
Student:
So my last two years of high school, I'm a senior this year, my last two years I was on Dance Company so I did studio dance. I was on dance club and then this year I just quit dance and I was like, well, I gotta do something else. So then on the side I do dance and then wrestling is my main thing.
Anthony Godfrey:
And this is kind of improvised, full contact dancing, right? What other sports have you guys played?
Student:
Volleyball.
Anthony Godfrey:
And what's tougher, wrestling?
Student:
Wrestling, the toughest stuff.
Anthony Godfrey:
Does wrestling prepare you for track and volleyball?
Student:
Yeah.
Anthony Godfrey:
Okay. How about you?
Student:
Like Emma, I grew up dancing. I danced for 13 years. And I'm actually still doing it at the same time I was doing wrestling. So I would miss one practice a week just to go dance.
Anthony Godfrey:
What kind of dance do you study?
Student:
I do everything. Ballet, Jazz, Hip Hop, Contemporary Tap, anything you can think of.
Anthony Godfrey:
Does your brain ever switched to the wrong sport and you do a take down instead of a pada beret and now suddenly you're in real trouble?
Student:
There's been a couple of times. I mean, let me say splits really do help in wrestling.
Anthony Godfrey:
Okay. Fair enough. I could see that maybe balance as well? Besides sanctioned high school wrestling, there's also a lot of other wrestling, even preparing for scholarships. And it's a different type of wrestling as we've talked about with your coaches. How many of you are talking to colleges or preparing for wrestling in college perhaps?
Student:
Yeah, I've had a few different offers and I've been talking to a couple of different colleges, just trying to figure out where I want to go. I love the sport and so I want to continue wrestling in college for five years and then coach and just keep it a part of my life.
Anthony Godfrey:
Congratulations on having scholarship offers. The black eye can't hurt with that.
Student:
Yeah, for sure.
Student:
We have Women's Nationals coming up in a week and a half. So we've just been working hard for that to prepare. They didn't do Women's Nationals in 2020 because of COVID. So this is going to be really big. And then if you do make it onto the World Team, you wrestle all around the world. Not only do you wrestle with Olympians, you get to travel and represent America through freestyle wrestling.
Anthony Godfrey:
There are a lot of opportunities and I don't think everyone would realize that necessarily. That's new to girls wrestling, so that's really exciting. What would you say to girls who are thinking about participating or have wondered about doing it now that COVID is not going to be an obstacle next year?
Student:
For the wrestling, I've done karate and boxing and a lot of theater. And I saw this and I thought, I'm not doing this. When you don't know what it is and you don't understand it, it looks weird. It looks like, why are they wearing Tyson Gluts? Why are they doing that? And you're just like, okay, maybe not. But I think a lot of girls like, okay, well this may seem really rude. Everybody is so nice. On the mat, we're very mean, but that's because on the mat, we don't see faces. It's just competition. You want to win because there's only one person coming off of that mat a winner. Right. And so I think for a lot of girls, think about it. Come look at our pictures, come look at our videos. They're pretty cool. And not just our team, but every other team, you know? So just do it. Like you were kind of saying earlier, you have this image of your mind image in your mind of wrestling, where it's like spitting and super buff kids. You don't have to be the super buff kid. You could be the 108 who's as big as a pinkie and still take State. You could be a 124 who is really 120 and you somehow manage to not only surpass your goals, but everyone's ideas of you. So you could take a look at me and you go, Oh, I could see that she dances, but you wouldn't picture me as a wrestler.
Coach:
When the season was starting and I convinced you guys to come in the door and try and practice one time. How many of you girls were a little bit embarrassed to tell your friends and family that you were wrestlers?
Anthony Godfrey:
A few of you? Yeah. How's it feel now? Yeah.
Coach:
How many of you girls are still embarrassed about it? I think she's going to do a few more firemen now.
Coach:
I think that shows, you know, kind of that difference in that confidence, and that perception and how the sport was at first, even this year. It being sanctioned almost looked at are they really doing this or, yeah, I'm a girl wrestler. Right? And now, from what they've accomplished, from the family that we've built within this room, everyone's proud of it. And they've accomplished great things. These girls are very unique. They've worked incredibly hard. They've given their heart and soul to it, as you can see. And through that confidence, through that attack and through the efforts that these guys have put in. They've been very, very successful. We won almost every tournament we went to, as they get off the bus and walk into the gym, all the other girls take notice. And we're be able to do that with these girls, being that family, taking care of one another and truly caring and loving and helping one another out. And so it is something that they're proud of now and they're excited about, and they want to represent the sport and they've absolutely done it in the right way.
Student:
I wear my varsity jacket every day to school. And I go to a charter school, which means that's not dress code and I should not be wearing that. But I wear it every day to school because it's not only just like a confidence boost for me, but I love it. There's big boys that I go to school with, you know, football players. And I look at them and I'll go, I'll wrestle you. And they're like, I'm a 190 and I'll go, I'll wrestle you. I'm a 145.
Anthony Godfrey:
You're learning how far skills can get you.
Student:
Exactly. And like coach was saying, talking is such a big thing. Not only like wrestling, I do that, but in my entire life now. I'd work hard and go and get what I want now.
Anthony Godfrey:
Love that. Don't get what you want. Go get what you want.
Student:
Depending on what you have, you can use it. If you're stronger, you can use your strength. If you're longer, you can use your length. Wrestling is literally for everybody. And I think it's such an important skill to have to know that you don't have to adapt to the social norms or you don't have to adapt to an ideal body. You just have to use what you have and succeed with it.
Student:
Yeah. Kind of to go with Brooklyn. Wrestling is such an individual sport. There's a high crotch, but there's a million different ways to do a high crotch, depending on your length, your strengths. However you wrestle, you can turn a simple high crotch into your move and make it your your top dog, your exact perfect move for you. You don't even have to be an athlete to wrestle because you'll become an athlete and you'll gain those strengths.
Anthony Godfrey:
Skills. I love that I don't have to be an athlete. You'll become an athlete. That's right, right. You guys are super impressive. I can't tell you how excited I am to see your enthusiasm and to see what a positive thing this has been for you. So thanks for letting me spend time with you. I'm going to keep watching this sport and I know great things are ahead for you guys. So congratulations.
Thanks for joining us for another episode of the Supercast. Remember education is the most important thing you'll do today. We'll see out there.
25 min
March 18, 2021 Episode 79: Students Growing with Classroom Garden
Students in Julie Feyereisen’s 3rd grade classroom are growing in a very healthy way this school year. It’s thanks, in part to something called a Tower Garden in the classroom. The Tower Garden is a 6-foot pillar which uses grow lights and aeroponic technology to grow plants indoors using water and no soil.
On this episode of the Supercast we head inside Ms. Feyereisen’s classroom to see the Tower Garden. There we celebrate a successful harvest and taste some of the healthy produce students planted as part of their lesson in sustainable gardening.
Audio Transcription
Anthony Godfrey:
Welcome to the Supercast. I'm your host, Superintendent Anthony Godfrey. Students in Julie Feyereisen's third grade classroom are growing in a very healthy way this school year. It's thanks in part to something called the tower garden in the classroom. The tower garden is a six foot pillar which this aeroponic technology to grow plants indoors using water and no soil. On this episode of the Supercast, we head inside Ms. Feyereisen's classroom to see the tower garden. There we celebrate a successful harvest and taste some of the healthy produce students planted as part of their lesson on sustainable garden. Let's start by visiting with some students.
Teacher:
So would you like some carrots by themselves?
Anthony Godfrey:
What is your name?
Student:
Hattie
Anthony Godfrey:
So you've got your high. You're next at the table here. Do you know what you want to put on your salad?
Student:
Olives.
Anthony Godfrey:
I put olives on my pizza. You put it on your salad. What do you like on your pizza? Cheese? We're talking about salad, not pizza, so I shouldn't go down that road. All right. Did you grow some of these?
Student:
Lettuce.
Anthony Godfrey:
There are Apple bits. Do you normally put apples on your salad? What do you have your eye?
Students:
The tomatoes.
Anthony Godfrey:
They look good.
Student:
I brought them.
Anthony Godfrey:
Did you? ?o were you each assigned to different salad ingredients?
Student:
No, you could just bring whatever you wanted.
Anthony Godrey:
Oh, I see.
Student:
Or you didn't have to bring anything if you didn't want to.
Teacher:
What else would you like?
Anthony Godfrey:
You got some sugar snap peas there. Three varieties of carrots, several varieties of carrots It looks like.
Teacher:
Okay, there you go.
Anthony Godfrey:
So were the kids assigned to bring something?
Teacher:
They just brought their favorite salad topping.
Anthony Godfrey:
Favorite salad topping.
Teacher:
It's always interesting to see what they brought.
Anthony Godfrey:
Yeah.
Teacher:
Like, oh yes, I tried this, the Asian Sesame and some brought dressing. They just kind of brought a variety of things and it worked out.
Anthony Godfrey:
What is your name?
Student:
Hayley.
Anthony Godfrey:
I see from your shirt that you believe in unicorns. Do you also believe in salads? You eat salads at home?
Student:
Yes.
Anthony Godfrey:
Tell me what you've decided to put on your salad.
Student:
I decided to put some carrots, cucumbers and apples.
Anthony Godfrey:
Yeah. And what type of lettuce has this? Did you grow this yourself?
Student:
Yes.
Anthony Godfrey:
Does make it look better to you to eat since you grew it?
Student:
Yes.
Anthony Godfrey:
Do you normally grow vegetables at your house?
Student:
No.
Anthony Godfrey:
So you got to do something in class you've never done before.
Student:
I did.
Anthony Godfrey:
I see that you have chosen to eat your olives.
Student:
Yeah. I chose that because I like olives.
Anthony Godfrey:
Yeah. So I saw you put your salad together. Put the olives on top, came to your desk and went right for the olives. And now the rest of the salads on its own. I saw you like croutons too. I was talking to a classmate of yours and they're not a big fan. You like them though.
Student:
I like to eat plan just straight out of the bag, because then they feel taste fresh.
Anthony Godfrey:
That's a good idea. Do you put any dressing into the bag or just straight up?
Student:
Just straight out.
Anthony Godfrey:
Did you grow the lettuce?
Student:
I grew the kale.
Anthony Godfrey:
Oh, you drew the kale. And you told me your sister's name is Kale?
Student:
Yeah.
Anthony Godfrey:
Is she named after the vegetable or is the vegetable named after her?
Student:
The vegetable was named after her.
Anthony Godfrey:
Well, that's a nice honor for her. Is it good? Is it kind of bitter or did it taste yummy?
Student:
Yummy.
Anthony Godfrey:
Okay. I'm going to try the kale. I don't eat a lot of kale, but you've convinced me. That looks like quite a salad. Does it tastes pretty good? You look like someone who's eaten a salad before.
Student:
Yeah, I have.
Anthony Godfrey:
And you love salad? What type of a dressing do you normally prefer?
Student:
Italian, but there wasn't any.
Anthony Godfrey:
So did you go with the Ranch, it looks like?
Student:
Yeah.
Anthony Godfrey:
Have you ever tried green goddess?
Student:
No.
Anthony Godfrey:
The go for it. If only for the name you should try it. Green Goddess dressing if you're a salad fan. Okay. So talk me through your salad here. What have you got on here?
Student:
I have apples, lettuce, peas, tomatoes, carrots, croutons, avocado, and um.
Anthony Godfrey:
It's so much it's hard to keep track of. You really put together a nice salad.
Student:
And then cucumbers.
Anthony Godfrey:
It's a very good variety for someone your age. I know lots of kids in third grade who would eat fewer vegetables rather than more, so that's really good work.
Student:
Now, if we had any pickles, I'd go for the pickles.
Anthony Godfrey:
Oh, I love pickles. Do you put pickles on a salad?
Student:
No.
Anthony Godfrey:
Just on the side.
Student:
Yeah.
Anthony Godfrey:
I love a good pickle. Do you eat like a big whole pickle or slices or what?
Student:
Well, my dad normally makes pickles.
Anthony Godfrey:
He makes them? Oh, wow. No wonder you like them. Homemade pickles.
Student:
Well, we have like, I don't know how much in each jar, but maybe like 20 in each jar.
Anthony Godfrey:
Oh wow, that's awesome.
Student:
We have circle ones. We have like slice ones. We have a lot of them. And then we have a lot of salsa. We have a lot of jam.
Anthony Godfrey:
So it sounds like you guys grow alot.
Student:
Oh yeah. We have a big yard. We grow a lot of fruits and vegetables.
Anthony Godfrey:
Wow. That's very impressive. Well, when you grow them, you tend to appreciate them and like eating them,I guess.
Student:
My brother is in class with me. He is my twin. He's right here.
Anthony Godfrey:
Oh, your brother is in class with you? Your twin? Oh, and you know what, he's not back at his desk yet. He's probably piling his plate high with a wide variety of vegetables, just like you did. That is impressive work I have to say. That's really awesome. And I keep interrupting your salad so you don't even have a chance to eat it. Oh, and you've got some good croutons. Do you guys grow croutons at home?
Student:
No, but we make them.
Anthony Godfrey:
You do make them, really? Wow. Do you make the bread that they come from or do you buy the bread?
Student:
My mom makes.
Anthony Godfrey:
Oh my gosh. You make the bread and then you make the croutons to put on all the stuff you've grown. Megan, you are quite impressive as is your family. It's very nice talking with you. Did you grow this lettuce here?
Student:
Well I did get this. I think this is my lettuce. Yeah.
Anthony Godfrey:
It's the light green light. Where is it on the tower there? I'd like to try some Megan lettuce.
Student:
On the back.
Anthony Godfrey:
All right. I'll give it a try. I'll let you get back to your salad.
Student:
Okay.
Anthony Godfrey:
Thank you, Megan. Okay. I'm going to try my salad here. This is as fresh as a salad gets. I picked it right off of the tower. Oh my goodness. It is very tender. Crisp. It tastes great.
Teacher:
Good!
Anthony Godfrey:
Yes. Stay with us. When we come back, Ms. Feyereisen talks about how she has incorporated the tower garden into all her lessons and why students love it.
Break:
It is one of the most prestigious academic achievement programs available for high school students. And we're proud to say it's coming back to Jordan School District. We're talking about the International Baccalaureate (IB) Program, which will be located at West Jordan High School. The IB Program supports personal and academic achievement for students at the very highest level. IB diploma courses take place during a student's junior and senior year in high school. All sophomores are invited to consider the IB program for next year. There are no pre-requisites for IB and interested middle school students can start preparing now. Students with the IB diploma have a better at getting into some of the most prestigious universities in the world. For more information, or to find out if your teen is a good candidate for IB, visit http://ib.jordandistrict.org.
Anthony Godfrey:
I'm here with Julie Feyereisen third grade teacher at Monte Vista Elementary, who has had kids growing the elements of a salad on a tower garden, and it is really stunning when you walk in. It's obvious learning is happening constantly in this classroom and this is just one element of learning. And it's a delicious element. I'm eating a salad that was prepared by the kids. A salad picked right off of the tower that they grew. It's fantastic. Tell me about this project and what made you want to start this and what it's been like for the kids?
Teacher:
Oh, good question. By the way. Thank you for coming.
Anthony Godfrey:
Thank you. My pleasure.
Teacher:
I am a firm believer in active learning and also in the mind-body connection and that what we feed our bodies affects how we learn and what we just move forward in our daily lives. So when the kids see things growing, they see green things growing, where things are actually how they're supposed to look and the color that is living. And it just makes such a difference when they can actually see it happening and then put it into their bodies and see the correlation between the mind and the body and knowing that that's what makes such a difference. Like we move a lot in my classroom, we do a lot of active learning, but it's also like what goes into help them, their minds really take in all of their learning
Anthony Godfrey:
When they grow something that they have probably just expected to have placed on their table previously, Do you think it changes their perspective about the world around them and where food comes from, and how hard people have to work to provide everything that they have?
Teacher:
Absolutely. Yes, it does create a different perspective. I've had students who do not eat salads, do not eat green things, actually eat things off of the tower garden because they have been in that process. They've partnered with that process of growing something and knowing that they're eating that they grew. So yes. And yes, seeing what it does do have a difference of where they actually get their food. I mean, they just grew something and they just ate it and it makes me so happy to see so many kids eating a salad.
Anthony Godfrey:
I talked to a number of kids in line waiting for their salad. They don't normally eat salad, but they were piling their plate high. And not only that, but it gives them the sense efficacy. I put in effort, I'm patient. I do what I know works, and I feel the sense of accomplishment. There's a connection between my effort and results.
Teacher:
And they'll eat it. I've had parents actually thank me saying now my child eats more vegetables because they have had experience with it. So they have experienced growing their own vegetables and eating them straight from the tower, just fresh.
Anthony Godfrey:
Describe that tower for those who are listening. It's a white tower. There are spots where you can grow plants from. And is it aeroponic, is that right?
Teacher:
It is. It's aeroponic. It's a tower garden that does not need soil, it doesn't need need ground. It just needs a vertical space. And so it's an aeroponic vertical growing garden. And so the students. about five weeks ago, that's the cool thing about five weeks ago, they planted, and now that that's what they have. And there are different slots where you can put everything. Se grew basil. We grew thyme and we grew three different types of lettuces. We grew kale, we grew chard. And I even saw some students had kale and chard on their plate.
Anthony Godfrey:
I did see kids with that. Having kale on your plate in third grade is an accomplishment all its own.
Teacher:
Yeah, I know it was. Oh, it just makes me happy. I love it.
Anthony Godfrey:
I'm sorry to be eating and talking at the same time, but I cannot resist this tender, crisp lettuce. It really is delicious. So it's also lit up their lights. Those lights stay on 24/7?
Teacher:
No, they stay on for about 14 hours a day. They're on a timer and their water is also on a timer. So there's a base for the tower garden that you fill up with water and you put the tower tonic in for the nutrients for the plants. So there's a pump at the bottom of the base for the water and it actually just pulled the water up and then rains the water down on the roots. So if we were to pull some of those plants out, we just pull for a long time and see these roots, just come out of this tower garden, because they've been, they've been growing for so long and it's really neat to see how, how they've grown and that's how it works.
Anthony Godfrey:
What are some of the things that kids learn from this experiment?
Teacher:
We do math and of course it's science. And we also do a lot of writing with it. So they have been tracking their plant and measuring their plant. It was planted as a seedling and then they've also been writing about it. And it's just neat for them to see this transformation that has happened using all of that curriculum, all of those different pieces, bringing it into one thing and also help of course, with their bodies and their minds. So it's really an all-inclusive experience or for them. And it's been fun.
Anthony Godfrey:
There are so many layers to it, so much to learn and great connections that you're able to make through this activity. I can't tell you how impressed I was that these kids. obviously. are super engaged. They're loving it. And it was a great salad on top of that. So keep up the great work. I love the experience you're giving these kids. I'm sure that they're going to say many years from now, remember Ms. Feyereisen and how we grew lettuce and salads. And that's why I'm here at the Sizzler Salad Bar today.
Teacher:
Yeah.
Anthony Godfrey:
Thank you so much for your time. It's really been nice getting to know you and your class and enjoy the rest of the year.
Teacher:
Thank you so much. I appreciate it. What a treat for you to come. Thank you.
Anthony Godfrey:
Thanks for joining us. On another episode of the Supercast. Remember, education is the most important thing that you will do today. We'll see out there.
17 min
March 11, 2021 Episode 78: Where in the World is WJHS Basketball Great Jordan Loveridge?
He rose to the top of his game as a 6-foot-6 inch forward in basketball for the West Jordan High School Jaguars and was named 2012 5A Player of the Year leading the state in scoring and rebounding. Jordan Loveridge, or "J-Love" as he is known to some, also made a name for himself in the basketball program at the University of Utah where he became one of the top scorers in school history.
Today, at the age of 27, the West Jordan High grad is still making a name for himself playing professional basketball overseas. On this episode of the Supercast, we catch up with Jordan Loveridge who is currently playing pro ball in Finland. Find out how his time at West Jordan High helped him reach his goals and how life has changed with his superstar status abroad.
Audio Transcription
Anthony Godfrey:
Hello and welcome to the Supercast. I'm your host, Superintendent Anthony Godfrey. He rose to the top of his game as a 6'6" forward in basketball for the West Jordan High School Jaguars and was named 2012 5A Player of the Year leading the state in scoring and rebounding. Jordan Loveridge, better known as "J-Love" to some, also made a name for himself in the basketball program at the University of Utah, where he became one of the top scorers in school history. Today at the age of 27, the West Jordan High grad is still making a name for himself playing professional basketball overseas. On this episode of the Supercast, we catch up with Jordan Loveridge who is currently playing pro ball in Finland. Find out how his time at West Jordan High helped him reach his goals and how his life has changed with his superstar status abroad.
Anthony Godfrey:
We are with former Jordan School District student Jordan Loveridge. Jordan, thanks for joining us.
Jordan:
Yeah, thanks for having me all the way from Finland.
Anthony Godfrey:
What time is it there in Finland right now?
Jordan:
It's about 6:30 at night.
Anthony Godfrey:
So it's been dark for about four hours now, right?
Jordan:
Yep.
Anthony Godfrey:
I'm really excited to talk with you. I watched you play when you were here at West Jordan High School. When did you graduate?
Jordan:
I graduated in 2012.
Anthony Godfrey:
2012, the time flies. It was really fun to watch you. I was just talking with a couple of colleagues telling them that I had the chance to interview you and they were pretty excited about that. They have a lot of respect for how you held yourself off the court in addition to your game play. They just reminded me how fun you are to watch play basketball and what a great, humble, approachable person you've always been, even through all of your success.
Jordan:
I appreciate that.
Anthony Godfrey:
Tell us, what are your memories of playing at West Jordan High School? We are going to talk about all the places you've been and the great career that you have, but tell me about your memories of West Jordan. What stands out to you?
Jordan:
Just a great group of guys I got to play with and, you know, the coaching staff, Scott Briggs, and then Damron, it was just great atmosphere. It really prepared me for going in play in Utah. They really knew basketball and I was a young, naive guy coming in and thought I knew everything, but they taught me a lot. And it just was fun to play with those teammates. I still have good connections with the coaches and my teammates from high school. So it was a great experience all around.
Anthony Godfrey:
When did you first realize, hey, I'm kind of better than everybody else? When you were a kid, when did you realize that you had a gift for playing basketball?
Jordan:
I think when my dad actually let me play with his friends. I used to go to the gym with him and they would just let me shoot on the side. I always wanted to get in their games, but he never would let me play. And then eventually, when I got a little stronger, he let me play and I started beating them and dominating in those games. So I figured, if I can do these things versus strong men, I might have it to enter the high school level.
Anthony Godfrey:
Beating your dad's friends at basketball must have been its own kind of satisfaction.
Jordan:
Yeah, for sure. I mean, those guys to me were like the NBA. Oh, I can wait to play against these guys. You know, I knew these guys. They've got all those stats and what they were doing things like that. So it was fun to get to jump in those games.
Anthony Godfrey:
Yeah. Sure. And then after West Jordan, you played at the U. You may not know this, but I have a poster signed by you. I can't remember from which year I got that through your mom, and I'm actually a huge fan of your mom as well. It comprehends, she's always so nice. She always ask before I can ask how are you doing. You always asks how I'm doing and checking in on me. So she's a great support, but tell us about being at the U.
Jordan:
Definitely grown up and got to be away from home, you know. Had a great coaching staff up there as well, which helped me and helps me be prepared to play professionally. And you know, we did some great things. Went to the Sweet 16, had some great players come through there, got to play with some great players on my team. It was just a fun experience to get to be there four years, get to graduate and just get to play at the highest level.
Anthony Godfrey:
Who were some of the people that you remember playing against when you were at the U?
Jordan:
I think just in the PAC 12, there's so many great players. For me, it was more of the places we got to play. You know, you get to play at UCLA, USC with the schools, people in the basketball world and even just in the college world. People dream to go to those schools or play at those schools. So I got to go play in front of UCLA, Arizona, Oregon, got to be at those places and got to play for some of those top ranked guys that play that either in a queue or you just have seen play on TV. So I think just experience of getting to go and play high level players every single night.
Anthony Godfrey:
And playing in the Sweet 16. I mean, that's really something special.
Jordan:
Yeah, for sure. I mean, growing up, I always would fill out brackets for March madness. I tried to watch during school and stuff and never was able to because a lot of the early games started when I was in class. But I always was checking scores just to see. But then to make it to be a part of it was, you know, it's amazing.
Anthony Godfrey:
And now you're a professional basketball player. How many years have you been playing professional basketball?
Jordan Loveridge:
This is my fifth year. Yeah,
Anthony Godfrey:
Yeah, yeah. And you're with the Cobra. Is that right? How do I say that? The Cobras. Is that right?
Jordan:
Yeah.
Anthony Godfrey:
Very nice. Tell me, let's first talk about all the places that you've played. It's quite a list. You played in Switzerland, Austria, I think. Tell us about your journey there, first of all. How did you get to start playing in Europe?
Jordan:
So I signed with an agent out of college and he just had some great connections. I started my career off in Hungary in a little village called Carmen. It was definitely different from college to Carmen, a little small town by myself. But I had basketball to focus on, which was great. And then from there I went to Switzerland to a lot bigger city, which was nice and Switzerland's a beautiful country. And then the next year I went to Germany. The German league is one of the top basketball leagues in Europe. So that was a great experience. And then I went to Austria. And then now this year in Finland.
Anthony Godfrey:
The European leagues, how does that work? I know in soccer, based on how well a team does, they may be moved up or down, out of a league. And I know the team that you played for plays in the highest European league right now. So how does all of that work?
Jordan:
So usually each country has their own league. They have top league and then it goes, the second league, third league, or how many other leagues they have. And so everyone's trying to play in the top league in whatever country they're in. And then there's also European competitions where you get to go and travel and play. For example, if my team was in one of those, we would go play in France or in Germany for some of their top teams. And that's a whole different tournament. But for the most part, teams are trying to make it in the top league in their country.
Anthony Godfrey:
Because the top league mean that you're going to end up playing in other countries more frequently.
Jordan:
Yeah. I mean, you definitely have a better chance to be seen and sign a better contract in a country that you want to go, or that wants you to come and play for their team.
Anthony Godfrey:
What does your current team look like in terms of where the players are from?
Jordan:
We have a guy that played on North Carolina. His name is Justin Pierce. A guy from Fresno State, Nate Grimes, he's a rookie. And then a guy that played in the Canadian League for three or four years that did really good. His name is Anthony Gangs. So we have four Americans and then the rest are Finnish guys.
Anthony Godfrey:
Oh, so dude, all the Finnish guys speak English? Or are you now speaking French?
Jordan:
No. Everybody around the team usually speaks English. I haven't been to a concert where I had to learn the language too much.
Anthony Godfrey:
Yeah. So how do you like Finland? What's Finland like?
Jordan:
I definitely dark and cold, but with my family here, it's been great. I get to see my son and my wife every day. It's tough being away from family back home, but we have FaceTime, things like that. And they're very supportive of me playing and they want me to continue to play so it's not bad at all.
Anthony Godfrey:
Is there time in the summer when you can come home or when's the off season?
Jordan:
Yeah. So usually I get around four months at home and I try and make it back to Utah. I spend a lot of time with family and we try to do as much stuff as we can within that four months. It's tough, but still we try to fit in trips and, make sure we're always eating dinner at either my wife's parents or my parents.
Anthony Godfrey:
That's really great. And your family watch these games? Are they streamed so they can follow your career from here?
Jordan:
They've been able to watch pretty much all of my games anywhere I've played. Each country usually has some type of TV deal, as we do at home, where the NBA is on ESPN or TNC, but over here they have their own streaming service so it's been pretty easy for them to watch off the gangs.
Anthony Godfrey:
You mentioned your family. How old is your son now?
Jordan:
18 months.
Anthony Godfrey:
Well, congratulations. That's exciting. What's his name?
Jordan:
Kingston.
Anthony Godfrey:
Very cool. And how did you meet your wife? When did you get married?
Jordan:
So I got married three years ago. I met my wife were just out in downtown Salt Lake. One of my friends actually went to school to Southern Utah with her. She was a volleyball player in Southern Utah. He's a football player and he actually went to West High School and he introduced me to her. From there we just kept talking and hanging out and the rest is history.
Anthony Godfrey:
That's great. Tell me about your parents. Like I said, I'm a huge fan of your mom. It's odd. It's obvious that she's one of the people in this district that really stands out to me as someone who takes care of other people, looks out for them. Tell me about the lessons that your parents taught you and the way they provided opportunities for you to get you to where you are now.
Jordan:
They're just very selfless people. They just want to do everything for everyone else. I tease them sometimes that they need to look out for themselves once in a while, just because they are always running around doing things for other people. They didn't want to help from people either. But if it's moving, if you need this, you need us to coach, you know you can come to our house. They always are very selfless. So just seeing that, I try to strive to be like them and try to help everyone be friends with everyone. Especially traveling and meeting new people in different cultures and try to see what their culture is about. Talking to new people, you know, I try to be just like them. Just be selfless and be friendly with pretty much everyone.
Anthony Godfrey:
Well that those lessons serve you well as you play on various teams and in various countries. We're going to take a quick break and when we come back, find out what's next for Jordan Loveridge and what advice he has for other young athletes.
Break:
If you're ready to start your child on the path to personalized learning, we are ready to help. The Jordan Virtual Learning Academy is coming to Jordan School District in the 2021-22 school year. Three new schools will be opening as part of the Academy, Rocky Peak Virtual Elementary School, Kelsey Peak Virtual Middle School, and Kings Peak High School. Each school will have their own principal and teachers and each will give students a choice in their own learning. The schools will offer synchronous learning, which is teachers providing real time, live online instruction and asynchronous learning where teachers provide videotaped instruction for learning on a student's schedule. To register your student in the Jordan Virtual Learning Academy, visit http://connect.jordandistrict.org.
Jordan:
Jordan, do you ever get the chance to go in and talk with students about basketball or do some school programs where you teach them some drills or anything like that?
Jordan:
So there's usually a school program that we do and I've done it almost every country. We go and talk with the kids, teach them some drills, teach them some stuff that they can do at home that if they do like basketball or if they just want to stay active. We'll go to schools and a couple of times a month and teach a basketball class and then just talk with them a little bit. They get to ask questions and see where we're from and get to learn a little bit from us. So we definitely get to do that and that's always fun to go to the different schools.
Anthony Godfrey:
How has living around the world in these different countries under these different circumstances changed?
Jordan:
It's opened my eyes to different ways of living, different ways to do things. Just traveling and living in smaller places, some bigger places, different cultures, just learning day to day what other people go through and do. It's really helped me grow and helped me realize how fortunate we are for the things that we have. Just simple things like dishwashers or dryers or things like that, you know, that we all have. We take them for granted sometimes, and not everyone has those here and they live just fine and happy. And you know, it's really just opened my eyes to things like that.
Anthony Godfrey:
What's the food like in Finland? Do you like to fish? I think probably.
Jordan:
Yeah, for sure. A lot of fish. They actually have reindeer here, which I never ate before I came here. So I tried reindeer for the first time. It was pretty good. They have a lot of they eat, a lot of moose here.
Anthony Godfrey:
So can you drive through McDonald's and you can get like a moose combo. I'll have the number two reindeer burger and a large fry.
Jordan:
But you can t=go to pizza places and things like that. You can order a reindeer on pizza. You can order moose on pizza and things like that. You can have pasta with moose or reindeer, which is a little different, but you know.
Anthony Godfrey:
I'll have the Blitzen number three, I guess, is what you can order. Well, that's really interesting. That's fascinating. Tell me, what advice would you give to students who aspire to a career in professional sports?
Jordan:
I think just making sure you work hard every day. I mean, it sounds so simple, but you know, not a lot of guys go to the gym every day and stay really consistent. As long as you're consistent and it's something that you love to do. You shouldn't be forced to do it if you don't love it. Maybe there's something else out for you. But if you really do love the play and it's something that you wanted to, there's thousands of leagues in the world that guys are playing professionals. So it's not easy, but if you put in the work, you'll definitely be able to get something out of it.
Anthony Godfrey:
That's great advice. Obviously your love for basketball has not diminished. Who are some of the basketball players that you look up to?
Jordan:
First it was probably just my dad. You know, that's why I wanted to play. He actually was going to play overseas and then my parents were about to have me, so he made the decision to actually stay home and get a job and kind of go away from that dream. And so I felt like I always owed it to him a little bit to pursue basketball. And then I fell in love with it and kind of ran with it. I would probably say after him, Kobe Bryant was a big one for me growing up. Just the way he approached the game and how he just always wanted to compete in every game and every aspect of life. Really, that's how he was. So those two probably were really big for me.
Anthony Godfrey:
When you mentioned Koby, I think about the Black Mamba. Do you have any nicknames?
Jordan Loveridge:
No, mine kind of just stuck from high school. People shortened my name to "J-Love". So that one kind of stuck all the way through college. And then some of my teammates will, if they search me or if they hear stuff or see people post stuff overseas sometimes use that same nickname.
Anthony Godfrey:
J-Love, =that is a good nickname. That really good.
Jordan Loveridge:
It's kind of stuck.
Anthony Godfrey:
How tall are you Jordan?
Jordan:
Six foot six.
Anthony Godfrey:
So I would suspect you stand out a little bit as you walk around Finland.
Jordan Loveridge:
Yeah, for sure.
Anthony Godfrey:
Do they recognize you as a basketball player in that league.
Jordan:
Yeah. I mean, at the stores people will come up and definitely want to shake my hand and just wanna talk, with me. And they definitely want to practice their English. I feel like sometimes they want to come and just say a few words or a few sentences just to have a conversation, because they don't see people from America too much, especially in the town I'm living in. It's a pretty small town. So, I think they love to have people from different cultures and different backgrounds. So it's been fun.
Anthony Godfrey:
That's really exciting. Tell me about the town itself. How big is the town what's comparable here? Would you say?
Jordan:
I couldn't really compare it to anything back home. Maybe a small town like Delta or something like that would be a good comparison. But other than that, I couldn't really compare this because we're very fortunate at home to have a Walmart, every other corporate on every other street. But like here, there's two grocery stores, a couple of gas stations, one gym, there's just not as many things available here.
Anthony Godfrey:
I joked earlier about how much it is dark. How much daylight do you have this time of year?
Jordan:
It just varies. It's been a lot better the past couple of days, but before that, I don't know, it was probably I'd have to say four hours light maybe.
Anthony Godfrey:
Wow. Well, I'm sure this is an unforgettable experience for you to be living in these different countries. Well, you've accomplished so much, Jordan. What's next? What are you looking for now?
Jordan:
For me, I think just winning a European championship would be the icing on the cake. It just would kind of validate, that I was working towards a goal and I want to make a team a champion. I want to be a champion. I've won championships at every level and have a chance to win a championship at the European level. So I think that would be the next great goal I could accomplish.
Anthony Godfrey:
Well, I wish you the very best in pursuit of that goal. Go Cobras.
Jordan:
Thank you. Thank you.
Anthony Godfrey:
Well, thanks again for joining us. Like I said earlier, guys I work with are envious that I got to interview you today. Everyone who knows you just has such respect for you and not just the way you play, but who you are. And so I really appreciate your taking the time, all the way from Finland. When's your next game?
Jordan:
Tomorrow actually.
Anthony Godfrey:
Who do you play?
Jordan:
The team name is Fire-Ando.
Anthony Godfrey:
Luck against the Fire-Ando and take care of best of luck to you and your family.
Jordan:
Yeah, thanks.
Anthony Godfrey:
Thanks for joining us on another episode of the Supercast. Remember, education is the most important thing you will do today. We'll see ya.
23 min
March 04, 2021 Episode 77: Superintendent Joins South Valley Student in the Shop Framing Pictures and Engraving Rolling Pins
It is valuable hands-on learning that is leading to success in the art of framing and engraving for students at the South Valley School in West Jordan. On this episode of the Supercast, Superintendent Godfrey finds out how middle and high school special education students, as well as South Valley students, are getting early work opportunities in a school-based shop focused on engraving everything from footballs to rolling pins and keychains. It is also a place where students provide framing work for the public.
Find out what happens when the Superintendent looks for help framing his own cherished pictures and mementos from the past and gets just a little too close to the framing cutter.
Audio Transcription
Anthony Godfrey:
Welcome to the Supercast. I'm your host, Superintendent Anthony Godfrey. Valuable hands-on learning is leading to success for students at the South Valley School in West Jordan. On this episode of the Supercast, find out how middle and high school, Special Education students, as well as South Valley students are getting early work opportunities in a school-based shop, focused on engraving, everything from footballs and rolling pins and key chains. It's also a place where students provide framing work for the public. Let's start by heading into the shop with a student intern where I get a little help framing my own cherished pictures and mementos from the past. and get perhaps a little too close to the framing cutter.
Dallen Nelson:
My name is Dallen Nelson. I intern here at the engraving shop.
Anthony Godfrey:
And Dallen, you're not just an intern here. You're a student here as well, correct?
Dallen Nelson:
Correct. I am in the Program for Life Design.
Anthony Godfrey:
And tell me about Life Design.
Dallen Nelson:
It's a program where people like me can get a better chance out there in the world.
Anthony Godfrey:
I'd say you have a great chance after talking with you.
Dallen Nelson:
Thank you, sir.
Anthony Godfrey:
And what does interning at the engraving shop mean?
Dallen Nelson:
I help around with any orders that might come through, be it engraving, laser, cutting.
Anthony Godfrey:
What are some of the machines that you work on? And tell me a little bit about some of the things that you do.
Dallen Nelson:
Over there we have have some of the laser machines. These two are the mainly the machines we work with, for the most part. The rotary and the laser.
Anthony Godfrey:
And what types of material can you engrave on in here?
Dallen Nelson:
We can engrave on metal, plastic and glass.
Anthony Godfrey:
That's kryptonite work in the machine or no?
Dallen Nelson:
Sure.
Anthony Godfrey:
Okay. Yeah, it probably could actually. It looks like a pretty sturdy machine. It looks like we have a whole cart full of footballs that you've been customizing. Tell me about that.
Dallen Nelson:
So these are the game balls that we engrave and give back to the players as they're reward, trophy pretty much.
Anthony Godfrey:
And who has ordered these?
Dallen Nelson:
Grantsville.
Anthony Godfrey:
So from how far away do you take orders? This is pretty exciting.
Dallen Nelson:
From my time here, we have taken a few orders from quite far over the area.
Anthony Godfrey:
Yeah. Grantsville, that's pretty impressive.
Dallen Nelson:
This is a result of both the laser and the rotary.
Anthony Godfrey:
So the laser, you did these are name tags? It looks like for some sergeants and detectives.
Dallen Nelson:
Yes.
Anthony Godfrey:
And you said that you use the rotary and the engraver for this. What are those two machines?
Dallen:
This was used to etch the image that you see on the nameplates.
Anthony Godfrey:
Oh, so the images are done separate from the letter?
Dallen:
Yes.
Anthony:
And is it the rotary that is not capable of doing pictures?
Dallen:
Yes:
Anthony Godfrey:
I see. So the rotary does the does the letters?
Dallen Nelson:
Yes. And the engraver does the photos.
Anthony Godfrey:
What are some of the other projects you've been engraving?
Dallen:
Footballs, glass, plastic, wood. We have some rolling pins for Nutrition Services.
Anthony Godfrey:
So you can engrave just about anything.
Dallen Nelson:
Pretty much.
Anthony Godfrey:
That's impressive. So does it comes with a little holder too? Is that from South Valley?
Dallen Nelson:
Yes. These were machined here in the woodshop, just next door.
Anthony Godfrey:
And so does this take longer than doing plastic? Is wood more difficult to engrave?
Dallen Nelson:
Sometimes it can be. Sometimes types of wood burn differently than others.
Anthony Godfrey:
How did you get the opportunity to be an intern here at South Valley?
Dallen Nelson:
One of my main goals is to be in graphic design later on, and this is a pretty big step, although I still may carry this work with me to the future.
Anthony Godfrey:
Did you have to qualify to be in this position?
Dallen Nelson:
I did receive some qualifications for this in the past.
Anthony Godfrey:
Okay, great. Well, congratulations on getting the spot and based on what I see already with footballs and rolling pins and such, you've got a great future.
Dallen Nelson:
So this is what we use mainly to make some name tags. Some magnetics like traditional clips.
Anthony Godfrey:
I got to tell you, my mind is racing with all of the name tags I can have you make for me to set on my desk to see if people are paying attention.
So the cutter, tell me about the cutter.
Dallen Nelson:
This is used in conjunction with the vacuum.
Anthony Godfrey:
Let's fire it up. All right. So there's the vacuum pull off, whatever you're cutting around? That's pretty loud. Okay. So what do you track along here?
Dallen Nelson:
We also use this to cut that stuff that would be engraved in the future.
Anthony Godfrey:
What are your plans? Do you like this type of work? Is this something that you can see yourself doing long term?
Dallen Nelson:
Definitely.
Anthony Godfrey:
And what do you enjoy about it?
Dallen Nelson:
I like to imagine the happy thoughts of the people receiving the awards. When the rest might just like light up.
Anthony Godfrey:
Well, great. Now thanks for giving me a tour. It's a thrill to meet you and congratulations on the great work you're doing here.
Dallen Nelson:
Thank you for having me on your show, sir.
Anthony Godfrey:
You bet. We're here with the South Valley School Principal, Rita Bouillion. Rita, thanks for taking time with us this afternoon.
Rita:
It was our pleasure. We're glad to have you.
Anthony Godfrey:
For those who may not be familiar with South Valley, can you just describe what you're about and what goes on here?
Rita:
Yes, we have students from all over Jordan School District. They come from all of the high schools and our job is to help them transition into adulthood. So when they're finished with their high school, if they haven't received their diploma, they come to us. For some students, we help them achieve their diploma, but for all students, we help them achieve independence. And we connect them with the community through jobs, through community-based activities, where we go to the grocery stores in their area, or we go bowling in their area. So ways that they learn to access the community so that they'll continue to do that when they are completely finished with school.
Anthony Godfrey:
I know one of the classes is Life Design. Tell me about the Life Design class.
Rita:
So we have a unique cooperation with Jordan Applied Tech Center, the North campus. We have two classrooms there, and those are design classrooms. All of the students that are there are getting jobs, getting their diploma and working towards using UTA independently for their transportation. And for those students, it just feels more special to them because they're on a college campus. So they liked the fact that they're at SLCC. For some students, it's hard to transition from high school and then continue school here. But those students are really pleased to be able to say, we're at the SLCC campus. You know, we go to school at SLCC.
Anthony Godfrey:
One thing I love about South Valley School is just the resources that are brought together and the number of different plans that can be developed based on the student's individual needs.
Rita:
All of our students have an IEP. We individualize their educational plan just for them. So we include developing resumes, learning UTA, if it's possible. We also have students who are getting their Driver License. We have students who come for six months and just finalize their diploma. Or we have students that come for four or five years to get all of the things that they need in order to transition successfully into the community. When I first started here, the thing that struck me the most was after coming from a huge high school where they were just one little piece of that school community, they come here and everywhere they look, there's a friend, a potential friend. So the friendships and relationships that develop here between among the students is really something to experience.
Anthony Godfrey:
Yeah, it's only one of the things that makes South Valley such a great place. And you offer a lot of services to the public. We're going to talk about those in future Supercast episodes and can you outline some of those for me.
Rita:
We have a wood shop here. And the students that work in the wood shop are middle school and high school students from throughout the District that are also in Special Ed Programs. When they come here, they learn one important thing. They learn pre-employment skills. They learn to be on time for a job, how to dress appropriately, the safety things that are required for any job, how to respond to your boss, but they get to do it in a wood shop atmosphere. They get to take projects home. They take pride in building, for example, new tables for South Jordan Middle. And when they finished that project, our bus took the kids to South Jordan, Middle. The truck delivered the tables there and the students were able to take the things that they had just made into the school and set them up. It was awesome.
Anthony Godfrey:
Yeah. That's a sense of accomplishment that many of us don't get in a normal workday.
Rita:
And then those kids who would go to school there, they get to go back and see that every day and can say, I helped build that. I made those table legs. You know, that's exciting.
Anthony Godfrey:
What are some of the other services offered to the public?
Rita:
This year, because of COVID, we haven't been able to have our students go out into the community and to do job experiences as intensely as we have in the past. So some of our teachers have gotten creative about developing an enterprise here within the school. One of our classes makes pins. We sent you some that kind of helped you deal with wearing a mask, you know, so they will customize any size, shape, or design that you want. We're going to have a new administrator. Two are here in a few weeks and they're making administrator buttons for us to give to those new administrators.
Anthony Godfrey:
Very cool. Yes. This is one of the places we love to take new administrators to show it off, which gets me to why I'm here. Let's get some framing going, shall we?
Stay with us? When we come back, we'll hear more about the skills students are learning and find out how the public can access South Valley School's, engraving and framing services.
Break:
If you're ready to start your child on the path to personalized learning, we are ready to help. The Jordan Virtual Learning Academy is coming to Jordan School District in the 2021-22 school year. Three new schools will be opening as part of the Academy, Rocky Peak Virtual Elementary School, Kelsey Peak Virtual Middle School and Kings Peak High School. Each school will have their own principal and teachers and each will give students a choice in their own learning. The schools will offer synchronous learning, which is teachers providing real time, live online instruction and asynchronous learning, where teachers provide videotaped instruction for learning on a student's schedule. To register your student in the Jordan Virtual Learning Academy, visit http://connect.jordandistrict.org.
Anthony Godfrey:
We're going to switch to framing and it's time to meet the framing team. Let's have them introduce themselves.
Vicky:
Vicky Thomas. And I've been back in this room since 2009.
Anthony Godfrey:
And what did you do before that?
Vicky:
I was in a classroom.
Anthony Godfrey:
Okay.
Peggy:
Peggy Beuchert. And I just help out when they need me down here.
Anthony Godfrey:
All right. Well, it's great to have both of you and your keen eye and talent helped me with this next framing job, but I thought I'd bring a couple of greatest things that Vicky and Peggy helped frame for me. We have them all wrapped in bubble wrap. I love that you guys framed them for me before. Let's take a look here. I want to remind you of some of your handiwork from years gone by. This one is actually from Comic-Con in San Diego, and this is years ago before they charged you to meet individual stars. I don't know if you remember this when you've done a lot of pieces since then. But this is my Lord of the Rings piece with the Lord of the Rings mini promo poster. And then there's a picture of me with Elijah Wood and another random hobbit, and then the autographs from Elijah Wood and another one of the hobbits and some pictures of me leaning in at the table where I wasn't supposed to get a photo with them, but snuck one in anyway at the autograph table. And you guys did such a nice job. This frame, the mat is really, it just ties in very nicely with the poster. And you put this border in there. What's that border called when you put something like that in there, fill it, makes it look kind of old worldly. And this other one, we'll cut this one open too. I'm quite proud of this Lord of the Rings thing.
I sat in the Convention Hall in San Diego for a long time to get their autographs. It was before you paid for individual autographs, you just had to want it worse than everyone else and be willing to wait long enough. And that was me. So it's really nice to have these memories preserved instead of in a shoe box.
I just love having them framed so nicely. And I'm doing this podcast out of enthusiasm, personally, and I hope people just realize what a great resource we have here. Their stuff can get framed and look better than if they took it anywhere else. All right. The one I'm I'm going to reveal now that we pop out is actually something I didn't buy yo have frame. I actually saved the box tops for them. I saved proofs of purchase from a now defunct cereal. I can't even remember what cereal it was, but there were always involved "o's". It was my free Rocky Balboa poster. Actually my Rocky II poster.
Anthony Godfrey:
It's a little tattered, but so's Rocky. He's been through a little bit and you just mounted it so nicely. It kind of preserves the little curls and rips and tears. Preserved the oldness of it. It's absolutely beautiful.
You helped me pick out this weathered frame that goes with the weather dude on the weathered poster. I just love this. It was 1979. I was 10 years old, had this hanging on my wall and it's just a really fun way to preserve it. So it hangs up in our TV room and it's just another example of the great work that you guys do here framing.
So we have brought more for you and these are actually for my son. I framed for me first and then my son's second as well it should be.
Vicky:
That's right.
Anthony Godfrey:
So this is a picture of me and my sons with Mark Hamill, a Star Wars fan, Luke Skywalker. And when I posted it on social media, I said, Luke, I am their father.
Vicky:
That's too funny.
Anthony Godfrey:
So we have Luke and Yoda and just kind of a smaller poster size, and then an 8 x 10 photo of the four of us, my son with his lightsaber. And then this was an autograph that Mark Hamill actually just handed to my son as a bonus, out of his back pocket. So shall we take a look and see what frames and that's you guys recommend?
Vicky:
It was recommend for this one. Let's start with the mats. You got some blues in there and do you want a double matte or just single matte?
Anthony Godfrey:
What do you think?
Vicky:
Well, that other one, we did kind of the stand out with the fill it. So I think double matted would be nice.
Anthony Godfrey:
Yeah, let's do a double. I think it should be double knotted.
Anthony Godfrey:
Okay. Let's double that. So we just take a corner out now. When you pull these colors, what are you looking for?
Vicky:
Well, I don't know. We just tried to look for something that we think is going to go with the picture.
Anthony Godfrey:
You just kind of use The Force.
Vicky:
We do use The Force back here a lot.
Anthony Godfrey:
Okay. The purple kind of looks cool, actually.
Vicky:
Yeah. That's what the dark blue matte where we could do a black matte under the purple. It evokes space. You know, I think that l with the black and I think it looks better than the dark blue.
Anthony Godfrey:
Yeah. The black, and where does that fill, a lavender?
Vicky:
Let's see, that's what they call purple haze.
Anthony Godfrey:
Purple haze. I wondered why it was all in my brain.
Vicky:
So we'll do the black mat on the bottom, a quarter inch. And then the top matte would be the purple haze.
Anthony Godfrey:
Yeah. There is some black in there.
Vicky:
And the black just makes everything stand out.
Anthony Godfrey:
I don't know how it, but you pull these colors and it's exactly the colors that need to be around that picture and this set of pictures. It works for every picture on there. That's why I keep coming back. I really want people to know about the services that are available at South Valley. So why don't you tell us the services you're responsible for and how everyone can access those?
Vicky:
I do the engraving part and we service people from districts from North San Pete County. We do Ogden, Logan, Canyons District, Jordan School District. I think we've done a name tags for every state in the United States. We've done Hawaii to California, to New York. Utah's probably the fewest we've done.
Anthony Godfrey:
Wow. Well, the name South Valley has spread far and wide. And the framing, tell us about the framing services.
Vicky:
We do framing. Right now we have jobs from several people that are outside the District. We do a lot of in-district framing and probably on the framing part, we do as much outside the district that we do inside and we are better than anybody else in the valley. We have a great framing team.
Anthony Godfrey:
I can attest to that for sure. And the prices are the best part. So tell people how to get ahold of you.
Vicky:
Well, they can call the school or they can email [email protected], or they can call South Valley school and get our email through there and make an appointment. We're very flexible.
Anthony Godfrey:
Well, you don't know it yet, but I have a strange project coming your way. Next time I visit, I asked every school to send me one of their custom masks from the pandemic. So any school that had a custom mask, I've collected those, I have a whole drawer full of them. And what I really want to do is frame a huge display so that we can walk by it and either shutter for a while, while we think about everything we've been through, or also memorialize everything that we've been through, and we can see that down the line.
Vicky:
Well, I think that sounds like a great fun job. Now it's still shutter, but in the future, we'll able to be more normal.
Anthony Godfrey:
That's right. That's the hope. And I'd like us to frame that into a big display so we can walk by and shutter for the first few years. And later on, reflect back on everything we accomplished and overcame.
A big thanks to everyone at the South Valley School who joined us on the Supercast today. And as always, thank you for tuning in. Remember, education is the most important thing you will do today. We'll see you out there.
21 min
February 26, 2021 Episode 76: West Jordan Middle School Students Highlight Black History Heroes Who Inspire
West Jordan Middle School students are using morning announcements to highlight a number of inspirational black history heroes during the month of February, which is Black History Month. Some Utah Jazz players like Donovan Mitchell and Derrick Favors are doing the same on a three-part Youtube series called “Black History Heroes.”
On today’s episode of the Supercast, we hear from some Utah Jazz players featured in the Youtube series. But first, we head out to West Jordan Middle School where morning announcements are about to begin.
Audio Transcription
Anthony Godfrey:
Welcome to the Supercast. I'm your host, Superintendent Anthony Godfrey. West Jordan Middle School students are using morning announcements to highlight a number of inspirational black history heroes during the month of February, which is Black History Month. Some Utah jazz players like Donovan Mitchell and Derrick Favors are doing the same in a three part YouTube series called "Black History Heroes." On today's episode of the Supercast we hear from some Utah Jazz players featured on the YouTube series. But first we head out to West Jordan Middle School where morning announcements are about to begin:
Dixie Garrison:
So the staff and students give me a heartbeat. Today is Thursday, February 25th, and it is an even day today. During Pride Time, we will be showing a video in the auditorium about the Utah Jazz players and their heroes. This video centers around Black History Month. You should have already signed up through efficiency under Mr. Hunter for Black History Month.
Student:
For Black History Month the Black and Proud Crew will be highlighting black Americans, drought history. If you're able to tell Ms. Monson or Ms. Gibbons all the names throughout the week, you will win.
Student:
Our spotlight for today is Martin Luther King, Jr. Martin was an African American Baptist minister and activist who became the most visible spokesperson and a leader in the Civil Rights Movement in 1955 until his assassination in 1968.
Dixie Garrison:
And as always, we love you. We care about you. Learning is important. Being here is important. Let's have a fantastic Thursday. Okay.
Anthony Godfrey:
I'm here at West Jordan Middle school talking with student members of the Black and Proud Crew on one of the days that they have been honoring Black History Month with announcements that honor black figures in history. And so I'm going to talk with Camden. Tell me a little bit about the highlights that have been happening this month.
Student:
You've been highlighting all these different African-Americans for example, Martin Luther King, Jr.
Anthony Godfrey:
Tell me your name.
Student:
Jerome Miles.
Anthony Godfrey;
Jerome, what is your favorite figure that's been highlighted this month?
Student:
Jesse Owens.
Anthony Godfrey:
Jesse Owens. Tell me about Jesse Owens.
Student:
Well, he was a track star and I liked sports. So that's mainly why, I picked him. I like sports.
Anthony Godfrey:
And it took some courage on his part to compete in some of those events.
Student:
Yeah, I did.
Anthony Godfrey:
And Rosa Parks. Why is that?
Student:
Because she made a stand for what she believed in to sit on the bus and she was brave enough to sit there, knowing that she was going to get arrested.
Anthony Godfrey:
Tell me your name.
Student:
My name is Shoday.
Anthony Godfrey:
Shoday what figure stood out for you?
Student:
Ruby Ridges because she was the first black girl to go to a white school and it was crazy because back then it wasn't normal for black and white people to go to the same school. So since she was the first person that was a black of color to go to school, it was like crazy. She went through a bunch of stuff at such a young age and she put up with it too. She didn't complain because she knew that she went to a good school. So she went through all that stuff, knowing that grown people and little kids were being rude because of the color of her skin. And that has a big part in history. And now, today, everybody goes to the same school.
Anthony Godfrey:
We can kind of take it for granted now almost that that everyone goes to school together.
Student:
Yeah.
Anthony Godfrey:
Tell me your name.
Student:
Hazel.
Anthony Godfrey:
Tell me about your favorite to figure that's been highlighted this month.
Student:
Martin Luther King Jr. as well, just because there's so much to learn about him and so many different things that he did.
Anthony Godfrey:
Tell me more about what the Black and Proud Crew does. I see that you have a painting activity this Friday. Is that right? Tell me a little bit about that.
Student:
This Friday, people who signed up are going to meet here. We're having a paint night where we can learn how to paint a picture of the elephant that Jerome has picked for us. And it's everyone who signed up to join and it would just be a fun learning experience.
Anthony Godfrey:
It's a really cool looking painting, and I would be very impressed with myself if I was ever to paint that. So I really wish I could come to your activity. What other things have been sponsored by the Black and Proud Crew?
Student:
Friday, it was the last two weeks ago, there were kids coming in and, it depends on how many kids came. So we did a King of the Court type of play. There'll be five people on the team. And so on each team, there's five kids and whoever won that would stay on the court and another group of five would come on and whoever won the whole thing got candy. Well, everybody got candy.
Anthony Godfrey:
Well, there's a good event. Everybody gets candy. That's a good start.
Student:
Everybody got candy. We just felt better.
Anthony Godfrey:
Okay. It sounds as if you've had a great variety of activities. Let's talk with Ms. Monson. You are the advisor for the Black and Proud Crew, is that correct?
Teacher:
Yes, it's me Christa Gibbons and Chelsea Chaco, who are the advisors for the students.
Anthony Godfrey:
What are some of the other activities that the Black and Proud Crew has been involved in?
Teacher:
So we hosted NEMA a couple of weeks ago. And along with NEMA, they showed us one an art featuring black heritage and black history. And so he talks about the textile of the art. And then after they talked about the art piece, we watched Levered Community, which highlighted a lot of black Americans in Utah. We had like a black pastor and talked about how his life was growing up. And we had the first black teacher in Davis District and how she was able to actually reach one of her students in the third grade. And so then they became a teacher. And so it just talks about the different lives of people living in the State of Utah and how they were able to progress through their certain trials.
Anthony Godfrey:
And every day of Black History Month, there's been another historical figure featured?
Teacher:
Yeah. So in January we meet every Friday with the students. They came up with a PowerPoint and so they picked all the people. We had Beyonce, Jesse Owens, Barack Obama. So the kids came up with who they wanted to spotlight, they found pictures for it. They found the excerpts and they put it in the PowerPoint that we show and share with the rest of the school. So every day they're able to pick someone who they wanted to spotlight and highlight.
Anthony Godfrey:
That's a great way to celebrate black history month. And it sounds like from talking with the students, they've learned a lot about black history that they weren't previously aware of.
Teacher:
That's our goal.
Anthony Godfrey:
Stay with us. When we come back, we hear from Donovan Mitchell and Derrick Favors talking about their black history heroes.
Break:
If you're ready to start your child on the path to personalized learning, we are ready to help. The Jordan Virtual Learning Academy is coming to Jordan School District in the 2021-22 school year. Three new schools will be opening as part of the Academy: Rocky Peak Virtual Elementary School, Kelsey Peak Virtual Middle School and Kings Peak High School. Each school will have their own principal and teachers and each will give students a choice in their own learning. The schools will offer synchronous learning, which is teachers providing real time, live online instruction and asynchronous learning where teachers provide videotaped instruction for learning on a student's schedule to register your student in the Jordan Virtual Learning Academy, visit http://connectjordandistrict.org.
Anthony Godfrey:
Welcome back. As we told you earlier, some Utah Jazz Players are featured in a new series talking about their black history heroes. Donovan Mitchell's hero is the late baseball great Jackie Robinson. Here's what Donovan had to say.
Donovan Mitchell:
"You know, for me, obviously growing up, being, from a baseball background, I've always looked at Jackie Robinson as one of those guys who is a pioneer in the game. You know, you look at what he had to go through, from racial injustice to the famous story of him getting cleated, you know, an ankle that you had to go through. So many different hurdles and walls and obstacles to become who he was as a player and as a person. And what he stood for, that always stands out to me. For myself coming up, just being able to see a guy who not only transcended the game with his play, but how he dealt with people off the field."
"You know, he went through so many vigorous things just to be able to play the game baseball that he loved. And for me, my parents, my coaches, everyone talked about Jackie Robinson as a hero because he was just that guy that who went out here and led his game. He did the talking, no matter how many threats, no matter how much stuff was going on in his personal life, being the first black player in the major leagues. But he just went out there and did his thing and did it with such grace and such honor. And didn't really let all the other noise affect that and transcended the game for us African-American men."
Anthony Godfrey:
Derrick Favors chose the late US Representative John Lewis, as his hero.
Derrick Favors:
"John Lewis, the reasons why I'm from Atlanta, and he's from Atlanta. He did a lot of great things. He recently passed away and that was sort of a big thing in the community for us. Just all the things he's done in his lifetime to make a positive impact in the African-American community and also in the country as well. But he did a lot of great things like from marching with Martin Luther King to winning numerous awards. He was just a great role model, a great person who thought about everybody else who thought about uplifting everyone. And you know, he was one of my heroes, so you're never too young or too old to make a difference, no matter what it is."
Anthony Godfrey:
And you can hear from more Utah Jazz players in their series, Black History Heroes on the Utah Jazz on YouTube channel. Thanks for listening to this episode of the Supercast. And remember, education is the most important thing you will do today. We'll see you out there.
13 min
February 18, 2021 Episode 75: A School Psychologist Talks About Video Game Addiction
Is your child spending too much time playing video games? Is video game addiction a real problem among kids and teens today?
On this episode of the Supercast, we talk to school psychologist, Dustin Fullmer who actually teaches a video game addiction class at the Jordan Family Education Center. It is a class that is more popular than ever before as parents try to figure out if video gaming has become an unhealthy habit for their own children and what can be done to turn things around.
Audio Transcription
Anthony Godfrey:
Hello and welcome to the Supercast. I'm your host, Superintendent Anthony Godfrey. Is your child spending excessive time playing video games? Is video game addiction a real problem among kids and teens? Today on this episode of the Supercast, we talk with school psychologist, Dustin Fullmer, who actually teaches a video game addiction class at the Jordan Family Education Center in Jordan School District. It's a class that's more popular than ever before as parents try to figure out if video gaming has become an unhealthy habit for their own children.
Anthony Godfrey:
All right, we are here at Joel P Jenson Middle School to talk with some students about how they feel about video games or which video games they like best and what they like about them. Tell me your name please.
Student:
I'm Landon.
Anthony Godfrey:
Landon. What video game do you play the most right now?
Student:
Definitely Minecraft.
Anthony Godfrey:
Minecraft. Now that's a very creative game. What do you like about playing Minecraft?
Student:
Mainly party games on it.
Anthony Godfrey:
Just tell me a little bit more about that.
Student:
Well, Minecraft is a survival game, explore someone's creativity and challenge one's survivability. So last deal on a Minecraft so far is called high pixel. I spent 700 hours on a single game mode.
Anthony Godfrey:
700 hours.
Student:
Yeah.
Anthony Godfrey:
Are there some things that you didn't get to do because you were doing Minecraft?
Student:
Not really.
Anthony Godfrey:
Okay. So how did it feel after doing 700 hours of Minecraft?
Student:
Like about halfway through, I got phone down, so I stopped playing full volume.
Anthony Godfrey:
How many hours would you say you play in a day?
Student:
Three.
Anthony Godfrey:
Okay. So you just consistently play and after the 700 hours, did you get to where you wanted it to be in Minecraft? Did you accomplish what you were hoping to accomplish?
Student:
Most of India.
Anthony Godfrey:
What do you like most about playing video games?
Student:
It's an escape from reality.
Anthony Godfrey:
All right. Tell me your name.
Student:
I'm Brandon.
Anthony Godfrey:
Brandon, what video games do you play most?
Student:
Well, I usually like to play on my phone. I like to play Geometry Dash a lot.
Anthony Godfrey:
Geometry Dash. I haven't heard of Geometry Dash. Tell me about that.
Student:
Well, it sounds like a math game, but it's honestly really not. Basically, you're this cube and you jumped over spikes and it's a game of rhythm and timing and memorization.
Anthony Godfrey:
So jumping in, avoiding things, actually matches up with some of the video games that I used to play back in the 1900s. Have you ever heard of Pitfall?
Student:
No. I don't think I have.
Anthony Godfrey:
How about Activision?
Student:
I've heard of it.
Anthony Godfrey:
I think that's like a video game company. It's very well done. And how about Atari?
Student:
I've heard of that.
Anthony Godfrey:
Okay. Yeah. I used to play Atari and Pong. Have you ever played Pong?
Student:
No.
Anthony Godfrey:
Okay. I need to bust out some Pong because I still have my old one from the 1970s. Do your parents play video games at all?
Student:
No. My friends don't play video games, as far as I know at least.
Anthony Godfrey:
So maybe undercover of night, after you're in bed, they sneak down and play your MLB games?
Student:
No, I don't think so.
Anthony Godfrey:
It's probably too confusing for them. All right. We wouldn't want parents to be too confused. All right. Thank you very much. What's your name?
Student:
Maricio.
Anthony Godfrey:
Maricio. What video games do you like to play?
Student:
Survival games like Tommy Gaze, kind of survival games.
Anthony Godfrey:
That's a whole kind of category. Tell me, what are some of the survival games that you play at the last of us?
Student:
It's kind of an apocalypse game. You have to go complete the mission and they give you obstacles.
Anthony Godfrey:
Do you have to fight by many means some enemies? So fighting zombies, much like just day to day life in junior high.
Student:
Sure.
Anthony Godfrey:
Have you ever heard of Big Duck?
Student:
Yeah.
Anthony Godfrey:
You have heard of Tick Tack?
Student:
Yeah, I play a lot of old things.
Anthony Godfrey:
Really. Have you played Big Duck?
Student:
Yeah.
Anthony Godfrey:
And do you enjoy blowing up a little lizard dragons as much as I do sometimes?
Student:
Yeah.
Anthony Godfrey:
Do you ever play video games with your parents?
Student:
Old games sometimes. They don't play video games too much. They usually work and stuff.
Anthony Godfrey:
So what's your name?
Student:
McKay.
Anthony Godfrey:
What video games are you playing these days?
Student:
I like to play shooter games. So for example, like Rainbow Six Siege and like Overwatch. They're two different kinds of games, but one is more like you help out your teams complete a task and one's more current.
Anthony Godfrey:
Do your parents ever play Overwatch or watch you play?
Student:
My dad. My dad's family is more like on the video game side, but my mom was kind of against it.
Anthony Godfrey:
What do you like about playing the game?
Student:
I like that you can just make up tactics to go through any type of building, like go through the side, go through below them or on top and that you can just find different ways to get through and escape from that.
Anthony Godfrey:
So you liked the strategy and problem solving that's involved.
We're here talking with Dustin Former, School Psychologist at Copper Hills High School, who will be about video game addiction for the timely topics series available at the Jordan Family Ed Center. Dustin, thanks for joining us.
Dustin:
It's great to be here.
Anthony Godfrey:
We talked on podcast about the Jordan Family Ed Center, and I just couldn't resist when I heard that someone gave a presentation on video game addiction. I couldn't resist talking with you and asking about that because it seems to be much more prevalent than it was pre-pandemic. Are you noticing that?
Dustin:
Yeah, across the board, I'm noticing a lot more dependency on technology. In general, we're all kind of forced to. Well, here I am, talking to you virtually in front of my computer screen. We're all kind of forced to be a little bit more dependent on technology these days. But with that, there's a big rise of addiction to every single aspect of technology, especially video games.
Anthony Godfrey:
When you think about video game addiction, do you first just think about addictive behaviors in general to start with?
Dustin:
Definitely. And that's what I tried to make very clear in the course or the presentation that I give to parents is that in order to understand what's going on with video gaming addiction, we need to understand addiction itself, what exactly that is because video game addiction isn't really any different from any other type of addiction.
Anthony Godfrey:
So what are some of the characteristics of addiction that would be universal?
Dustin:
So it's important to focus on the fact that anything can be addicting. I was joking around earlier with some people, just that anything, even healthy things such as working out or reading or anything like that, can become addictive. And what that really leads to is understanding that when some sort of habits or some sort of a task that you do too much to the point of becoming dependent and to the point of it disrupting life activities, such as taking care of yourself, eating, sleeping, or doing things like your job or in the case of kids, their schoolwork. And so that's when something becomes addictive.
Anthony Godfrey:
What would you suggest to parents to help prevent this from happening in the first place? Say that their child has been playing more and more lately and they're worried about things getting out of hand.
Dustin:
I would say that it kind of goes with the whole saying of that best time to plant a tree is 300 years ago. The second best time is right now. If you're going to introduce video games into a kid's life, as soon as you do that, set limitations, set expectations as to what that should look like. If you just buy the new X-Box or new PlayStation or get them hooked up on online gaming through the computer and then just say, have at it, it's inevitably going to lead to problems. Most likely kids are really bad at regulating and that's a proven fact. And so, as soon as you introduce video games into a kid's life, set expectations, say, you can have this, it's going to be a fun thing for you. However, we need to limit how much time we're doing it, or you can only play it after you've finished all your homework and I've double checked on that. Some sort of boundary to set right from the get-go. If a kid has already been playing and you now want to do that once again, it's great to have that conversation of what do you think is reasonable? Let's set some boundaries, let's set some expectations,
Anthony Godfrey:
Okay. To use it as a reward, does that create more problems or can that be an effective way of containing video game time?
Dustin:
I feel like rewards or PR are great. And when it comes to rewards for expected behaviors, it's whatever is motivational to the kid. You know, one kid may be motivated by outdoor play. One kid may be motivated by immediate video games and so if that's the motivation you can find, you know, if you do all your chores, I'll give you additional time on the system to play your games today, then that's great. I don't see it as being bad. Of course, once it comes to the point where the kid is constantly trying to wager and do those addictive-type behaviors, where there's an obvious dependency, then he might need to cut back. I would say off the top of my head, rewards are a great thing to do no matter what they are.
Anthony Godfrey:
Now, when you said wagering, I want to talk about that because that's something that my son does quite a bit of. I'm not labeling him an addict. However, it seems that whenever I say, okay, you got 30 minutes to play this game, invariably, when I come in after 30 minutes, he says I'm right in the middle of this, I just need 10 more minutes to finish this. And so there's always some other portion of the quest or phase of the game that must be finished before he ends his game. Do you have any advice on that because there's always a bargain being struck when time is up.
Dustin:
Right. A huge emphasis that I go through with my presentation is understanding video games a little bit better and like makes them addictive as well as trying to be involved in some way. And so to answer that, I would say, a big part of it is even understanding the game that your child is playing. And so it's a constant meme, all the time online that I see where kids are making fun of parents, coming in and saying, pause your game. It's all online, I can't pause it. And you know, it's just kind of a constant thing where parents just don't seem to understand. And so we find ourselves always bargaining at the end of it. It's like, okay, it's been 30 minutes it's time. And they say, Oh, but I just need to do one more thing. Do they really? Is it something where they could legitimately just save the state of their game right then and there and walk away? Or is this something where they really are in the middle of a match and maybe we just let them finish it out. Right? So it's about better understanding the game so that you can be more informed as you regulate the time. Right?
And so let's say I do set a time on somebody and they're playing Fortnite online with their friends. And if I find that in the 29th minute, there's trying to start a new match, I might say, okay, you know, time is up. You have less than a minute left. These matches can take anywhere from five to 20 minutes each. How about you stop right now, versus if somebody is playing just a single player game by themselves, where there's the ability to save the game at any given moment and it's possible, then I know I can let them play up until the 30th minute and say, okay, pause, save, let's turn it off.
Anthony Godfrey:
Stay with us more on video game addiction. When we come back, find out about the signs to watch for in video game addiction.
Break:
If you're ready to start your child on the path to personalized learning, we are ready to help. The Jordan Virtual Learning Academy is coming to Jordan School District in the 2021-22 school year. Three new schools will be opening as part of the Academy, Rocky Peak Virtual Elementary School, Kelsey Peak Virtual Middle School and Kings Peak High School. Each school will have their own principal and teachers and each will give students a choice in their own learning. The schools will offer synchronous learning, which is teachers providing real-time, live online instruction and asynchronous learning, where teachers provide videotaped instruction for learning on a student's schedule. To register your student in the Jordan Virtual Learning Academy, visit http://connect.jordandistrict.org
Anthony Godfrey:
We visited earlier about what makes a video games addictive and that understanding that can help us moderate trial engagements with those games. Can you describe some of that?
Dustin:
Sure. So anything that is addictive meets some sort of need in our lives and things like video games that don't necessarily have a chemical addiction, but an addictive property to them. What is it that something about them will trigger the pleasure center in our brains and that can become addictive in and of itself? And so with video games, they have a whole bunch of different things that can make them interactive and addictive. A lot of the developers know what those things are and we'll try to put them into their games even more so. And some examples include things such as the endless side quests in missions.
So for example, a really popular series out there is The Assassin's Creed Series, and those games have become larger and larger with open-world areas. And you'll get a main quest that will tell you that you need to go from point A to point B, but then along that straight line, you'll find that in order to get to point B, you also need to go to point C, D, E, and F, all the way through Z, in order to actually ever get to point B. And so it's just kind of this endless side-quest kind of thing that can become addictive where it's just one more thing I gotta do.
Anthony Godfrey:
Okay.
Dustin:
One more thing I got to do, and that's something that I capitalize quite a bit on and something that makes The Fortnite super addictive. It's something called the Twitch principle where it kind of triggers those fast reflex impulses, so if you want, if you were to watch an online match of professional Fortnite players, you would have no idea what's going on because these buildings are popping up and being deconstructed and people are jumping and shooting and everything is going on so fast.
And then the guy ends up losing the match. You have no idea how, and he gets super frustrated because he was this close to winning. So then he starts up a whole other match and needs to get that win, doing the same exact stuff. And so it's just that, you're just so close, and that's how it hooks you. It's really similar to the slot machine principle where I know if I were just to give it one more pull, I'm going to get that jackpot. Oh, it didn't come, just in one more. Cherry cherry bar. Yeah. I almost got there. I just need one more. Yup. And so it's that exact same principle where you just keep getting that close and you just need to keep going.
Anthony Godfrey:
How do you know when your child is addicted to video games?
Dustin:
It's a hard thing to really measure, but it's about looking for different behaviors that indicate a kid is starting to have a dependency on video games, where they're constantly thinking about it. If they're not playing video games, they're worrying about when they'll get another chance or they're putting things off. Maybe they're waking up in the middle of the night so they can get one more match, one more game, one more level, or they're putting off other things.
Maybe they were a really good student before or maybe just a good enough student before and now suddenly they're failing or having really bad grades because instead of doing anything school-related, they have to get on the computer or get on the system and be playing. So once it starts to become an obvious dependence or it's a disruption to things that they should be doing, that's when it starts to become a serious sign of possible addiction.
Anthony Godfrey:
When it disrupts the normal flow of daily life, then that's when you have a problem.
Dustin:
Exactly.
Anthony Godfrey:
Yeah. So let's start with what you do once you see it's happening. Let's say that you're there. Some parent that's listening is thinking, you just described my child. What do you recommend that point?
Dustin:
The number one thing I can recommend to any parent is communication when it comes down to it, with any kind of addiction. But especially when it comes to technology and video gaming. It's about having communication with your child and figuring out what exactly you can do to help them. A lot of the times I would say that kids are very well aware of this issue. If it's to the point where they're completely ignorant of the fact that they are having these problems, then it's a little bit more work, but communication is the first thing to do. Be able to talk to them openly about what you're seeing, and then talking to them about maybe limitations that you can put into place. If you just start limiting things automatically, start taking things away, start limiting time. It's honestly going to backfire and kids are gonna find ways around things that you do if they truly are addicted. But if you involve them in the process, have them give input as to how you can limit things, maybe goals to set after you do X, Y, and Z, then you can have this amount of time on the system. Those are the best first steps to take. Anything you do that doesn't involve the kid is definitely going to backfire.
Anthony Godfrey:
That makes a lot of sense. And I can picture that conversation even. Do you feel like you're playing too many video games and that that's getting in the way of daily life? And if they can admit that then they're at one stage and if they can't, then that's an entirely different problem altogether. It makes sense to start with those restrictions. Do you gradually make those restrictions more and more strict and reduce the time more and more? Where do you go from there once there's agreement that there's a problem and that you agree on some parameters and some goals and rewards.
Dustin:
That's a really good question because it kind of depends on the situation with the kid. If it's to the point where it's that kid where you bring up, it seems like you're having a problem with it and they deny it and they don't see a problem. Then that's usually when you would want to start off more strict at first, maybe even getting to the point of completely unplugging. One of the hardest things though, if you start setting these strict limitations is that I really encourage parents to try to follow the same limitations that they set on the kid themselves. A lot of the times the kids don't see a problem with the video gaming that they're doing because the parent will be yelling across the living room. Hey, stop playing on your video games. You're on it too much. And then meanwhile, they'd continue to browse on their phone and get in political arguments on Facebook. So it's kind of a hard thing to be able to set limitations, unless you're able to set those same limitations on yourself, to a reasonable degree. If you're doing work from your computer, of course, then you need to do that.
Anthony Godfrey:
Yeah. When I was playing the Atari in 1982, my dad was not engaged in similar activity. So there was no comparison. But these days, you are right. You're playing candy crush on your phone and telling them not to play video games or you may be involved in some real video gaming yourself as a parent. You just need to be modeling that.
Dustin:
Exactly. And in fact, it's funny that you bring up Candy Crush because there were actually a statistics released a few years back that the number one demographic that was addicted to Candy Crush were middle-aged women. And so, here we are, always worrying about kids being addicted to video games, and sometimes we need to kind of look at ourselves and see just what our technological habits are as well.
Anthony Godfrey:
Just to summarize, a child who can admit that they need to cut back, may not need the most strict restrictions right out of the gate. But if they can't even admit it, you may need to go to an extreme and just say, we need to cut this off entirely. And then it rests with the parent to do the same.
Dustin:
Yes, definitely. As well as this video gaming addiction course, I teach a continuous course at the JFEC that helps with nicotine addiction. And the thing we always tell everybody is that cold turkey is the most effective, but most difficult method to getting over an addiction. And so it goes the same way with technology and video gaming. If it's to the point where it's a severe addiction, sometimes cold turkey is the best option where we're just going to unplug and hide those things, block those things on the computer, and then maybe reintroduce it later, if we can learn how to handle this thing a little bit better.
Anthony Godfrey:
How serious can this problem be?
Dustin:
I would equate it to any type of other addiction where it can definitely lead to very serious problems if we let it get out of hand. With the individual addiction to video games, studies have been tied to severe signs and symptoms of depression and anxiety. If it's to the point that social interactions through video games really does not equate social interaction face to face, or even like through conversation over things such as Google meet or phone calls. And so honestly, while there is some social benefit to video games, true video gaming addiction will lead to social anxiety and social stress and difficulty maintaining social relationships with people as well. So there are really severe outcomes that can come from it. And it is a serious thing to consider when we're trying to monitor kids' usage of video games.
Anthony Godfrey:
Are those some of the signs when professional help may need to be sought?
Dustin:
Definitely. I would treat it just like any other addiction. Honestly, I wouldn't say that there's really very many people out there that specify in therapeutic treatment specifically for video gaming addiction. But if you find somebody that is an addiction specialist, then that's somebody that would be perfect to go to. Our District is actually really great in helping people find professionals to meet with the Health and Wellness Team at the District level, even put together a huge Excel spreadsheet on the website that shows providers in the area, and it will specifically tell whether or not they deal with addiction. And so those were the type of people to see for specific problems, to the point of it being severe with addiction to video games.
Anthony Godfrey:
Okay, Dustin, thanks. This has been great information. Tell me what is your favorite video game?
Dustin:
That's a hard question to answer to be honest. Part of the reason why I am so interested in teaching. This is because I feel like I actually had a real struggle with video gaming addiction myself as a youth. I was really into it back in high school, really into PlayStation II and Nintendo 64 when I was a little bit younger and I got hooked, really into the single player games. There was a series called Kingdom Hearts that had a very involved, very lengthy, great story to it, but it took up way too much of my time. And I realized that. I'm a very athletic guy, but at the same time, the video games started taking way too much of my time. And so now I'm just here to help. Not only help kids not go down that road, but also help parents understand and connect with their kids.
Anthony Godfrey:
Thanks for joining us, Dustin, great information. I look forward to talking with you about other topics in the future.
Dustin:
Yeah, definitely. Thank you.
Anthony Godfrey:
Thanks for joining us for another episode of the Supercast. Remember, education is the most important thing you'll do today. We'll see you.
26 min
February 12, 2021 Episode 74: Sparks Fly When Superintendent Visits Welding Class Celebrating CTE Month
February is CTE Month, a time to celebrate the value, achievements and accomplishments of Career and Technical Education programs across the country including right here in Jordan School District. On this episode of the Supercast, Superintendent Anthony Godfrey celebrates CTE month by visiting one of 25 Career and Technical Education classes offered at JATC North and JATC South.
Listen to the sparks fly when Dr. Godfrey gears up and finds out what it takes to learn the art of welding from students in the welding program.
Audio Transcription
Anthony Godfrey:
Hello and welcome to the Supercast. I'm your host, Superintendent Anthony Godfrey. February is CTE month, a time to celebrate the value, achievements and accomplishments of career and technical education programs across the country, including right here in Jordan School District. On this episode of the Supercast, we celebrate CTE month by visiting one of the 25 career and technical education classes offered at two locations in the District at JATC North and JATC South. Listen to the sparks fly when I gear up and get an up close and personal lesson on what it takes to learn the art of welding from students in our welding program.
We're here in the welding class at JATC South with teacher Blair Jensen. Tell me a little bit about what just happened.
Blair:
You just had everybody clocked out at the end of the class.
Anthony Godfrey:
I've never seen that happen. Yeah, I did.
Blair:
So, I run my welding shop as close to an actual welding shop as I can. The main focus in this place is on career centers on building soft skills. And so clocking out, or you might've heard me talking about, then signing up for a job next week. When we have days that we're working in the shop, they also have jobs that they have to do in addition to their welding duties. It's teaching them some of the career focus that they would have in a welding shop. Things like maintaining cleanliness, observing safety standards, and just making sure that they're building those career skills that their future employers are going to be looking for.
Anthony Godfrey:
In addition to the welding skills they're learning in the class, it sounds like there's a lot beyond just welding that they get to experience. And they come out ready to work, not just with the skills, but ready to be a great worker.
Blair:
Yeah, yeah, absolutely. Like I said, career skills I think is my main focus. As I talked to people in industry, a lot of them will tell me we can teach them to weld. If you can get them to where they can run a bead and they can analyze their defects, we can teach them and certify them for what we need. But the things that they struggle to get kids to learn, that they need to be learning while they're in high school, are those soft skills. They need to be learning to show up on time, to treat their coworkers with respect, to communicate with their coworkers and their managers, learning all the stuff that goes into the welding, the blueprint, reading the map, that's all very valuable.
Anthony Godfrey:
I see a group of students over here. This looks like a crew that you want to have on your side. I noticed that all of footwear is much more durable than mine. I look like I'm about to walk the mall before it opens in the morning, and you guys look like you're ready for action. Tell me your name.
Student:
My name is Skylar Stephenson.
Anthony Godfrey:
And Skyler, why are you taking welding?
Student:
I took welding because I thought it was cool. I've always watched YouTube videos on it and thought, I want to do that someday. So I decided to take this when I found out about it.
Anthony Godfrey:
Now that you're taking the class, what do you think of it?
Student:
I think it's super fun and it's a good experience. It teaches you more than just welding, how to show up on time and how to treat your coworkers, right? Like Blair was saying.
Anthony Godfrey:
So has this class changed you?
Student:
I think it has in a good way. Tell me your name.
Student:
My name is Parker Vance.
Anthony Godfrey:
What made you want to be a welder?
Student:
When I was young, my uncle always welded around me and I found it quite cool. So I decided to do it.
Anthony Godfrey:
Tell me your name.
Student:
My name is Forest Curtis.
Anthony Godfrey:
So what are some of the things you've made?
Student:
So right now I'm actually working on a sculpture. I'm shaping metal and cutting it with a Oxycutting torch.
Anthony Godfrey:
What does an Oxycutting torch do besides cut, obviously?
Student:
You can cut with an Oxycutting torch or you can weld with it or braze, anything that's involved with high heat or amalgam.
Anthony Godfrey:
You're going to find out how little I know about welding. What does brazing mean?
Student:
So brazing is joining two pieces of metal that don't quite coincide. So like steel and brass or aluminum and steel.
Anthony Godfrey:
Did the skills that you learned here transfer, you being comfortable using tools that aren't necessarily related to welding?
Student:
Yeah. So any large tools, power tools, just anything that's you seem uneasy when you first see it. I'm more comfortable working with that now.
Anthony Godfrey:
Awesome. I do have to admit coming in here, it's pretty daunting. I don't know how to use any of this stuff. It's all very unfamiliar. Maybe you felt that way coming in, but it sounds like you made a lot of progress.
Student:
Yeah, I feel comfortable. Tell me your name.
Student:
My name's Taylor.
Anthony Godfrey:
Would you tell us what made you want to take welding?
Student:
I've always been interested in welding and I just want a good solid trade that I can have a lot of dropout opportunities with when I get out of high school.
Anthony Godfrey:
I think the trades are in demand more than ever. And it's great that you're pursuing that. Your name?
Student:
My name is Tyler Hayward.
Anthony Godfrey:
Do you know what you need to do after this program to be prepared to be a welder?
Student:
Well, there's a couple of options. My plan is currently, my brother is working at a welding shop and so he's trying to set me up with an interview there. So I'm going to go try and work there and just work my way up, start at the bottom, go up. Or I could continue and go to an another welding program and continue my skills and learning and become a better welder from here.
Anthony Godfrey:
Sounds like a great plan. Tell me your name.
Student:
Zach Smith.
Anthony Godfrey:
And Zach, why did you want to be in this class?
Student:
I had a friend that was in this class last year and he had real high praises of the class and Blair. And my grandpa's a welder too, and he introduced me to it. So I was really interested and thought it'd be a great opportunity to make chances for a career in the future.
Anthony Godfrey:
And with your grandpa being a welder, have you tried welding at all before this class?
Student:
Not before this class now? I wasn't able to touch his stuff.
Anthony Godfrey:
Has he let you touch his stuff since you've gotten some experience?
Student:
Yeah. Now I got some training, he lets me use his equipment.
Anthony Godfrey:
So he must be pretty proud that you're pursuing that.
Student:
Yeah. Yeah. It's really cool thing to just have something else to talk about it, with them and bond with them.
Anthony Godfrey:
So tell me your name.
Student:
I'm Troy Daley.
Anthony Godfrey:
Troy, why are you taking welding?
Student:
I'm taking welding because there have been multiple times where my family's had to have something welded, like a jack on the trailer, things like that. We've had to take it to neighbors and I've always been fascinated with it. No one in my family has welded, so I wanted to learn a new skill that could potentially lead to job opportunities.
Anthony Godfrey:
So when there's a need in your family, Hey, we need to do this. I liked the way you described that. We've always had to have someone else do it. It sounds like you like to be able to do things for yourself.
Student:
I do. I do enjoy doing things. I've always like working on cars and stuff like that. I've enjoyed doing stuff like that. So welding is another thing to add to that.
Anthony Godfrey:
So when there's something that you need done, your first thought isn't, who can I get to do this, but how can I figure out how to do this myself?
Student:
Exactly. I've always watched YouTube videos or tried to figure it out myself.
Anthony Godfrey:
What have you welded that you've really enjoyed welding?
Student:
You know, my brother had a light holder for his boat trailer that fell off and I was able to bring it in and weld that up for him, get that fixed.
Anthony Godfrey:
You're going to be a very popular family member for a very long time I think.
Student:
I hope so.
AnthonyGodfrey:
You guys tell me about the soft skills that your teacher talked about, being to work on time, being able to work with other people well, being reliable, working hard. Tell me about learning those skills in this class.
Student:
There is a big emphasis on stuff like that. He makes sure that we learn we need to be on time and wear the proper safety equipment and be nice to fellow employees and stuff like that. And if not, we do have the chance of getting fired and that's like a good motivation for us. And that really teaches us that in real life and in real workplaces, real mistakes have real consequences.
Anthony Godfrey:
That's a great lesson to learn so early in life. And it's going to benefit you a lot. What is it like to get fired in class?
Student:
I wasn't wearing my safety glasses and that is one of the big important things that Blair stresses is wearing your safety glasses.
Anthony Godfrey:
I see.
Student:
And I wasn't wearing them, so I got fired. So I had to do my job that he's talked about. I had to do that for a week without getting paid for it beause we get paid for our jobs. And then we have to pay shop rent at the end of the week or at the end of the month, right? And if you don't make, if you get fired, you may not be able to make enough money to pay that as a grade.
Anthony Godfrey:
I'm blown away. This is exactly what education is supposed to be about. These lifelong lessons that are going to stay with you.
Stay with us. When we come back, more on this program, preparing students for successful careers and the creativity that goes into welding.
Break:
If you're ready to start your child on the path to personalized learning, we are ready to help. The Jordan Virtual Learning Academy is coming to Jordan School District in the 2021-22 school year. Three new schools will be opening as part of the Academy; Rocky Peak Virtual Elementary School, Kelsey Peak Virtual Middle School and Kings Peak High School. Each school will have their own principal and teachers and each will give students a choice in their own learning. The schools will offer synchronous learning, which is teachers providing real time, live, online instruction and asynchronous learning where teachers provide videotaped instruction for learning on a student's schedule. To register your student in the Jordan Virtual Learning Academy, visit http://connect.jordandistrict.org.
Anthony Godfrey:
Tell me about your Christmas project.
Student:
So we had to design and make a prototype that would be further judged to see which one would go into production, that we could sell to raise money for the class. And my group, we decided to build mini Santas out of horseshoes. And it was actually really fun because it was challenging. We had to figure out how certain things would go and then we kind of tweaked it as we went. We added some glasses made out of like filler rod that we had, just to make it look more like Santa. And then in another challenge we had that was really fun was when we were painting it. We kind of made a mess everywhere and then we had to scrape the floor and clean it all up. But it was really fun.
Anthony Godfrey:
What I love about that is it's not just about acquiring skills. There's a high level of creativity. Do you feel like that there's a high level of creativity in the welding that you do?
Student:
Yeah, definitely. Most of our projects, all of our Christmas decor projects that we've had to do. Blair had completed the lessons, then we had to come up with our own ideas, all of our dimensions and planning out specifically and then go to our team members and work with them and to use their creative ideas to build on it. So there's definitely a lot of creative, critical thinking that goes into all of our projects. We sold more than we needed to and it was really good. It was trying, but we were able to fill out all the orders on time too.
Anthony Godfrey:
It's one thing to make things the sales. It's another to fill them and say, Oh wow, we really do have this demand. Let's crank these out. So well done. What would you say to someone who's considering taking this class?
Student:
I'd say, don't worry about not being good at it at first. That's the whole point of taking it is to learn. Nobody's going to make fun of you for having a bad weld. All we're going to do is tell you what can make it better on top of what he said. I came in this class and I had only welded one time before and I had no idea what I was doing, but luckily we have Blair and he's a great teacher. He'll go through the process with you over and over again until you figure it out and tell you what you're doing wrong and really just give you good constructive criticism on each process. So many times throughout this school year, I've done some of these processes and I can not get them and I'm embarrassed. I don't want to show him these welds because they're horrible, but he shows me what's wrong with them, what I can do to make them better. And my welding and those skills have improved significantly.
Anthony Godfrey:
I love that. It's great to hear that. And that's exactly what a great teacher does. And I just admire all of you guys for diving in and learning this. And it sounds like you have some trade and technical skills. That'll carry you through life. A lot of really important life skills that they're just going to be invaluable. So let's see a little demonstration.
Student:
All right. Let's gear up and put on our safety equipment.
Anthony Godfrey:
Wow. That's something, everything gets dark. The spark starts. So you start, you start that and that's all you can see. No, not before. That's pretty interesting. So tell me about what you do.
Student:
So first off, I tacked the piece of metal on there. That was that first part when I just did the right little tech and then I created the bead using the filler metal, which most of the base metal with the filler metal. So it isn't just a continuous motion. I did little CS. So that's where you see the leaves in it.
Superintendent:
Yeah. Yeah. And does that strengthen it, putting the little season there?
Student:
Not necessarily. It does make the length of the weld wider, so kind of strengthens it, but it just makes it look better.
Superintendent:
Oh yeah. It's more for appearance. Okay. Yeah. That's beautiful. Perfect speed. He's got great welding in both plates. So it's got good fusion. That's going to be a successful weld. And is it hot to the touch right now?
Student:
Oh yeah.
Superintendent:
It's funny. Yeah, it doesn't look hard. I'm not going to test it.
Student:
I believe it is. If I go grab my thermometer, I'd say right now, right after welding, it's going to be close to 300 degrees.
Superintendent:
Holy cow! Safety has got to be a central part of class throughout the year. I would suspect number one priority, like Troy was saying earlier in the interview when they were talking about getting fired. Safety glasses for me is number one.
Student:
Yeah. We've got a zero tolerance policy.
Superintendent:
Yeah, it was strange having the mask down. And as soon as the weld starts, everything else gets dark. I've never experienced that before.
Teacher:
Yeah. These kids are spoiled by these auto darkening hoods. That's definitely not how I learned how to weld. I learned with passive lenses that are dark all the time. And so you've got to find what your position is and then drop your hood to weld. And it's going to be dark until you start that arc. And so these auto darkening hoods they bought are a lot nicer because they can drop their hood and they can safely see where everything's at, in position. And so it makes them better.
Superintendent:
Yeah. Guys, this has been dynamite. This is one of my favorites, honestly. I'm so impressed. Great work you guys. And thanks for taking the time. That means a lot to me. I appreciate it.
We're here with Craig Cottle, CTE coordinator and Sonia Burton, the Principal of JTC South. I love this welding program. This is fantastic. I'm overwhelmed. Tell me a little bit more about it.
Sonya:
Oh my gosh. Welding is just an amazing program. Jensen is teaching our students how to weld, but also a future and in welding. He's really preparing them for the workplace and to be an outstanding candidate. I wish I was hiring welders right now because they were the fired, every single one of them.
Superintendent:
Craig, tell me just about the value of a hands-on education like this, learning from someone who's been in the industry.
Craig:
You know, there's a lot of our youth that have a lot of skills, a lot of understanding and knowledge, but a lot of it deals with the use of their hands. These kinds of programs, such as welding, give the students an opportunity to excel in a process and in a program that is fit for them and their desires and their interest in their career paths and the way that they're traveling and wanting to get employed. And so it's really great when we have wonderful teachers that have the skills and abilities, that demand and expect from students, the opportunity. It gives them that opportunity to learn and to strengthen those skills that they need to be employable and to be safe and to be able to enjoy a future in their specific path.
Superintendent:
Great. You know, following a pathway like this and learning a trade may even be a fallback. Even if it isn't the number one. Now, most of these guys want to be welders, but even if you decided you didn't want to be a welder, having a skill like that to fall back on if things don't work out with another job, that you have is very, very valuable.
Craig:
Exactly. I think I could see some of these young men in the design and fabrication place where they could run out of a garage or they could run out of a smaller facility. And like you said, just be able to run a business on the side from another profession or another focus in their life.
Superintendent:
What a wonderful blessing that'd be for them to be able to have their vocation, and have an application that they really, really enjoy and be able to do, thanks for all the work that both of you are doing to make that possible. I love that we have such a wide range of opportunities for students and you're a big part of that. Thank you.
Craig and Sonya:
Thank you so much for your support of CTE.
Superintendent:
Thanks for joining us on the Supercast. I hope this has sparked an interest in some of our amazing CTE programs across the District. Remember, education is the most important thing you will do today.
20 min
February 04, 2021 Episode 73: Principals Prepare to Open New Virtual Elementary, Middle and High School for 2021-22 School Year
Jordan School District is preparing to open three new schools in the 2021-22 school year. Kings Peak High School, Kelsey Peak Middle School and Rocky Peak Elementary School are part of the Jordan Virtual Learning Academy, giving students more options in their education and the way in which they learn.
On this episode of the Supercast, we hear from principals of the three new virtual schools. They explain how the schools will work, who can enroll and how this personalized learning will focus on the individual student. Find out how the Jordan Virtual Learning Academy is different than anything we’ve done before.
If you have questions regarding the new schools please call 801-567-8131 or visit connect.jordandistrict.org.
Audio Transcription
Superintendent:
Welcome to the Supercast. I'm your host, Superintendent Anthony Godfrey. It's a very exciting time here in Jordan School District as we prepare to open three unique new schools for the 2021-22 school year. Kings Peak Virtual High School, Kelsey Peak Virtual Middle School and Rocky Peak Virtual Elementary School are part of the Jordan Virtual Learning Academy, which will give students more options in their education and the way in which they learn on this episode of the Supercast we hear from principals of the three new virtual schools. They explain how the schools will work, who can enroll and how this personalized learning will focus on the individual students find out how the Jordan Virtual Learning Academy is different from anything we've done before.
With the three newest principals in Jordan School District, we have three administrators who have just been appointed to be principals of our online schools that we'll be starting in the fall. So let's introduce these three new principals, and then let's talk about their schools and how you can get signed up. If you're interested, Ross Menlove, Principal of Rocky Peak Elementary School. Tell us about you a little bit.
Ross:
I'm Ross Menlove and I'm excited to be the new principal at Rocky Peak Virtual Elementary. My background is elementary. I've taught first grade, third grade, fifth grade, sixth grade, and also been an instructional coach. And I've been working a lot with the teachers this year to ensure our online program that we're currently doing. It's very successful and it's meeting the needs of students and helping kids progress in their learning.
Superintendent:
We also have Spencer Campbell who will be the Principal of Kelsey Peak Virtual Middle School.
Spencer:
Hi, my name is Spencer Campbell. I'm super excited to get this program started for the virtual school. My background is in middle school, taught seventh grade and ninth grade, and obviously have a background in technology and what that it looks like for students at home and at school. We're super excited to get this started.
Superintendent:
And then we have Ammon Wiemers who is the principal of Kings Peak High School.
Ammon:
I'm Ammon Wiemers, Principal at Kings Peak Virtual High School. Prior to that, I was working as the administrator of the online program for the district. And my background is in a high school English. And so I taught at West Jordan High School for nine years.
Superintendent:
We're really excited to have all three of you on board, moving this forward. It's a big leap for us to move to having three separate online schools. Now you all fall under the Jordan Virtual Learning Academy, but they are individual schools and are hiring right now. I want to start with talking about what the difference will be between these online schools and maybe the online learning that was experienced in the spring and through this year for those students who chose that option. Let's start with you Ross.
Ross:
This upcoming virtual elementary is going to be pretty awesome because it's going to be very student centered and student specific. As parents consider what they want to look for in this program in this virtual dimension, they're going to be able to choose between two different types of curriculum. Currently all of our online program is synchronous, live with the teacher. What we're going to be offering next year is asynchronous, meaning that the student can log in and they can complete their coursework for that day, any time, any place, any pace. And it's gonna be very individualized for that student. So that's the asynchronous option.
The synchronous option is similar to right now. They're gonna have a live teacher, but the difference is going to be those teachers are going to be a lot more strategic in the activities they have to do. They are a lot more intentional in their planning and in their instructional design because they have experience now. They know what works, they know what doesn't work.
And so we'll be able to offer those two options if I may put in a plug out there. The wonderful thing about this for elementary is all of our online instruction, all that core instruction, those students need to be successful as fully online.
We're also going to have an option where kids can come in a couple of days a week at our satellite location to come and do some project-based hands-on learning with certified teachers and also receive some extra help if a student struggles with a math assignment that day, or they need some help with their reading, they're going to be able to come in and have a live teacher, hands-on face-to-face right there with them to be able to provide that instruction at the elementary level.
Superintendent:
That's one of the big questions that we get is how synchronous this will be and what the alternatives will be. It is a good reminder that this is not pandemic learning. We do have an in-person component now. Will that in-person component be required or will it just be an option?
Ross:
The in-person requirement is fully optional. We're guaranteed through our curriculum that every student has the core instruction and the learning that they need to be successful by fully being online or ensure that they have what they need to be able to progress in their learning and go to the next grade level
Anthony Godfrey:
Can you describe for everyone, what you anticipate class sizes will look?
Ross:
The wonderful thing about this is that our class sizes are going to be very similar to our in school class sizes. That means that the teacher will have the time and intention they need to dedicate that personalized learning to each and every student, able to work together as a team to make sure that every student is progressing in learning. If a student is doing the asynchronous option, the wonderful thing is they're going to have a licensed and certified teacher who can modify their instruction each and every day, to make sure that student gets exactly what they need. If they're doing the synchronous learning, live with the teacher, that teacher's going to build up and automatically respond and have live feedback to give that student the feedback they need to progress in their learning and to ensure they progress and do their best.
Superintendent:
What's exciting for me is the number of options. There's an in-person component. If you'd like, it can be asynchronous. In other words, it can be time-specific or you can have a high level of flexibility. So I think this can meet a lot of needs that maybe have even emerged as a result of the pandemic. Before the pandemic, I think for some people online education would have sounded like an option that was not right for their child. But sometimes when you try it, you realize this is actually working really well. I know you've seen some great success at the elementary level, even just this year. Can you talk about that?
Ross:
Our current elementary program, the current online program, the wonderful thing about it is it's very student centered. Each and every day, we have teachers that are creating content and creating activities that are directed for that student. So the wonderful thing about our online program, it's not a pre-determined curriculum that is in essence, designed by a company. This is teachers in Jordan School District, working with Jordan School District students, creating very specific content and curriculum and activities that are directed to them. These teachers, who know these students, who build these relationships virtually, are able to direct that content right for that student, to be able to provide that student what they need. They don't have to go through some algorithm or anything like that. We have the live teachers that are behind the scenes, creating this content, ensuring the student has a path of learning so that they're going to be successful.
And the great thing about online is this year is we've shown that kids and teachers can build very effective and very connected relationships. Everyday I have teachers that reply back to me when I asked them about how things are going. They mentioned how they have even better relationships with some of the students. And also, especially with the families, because the parents are right there. The parents are watching some of the sessions. The parents are involved in their homework. Teachers have great relationships with the parents because it's more of all the stakeholders and all the parties are coming together for the success of the child. It's not just the teacher being in a classroom with the student is the teacher, the parent and the child all coming together virtually to ensure that that student is being successful and making those modifications and shifting on the fly to ensure that kid has what they need to be successful.
Anthony Godfrey:
It's exciting. Spencer, let's talk about Kelsey Peak Virtual Middle School. What can a parent expect from Kelsey Peak Middle?
Spencer:
So a few things they can expect are flexibility and predictability. And that's something that Ammon will talk about as well with the high school. But the idea is that kids have a flexible option. Currently, we have students in a variety of situations throughout the District. So for example, we have a student that has high anxiety and coming to school is difficult for them. Or maybe they want to take their core classes online and they want to take their extracurricular or their elective classes at the school. They have that option. But the predictability part is they're going to have certified teachers teaching those classes, whether the student attends live or watches a recording after the fact. They have that ability to take those classes when they can, or when they fit into their schedule.
Superintendent:
The way that it had to be structured this year at the secondary level made it impossible for synchronous learning to be available because teachers who were teaching online were serving students who maybe did have a partial schedule or they were teaching students from a number of different schools. So creating a schedule districtwide just was not possible. The advantage here with Kelsey Peak Virtual Middle is that we actually will be offering synchronous learning for all of our classes. Is that correct?
Spencer:
That is correct. In a sense, if they take the full online option and they have their classes full, we're building a schedule out right now. The nice thing about that is those classes will be recorded. So students that are in a partial or hybrid schedule at their home school can come back and watch those recordings later. And they would get all the same interactiveness as the kids asking questions that are in that virtual option.
Superintendent:
So if they're full at Kelsey Peak Virtual Middle, that means they can have a completely synchronous schedule, but if you're trying to coordinate with a local school that might not match up, so they can watch the video and they can interact with the teacher. There'll be office hours and availability from the teacher.
Spencer:
Absolutely. That's a great question. One of the difficulties with the middle school is we have 13 middle schools to coordinate schedules and classes. And so you're correct in the way that stated if a student is taking virtual classes, they will have synchronous learning all day long. If they're taking a partial or a hybrid schedule, they will be able to watch those recordings after the fact.
Superintendent:
And I know we've described this a couple of different ways, but I think it's an important point to distinguish this from the pandemic learning experienced in the spring and the fall. There will be a full video class for every course that a student would normally be taking that they can watch where that has not been the case this fall, simply because of the logistics.
Spencer:
Correct every recording of the secondary level, and I know Ammon will talk about it too, is going to be recorded. So when the teacher is giving the initial instruction, whether that's at the synchronous moment or the night before that they're sharing with students, every lesson will be recorded so students will have the opportunity to go back and watch and participate in that lesson.
Superintendent:
I liked that description, flexibility and predictability, which is really the combination that we're looking for. Is there an in-person component to the middle school and talk to us about the grade configuration?
Spencer:
So the middle school is actually seventh through eighth. We talked about this before, to move ninth grade to the high school. And as far as the in-person, this would be more small group instruction or labs because we're going to have students in a partial schedule. We may only have 25 kids that are in the virtual session with the two satellite offices or satellite buildings that Ross talked about. That teacher will have the ability to run labs or activities and invite students to come in to those sessions or activities that aren't required, but just an added bonus to virtual instruction in the middle school.
Superintendent:
We've mentioned a couple times the physical locations that will be Hidden Valley Middle School and Majestic Elementary School. Hidden Valley is next to an elementary. Majestic is next to a middle school. So there will be a variety of facilities available and all three levels will be available at both locations. One of the things I'm really excited about is that these physical locations will not only allow for interactive lab work and support from teachers in-person, but students can come in and just work at the computer in a quiet place with reliable wifi and great equipment.
Spencer:
Correct. So as of right now, we actually have that set up currently where students can come in to a writing lab or a math lab and get extra help. We ask students, obviously, to set appointment so there's an adult there that can help them through that process. But there are those resources available if the students that need them during the day that can come in and just work through on a computer, like you said, with the internet.
Superintendent:
Stay with us. When we come back, we'll hear from Ammon Wiemers, Principal of the new Kings Peak Virtual High School.
Break:
One of the most prestigious academic achievement programs available for high school students, and we're proud to say, it's coming back to Jordan School District. We're talking about the International Baccalaureate (IB) program, which will be located at West Jordan High School. The IB program supports personal and academic achievement for students at the very highest level. IB diploma courses take place during a student's junior and senior year in high school. All sophomores are invited to consider the IB program for next year. There are no pre-requisites for IB and interested middle school students can start preparing now students with the IB diploma have a better chance at getting into some of the most prestigious universities in the world. In order to find out if your teen is a good candidate for IB, visit http://ib.jordandistrict.org, or call West Jordan High School.
Superintendent:
Ammon, let's talk about the high school. What are some of the things that you would like parents to know about? What's going to be available through Kings Peak High School?
Ammon:
When we were thinking about how to design the curriculum and the courses at the high school, some of the guiding principles that we think are important are what we've talked about before. Having some flexibility and also predictability. And when we see what those choices entail, we want students to have choices not only in when and where they learn, this is the virtual component, but also within the courses, what they learn. And so student choice in all three areas are what's important to us. We're building a schedule around that. With that in mind, students don't necessarily have to learn at the same time and in the same place as others. However, it's good to know when and where to get help if you need it. And so within the design of every course, we started to think about it not as a class period, but as an instructional week. Within that week, we have both synchronous and asynchronous learning opportunities for every student in every course. By the time that students are in high school, we want them to be making intentional decisions about their own learning. If a student is in need of additional support, we have some support in place for them to go and get that help. Teachers will be available throughout the day to zoom or to come in and get help individually. And so it's the level of support at the student level, as the student needs it. And so we have a structure built in that supports the student choice in their learning. In every course, like I said, there's going to be synchronous learning opportunities each week. And then from that, students make intentional decisions about their own learning.
Superintendent:
They have supports to get that help when and where and how they need it. Tell me about a partial schedule at the high school level. It's a question that we get a lot. I'm excited at the prospect of a student being able to fill their schedule with the classes they'd like to take, even if there's a conflict at their home high school, that perhaps they can take an online class. That opens up a class period for them to be able to take an elective, perhaps that was otherwise going to create a conflict. That's a really critical component of this virtual school. Our partnerships with all of the local high schools. And so what we're essentially doing is expanding the offerings and the flexibility of all of the schools where students are enrolled at their high school and they want to get ahead, or they want to take a course that's not offered during a certain period. We offer some flexibility in expanding the course offerings in all of the high schools. And so they will be able to participate in that course in a virtual setting while still maintaining their enrollment at their high school and still being eligible to participate in all the activities that the high school has offered under UHSA rules. Any of those sanctioned sports or activities are still available to students who participate at Kings Peak High School, even if it's full time. Because Kings Peak does not offer any sports teams or any activities of that nature, students are still eligible to participate at their boundary. So we see Kings Peak High School has two options. One is to be fully enrolled at Kings Peak High School. And then the second option, we hope, is to be seen as an extension of the high school. The local high school, when our students participate in the services and receive the support there. And then we offer additional curriculum options, additional course options that they can engage in.
Superintendent:
Let's talk about who's going to be teaching these courses. Spencer, talk to us a little bit about that.
Spencer:
I think the current situation, the pandemic situations placed a lot of teachers in different situations that they never saw themselves in. And the teachers that we're interviewing currently are teachers that have been waiting for this moment for a long time. These are teachers with a strong background in technology. These are teachers with a strong curriculum base, but also design. When you're designing courses online, it's a little bit different than teaching a class or creating lesson plans in person. There are added components to those lessons. And so these teachers are the best at what they do as far as what we've seen in the interviews. And so to say that these are just teachers that are moving from in-class to online is not the case. These teachers have been preparing for this and waiting for this for a long time. And they're exceptional from everything we've seen so far.
Superintendent:
Many parents are wondering whether they can switch back and forth. There's been some switching back and forth, of course, because of the pandemic. As things change over time and the way that things are set up, parents sign up for a virtual school in the same way that they would sign up for a brick and mortar school, and really are committing to that school for the year because their spot is not staffed for at their boundary school. However, we want students to learn in the environment that suits them best. And if there does need to be some switching back and forth, that can happen, in certain circumstances. But essentially the expectation is that when you sign up, you're signing up for the year. But of course, we work very hard to provide flexibility. As you've said before, that's at the center of what we're doing.
Spencer:
Yeah. That's a wonderful comment. The wonderful thing about this virtual program elementary up through high school is it's personalized. It's designed for the students. It's designed to meet their individual needs. Now, as a student enrolled in the school, they're enrolling in the program, they're growing in the school, just like you have their school, but you know, and I know in parents listening to this and students listening, we all know there's different things that happen in life. And that's where we come together. And we have that flexibility with predictability. Now, being able to change back and forth between schools comes with its own challenges, comes own concerns, and we'll face those when we get there. But as we get into this and we get going, we start learning. If you have concerns, you have questions, all of us would love to talk to you. Come in, give us a call, whatever, it works to send us an email, let's get together. Let's talk, let's figure out what works best for your student. This is a very personalized program, very individualized and we're here. We're committed, just as the rest of Jordan School District. We're committed to what's best for our students and our families.
Superintendent:
I'm just going to go around the room and ask each principal to explain, how will a parent or student know that your school is the right school for them next year?
Ross:
One of the big differences between our current online learning and Rocky Peak Virtual Elementary is that this is more parents making the choice about where their child learns best. If your child learns best inside your home with you being aware of what's happening in their curriculum and what their learning needs, this is a great option for you. If your child learns best by having some flexibility throughout their day, and be able to have a different schedule than normal, this works best for them. As a parent, you need to be aware that this option works extremely well as we all come together and work together. And so parents are an active member of the learning process. As they work with teachers to ensure what is best for students, what is best for their child and what works best for them?
Spencer:
I think ultimately it's about flexibility. Parents know their students best. And the option at Kelsey Peak Virtual Middle School is, let me give you an example of three types of kids that we see. One, maybe you have a student that needs an extracurricular class to fit in their schedule because they're in SBL and they don't have room in their schedule. This is perfect for them. Maybe you have a son or a daughter that's on a dance team or an Olympic ski team or a hockey team and they have to leave early every day and they need to take that fifth, sixth, seventh period online. This is perfect for them. And as mentioned earlier, maybe you're a student that has an IEP or struggles with anxiety and the large crowds and large group classes make you a little bit nervous.
Ammon:
This is the place for you because of its flexibility and predictability, just like choosing any school. This is a decision that parents need to make with their students. And while it is a new high school, we have some idea of who might be successful here. We have a situation where students have been learning how to learn online through Canvas and through the last year students who have shown that they can work independently, work at their own pace and make good choices on their own are going to be very successful in this setting.
Superintendent:
We offered virtual high school classes even before the pandemic and the pass rate in Jordan District was double that of some districts that are comparable. And so I know we have the people and the program in place for students to be very successful. Really the bottom line here is, if this sounds good for you and your student, it's worth giving it a try. It's worth signing up because we have outstanding principals with a great background, but are interviewing and hiring the best teachers around with not just the skills, but the passion for teaching students in this way. So thanks to all three of you for moving this vision forward. I'm excited to have an additional alternative available to students beyond the pandemic. And we look forward to great things. Thanks for joining
For more information about the Jordan Virtual Learning Academy, Rocky Peak Virtual Elementary School, Kelsey Peak Virtual Middle School, or King's Peak Virtual High School, call (801) 567-8131 or visit connect.jordandistrict.org. Thanks for joining us for another edition of the Supercast. And remember, education is the most important thing you'll do today. We'll see ya out there.
25 min