NACCTEP Now

Join us as Dr. Katie Sam Monnin shares her journey from earning degrees in English literature to teaching middle school students on September 11, 2001 and how that experience influenced her to using graphic novels as modern literature in the classroom. Dr. Monnin has published eight books on the topic, including her first book Teaching Graphic Novels: Practical Strategies for the Secondary ELA Classroom. Listen as she discusses the need to teach to where students are at in time rather than to where educators were in time when they learned about literature.

Join us as Heather DiFede, co-founder of High Quality IEPs shares the importance of including and supporting all parties involved in creating successful Individualized Education Plans, IEPs, for special needs students. Based out of California and funded through a grant, available resources and guidance are based on current legislation surrounding special education and IEPs including both the recent Rowley and Endrew F. decisions. Through theHighQualityIEPs.net website there are resources for educators, education leaders, and parents that are reviewed and updated regularly based on user feedback. Additional resources for administrators and parents are planned for the next two years.

In this episode we hear from Floyd Rumohr about his newly released book, Stage It! Making Shakespeare Come Alive in Schools, which is born out of his decades of experience working with students in New York City. The book focuses on four of Shakespeare's plays with extensive lesson plans for teachers to stage parts or up to a forty-minute, abridged adaptation with their students. The beauty of this is in allowing both the teachers and the students to be creative and vulnerable as they learn the vocabulary specific to the theater and to Shakespeare's plays. The lessons encourage students to express themselves and their emotions through a similar process that actors engage in.

You can find more information on Floyd and his book at ⁠www.stageitplays.com⁠.

Dawn Brown of the Early Childhood Education Program at Arapahoe Community College shares with NACCTEP Now how her early career as a civil engineer led her to working in early childhood education. Through a home-based child care she started as a way to stay home with her own children she discovered her love of working with youngsters. Ms. Brown continues her work with that population by taking shifts at the Arapahoe Community College Child Development Center when she's not teaching the next generation of Early Childhood educators. One of the advantageous things about having the Child Development Center on campus is that other departments, such as the physics and math departments, take the opportunity to create and teach lessons to the children. Another is that the students in the Early Childhood Education program can use the center for their observation hours.

NACCTEP Now welcomes Ms. Rene' Manning from Rio Salado College's undergraduate Early Childhood Program and Dr. Allison Landy from Northland Pioneer College's Early Childhood Program to jointly discuss the seamless pathway they've developed for students to earn a Bachelor of Applied Science in Early Childhood Education. Through this partnership, students who complete an Associate of Applied Science in Early Childhood Education at Rio Salado College can apply to and seamlessly transfer 100% of their credits into Northland Pioneer College's Bachelor of Science in Early Childhood Education program to complete their studies. With no loss of credits and no need to retake courses, the first cohort of students has been able to complete the BAS in just four semesters.

Not only is this an effective way to address the continuing shortage of teachers in early childhood, it is also a leading example of how transfers between community colleges and other institutions can painlessly benefit students.

From May 3, 2024

In this episode we kick-off Mental Health month with founder and CEO of Educators Thriving, Dr. Tyler Hester. He shares what he describes as the five pitfalls leading to educator burnout: Overwhelm, personal neglect, conflict, unexpected challenges, and isolation. Moreover, he shares how his team is supporting schools, districts, and labor unions around the country to buck burnout through a two-pronged approach: First, they facilitate professional learning experiences in which educators can learn about, practice with, and apply strategies empirically proven to increase well-being. Second, they work alongside school and system leaders to measure the well-being of educators, analyze the results, and take strategic action on the basis of what they find. Educators Thriving envisions a world in which every educator reaches the heights of their potential – and works in a system that makes that possible. Come hear more about how they’re pursuing that important vision.

Dr. Fay Lee shares her 30 year journey from being a middle school paraprofessional with a bachelor's degree through earning a masters in education with certification to teaching at the preschool and high school levels and on into being a community college instructor, first of English and then of teacher education. From there Dr. Lee added being a faculty advisor for education and on into administration with her current role as Dean of Instruction for the Lone Star College system. As such, she endeavors to help reduce the teacher shortage and associated learning loss resulting from uncertified teachers in the classroom.

Based on feedback from local districts as well as universities across the state, Dr. Lee assists in making practical adjustments to Lone Star College's education programs. With Texas recently approving the offering of bachelors degrees from community colleges, Dr. Lee is hopeful that they may be able to add bachelors degrees in elementary to their new offering of early childhood bachelors degrees.

Listen in as NACCTEP Executive Director Julie Ferin chats with Dr. Ashleigh Thompson, University Dean of Education for CUNY about how the colleges within the CUNY system are positively affecting the teacher landscape in New York City. Dr. Thompson shares how the colleges interact and collaborate with each other and with the high schools to provide warm transfers on students' journeys to becoming teachers. The CUNY structure is positively affecting not only the diversity of the teaching field in New York City, but also the teacher retention rates. To find more information on the CUNY education programs, please visit

Dr. Thompson also reflects on her experience in France and Germany as a Fulbright scholar and how it opened her eyes to new experiences and new ways to look at the education field. She shares these experiences in an article titled Claiming a Pedagogy of Interruption through International Experiences

Association for Advancing Quality in Educator Preparation, AAQEP, President and CEO Dr. Mark LaCelle-Peterson joins us in this episode to discuss how AAQEP's success to date plays a role in updating their accreditation standards for the next seven years. Dr. LaCelle-Peterson shares with NACCTEP Executive Director Julie Ferin how feedback from programs that have been accredited has helped to shape the standards for 2025. The updated standards include language that more fully defines all the types of programs that can qualify for AAQEP accreditation. He also includes why he feels that the non-traditional students in many community college programs have as much value as those students in a traditional, direct from high school to college, program.

For more information, please visit aaqep.org.

In this episode, Calvalyn Day discusses the origins of Kappa Delta Pi's The Rooted Teacher podcast with NACCTEP executive director Julie Ferin. Mrs. Day shares how the podcast was born out of a need for self-care that many teachers, both new and seasoned, were looking for during and after the pandemic. Filled with tips and advice to help new teachers feel rooted in the profession and to re-root seasoned teachers.

The Rooted Teacher is your go-to guide for thriving both in and out of the classroom!  Packed with practical tips, The Rooted Teacher Podcast empowers teachers at every stage. Enjoy microlearning videos, live Q&As with Calvalyn, and free monthly screensavers and phone lock screens. Tune in, share, and join a vibrant community of educators committed to growth and inspiration! https://www.kdp.org/teacher-resources/the-rooted-teacher-by-kdp

This new 2024 research report on teacher well-being is very insightful and gives current data on teacher well-being. It is titled The Teachers are Not All Right: Improving the Mental Well-being of Teachers and Their Students. A larger share of teachers now say mental health has a negative impact on teaching, according to the third Merrimack College Teacher Survey.

https://www.edweek.org/research-center/reports/the-teachers-are-not-all-right-improving-the-mental-well-being-of-teachers-and-their-students/2024/08

The Rooted Teacher is available via the KDP website and through your preferred podcast provider.