Have you heard about WEB in our middle schools? It stands for Where Everybody Belongs and features 8th grade students volunteering to welcome new 6th graders and help them adjust to middle school life and feel welcome and included throughout the school year. In this episode of The Supe’s On! podcast, Dr. Cook visits High Desert Middle School, where language arts teacher Elissa Freeman coordinates WEB and speaks to the impact this approach has on building positive school culture. Also joining Dr. Cook is Abby Johnson, one of the school’s 8th grade WEB leaders. (Theme music by Zakhar Valaha)

Caldera High School is so new, this is its first year with a senior class. And what a special year this will be for the 250 members of Caldera’s Class of 2024! In this episode of The Supe’s On! podcast, Dr. Cook visits the school to meet with two of these students: Harlee Miller, a senior class officer and a member of the cheer team; and Jose´ Vera Venegas, who’s on the soccer and wrestling teams and part of our Dual Immersion program. Listen to Harlee and Jose´ reflect on what it’s like to be part of the first class that will graduate from Caldera, and what they look forward to as they help establish an identity and culture for our newest school. (Theme music by Zakhar Valaha)

You may know this school from a different time, with a different name. Bend Tech Academy today is entirely different: a small but mighty “choice option” high school with an emphasis on career-technical education, preparing students for college and careers. Dr. Cook visits BTA for a chat with the new Principal, Dr. LaKisha Clark, and BTA parent Sharon Miller, a member of the school’s Site Council. Hear them discuss what makes BTA an exciting high school option for students in Bend-La Pine Schools. (Theme music by Zakhar Valaha)

Winter can be a tough time of year for many families, as cold weather means increased heating bills and a need for warm clothing. When our families seek basic needs, there’s someone at school they can turn to for help: Family Access Network (FAN) advocates. On today’s podcast, Superintendent Steven Cook is joined by FAN Executive Director Julie Lyche, who shares the hardships families are facing right now, as well as they joy and hope she feels thanks to the powerful work of this local nonprofit.

Vaping is impacting our schools. While we know that a majority of students are not vaping, the number who are need support. In Superintendent Steve Cook's latest podcast, he examines this topic alongside Becky Aylor, Assistant Principal at Mountain View High School, and Aimee Snyder, Prevention and Health Promotion Supervisor at Deschutes County. Together they discuss the size of the problem locally, the steps our schools are taking to help students and what we can all do to prevent vaping or intervene once a student has started. Listen now: bls.fyi/podcast

Prevention Resources:

• Tip sheet for talking to teens about vaping

Recovery/Intervention Resources:

• Text DITCHVAPE to 99709: Text-based, youth-focused support to quit nicotine/ vaping

Season 2 of Supe’s On! With Dr. Cook is here and today he’s covering the school construction bond on the November ballot. He goes on a tour of Bend Senior High with Principal Chris Reese to learn about 70-year-old classrooms, butterfly roofs, a boiler system run on steam and the incredible Lava Bear culture that puts people first. 

Did you know nearly 20 percent of middle and high school students in Bend-La Pine Schools identify as LGBTQ? It’s true … and it’s also true that students who identify as LGBTQ+ reported having the most negative experiences out of any demographic group in our schools. So what can we do to change this? On today’s podcast, we are focusing on our LGBTQ+ youth and what life is like for them in our schools. Superintendent Steven Cook is joined by teacher and advisor Mark Koopman and three students who identify as LGBTQ+ to talk about their school experiences, how our schools offer support and ways our community can do better.  

Join us for a great discussion about allies, belonging, pride and identity in Bend-La Pine Schools. 

Note: Today’s podcast includes discussion of suicide. If you or someone you know needs help, connect with the teen-to-teen crisis and help line Oregon YouthLine at 1877-968-8491 or the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 1-800-273-8255. For additional resources, visit our student mental health webpage. 

Grab your mortarboards and get ready to toss some confetti, it’s senior week on the podcast! This week, two seniors at Realms High take Superintendent Cook on a tour of their small choice high school, reflect on how the pandemic affected their high school experience and share their plans for the future. 

It’s Teacher Appreciation Week and that means Dr. Cook is headed to a middle school classroom to celebrate two outstanding educators. Cascade Middle School math teacher Brian Kent and special education teacher McKenna Johnsen share what they love about middle school (blunt, hilarious students who keep them young), how working together is building students’ confidence and what’s giving them hope. Plus, find out which of our teachers (who is still teaching today) inspired Kent as a high schooler by making it “cool to know stuff.”

Today’s podcast takes on a serious, disheartening subject: bias incidents in our schools. Superintendent Steven Cook, Director of Diversity Equity and Inclusion Kinsey Martin and Assistant Director of Student Services Eric Powell walk listeners through what we are seeing in schools and how our staff are responding. Listeners will learn how many bias incidents have been reported this year, how each report is investigated and what restorative practices are in place to help after an incident.