Talks with Teachers

Kathy Keyes taught English for 36 years—at a rural high school, at an urban university, and at a college preparatory Catholic high school. A graduate of Purdue and Indiana University, Kathy recently stepped out of the teaching profession for a “gap year” in order to reevaluate and process the joys and challenges of teaching. She served as co-chair of the English department where she mentored teachers. She taught AP Literature for 17 years, was an AP reader, and served on the AP Lit development committee from 2016-2019. During her gap year, she plans to conquer at last the reading pile that has accumulated in her living room and to enjoy mornings without an alarm clock. Her Twitter handle is @kthkeyes The post Kathy Keyes — Episode #98 appeared first on Talks with Teachers.

This fall, Erik begins his 26th year of teaching, most of them at Ferris High School in Spokane. He loves working with passionate, intelligent, and innovative colleagues who are committed to helping students each day. Erik teaches English 10 and AP English Literature & Composition and has coached soccer, basketball, and track. In addition to his work at Ferris, Erik has served as a member of ASCD's Understanding by Design cadre, helping schools across the country implement backward design in their classes. He has also worked on several College Board committees over the years, mostly having to do with AP English. Currently, he is the co-chair of the AP English Literature & Composition Development Committee. Outside of school, Erik loves spending time with his family, traveling, reading, and enjoying life. The post Erik Powell — Episode #97 appeared first on Talks with Teachers.

Originally from Greenup, Kentucky - a small town in Appalachia - Brandon now lives in Cincinnati with Angela, his wife, and their 2 sons, Hilton (9) and Dorian (6).  After high school, he attended Ashland Community College as a nursing major before transferring to the University of Kentucky.  He graduated in 2002 with degrees in English Education and Classics.  Since then, he has taught public school in a variety of settings - urban, rural, suburban - and worked with teachers and students at the local, state, and national levels.  While teaching, he has earned masters degrees in both English and Education and he has also earned an Education Specialist degree in administration. Proud of where he comes from - and where his family still lives - he balks at stereotypes of people, especially those based on where they're from or how they talk.  He is a fierce advocate for the education of under-served and under-privileged groups and sees fair and equal access to education as a major way to overcome poverty and disadvantage.  Providing that education begins with teacher education and teacher support, which leads him to one of his favorite phrases, "do work with teachers, not to them." In his spare time, he likes to read and play sports, though he does only one of them well and both of them slowly.  He also spends a lot of time with is family and likes to travel and be outdoors - including hiking, camping, and fishing. The post Brandon Abdon — Episode #96 appeared first on Talks with Teachers.