Throughout this month of December, I’ve been reflecting deeply on gratitude. I’ve been trying to take a moment each day to pause and note the many things that I’m thankful for—the incredible team I have the privilege of working alongside at the Center, my family and community of friends, the...
November 13th was World Kindness Day, and we’re dedicating this November newsletter to the powerful role of teacher kindness (i.e., actions or speech intended to help others) and prosociality (i.e., voluntary behaviors that benefit others). Across classrooms and schools, teacher’s small acts of care and connection create supportive and inclusive...
Last month, we celebrated 16 years as a Center alongside our incredible community of supporters and partners at our annual event, Upstream: Changing the Current in Education. It was a joyful night filled with vibrant music from local organ jazz group Jazz the Glass Trio, a photo booth generously donated...
This past week, my son started kindergarten. The weekend before school started was a scramble—gathering supplies, making sure he had everything he needed, and purchasing a brand new backpack (it had to match his best friend’s).
A few months ago, our team gathered to discuss Chapter 3 of The Four Pivots as part of our year-long, all-team read (Ginwright, 2022). Many of us were struck by a section focused on the limitations of approaching our work in education (and society more broadly) through a purely oppositional...
As some of you already know, I am retiring from active involvement with the Center for Reaching & Teaching the Whole Child (CRTWC) as of June 30, 2025 (today), after serving for the past year in the capacity of Strategic Advisor. Dr. Rebecca Baelen, who some of you have already...
At the Center, we are starting to grapple with a topic that is on many peoples’ minds right now… what is the role of AI in education? And how might AI be leveraged to support the preparation and development of our next generation of teachers, particularly their social, emotional, and...
At the Center, we have been welcoming in the joys of Spring with new projects and opportunities for broadening our reach and impact!
In our final Zoom session of our current Teacher Education Institute (TEI) with teacher education program faculty across Oregon, we focused on the Anchor Competency of Respond Constructively Across Differences. Often when we unpack and discuss this anchor, educators share that it feels like the hardest anchor to enact and/or...
