Indian Prairie Podcast

Diversity, Equity, & Inclusion

Candy and Brian are joined by Dr. Rachel Mahmood, 5th Grade Teacher at Georgetown and Ann Cluxton, English teacher &  at Metea Valley High School to share their insights about Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion in District 204.

 

Rachel and Ann share their learning journey about equity, diversity, and inclusion. They also dive into how  equity, diversity and inclusion emerge in their classrooms and how they support their colleagues in their own journey of learning on the topic of equity, diversity and inclusion.

Supporting Student Success

Candy and Brian are joined by Mike Purcell, Director of High School Curriculum and Quynh Harvey, Metea Valley Assistant Principal of Curriculum & Instruction to celebrate work at the high school level.

 

Mike and Quynh celebrate the work of the district committees to support students as they started this school and intentional SEL time and lessons that are being implemented at the high school level. Quynh and Mike also dive into instructional flexibility and its benefit to student learning.

Winter Concerts

Candy and Brian are joined by Don Devany, Fine Arts Department Chair at Metea Valley, and Mark Duker, Fine Arts Department Chair at Waubonsie Valley, to share their insights on preparing for the December music concerts.

 

Don and Mark celebrate the past 30 years of December concerts and give us a glimpse of what happens behind the scenes as the continuous music performance is happening. Don and Mark also thank all the stakeholders who make this show a success.

Middle School Math Update

Candy and Brian are joined by Tarah Fowler, Director of Middle School Curriculum, and Jessica Bogie, District Math Coordinator, to discuss Middle School Math resource updates.  

Tarah and Jessica share the process to adopt the new middle math resource and dive into instructional math best practices. The group also shares resources available to staff this year and the process they will use to make sure common assessments and resources are aligned to state standards and meet student learning needs.

Teachers Supporting Teachers

Candy and Brian are joined by Chrissy Ensign, Gombert LMC Director and Sara Voller, Gombert 3rd Grade teacher to discuss their collaboration as Teacher and LMC Director and LMC Director and Tech Liaison.

Chrissy and Sara highlight Gombert staff collaboration, Portrait of a Graduate competencies, World of Work connections, and much more. Chrissy and Sara highlight their team’s efforts to support all Gombert students

New in Elementary School

Candy and Brian are joined by Joan Peterson and Charmonique Joiner to discuss curriculum and instruction updates at the elementary school level.

Joan and Charmonique highlight the amazing work happening at the elementary school level and share some updates on our updated Social Studies curriculum.

Kicking Off The School Year

Candy and Brian are joined by Alli Landstrom, Peterson Elementary School Principal and Dave Worst, Springbrook Elementary School Principal to discuss the excitement of starting a new school year.

 

Alli and Dave share their excitement for welcoming staff and students this school year. The group also dives into some beginning of the year traditions in 204 and great reminders about why education is an amazing profession.

Grow Your Own Teacher Program

Candy and Brian are joined by Dr. Louis Lee, Assistant Superintendent of Human Resources, and Carey Beth-Harry, Director of Human Resources, to discuss Indian Prairie School District's Grow Your Own Teacher program.

 

Louis and Carey discuss the Grow Your Own Teacher program and why it is so important for our district to provide our students an opportunity to explore career opportunities in Education. Louis and Carey also share information about what our staff will see next year to jump start this program.

Technology Services

Candy and Brian are joined by Rodney Mack, Indian Prairie's new Chief Technology Officer, to discuss the future of Technology Services in our district. 

 

Rod shares his educational journey and shares some work that his team will be working on over the next few years to support instruction and student learning. Welcome Rod to District 204!

Inclusive Teaching Practices

Candy and Brian are joined by Rachel Witkowski, Peterson Student Services Coordinator, and Sherry Fredericks, Granger Assistant Principal, to discuss inclusive teaching practices in District 204 and their individual buildings. 

 

Rachel and Sherry discuss the importance of an inclusive learning environment for all students in their buildings. Rachel and Sherry dive into a variety of topics to support strong instructional design.