Category: The Ed Biz
In Memoriam: Fred Reed
I found out today that my former co-worker died a couple weeks ago. I’m posting a few photos to remember him by. The last one is a special favorite of mine.
Read More → In Memoriam: Fred ReedEquinox Mandalas
Bart Everson, media artist in the Center for the Advancement of Teaching, will present “equinox mandalas: a digital media arts process” THURSDAY (April 23) from 12:15 to 12:45 p.m. in the Art Village Lecture Room (Building 43) at Xavier University of Louisiana. All are welcome.
Read More → Equinox MandalasA Natural Extension
I was honored to stand with over a dozen parents, teachers, and former board members, to speak in support of the Morris Jeff United Educators at the board meeting yesterday. Here’s what I said. I’m speaking today to express my enthusiastic support for the formation, or perhaps I should say the re-formation, of a teachers’ […]
Read More → A Natural ExtensionSocial Media, Social Justice: Digital Activism from a Planetary Perspective
I gave this presentation yesterday. Digital Activism from a Planetary Perspective on Vimeo.
Read More → Social Media, Social Justice: Digital Activism from a Planetary PerspectiveWhat Do I Love?
Today I led a discussion centered around the topic of our passions and desires. “By what star do we navigate our journey on the earth? What we love will shape our days and provide the texture of our inner and outer life. How can we plant what we love in the garden of this life?” […]
Read More → What Do I Love?Rest Easy, Ms. Foxworth
When I first met Ms. Foxworth, just 18 months ago, I was taken aback by her manner. She was quiet — very quiet. New Orleanians are known for many things, but being quiet is not one of them. Yet here was this woman talking so quietly I could barely hear her. My confidence was a little […]
Read More → Rest Easy, Ms. FoxworthYour Trip to Amherst
The nearest airport is in Connecticut, so when your plane lands you still have a good long drive to get to Amherst. You talk to the shuttle driver. She has an accent you can’t place, but she’s lived in Massachusetts for at least a decade. She drops you off at Allen House, a little bed […]
Read More → Your Trip to AmherstSix Long Essays
I’ve been doing it again: writing elsewhere. I’ve just finished up a series of six essays for College Contemplative on the topic of “Contemplative Faculty Development.” Introduction My Story Stepping into Silence The Transformative Banquet Sustaining the Dialog What’s Next Read at your own risk; I apologize in advance for the length. I wrote these […]
Read More → Six Long EssaysHow We Chose Our School
In the recovery planning efforts that followed the flooding of New Orleans, we often heard the mantra that we need to have “the community involved in the schools and the schools involved in the community.” I first heard this from Clifton James. I’m sure he was repeating an aphorism, but it made an impression on […]
Read More → How We Chose Our SchoolWhy We Pulled Our Daughter Out of a Private Suburban School and Enrolled Her in Public School in New Orleans
Why We Pulled Our Daughter Out of a Private Suburban School and Enrolled Her in Public School in New Orleans — a headline intended to provoke. New Orleans public schools have such a bad reputation. How on earth could we send our daughter there? It’s an act of hope. Also trust. And determination. And a lot […]
Read More → Why We Pulled Our Daughter Out of a Private Suburban School and Enrolled Her in Public School in New OrleansFirst Day of School
Monday morning we got up bright and early. After breakfast I dressed my daughter in her new uniform. Then we got on the bike and rode on down to her new school. Last year Persephone went to Pre-K3 at a Catholic school in Jefferson Parish on the West Bank. It was a good experience, I […]
Read More → First Day of SchoolThe Old Testament in Five Minutes
Watching The Theologians this weekend reminded me: I finished work on another movie earlier this summer and never wrote about it. It’s a five minute animated version of the Old Testament. Believe it or not, this took me five years to complete. If I’d cleared my desk and worked on nothing else it probably would […]
Read More → The Old Testament in Five MinutesContext Clues
What’s in an Acronym I work at an HBCU. That acronym is not recognized by my spellchecker, nor was it in my vocabulary until I came to work here. It stands for “Historically Black College or University,” a term which requires even more unpacking. In a nutshell, the story is this. Once upon a time […]
Read More → Context CluesAfter the Tide
I’m actively looking for ways to integrate various aspects of my seemingly disparate interests. Having Rising Tide here on the campus of the university where I work was a major integrative accomplishment for me personally. I don’t mean that it was particularly onerous, because it wasn’t; but it was extremely gratifying. Of course I tend […]
Read More → After the TideA Necessary Failure?
Over the past year or two I’ve become increasingly interested in the idea of contemplative pedagogy. This is the notion that we can foster a more thoughtful way of living and learning in our students and in ourselves by cultivating reflective and meditative practices in our teaching. To this end, I’ve relished the opportunity to […]
Read More → A Necessary Failure?First Day of School
Today was Persephone’s first day of school ever. She’s going to a small Catholic school on the West Bank of Jefferson Parish. I never thought I’d be sending my daughter there, but it’s the same school where Xy teaches, so the convenience is unbeatable. There are precious few publicly-funded pre-K3 programs in town. We don’t […]
Read More → First Day of SchoolBack to School
It’s become a tradition to take a photo of Xy as she heads off to her first day of classes. I realized this morning that we’ve been doing this for long enough that I have built up quite a little archive, going back to 2005, just a few days before Katrina. These photos kind of […]
Read More → Back to SchoolRain Punk
So yesterday I was over at Dr. Tim T’s office in the music building, helping the good doctor sort through some video issues. Midway through our session it started to rain, and Dr. T and I both agreed that it was nice to be back in the pattern of afternoon showers here in the summer. […]
Read More → Rain PunkA Dozen Intertwining Years
Today Tomorrow I am celebrating a dozen years here at the University. That means we moved to New Orleans twelve years and a couple weeks ago. I can’t conceive of one without the other. A dozen years of work and life at this school in this city. As previously noted, I’ve now spent a quarter […]
Read More → A Dozen Intertwining YearsMay Madness
This used to be a mellow time of year for me. Mostly I work with faculty, and faculty tend to get very busy toward the end of the academic year. That means they have less time to work with me. But since 2009 that’s changed. There are two new factors that have made this a […]
Read More → May Madness