The Ripple Effect

Like many other people in the over forty states that participate in the Mega Millions lottery, I bought a ticket recently in the hope that I would score the big jackpot. And like all but a handful of those people, I ended up with a losing ticket that came in handy when I needed a piece of scrap paper for an impromptu shopping list. Even while purchasing the ticket, I knew that the odds of its being a winner were staggering. But that didn’t prevent me from dreaming a little bit. The practicalities came first: new homes and financial security…

Dear Scott, I can’t begin to even tell you how shocked I was to see your message in my inbox the other day. After all, it’s been a few months since I last wrote you and nearly a year since you turned my world upside down. You didn’t even try to hide that you wanted me out of your life, first by sending me a form letter that had nothing to do with what I’d written you and then by ignoring my messages altogether. And now you have the audacity to send me an email message telling me all about…

I gave up cable TV a few months ago. Apart from missing a few creature comforts – my addiction to “Law & Order” is now woefully underserved, for example  – the transition has been a smooth one. I never watched much TV anyway, but I was surprised at how little I miss cable. With that said, once in a while the dearth of viewing options can be maddening. I really wish someone at the networks would call me so I can pitch my idea for a new TV show. I call it “Extreme Makeover: Wisconsin Schools Edition.” The premise for…

He’s young and handsome, blessed with soulful brown eyes, soft blonde hair and a powerful speaking voice. He’s charming and affectionate – in short, the total package. He does, however, have one major character flaw: he doesn’t bring back the tennis balls I throw for him. (I had you going, didn’t I? I suppose that introduction is one way for me to spike the hit counter.) I tease my friends about their dog being “broken” or “flawed” because he doesn’t quite do all the things that I think dogs ought to do. He won’t fetch. He experiences dramatic mood swings…

Picture yourself in the hallways of a modern high school between classes. The conversations vary from football games to a new job that’s not working out to whether watching “Jersey Shore” kills one’s brain cells. Teenagers of all shapes, sizes and colors swirl around you. Some of them might accidentally bash into you, their eyes so focused on the text messages they’re sending that they neglect to look up to see where they’re going. Every now and then, you’ll spot someone who doesn’t quite blend with the rest of the crowd, scurrying around the hallways with an overstuffed bag and…

As the sun rises on this August morning, I think it’s time for me to finally own up to one of my most self-destructive habits: perusing reader comments on education-related articles on the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel’s website. It started out innocently enough, with a simple desire to learn more about what the rest of world was thinking about education. But lately, it has become more of a quest – and an increasingly quixotic one at that – to try to neutralize the angry rhetoric I read everyday with reasoned perspectives. Rumors persist that paid bloggers on both ends of the…

I had coffee with a friend from high school this morning. We had reconnected shortly before our 20-year high school reunion a few years ago and since then have kept in touch via social media. Despite the divergent paths our lives have taken – she’s a suburban mom while my sole dependent is an ill-tempered cat – we had plenty to discuss beyond the small talk that one might typically find among high school classmates. My friend is quite proud to declare herself the “mean mom” because her children, ages 11 and 9, don’t have cell phones, and she has…

“Education is one of the most important things the government should invest money in, don’t you think?” While I agree wholeheartedly with this statement, it actually isn’t a personal quote. Instead, it came from a colleague at a private school in Germany during a series of recent email exchanges when I was trying to explain the ins and outs of all the goings-on in Madison earlier this year. Yes, believe it or not, the news of the protests in Madison had made it into several German newspapers, including Die Zeit, one of the most respected publications in the country. Now,…

Without question, last Friday was the most difficult day of my entire 17-year career. And that’s going some. When my father was terminally ill, I soldiered on. The day after I lost a friend to breast cancer last year, I was in the classroom and somehow managed to make it through the day. I’ve lost students and colleagues – difficult days, all of them – but somehow, in each case, I made it through. Friday was a different story. It was the end of a politically charged and emotionally draining year for Wisconsin’s public school teachers. A dear friend who…

One of my duties at the school at which I teach is spending an hour a day working with students described as being “at risk” – as in, at risk of failing several of their classes. It’s challenging work, but I enjoy it. Establishing a rapport with the kids is imperative to both their success and my success in working with them. Sometimes, it’s as easy as lending a student my Ipod charger. Other times, it’s more complex, such as when a pugnacious student suddenly changes his attitude when he realizes I’m the only one in the room who can…