Welcome to the Modern Classrooms Project Podcast. Each week we bring you discussions with educators on how they use blended, self-paced, and mastery-based learning to better serve their learners. In this episode, Toni Rose is joined by Ashley Kearney to talk about connecting with, building, and supporting school communities. 

Communities are based on relationships and working towards a shared purpose. Schools exist within these connections and all of these layers combined impact what students do beyond the four walls of school buildings. We can leverage schools by looking at the mission, vision, and gaps to decide how to improve along with the assets of the community. This activates people both in and out of the school to join together to do good work.

Community-building in education

Ashley realized her role as an organizer while working with a student. This student was very capable but often was absent from school, which led the student to feel anxious and unprepared. Ashley knew the school was doing all it could for them, but also knew they needed additional support in order to succeed. 

Ashely recommends that educators look at their community with an open mind and an open heart. Teachers and families should be willing to meet each other halfway without the stigma of what halfway looks like. The most important point is to authentically co-create and work together to get to an end result.

She also says that educators should look at gaps and determine what the students need. Then, they can think about how they can help the families and the communities. If a teacher is unsure, they should not guess, but ask. If the relationship is strong, the students and guardians will be more open and honest. Everyone involved should be willing to both speak out against an incorrect view and be receptive to that feedback. This allows educators to understand themselves and their own biases in order to best serve the community. This can help to alleviate misconceptions educators may have about a community.

Members of the education system may have different goals and priorities, and these may even clash with the goals students or families have for their education. Some ways to overcome this:

• Ask questions, listen to answers, take notes, and then to repeat back what was heard. Later, analyze the themes to determine the problem that needs to be addressed.

• Do not be afraid to tell other people what was said and what the real issues are. Communication is key to ensure everyone is on the same page and uses the same vocabulary.

• Ask people how they would like to engage in this process and what role they wish to have. Do not make assumptions about how people feel or what they want to do.

• Do not make promises which cannot be kept.

• If needed, circle back and ask more questions. 

Knowing your limits and the role of self-care

Ashley believes that taking care of yourself is knowing your capacity. At times, this may require hiring someone to help and taking a lesser or different role in order for the work to continue. You do not have to take on everything by yourself. In addition, for Ashely, this is more than just a career but a passion of hers and how she wants to live her life. Self-care can mean understanding your own expertise and providing aid in a way that naturally makes sense for you, which means doing the work to look inward, assess yourself, and reflect to increase your self-awareness.

Another way self-care can show up in education is knowing that when you show up, you represent and speak how you said you would, both as an individual and in your classrooms. Creating a positive climate of collaboration can be a form of self-care: you’re creating the network of support needed to help individual students succeed.

Connecting to something larger

Too often, educators discount education policy and bureaucracy because it seems opaque and inaccessible. Ashley believes that all educators know policy even if they think they do not or are overwhelmed by it. Policy is simply the rules and regulations of the day-to-day operations of a school - and if the complex terminology used in policy-making is inaccessible to educators, imagine how families feel! Educators can drive what policy looks like rather than blindly accepting it or feeling helpless. 

Ashley’s journey to the school board started with her work in the House of Representatives. She received some pushback and had to work hard, but the experience helped her realize the power of the “people with the pens” as they determined who people were listening to and why. She wanted to make sure that the teachers on the ground level were being listened to when policies and decisions were made. She understood how federal policies were implemented in local communities: by people serving at the local level. Being on the school board gives Ashley power related to curriculum and school calendar decisions, but also connections and relationships to powerful people that can disrupt traditional thinking.

Ultimately, coming into your power as an educator can completely change your relationship with your students and your career. Don’t discount yourself or your work - your students need you as an advocate!

Thank you to Ashley for joining us on the podcast to share about building community and support from the classroom. We recommend listening to the whole episode.

Connect with Ashley on Twitter @ashleyckearney and LinkedIn at ashleyckearney

Our Host

Toni Rose taught MS English for 10 years and will forever identify as a teacher. Toni Rose strives to be the teacher that she never had growing up, so she focuses on anti-bias, anti-racist work and wants to create a brave space for everyone around her. As a queer Filipinx, she understands just how important it is to be represented, be valued, and belong. She especially loves being a thought partner for and celebrating teachers. In her spare time, she likes to eat ice cream, take naps, force her two dogs to cuddle with her, travel, read on the beach and never get in the water, get matching tattoos, and cheer on all the strong women in her life. Sometimes, when she's in the mood, she'll run half-marathons, lift weights, and practice her arm balances.

Our Guest: Ashley Kearney

If you like what you hear in this episode, share it with a friend or subscribe to get updates when new podcasts are published.