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Kim Radostits, NBCT - 2023 Illinois Teacher of the Year - Oregon, Illinois
277 Plays6 months ago
On this National Board Conversations episode, you hear from Kim Radostits, NBCT. She is the 2023 Illinois Teacher of the Year and has much to say about her time as an educator. She greatly advocates for the National Board process and has a special message for several other State Teachers of the Year! Be sure to follow her on Twitter @SrtaRad
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Transcript
Introduction and Guest Introduction
00:00:00
Speaker
Hey everyone, welcome back to another episode of the National Board of Conversations. I have an exceptional interview for you. It is a throwback to an unreleased one I did last summer. Kim Radistich is a National Board Certified Spanish teacher and was named 2023 Illinois Teacher of the Year. She has a burning passion for education and her students, and is an outstanding storyteller. She can envelop you and her stories, so you won't be disappointed. I won't keep you any longer, so here's my conversation with Ms. Rad.
00:00:28
Speaker
Hello, Kim. Thank you for taking the
Kim's Teaching Journey
00:00:30
Speaker
time. I really appreciate you hopping on with me. Well, thank you so much for having me. I'm excited about this experience. So you were named a 2023 Illinois Teacher of the Year. You are an MBCT, but you got there somehow. So can you give us a little bit of a background of yourself? What's your current role and how'd you get there?
Proud Programs
00:00:51
Speaker
Yeah, so I have been teaching in Oregon, Illinois for the last 16 years.
00:00:56
Speaker
I am a Spanish teacher in Oregon and I've worn lots of other hats like I've been student council advisor and a freshman class Dean and academic full coach and I've been on like all the committees right school improvement team curriculum team handbook committee. But the two programs outside of teaching Spanish that i'm the most proud of.
00:01:16
Speaker
and have really been shaped through the national board certification process are one that's called Hawks Take Flight, which is an after school mentorship program for freshmen with the goal of keeping them on track for a four year graduation. And then the second one is called the New Teacher Academy that really was born out of the national board certification process where we onboard all new hires to our district. And I take them out to a castle that we have in our community where we eat dinner.
00:01:45
Speaker
With the new hires, yeah, we have a castle in Oregon, Illinois. We take them out, we have dinner with some veteran teachers. And then the second hour that we have together every retreat, we call them retreats, I provide them with professional development that's aligned to our school calendar. So around parents at your conference time, we have a conversation about how do you engage with parents? What should that conversation look like? What materials should you bring with you? Around testing season, we talk about
Personal Interests and Influences
00:02:14
Speaker
How can you utilize that data? Where will you find those different sources of data within our district? And really just give our new hires the support that they need in real time. So instead of onboarding them over the summer where we have this orientation and we give them all sorts of information at the beginning of the year that they'll probably forget as the year goes on, we give it to them as they get. So that's kind of what I'm up to in Oregon. That's really awesome.
00:02:43
Speaker
Being a teacher leader, that's what we want MBCT to do, that's really cool. So we're gonna get into a little bit of you outside of the classroom to get you know on the personal side. So what are your three favorite foods? Tacos, tacos and tacos would be the answer to that. I could give you three different types, but outside of tacos, I love ice cream, like to the point where ice cream was my first word as a baby. And so I like,
00:03:11
Speaker
I take that very seriously. Like that's a huge part of my identity, I think. Tap was an ice cream. And then like a true Midwestern and the summer, I don't know if there's anything better than a brat on the grill. That's just like a Midwest summer. I got some family from Wisconsin and they talk about brats a lot. So. You got it. Yeah. All right. So three songs that help define who you are. Hmm.
00:03:38
Speaker
Um, I would say that the first one would be Happy by Pharrell. I love that song. It's my jam. I like, I love that. Like just the theme of that for the classroom, right? Like it doesn't matter what's going on and something bad can go wrong during the lesson, but that's all right. It was not going to bring us down. We're going to get, we're just going to be happy. And like, that's, that's how I feel in my classroom each and every day. Um, the second one would be, this is me from the greatest showman. I love that musical. Um, cause I think that that's the message that I have.
00:04:06
Speaker
for the kids that I mentor my after school program that like hey we all have our story and we're all we're all but we're all in this together and like your story is unique to you but it's also super important so be proud of who you are and like let's overcome any obstacles that you might have in the future and then yes for the third one like anything that's a mariachi song or a polka song I guess would be
00:04:31
Speaker
My third thing, like I don't have a specific one, but I feel like that's a soundtrack to my childhood that my grandfather was on my dad's side was in a polka man. And my great uncle, I'm a mariachi man. And so I feel like any family gathering included one of those two types of music. And I think that that's a huge reason why I'm a Spanish teacher today is that my family invested in making sure that I was really proud of my culture. So even though they aren't like current
00:05:00
Speaker
you know, types of music. I do think that they define me. That's really cool. That's really cool. And that you're proud of all of your cultures that make you. Yeah, absolutely. All right. Last one. The one sports team that has your heart. And if you're not a sports person, a movie you can recite line for line. Man. So I don't know anything about sports. So we'll go back to the movie one. And it really would be the greatest showman. And I was thinking last night
00:05:31
Speaker
about The Greatest Showman and how, in terms of national board certification, the process of making the show in The Greatest Showman the best show would make a really good entry for national board certification. Like really think about that, right? Like he had to think, like if the show was a lesson, the things that he had to overcome in order to make that like The Greatest Show, that would make a really good entry for national board certification. I could see it. He slapped him like think about
00:05:58
Speaker
Like he had to get to know the people in his show. Like he had to get to know their background. What was it that was going to make them strive to be great? Like he had to overcome all sorts of obstacles. So the point where like in the movie, spoiler alert, like when it burns down, like he has to completely rebuild the show, right? But you got to learn from all those mistakes that you made to make it the greatest show ever. And I think about like why I am the teacher that I am today after having experienced the national board certification process.
00:06:25
Speaker
And it I recognize that it isn't a linear journey right like being a teacher and experiencing success is not linear. There are so many times where i've failed and I had to learn from those failures and national board certification gives you that framework to think about what was it that went poorly and how can I grow from that so.
00:06:45
Speaker
I didn't mean to pick that movie for that reason, but I was thinking about that earlier. No, it's cool. Like, that's not a movie. Honestly, not a movie I expected. And I keep hearing great that I first kept having seen it, but I'm going to make a point to watch it now. Because like, you're not the first person. It's worth it. So I'm going to make a point to go watch it. Yeah. So can you share why you became a teacher and why I guess you're still in the classroom, but why it's important to you to remain connected to education?
00:07:16
Speaker
Yeah, so I mean, I, I truthfully have known that I wanted to be a teacher since I was knee high to a grasshopper. So I don't have a defining moment of when I decided to become a teacher, but I can tell you that I know that why I'm a Spanish teacher and I'm a Spanish teacher because of my English teacher, which sounds counterintuitive, but my sophomore year of high school, my English teacher was trying to teach us about the Odyssey. And the first day of that unit,
00:07:43
Speaker
went poorly, like the students in that room, like myself included, just were really disengaged. She didn't really like the unit. So day two of the unit, she seemingly scrapped what she was doing. And she brought a Rubbermaid's Hub with her to school and had one of my peers carry it to the cafeteria. And he puts the Rubbermaid's Hub on top of one of the cafeteria tables. And this woman, her signature maxi skirt and sandals,
00:08:12
Speaker
takes a running start and like a lemur hops up on top of the cafeteria table, rips off the top of the rubbermaid tub, and pulls out what truly are like the ugliest Barbie dolls I have ever seen in my life. And she starts acting out the odyssey with the Barbie dolls. And it was so weird, like very cringy.
00:08:33
Speaker
but also like 22 years later and I can't unsee it. She did it with such passion and she was so dynamic as she acted out the Odyssey that every student in the cafeteria was just drawn into the story that the day before was like super boring to us. And so in that moment, I realized that I myself wanted to pick something where I could get that excited and I could get that passionate, right? And since being in the classroom,
00:09:02
Speaker
I recognize that most of my energy comes from my students. So like the same people that you're giving your energy to like recharge you at the same time. It's a really, really cool relationship and connection that teachers have with students. I feel like it's this, like you're giving, but you're also taking in that energy. It's one of those things where like you put in what you get out, right? Like if you're going to put in a certain amount of effort, you're going to get the level of effort back. Absolutely. And so.
00:09:32
Speaker
I mean, in terms of my content area, I went with Spanish because I had all of these rich experiences growing up, going to Mexico with my family. And my mom is from Zacatecas, which is like in the mountain region of Mexico. And we would spend the summers there with our family. And those were such amazing experiences. And so when we came back to the United States, like for school, you know, like we live here, right? My dad's American. I just always felt my heart, like I felt like they left a part of me there, right?
00:10:01
Speaker
And so it's so cool to be able to share that culture with my students. And so I have a passion for the culture. And then when I get into the room and the kids are what they are, it's like the perfect, perfect storm, like the best experience ever. I miss it so much. I cannot wait to get back in the classroom next year. We're gonna have some good times. I'm excited. And you get to explain these stories that you got going on now to your students. Man, I wish I had your classes. I wish I had the new Spanish class. Yeah. So what do you enjoy most about being a teacher?
00:10:33
Speaker
I mean, absolutely it's the connections. Like that's the easiest way to describe it is the connections. In education, I feel like, I mean, it's every conference that you go to, any interview that you listen to in terms of like what's important in education, the phrase relationships comes up, right? Like relationships are important. And that's absolutely true. Like relationships matter. But I think we need to be very mindful of when we,
00:11:00
Speaker
We talk about relationships. It's more than just the relationships with kids that matter. I think that it's also important that we're building relationships with each other in education. So like colleague to colleague, colleague to administrator, but then outside of that, it's so important that we're connecting to the families of our students and the community that we live in. So to me, that's the best part of being a teacher is just all of those connections that I get to make. And as somebody that lives in a small town in Illinois, like it's the,
00:11:29
Speaker
fast because I have this opportunity to not only make these connections, but to continue to foster them and to sustain them over a long period of time. So that when you walk into a grocery store, it's like, you're never, you're never alone in the grocery store. Everybody's a familiar face eventually, right? But, but it's, it's such an awesome experience that something that's as like mundane as going to the grocery store as a being kind of fun. Does you see all these people that you've really invested in and that you really believe in and, um,
00:11:59
Speaker
you've had some really awesome shared experiences with. So that's the part that I'm looking forward to getting back to is to meet new students who ultimately probably are connected to me in some way because of their older brothers and sisters or cousin or mother's cousin, sister's kid. There's always those weird connections in the small town of Illinois. But I can't wait to get back to that. That's the best part without a doubt.
00:12:26
Speaker
So what's been the biggest change for you since you had to leave the classroom, since you've been on the sabbatical?
Sabbatical Challenges
00:12:33
Speaker
Yeah. So I'm going to be completely vulnerable with you in saying that, um, Lindsay Jensen, the 2018 Illinois Teacher of the Year always says that becoming Illinois Teacher of the Year is like hitting the lottery. And she's absolutely right about that. Like it's like winning the lottery. You don't know you're going to win the lottery. It just happens. And then one day you wake up and you're a millionaire, right?
00:12:53
Speaker
I didn't know that I was going to be the next Illinois teacher of the year. It just happened. And as a result, I was put on sabbatical, which has been a wonderful experience. I'll start by saying that. But the first couple of weeks of sabbatical were hard for me. I'll be very honest, because for 16 years, I have been living and breathing school, where I live by bell schedule. I know exactly what I'm supposed to be doing every period of the day.
00:13:21
Speaker
have this framework that I've built for my classes through a national board certification process, like I know what I need to be doing, a sense of routine that's like part of me, it's a part of my identity. And then sabbatical came and it was like ripped from me. But it's been such a beautiful experience in that I've been able to make more connections. So like my community has just grown and I have seen more of Illinois in the last 11 months than I've seen in my last 30
00:13:50
Speaker
six years of life, like I've traveled all around this state. And there isn't a part of the state that I believe to be more beautiful than another. I think it's all just really, really beautiful. And what makes Illinois so special is that we're really diverse from our, you know, Chicago to our suburbs to our beautiful corn country, like we have like so much diversity in this state. And so it's been really fun to see that. And then I've also been able to connect with the other 55 state teachers of the year. And that I mean,
00:14:21
Speaker
That that's an experience that that's the best part of the lottery, I guess, is getting to connect to these people that I feel like are going to become an extension of my family forever and ever. So my life now is mostly like keynote speaking and interviews like this and then a little bit of writing here and there. Yeah, it's been it's been a really great experience. No, I remember talking to.
00:14:45
Speaker
Juliana Utube, who was the 2021 National Teacher of the Year. And he said she was told that when she was named Teacher of the Year, your classroom gets a lot bigger. And it felt like that, it feels like that's what you're describing in a way. It's like your classroom just got a lot bigger. Yeah, yeah, absolutely. And like the people I would consider to be my colleagues, like that network has grown exponentially, right?
00:15:15
Speaker
Like I miss my colleagues back home, absolutely. But I've met a lot of really awesome ones in this journey. So to be truthful, I can't even imagine what life is going to be like when I return. I already feel like a completely different person than I was in my room 11 months ago. What am I going to be like 11 months from now? I don't know. Will I even recognize myself? I'm not sure. But I'm excited to be on this journey.
00:15:43
Speaker
without a doubt. And I'm excited to share it with my students and to show them that again, like life isn't linear, like, but you need to, you need to really just embrace the, embrace the change. And so just going to every day, just trying to be a better version of yourself. Like that's, that's what life's all about. So you're a national board certified teacher, as we've talked about a couple of times. What pushed you to pursue and what was your journey like? Did you achieve on your first try?
00:16:14
Speaker
Yeah, so the reason why I decided to do national board certification process came from like a tap on the shoulder from a colleague. So super cool, coincidental thing. I live in a really, really small town. Like literally there are three blocks in the town I live in, it's that small. And my very first day on the job, I went to new teacher orientation and this teacher sat next to me, who was also a new teacher,
00:16:43
Speaker
And she said, hi, my name is Danielle. I'm a math teacher this year. And I'm pretty sure that you live in the block next to me. And I was like, no, you don't. I've lived in the same community my entire life. And I know everybody. No, you don't. You have me confused. And she's like, no, I see your mailbox all the time. She's like, will you commute with me to work? Will you be carpool buddies? And I was like, OK. So I didn't know this person.
00:17:09
Speaker
She became like my person. So we would drive to work every day together and then back home together. And she and I would like, on the way to school, talk about what we were excited about. And on the way home, we would reflect on how the day went. She did national board certification by second year of teaching. She went through the process and she achieved and it was great.
00:17:34
Speaker
Um, and so that she was like, listen, we have had all of these car chats, like you're ready, you need to do it. So third year of teaching, as soon as I was eligible, I was all in. And the experience was perfect for a third year teacher. It was perfect because as a first year teacher, you're like, it's like, you know, like you're like, uh, a newborn, like dear, you don't know what you're doing. You don't know how to walk the walk. Um,
00:17:59
Speaker
Second year, it's like, okay, I know I made a lot of mistakes last year, and I know how I want to fix them, but you can only do so much in a year. And third year, it really was like the perfect time for me to like, really, really reflect on what was going well and what wasn't going well. And so the national board certification process provided me with the framework that I needed to really reflect on my lessons, to reflect on my style, and to
00:18:27
Speaker
build a framework of creating lessons for the future. And so then years four through 16, it's just been revising, revising, revising, so that I can create a better experience for my students each and every year. And so I truly, truly believe that it was the National Board Certification process that put me on this trajectory to be Illinois Teacher of the Year and now a National Teacher of the Year finalist. And it's because it's,
00:18:56
Speaker
I guess there's no better way of me describing it other than it pushes you to be the best version of yourself all the time and to stay unfinished. I feel like I have so much more that I want to achieve as a teacher. I think that that provided me with the framework to think about what my next steps need to be.
00:19:20
Speaker
So did you have a cohort that helped you through the process or was it just you and Dan?
Certification Renewal during Pandemic
00:19:25
Speaker
Yes, yes, yes. So I had that colleague. And so not only did I go for it, but the art teacher at the time did and then two English teachers. And so the four of us did the national board certification process together. And we really we got together like maybe once a quarter to just talk about how it was going.
00:19:45
Speaker
but like we had like a blue box day. Cause that was, when I first did it, it was when we had the boxes, we had to like pack the boxes. The most stressful experience of my life, probably to date, probably scarier than interviewing for national teacher of the year, quite honestly, like dang. So, but yeah, I mean, we made it so much fun. Like, and it was, when it was over, we celebrated that we were able to put our binary together. I'll tell you, that was a cool experience,
00:20:14
Speaker
But you know, it was even a crazy experience was renewal for national board certification. I want to flag this. I was up for renewal during COVID, Eddie during COVID. I was up for renewal. So I had filmed a little video of my class, maybe two weeks before the shutdown. And it was just for practice because I had a new classroom and I needed to know where to set my phone up to record.
00:20:40
Speaker
And so I, I just wanted to like take the sample lesson. It was not the lesson I was going to use for my entry. And then we got shut down. And so here I am little miss rad and like literally giving lessons for my basement upset. I'm like super sad that I'm like ripped away from my students. And then I'll be honest at the time, it was like salt in the wound. Like, and now I have to do like, now I'm asked to watch these videos of myself teaching in my classroom in my element, um, doing this national board certification renewal.
00:21:10
Speaker
And there were times where that was a struggle, but looking back on that, that was the best thing that could have happened to me during COVID. And here's why. It's because I was able to watch that video of myself and reflect on what was going on so that I could write about it. But also as I was doing that, I was taking note of what was it about in-person learning that was like the secret sauce? What was it that really was lighting up my students?
00:21:40
Speaker
And what I saw was the thing that was really powerful in that video that I was watching and all the reflection that I was doing in other parts of my career was the community and the collaboration. And so even though we were in a shutdown COVID world, I recognized that in order for this to be a good experience, well, I guess a better experience for my students in the shutdown, I needed to figure out a way to build community even though we couldn't be physically together. And so that really, I think,
00:22:10
Speaker
It really drove me to try some things and to really be creative. And so I was one of the first people in my district to try Zoom meetings with my students, cause we didn't have that expectation at first. And so like I did, what I did was I created what I call rad ventures. And every week I would send out a PowerPoint to my students that had slides of like different things that they could do to stay on top of Spanish. And each one of the slides was worth a different amount of points.
00:22:39
Speaker
And the kids had to have 40 points by the end of the week. And so they got to choose what they were going to do. But some of the choices were like, join me online for a live rant venture where we would play a game. Or I would do a lesson about a grammar topic. Or I would read them a story. And then I would film videos of myself reading a story to them where they would have to answer questions. But we would come together and talk about the videos.
00:23:09
Speaker
So I was able to utilize that video and that reflection that I had done for the National Board renewal process to really think about how I was going to do remote learning teaching, which was perfect. In the moment, it didn't feel perfect. In the moment, it felt like extra stress. It was like, I already don't know what I'm doing teaching this. And now I have to write these essays. But it was the best thing that could have happened to me. So looking back on that, I feel like it
00:23:35
Speaker
Yeah, I mean, I think that's just the way it needed to be. I wasn't exactly where I needed to be in that moment. So, briefly go for it. And like, that's a really keen observation to notice that the one thing that was going to be lost was the community and the connection in the classroom and the collaboration, because there's ways we can get around it, like break our rooms and stuff, but it's different in person, like you said. Yes. Right. And so I'll be honest with you, I do like at first,
00:24:04
Speaker
it was me mourning the loss of it. At first, it was like, well, I can't be as good of a teacher as I was in this video, because I'm not in person with my kids. And I was like, no, no, no, no. That's such a defeatist attitude. This isn't like you can't do that. It's like you have to find a new way to make that happen. And truthfully, those students in my after-school program that I was talking about earlier that I tutored to keep them on track for freshman orientation or freshman
00:24:32
Speaker
or I'm sorry, keep them on track for a four year graduation. I feel like we, that cohort of students was probably one of the cohorts that I got the closest to. And it was because I had to figure out ways to be creative and continuing to sustain that relationship that we had built in terms of mentorship. And actually they were the ones that were reaching out to me like, can we have a Google meet? Can we have a Zoom meeting? Yeah, I mean, and so again, like that was,
00:25:01
Speaker
It was just, it was just perfect. I think looking back on that I'm really grateful for that experience of the national board certification process. It's awesome. So Illinois is pushing to have more MBCTs in the state like yourself. There's two bills that currently passed the house. One to help MBCTs get paid for more mentoring hours.
00:25:22
Speaker
and another that would provide retention bonuses for teachers who stayed two consecutive years in hard to staff schools. What are some other things that you think that Illinois can do to help recruit more teachers to go through the national board process?
Increasing Board Certifications
00:25:41
Speaker
Yeah, that's a really great question.
00:25:46
Speaker
I mean, I'll be honest, I think the fast and easy answer would be to just have some kind of stipend attached to it, or even a salary increase. A lot of school districts don't do that. And so for a lot of teachers, it feels like there isn't any incentive to it. And that's because teachers are, you know, we're busy people. We have our hands in a lot of things. You heard me say earlier, like, as teachers, we wear so many hats. Yeah, you do everything. Yeah, I mean, like, we wear so many hats.
00:26:16
Speaker
I could, I understand why there are people that just, they haven't taken the plunge yet, they haven't done it because they recognize that it's a rigorous process and it absolutely is, it is rigorous, but it, because it's rigorous is, you know, is where the growth comes from, absolutely. So I think that, one, I think the stipend would be great, but then also I think just, I think that there
00:26:41
Speaker
There's a responsibility for those of us that are nationally board certified to make sure that we're doing a better job of getting out there and doing what Danielle did for me and tapping on the shoulders of as many people as possible and saying, this is going to help elevate you and take you to the next level in education. Because I think that one of the best parts of having an amazing network of teachers to work with is we hold each other to a high expectation.
00:27:11
Speaker
You know, we're not only working together, but working alongside each other. And I think that, yeah, I think that we can and should be encouraging people to join us in this journey. So your career has led you a bunch of places and you're now a finalist for the National Teacher of the Year, which is, like you said, you just didn't expect it.
Emotional Journey as Illinois Teacher of the Year
00:27:40
Speaker
What emotions would you want when you won Illinois Teacher of the Year and then when you were chosen as a finalist? Man, it's been the wildest emotional roller coaster I think I ever could have been on. I mean, I was a named Illinois Teacher of the Year in my classroom, so I was really fortunate that the way Illinois did it- Also, it was in your classroom when they told you?
00:28:09
Speaker
Yeah, so the state superintendent came to my classroom and she came to my classroom during the time that I was working with my students that were in my mentorship program, which has been more impactful to me. Yeah, that was so amazing. What was wild about that experience was it was in the middle of the day. Again, I didn't know that I was going to become an Illinois Teacher of the Year. With the state superintendent was like a parade of cameras.
00:28:37
Speaker
and like people that were ready to interview me. And so I had to like interview on the spot. So you're like, you can imagine excitement, just pride, but then also like, what am I doing? I've never been interviewed before. That was my first interview. Like I hadn't been interviewed before that. And so I was like, oh my gosh, I don't even know what to say. But I just spoke from the heart and I'm glad. That probably was a good thing that I didn't know that that interview was coming.
00:29:06
Speaker
And then after that, the next emotional wave was just the most amazing walk down memory lane because I was so fortunate that so many people that I've gotten to know over the years through my journey as a teacher came out of the woodwork to just send congratulations as I was able to connect with so many people that I haven't heard from in a really, really long time, which was so cool. I mean, I think my phone
00:29:33
Speaker
It became a brick for a good four or five hours after the announcement, because there were so many messages that were coming through. It was overwhelming, to the point where when I found out I was named, I was with my students. And then the cameras and the state superintendent left. And I had my afternoon classes still to teach, which is wild. I mean, we still did it. I was like, we're so hard to do that. Got to go from this whole popping circle stance to back to teaching. Oh, man. Yeah. Yeah.
00:30:03
Speaker
And then as soon as school was over, I called my mom and I told her and my mom's like, Oh my God, what do you want to do next? And I have an aunt that lives in a nursing home in one of the towns near my house. And I was like, I really just want to go see my aunt because I figured that would be just a place that nobody could get to me. Like I kind of hid with her, right? But I wanted to share the experience with her, but I was able to unplug. I was able to have a conversation with her. She was a former teacher herself.
00:30:32
Speaker
about what this meant. And then I was able to get to those messages and really be thoughtful about how to respond to them. And then the same thing with being named National Teacher of the Year finalist. Again, I heard from so many people again. Yeah, I mean, I couldn't be more grateful. I really couldn't. I mean, this has been the most beautiful experience. And with that said, I've been thinking a lot about how
00:30:58
Speaker
In society, we need to do a better job of celebrating teachers, right? I think one of the best ways, I keep saying, one of the best ways to elevate the profession is to celebrate the profession. We want high school students to consider getting into the teaching profession. One of the best ways to do that is to celebrate teachers that are currently in the profession, because when we celebrate them,
00:31:20
Speaker
It gives them an opportunity to share out all the reasons why they're in it, to share out the joys that they have in their classrooms, to share out the things that keep them in the classroom. And I can't think of a better advertisement for the profession than listening to teachers talk about it, living and breathing it in the joy that comes from it, right? And so to be truthful at first was a little uncomfortable.
00:31:45
Speaker
It was a little uncomfortable having a lot of people congratulate me. It was a little uncomfortable getting called on to stages as the Illinois Teacher of the Year because I tend to be, or I was, a lot shyer and a lot more reserved. But now, as much as it's an honor to be the Illinois Teacher of the Year, one of the National Teacher of the Year finalists, it's also a responsibility. And it's my responsibility in both of those roles to make sure that I am in the best position possible to elevate the voices of my colleagues
00:32:15
Speaker
And so that means that I'm not gonna cower from those opportunities to be recognized because it is important that we are celebrating teachers. And so I hope to spend the rest of my career celebrating as many other colleagues as possible because they deserve it too, they absolutely do. Yes, I love it, I love it. So with that, we're gonna get into
00:32:40
Speaker
your elevator pitch. If you had to sell the teaching perspective for someone looking to get into it in one to two minutes, what would you use as your elevator pitch? I would say this. As a 2022 slash 2023 Illinois Teacher of the Year, I have given dozens upon dozens of keynotes. And in each one of my keynote speeches, I have done an activity with the participants where I have asked them to write down the name of their favorite teacher of all time.
00:33:11
Speaker
And as they do this activity, I have observed thousands, I mean thousands of people write down the name of their favorite teacher. I actually make them do it on their head. Like the activity is something I do with my students or they have to write on their head. And it's kind of silly, but I've seen thousands upon thousands of people do this activity now. And I've never seen it take longer than 10 seconds for somebody to write down the name of their favorite teacher of all time. Let that sit with you for a second. That.
00:33:41
Speaker
is proof of the power of a teacher. That is proof that a teacher impacts the lives of people over a lifetime. And that is the kind of profession that you are signing up to be a part of if you come into the teaching profession.
The Joy of Teaching
00:34:02
Speaker
And as teachers, not only do you have the opportunity to change the trajectory of somebody's life each and every day, but you also get a chance to have fun and be
00:34:11
Speaker
creative, you step into a career where you get a reset button, meaning that at the end of every school year, you get the chance to pause, recharge, reflect, and then reinvent your lessons for the following school year to be an even better version of yourself. And then finally, you get the opportunity, I mean, you've heard me say this, to get an extension of your family through the colleagues next door and the students in your room. There's nothing more amazing than that.
00:34:41
Speaker
If there's so much that this career has to offer, and it isn't always going to be linear. I feel like I'm living like a real life version of Candyland. There's a couple days where I'm going to go three steps forward. And then there are other times, like I'm on the slide back to the beginning, right? But every single one of those like set ways, every single one of those sidebars has been so sweet, like truly. And like an important part of my story.
00:35:09
Speaker
And that's the profession that I'm hoping to see more people get into. I'll be welcoming them with open arms if they choose to join me. It gets harder and harder to not jump in the classroom and not get these pitches from NBC teams. All right, so who is your favorite- Yeah, well join us, Eddie, you can. Listen, it's getting harder not to. I'm like, man, maybe I will. Who's your favorite fictional teacher?
00:35:38
Speaker
As a kid, it was absolutely Ms. Frizzle from the magic school boss. And she'd say, boss, do your stuff. Like I loved Ms. Frizzle. I'd say as an adult though, Quentin Bronson is doing a really good job with Abbott Elementary. I didn't think that I was going to like that show specifically because I have a tough time watching shows that like, I
00:36:01
Speaker
Like I worry about shows that make schools seem like it's all doom and gloom. You know what I mean? Because it's not doom and gloom. But Abbott Elementary doesn't do that. I feel like it's such an uplifting message all the time. And Quinta Brunson's character in Abbott Elementary, I love her. Like she's so well-intentioned. She's so genuine. She's so wholesome. Her heart is in the right place in every single episode. Like my favorite one is the one of the baby, like she wants to hash the chicks for her students and she has enough to get the eggs.
00:36:30
Speaker
best episode ever. But like, I just love that. Like, again, she really is like so many of my colleagues, like, yes, there's obstacles. But what job doesn't have obstacles, truthfully, right? What job doesn't have obstacles? There are obstacles. But at the end of the day, we all have our hearts in the right place. At the end of the day, my colleagues are all giving students their best each and every day. And even if it meant that they accidentally brought snakes into the classroom, they would have done it with the most like,
00:36:58
Speaker
like most like the well, like well intentioned thoughts possible, right? And so that shows really crushing it right now. I like I look forward to every new episode that comes out. Yeah, she just gave her SNL monologue and she gave a big shout out to teachers and it was like, I appreciate that. Yeah, yeah, she's great. She's great. I you know, like if I got asked a question, he was one of like the
00:37:26
Speaker
five people, like a lot alive people that you'd want to meet. I think she'd make my top five right now. She's just yes, absolutely. Because she tried to make that happen to be honest. Like the best of teachers like she's she's she's amazing. We gotta try to make that happen. Yeah, I love that. So what are three restaurants folks should try when visiting Illinois? Hmm.
00:37:50
Speaker
So I feel like I've seen all of Illinois. Yeah, you've been all over the place now. I know, right? So I would say in Northern Illinois, I'm going to highlight a restaurant near where I teach. It's called the Peppermill in Mount Morris, which is a teeny tiny little town. But the Peppermill makes chicken strips that are very, very unique. They call it chicken jockey there. And I know everybody's had chicken, right? But nobody has chicken strips like this place. I don't know what it is about these chicken strips.
00:38:18
Speaker
but you have to go there when it's the daily special. And I joke because it's the daily special literally every day. Like every day the daily special is chicken jockey, which are these special like chicken strips. So you gotta try it out if you're ever in Northern Illinois, it's the best. If we go to the complete polar opposite end of the state down to Southern Illinois at the very, very tippy like bottom part of Southern Illinois, like almost on the Kentucky border,
00:38:45
Speaker
is a restaurant that I just tried for the first time called the Red Onion. And it's in Equality, Illinois. And what's your name at Equality, Illinois for a town? But I could be wrong, but I think the Red Onion is the only restaurant in Equality, Illinois. And their little slogan is worth the drive because you are driving through nowhere for hours to get to the Red Onion. But it's the most beautiful drive down there because
00:39:15
Speaker
It gets to the part of Illinois that's really hilly. And it goes through like past garden of the gods, which is a really beautiful part of the state. And they have really good country style sides. So like, you know, corn casserole and squash casserole and seven layer salad. There's strawberry pretzel salad on point. Very, very good. And then if I had to highlight something in the city,
00:39:40
Speaker
I would say in Chicago, if you wanted something high end, you can't ever go wrong with a Rick Bayless restaurant. All of his restaurants are awesome. But my favorite taco place of all time is called Paco's Tacos. It's on South Archer Avenue on the south side of Chicago. Very, very good. The closest to Mexico I have ever experienced. Very, very good. Okay. I love Chicago. I tell people all the time it's one of my favorite cities.
00:40:10
Speaker
Like I went there for the first time in 18 and I was like, man, this place is magical. Well, I'll tell you if next time you were in Chicago, you give me a shout out and we will, we will try one of those places. Oh, I definitely will. All right. So like you can shoulder tapped. We have a feature on the podcast called the shoulder tap. It's when you get the tap on the shoulder and let them know they're ready to become a national board certified teacher on here. You'll give them a quick shout out and we'll encourage them to go through the process.
00:40:40
Speaker
through social media shout outs. So with all that context, who are you shoulder tapping? Well, I recently read that there are only three 2023 state teachers of the year that are nationally board certified. Is that true? Yes, only three. So I mean, the answer is there are 52 state teachers of the year that need to be nationally board certified.
00:41:06
Speaker
Um, but I'm going to pick one and the one I'm going to pick my shout out is to Tara Kochenauer, who is the 2023 Indiana teacher of the year. And she is amazing. She is the Quinta Brunson of her school. I believe she's a history teacher outside of Fort Wayne, Indiana. And she is crushing it as a teacher in that she is trying to make history come alive for her students.
00:41:33
Speaker
And she's a firm believer that every single one of her students can be a world changer. And just listening to her talk about her classroom, just like you can just see her entire being come alive. And I think that this would be a really awesome experience for her. And so Tara, if you're listening to this right now, I wanna see you do it because I do think that you're already an amazing educator and this is something that take you to the next level and we'll give you the framework to prove to yourself that you are making a difference and you are a world changer.
00:42:03
Speaker
Amazing. Tara, we on the lookout for you becoming.
Connecting with Kim
00:42:07
Speaker
So, where can everyone find you on social media? Yeah, you can find me on Twitter. Follow me at send your reader rad. And the abbreviation for send your reader as S-R-T-A, rad, R-A-D, is my Twitter handle. And to be truthful, that is the best way to get in contact with me on social media.
00:42:30
Speaker
Perfect, perfect. Ms. Rad, thank you so much for joining me. This was such a great time. Yes, this was awesome. And thank you so much for having me. And anybody that's listening right now, national board certification, if you haven't done it yet, telling me to take the plunge, it will change the trajectory of your career and it will impact the lives of so many students. It's absolutely worth it. Thank you.
00:42:53
Speaker
Kim was amazing and she is such a good storyteller. It was great to have such an honest and vulnerable conversation with her about what it was like winning Illinois State Teacher of the Year. Be sure to give her a follow on Twitter and I want to thank her again for taking the time to chat with me and thank you for listening to this episode of National Board Conversation. Be sure to rate, review, and subscribe on the podcast wherever you listen to podcasts and we'll see you next time.