No Ordinary People

For our final episode of 2021, our guest is Amanda Hood.

Amanda lives in Orange, CA and works as a Case Manager and Benefits Specialist for a homeless outreach services agency. She grew up in a small town in Louisiana, and we talk about what that was like and how her worldview has changed as her exposure to diversity expanded. Amanda gives us some great insights when it comes to people experiencing homelessness and how we can help support these neighbors in our communities.

CONTENT WARNING: Suicidal ideation

Zach Scott recently moved from Arkansas to Las Vegas, NV with his husband.  He is the Head of Sales and Customer Success for The Dental A Team, a dental consulting company whose main goal is to increase profits, improve systems, and better everyone's involved in dental practices.

On this episode, we talk about Zach's childhood growing up on a cattle ranch in the Bible Belt, his experience coming out to his family, and how his mental health was affected over the years.

After episode 14, we received quite a bit of feedback, most of it positive, but some of it was critical. The main complaint we got was that we should not have addressed Critical Race Theory without a Black person on the panel.

On this episode, April is joined by Jamie Corbin, Ben Cremer, Kelly Holder, and Elicia Zahm as they discuss Critical Race Theory through the lens of education, community, and faith. They also talk about power: who has it, who doesn’t, and why. Please note that this is a conversation among white community members specifically addressing how white people in their area are behaving and what needs to change; this is not intended to in any way center whiteness and/or speak on behalf of Black people about their experience. We acknowledge that no people group is a monolith, and we are are speaking from our own experiences and areas of knowledge. This is the first episode in a series of 3 with this group discussing history, the Christian church, American education, racism, and the humility required to meaningfully address it all. 

"History, despite its wrenching pain, cannot be unlived, but if faced with courage, need not be lived again."
Dr. Maya Angelou

On today's episode, I have three of the best educators in the state of Idaho, and without any hint of hyperbole, the country. We spoke about what it's really been like in schools over the last 19 months, how teachers are coping and rising above, and what we can do as community members to support our teachers and schools.

Stacie Christensen is a twenty-year educator teaching fifth grade in Boise, Idaho. A professional development junkie, Christensen has been awarded numerous grants to study American history throughout the nation and has served as a Civil War Washington Teacher’s Fellow with Ford’s Theatre. The state of Idaho awarded her Master Teacher status in 2020. Also in 2020, Christensen was awarded Gilder Lehrman Institute’s Idaho History Teacher of the Year, where she was also one of twelve finalists for National History Teacher of the Year. She has since been asked to the Gilder Lehrman Institute to serve as a Master Teacher Fellow, and the National Humanities Center’s Teacher Advisory Council where she is eager to work advancing the teaching and learning of history and the humanities.

Angela Hagans started teaching in 2007. She has built her career around teaching special populations, spending eight years teaching students in a gifted and talented middle school program and then moving to an alternative high school, where she taught English for six years. Angela is now the Title I coordinator and runs the intervention program for Frank Church High School in Boise, Idaho. Learning about new ideas is what drives Angela. You can often find her reading books or talking about her favorite podcast episodes.

Rick Jordan has been teaching and/or coaching for 34 years. He has taught PE/Health at Elementary and High Schools in Idaho and Montana, and   coached basketball, track, and golf. In 2014, Rick became a vice principal is currently in his third year as principal. Rick enjoys dinner in downtown Boise, biking, running and golf.  He has been married to Christy for 31 years and their daughter, Hayley, just began her Master’s program at Boise State University.

This is a recording of a live interview panel discussion all things Juneteenth. We discuss what Juneteenth is, why it's important, and how we can celebrate, especially those of us who are white and may be wondering how we can engage in an honest and respectful way. We also discuss patriotism, what it is, what it isn't, and what it might look like for people who are seeking to be honest about US history and present day circumstances.

CONTENT WARNING: Eating disorders

Katya Baxter is originally from St. Petersburg, Russia. When she was 16, she hopped on the plane, by herself, and flew over to Boise, Idaho to visit a friend. But instead of a two-week long trip, God had something else in store for her. She ended up staying in Boise and going to college, then moving to Toronto and finding her own faith, and then to San Francisco where instead of leaving her heart she found her soulmate.

Today, 20 years later, she and her family are back in Boise. Katya's most recent adventure involves putting on a teacher's hat and becoming a self-taught, pandemic-induced homeschooling mom for her biracial daughter. When she is not teaching, she practices nutrition and helps turn picky eaters into kids who love to eat all kinds of food and stay healthy.

On this episode, we discuss Katya's childhood in Russia, her experience as an immigrant to the US, mental health, finding faith, her battle with an eating disorder, and what she's learned about race since marrying a Black man and raising a biracial daughter. It is a full episode with so many important topics.

Caleb Stanton is a caffeine-dependent husband and father of two young children. Even though he loves his job, he'd rather spend his days at the beach, strumming a guitar and pondering the human experience. When he's not looking for his keys, you might find Caleb writing a story he'll never post or composing a song he'll never perform. Most of all, Caleb loves his family, a dram of cheap Scotch, and thinking about the things that give life meaning.

On this episode, we talk about navigating nuance and difficult conversations with loved ones. Caleb shares about his mental health journey and he offers a great explanation of ADHD. He shares about how he and his wife are trying to give their kids skills to care for their mental health, especially how to process the big emotions that kids have, and that we still have as adults too. In fact, we have a musical recording for the first time on the podcast, an original song written by Caleb and his son about Big Feelings.

Bekah Bowman is a coach's wife, a special needs mom, speaker, and author of Can't Steal My Joy. She is passionate about bridging the gap between churches and families with disabilities. On this episode, she shares her story raising two sons with terminal illnesses, how joy and grief can coexist, and her vision for how communities, especially those of faith, can be more inclusive for people of all abilities. 

Shawanda Bonner Morgan is a high school teacher in Lakeland, Florida. In this episode, she shares with us about her pandemic wedding, the importance of story, how she connects with her students, and the impact we have on one another. She opens up in a vulnerable way about her own story growing up in foster care and how that has influenced her identity. We talk about racial reconciliation and what that could look like, and Shawanda shares with me why she's hopeful about the direction our country is headed.