Here’s how you know a policy is about to become your problem: It’s clear in writing. It’s flexible in conversation. And it’s your “best judgment” when the fallout arrives. This is not a blog about bathroom passes. It’s a blog about administrative gray areas — and how teachers end up injured by them. A quick vignette A student asks to go to the restroom during class. I follow the guidance we’ve been verbally given for years: restroom use during instruction is for emergencies.

There’s helpful, and then there’s hostile takeover with lawn equipment . Yesterday I got the second one. A seventy-eight-year-old...

So there I was—called into my administrator's office during my legally protected prep time like a scene out of a workplace thriller where...

There are days in teaching when you feel like a pillar of wisdom and grace. And then there are days when a student walks out of a...

So there I was, minding my own prep period—my legally protected time  to plan, prep, or—oh I don’t know— not be emotionally waterboarded...

I’m a teacher. I believe in leadership. Not the kind that hides behind closed doors or picks favorites in hushed conversations, but the...

It started innocently enough—like most horror stories. Just a cheerful little email asking me to choose between two mysterious teaching...

Filed under: Boundary-Setting, Academia's Hot Mess Express, and Why I Trust My Gut Even When It’s Tired I was recently contacted to...

Let me tell you a tale of resilience, innovation, poor decision-making, and a complete disregard for instructions. For weeks —literal...

Back in 2004 I was a carnivore. Didn't like it, but hindsight is 20/20. Anyway, back in July 2004 I went to the beach with my mom,...