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In this Season Two finale, we take stock of the moment at our school, for schools across the state and perhaps what we have on the horizon. Joining Chris is special guest, New Mexico Secretary of Education, Dr. Kurt Steinhaus for a look at the upcoming legislative session and what it promises for students and teachers, as well as what the future of education in the state might hold. We discuss the sometimes tricky balance between local and state control as well as his position on kids in school during COVID. Thanks for joining us again this season; we hope that these episodes help to shed lig ..read more

From TikTok trends to the fine line between the world of social media and in-person interaction, our students are facing a variety of challenges they never have before. In this episode, we'll delve a bit into some of the student behaviors we're seeing and consider overall trends and how our approach this year is different from how we've done things in the past. You'll meet our school counselors/social workers, Sean DeBuck and DeAnnette Roybal, who will bring you into their thinking just a bit more. Brought to you by Protect the Pack Productions at Turquoise Trail Charter School in Santa Fe ..read more

In this episode, we take you closer to the impact of the teacher shortage by examining our own school. You'll meet one of our instructional coaches, Mary Ellen Dannenberg, to bring the educator perspective into the conversation, and a look at a way forward. Brought to you by Protect the Pack Productions at Turquoise Trail Charter School, Santa Fe, New Mexico.  ..read more

Last year, we gathered our school community every full moon to update them on our plans and engage them in critical conversations. We're the Coyotes. We'd even all howl at the end of the meeting. At our gathering last March, I asked how many families were interested in keeping their students online in the upcoming school year. This year. I presented a possibility for a school within a school, nearly entirely online, with a dedicated faculty and staff. We would serve students in grades 5-8, where we believed the need would be greatest. Within the next 36 hours, the families of 101 students were ..read more

Should we be comparing the safety of our school against hospitals or against the outdoors? In this episode, we meet Chelsea, a mother of two TTCS students and a medical professional here in Santa Fe. Very new to the area, Chelsea spent all of last year treating COVID patients in New York, where she practiced medicine for 13 years. In this episode, we explore what the outdoors and outdoor learning might have in store for our outlook on safety and education. Brought to you by Protect the Pack Productions at Turquoise Trail Charter School in Santa Fe, New Mexico.  ..read more

Back on July 12, 2021, a piece ran in New York Magazine by David Wallace-Wells entitled “The Kids Are Alright” that led with CDC findings around COVID-19 mortality rates for children. The findings indicated that the mortality risk for children is greater for the flu than it is for COVID-19, including the Delta variant. In this episode, we begin looking at data around COVID for young people, but then bring those data into our school and community to understand how we should be making decisions about our whole community, not just our school. Please subscribe and share. This podcast is produce ..read more

This season, Season 2, we will take you back behind the curtains as the Delta Variant of COVID-19 presents new challenges and we explore the oftentimes conflicting desires, politics and directives that meet with a community's desire to educate students to the highest and best of our ability. You'll meet parents, teachers, staff, local health officials and students to help bring to life some of the excitement we experience each day along with the real challenges and tradeoffs that keep us working late each night. These issues are by nature controversial and we are very aware that  our sc ..read more

On Monday, March 8, 2021, the New Mexico Secretary of Education announced that schools should resume full, in-person learning by April 5, 2021.  In this episode, Head Administrator Chris Eide records a short, early morning audio message to a friend detailing  the confluence of factors that must be resolved in order for the school to successfully reopen as well as some of the most elusive challenges that he is anticipating. We hope that you enjoy this candid moment amid an optimistic time. Brought to you by Protect the Pack Productions at Turquoise Trail Charter Schools, Santa Fe ..read more

We are wrapping this season of "The Hypothesis" with an interview with New Mexico Secretary of Education, Dr. Ryan Stewart, regarding governance of an entire state's education programme during this global pandemic. This podcast, over 11 episodes, has focused on the challenge of governance and leadership at a school that, as a charter school, has the freedom to make decisions apart from a district context. This last episode zooms us out from our school to talk about those challenges at the state level. Brought to you by Protect the Pack Productions at Turquoise Trail Charter School, Santa Fe ..read more