Welcome to the Teachers' Lounge

For the season finale, guest host Sarah Koppelkam (co-host of The Koppelkast) interviews Jon Lemay, an upper school English teacher at The Pennington School--and host of this podcast! Jon and Sarah talk about the dangers of comparing oneself to other educators, Jon tells a story about a time when one of his high school teachers called him out on some unfortunate behavior (in a kind and loving manner), and Jon shares w...

This week, Jon speaks with Terrance Wilson, an upper school English teacher at Lausanne Collegiate School in Memphis, TN—and Jon's former colleague and mentor from his time at Lausanne. Terrance and Jon discuss Terrance's first few teaching jobs (one of which involved Terrance literally competing for his students’ attention while a carnival was going on outside); Terrance talks about his identity as (in his words) an ...

This week, Jon speaks with Ronnie Vesnaver, a middle school history teacher and one of Jon's friends and colleagues at The Pennington School. Ronnie highlights how her academic struggles during her early days as a student and her academic growth have impacted the work she does in the classroom; she and Jon discuss the importance of teachers sustaining their own emotional health in order to effectively serve both thems...

Jon speaks with Gautam Dasgupta, a theater professor at Skidmore College—and one of Jon's own former professors. Gautam shares some stories about his winding path through academia, he discusses his belief that genuine passion and love of life trumps academic achievement and success, and he talks about how his childhood growing up in India led to a passion for the arts and the humanities in spite of pressure to pursue ...

Jon speaks with Andrew Nieporent, a New Jersey-based music therapist and singer-songwriter who works with Jammin’ Jenn Music Therapy for Children. Andrew and Jon discuss the work Andrew does using music to reach students with neurological differences (particularly autism); Andrew shares how he uses his own experiences as someone with neurological differences to understand how to best serve the folks he works with; and...

Jon speaks with Jamie Moore, a middle school history teacher and hall parent at The Pennington School. Jon and Jamie discuss Jamie’s experience of working at his alma mater and his desire to impact his students in a way that is similar to the impact his teachers had on him. They also talk about Jamie's journey as a learner and the way he navigated his own learning differences throughout his time as a student--plus the...

Jon speaks with Kristin Ozana Doyle, a high school social studies teacher at Pembroke Academy in New Hampshire--and Jon's former teacher from his days as a student at Raymond High School. Jon and Kristin discuss what it was like for Kristin to go back and teach at her alma mater, Kristin shares how she came to the decision not to discuss her political views in her classroom and what informed that decision, and they di...

Jon speaks with Jessica Douglass, a Teaching & Learning Specialist at Tower Hill School. They discuss the reason why many folks in education are using the term learning difference instead of learning disability (and why that language choice is important), Jess talks about her journey as a learner and why she has mixed feelings toward her status and identity as a straight-A student in high school, and Jess talks about ...

Jon speaks with Len Leib, a math teacher and one of Jon's colleagues at The Pennington School. Jon and Len talk about Len's transition into education as a second career and what led him to the career change, they discuss the role that love plays in Len's classroom and in his approach as a teacher, and Len shares some of the ways he brings math to life and makes it engaging and accessible for his students. 

This week, Jon speaks with Brian and Mariel Calnan. Brian recently became an Instructional Technology Specialist after spending several years as a math teacher, and Mariel recently became a 5th grade teacher after spending several years as a middle school special education teacher. They're also married to one another! Jon, Brian, and Mariel talk about what it’s been like for Brian and Mariel as a family of educators a...

Jon speaks with Peter Chase, a German teacher and residential faculty member at The Pennington School. Peter and Jon discuss the role that humor plays in Peter's teaching and the roots of that in Peter’s own experiences and behavior as a student. They also talk about the misconceptions Peter encounters as it pertains to being a foreign language teacher and how he approaches teaching German in a way that's both accessi...

Jon speaks with with Josh Campbell, a middle school history teacher at a Montessori school in Memphis, TN, a storyteller and podcast host, and the Creative Director for Spillit, a live storytelling event based in Memphis. Jon and Josh discuss the role that storytelling plays in Josh’s life and in his approach in the classroom, Josh explains the Montessori philosophy of education and why he believes it’s so effective a...

Jon speaks with Randy LaCasse, a music, band, and chorus teacher at Raymond High School in Raymond, New Hampshire--and one of Jon's former (and favorite) high school teachers. Jon and Randy talk about Randy's belief in treating his students like they’re his family, Randy's experiences as a student and how he learned to accept and implement criticism, and how he’s tackled the challenges of developing and building a Mus...

Jon speaks with Christine Garrison, a high school art teacher at a public high school in Oregon. Jon and Christine discuss her passion for teaching public school--and why she returned to public school teaching after spending some time in independent schools. They also talk about Christine's frustrations with the opportunity gap that she witnesses as it pertains to many of her students’ ability to pursue post-secondary...

Jon speaks with Courtney Jackson, a Humanities teacher, soccer and basketball coach, and residential faculty member at The Loomis Chaffee School. Jon and Courtney unpack Courtney’s decision to take a break from teaching and attend back-to-back grad school programs, they discuss Courtney’s belief in the importance of saying “No” every now and then in order to ensure that teachers aren't spreading themselves too thin, a...

Jon’s guest this week is John “JB” Bouton, an English teacher at Proctor Academy—and Jon’s former colleague, mentor, and department chair at The Pennington School. John and JB discuss JB’s rich and dynamic journey through his adolescence and through his career as an educator, as well as JB’s belief in the inherent complexity of his student’s lives and how he tries to be mindful of that as he interacts with them in the...

Jon's conversation this week is with Russell Weatherspoon, a religion teacher at Phillips Exeter Academy. Jon and Russell discuss Russell's path to education (which features a lengthy pitstop as a firefighter), as well as Russel's continued passion for firefighting as a form of service (in ways both different from and similar to education). They also talk about Russell's belief that education is partly as conveying and passing on a...

This week, Jon speaks with John Barton, an architecture professor and Resident Fellow at Stanford University, director of Stanford’s Architectural Design Program, and an architect in private practice. John discusses how he challenges the power imbalances that can exist between students and instructors in the classroom, as well as how he’s reimagined the way Architecture classes are structured in order to make them mor...

This week, Jon speaks with Debbie Fermo, one of Jon’s colleagues in the English department at The Pennington School, a former professor at the United States Naval Academy, and a former commander in the Navy. Debbie and Jon discuss the preconceptions Debbie encounters from both students and colleagues regarding her military background, as well as the importance of fostering relationships with students and having diffic...