Teaching

Kicking Off Our Best Year Ever with ‘Ice Ice Baby’ August 23, 2016 Let’s celebrate the more than 100,000 Very Important Teachers getting ready to kick off the 2016-17 school year! ...   Topic: MTOY, Teaching

Michigan Educators: 'Whatever It Takes' May 25, 2016 Rick Joseph ends his time as Michigan Teacher of the Year with a thank you to The Meemic Foundation and a paean to job-embedded professional learning. ... Topic: MTOY, Teaching

You Matter – Helping LGBT Students April 26, 2016 As Michigan Teacher of the Year 2016, Rick Joseph travels the state to offer a classroom teacher’s perspective on a variety issues that affect everyone. The plight of students who are LGBTQ is an area of much needed improvement. ... Topic: MTOY, Teaching

March Is Music in Our Schools Month March 15, 2016 Music in Our Schools Month raises awareness of the importance of music education and its benefits for all children and to remind citizens that schools are where all children should have access to music. Topic: Community, Teaching

Excellent Education for All February 16, 2016 One of Michigan Teacher of the Year Rick Joseph’s platform items is addressing how income inequality affects education. Here, he speaks from personal experience teaching for several years in vastly different districts. ... Topic: MTOY, Teaching

Saginawesome! A visit to Saginaw HS and Carrollton MS January 19, 2016 When I first stepped inside Saginaw High School, I could feel a palpable sense of resiliency and community pride that runs deep in this mid-Michigan town. ... Topic: Community, MTOY, Teaching

Read. Read. READ! November 17, 2015 One of the most amazing and pleasurable things Michigan Teacher of the Year Rick Joseph gets to do as an educator is read aloud to students every day. Educators and parents know the central role that reading aloud plays in the literacy of both children and adults. Topic: Community, MTOY, Teaching

The Idea Hive – Where Ideas Turn to Action October 20, 2015 Challenging, personal, transformative conversations happen on a daily basis in the Idea Hive, a classroom space shared by Jeff Croley and Jason LaFay at Dewitt High School. MTOY Rick Joseph pays a visit. ... Topic: MTOY, Teaching, Social Media

'Empathy in Action' works at home - and the classroom September 21, 2015 As an educator, Michigan Teacher of the Year Rick Joseph is constantly aware of the importance of cultivating communities of care. As he helps his son batter cancer, he sees people who could use some extra help – something consistent with the first component of his platform as MTOY – equity. ... Topic: Community, MTOY, Teaching

Meet 2015-16 MTOY Rick Joseph August 17, 2015 Rick Joseph is Michigan’s Teacher of the Year for 2015-16. He’s a fifth/sixth grade teacher at Birmingham Covington School and has more than 20 years of classroom experience. We talked with Rick about his teaching experience and what his goals are for the coming school year. ... Topic: Community, MTOY, Teaching