“They come to school because they want to be in this class. Sometimes, it’s the only class they’re passing. And I’ll take that.”

“We didn’t want to lose our kids to other towns. So we built something worth staying for.”

“If we do this well, everything else has a better chance to follow.”

“Getting the job is just the tip of the iceberg. We’re building the rest of it underneath.”

“You can’t teach in a space that doesn’t feel cared for.”

“I thought I missed my chance. Turns out, I was just getting ready.”

“Band has no bench. Everyone matters.”

“Science is true, whether you believe it or not.”

“The students don’t know I’ve got the whole lesson mapped out. They think they’re discovering it. And that’s the point.”

"Some kids, once we feed them at the school, they might not have anything to eat at home. So I think about that all the time."

“Sometimes they don’t know they deserve better—until someone tells them they do.”