Project Promise 16. Who's Responsible?

Just a quick note on the rest of the people in my Project Promise 16 cohort, in no particular. I will try not to leave anyone out.

Carolyn- Has already been a teacher. Very intelligent and tries very hard to be our mother. Husband is a doctor at my kids' pediatric center.

Lynn- Another marketing/business teacher 2B. Devoted family person. Puts up her Christmas tree on Christmas Eve, just like I did when I was a kid.

Dave S.- Slightly wacky. Wants to start explosions on the first day of his science class. Found his girlfriend on the Internet. Takes great pictures and climbs rocks like a fish.

Dave M.- Ex hippy, ex corporate manager. Is clearly a subversive radical, but is a great guy to have around anyway. Seems to always have a point of view. Lives far away.

Stephen- An English teacher 2B. Very articulate and well spoken. Needs a great school placement.

Wendee- With "3 Es." Energetic, runs marathons and makes great body salts (or at least my wife says so.) Likes to garden and is a wedding planner. Lives far away.

Jeff- Really cares about and connects with kids, especially "bad ones." Always has a great question to further any conversation. One of the many wilderness advocates in our group.

Kylie- Short and cute, but apparently, pretty tough and not afraid of much. Climbs rocks very well. Will be a Spanish teacher soon.

Robert- Another Business Education guy. Many parallels to my story, has an MBA, has been a stay-at-home dad, etc. Built an immense flagstone patio by hand for some reason.

Mason- Yet another wilderness bum. Very generous and giving of himself and his time. Needs to find a wife and have kids soon, as many things on his "Life's to Do List" require these two items.

Tim- Another Business Guy. Was and looks like a soccer player. Claims to have smelly feet. The first person I met in Project Promise (besides Ali.)

Ali- One of our instructors. Possibly the sweetest person I know. Very positive about our experience to come. Forgets things sometimes.

Abby- Our French teacher 2B. Sweet and kind, but with a very clever sense of humor. One of the three people in the cohort (including me) that had a terrifying time on the Ropes Course Cat Walk (we all did it eventually.)

Tom- Social Science teacher 2b. Well read on his History, but never says anything. Collects Star Wars figures.

Lee- Another of our instructors. The "Father Figure" of our cohort. Dependable, supportive and fun to be with. Always has great insight about teaching and realizes that sometimes, Men cry.

Sara- Fun and energetic. Favorite movie is "Harold and Maude," which makes her an excellent human being. Recently married and can't remember her name.

Suzanne- Another outdoor person. A belly dancer, like my wife. Has a gentle sense of humor and a great positive outlook. Is "allergic" to indoor lighting.

Julia- A lady deserving of admiration, she has gone through alot of shit in her life to get where she is. Open and giving and not at all afraid of voicing her opinion. Has alot of guts.

Terry- Our new Director and one of my new favorite people in the world, despite the fact that she is a flaming liberal feminist. Obviously cares a great deal about PP and our cohort and is busting her ass to make our journey bearable.

Mauricio- The last instructor of our cohort. Hasn't been around our cohort as much as I would like. Clearly smart as hell and can get things done. Apparently, has no fear.

Me (Paul)- Big, bald guy. Business Teacher to be. "The Idea Man." Collects alot of weird stuff and plays games. Has been known to shed a tear.

Jay- Solid and dependable. Ex-Robotic Welder that looks great on film. Will be at CLPJHS with me. Had the same discussion with his wife that I had with mine about taking time out of our lives to go through this silly program. Jay, however, had to get a B.A. first and has been on this track for 3 years! I can't imagine.

Keith- College athletic PR guy, knows alot about sports and has met more famous people than I can name. Suffered an immense tragedy, but has somehow mustered the strength to join PP. I don't know how he does it.

That's it. All of us. I have only known them for a very short time, but have grown very close to them and think of them as family.

I will miss them for the next two weeks!

Buying some stuff

I spent a little time this afternoon getting some stuff for school this year. Mostly clothes and shoes. Got a sturdy and comfortable pair of shoes from Brown's Shoe Fit in Fort Collins. If I am going to be on my feet for 8 hours a day, I have to have comfortable shoes.

I also went by Savers to get some clothes. I have some dress business clothes, but little in the way of more casual slacks and shirts. Savers was recommended by a number of people in our cohort as *the* place to get cheap clothes. They were right. Savers is a thrift store, so everything is used, but the clothes offered were mostly in very good condition. Used clothes, you say? Well, yeah. I am a full time student without a paying job, I need cheap clothes! I got two nice pairs of Dockers for about 5.00 each, as well as 5 Polo shirts and 4 short sleeve casual shirts. Spent 40.00 altogether.

Background on this blog and Project Promise.

I am Paul Burkhard, a guy who wants to be a teacher. I have wanted to be a teacher for a long time, but got sidetracked early in life and went into another career. Now, some 20 years later, I have decided that teaching is what I must do.

To further this goal, I applied for and was accepted into Project Promise, a program specifically designed for transitional professionals who wish to become teachers. The program is based at Colorado State University in Fort Collins, CO.

Our program, Project Promise 16, began on August 2, 2004. In the first couple of weeks, we have developed a "cohort," a cohesive and supportive group that is in it for the long haul. There are 19 students in the program and four instructors. Since beginning, we have engaged in many team building activities, such as participation in the CSU ropes course, which pushed many of us beyond our comfort limits, yet challenged us to succeed where we did not feel that we could.

We are now about to begin the first "teaching" phase of our program. We are all about to enter our classrooms, beginning on August 16th. Project Promise starts its students out as observers in local Middle or Junior High Schools. I have been placed in Cache La Poudre Junior High School in LaPorte, CO and I start in a day and a half.