Stories

For the first time since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, I hit the road to visit the PEBC Teacher Residency’s three rural Colorado cohorts. Despite the somewhat harrowing drive through the “Disappointment Valley” of Western Colorado, it was worth every snowy mile to spend face-to-face time with our residents, […]

; In 2020/21, as the world retreated behind screens, we grappled with ways to stay true to our belief that community matters in teacher preparation. Thankfully, as former teachers ourselves, we are accustomed to shifting on the fly. The amazing residents and teachers of record who chose 2020, of all […]

Wrangling rock stars in the music industry requires the same skill set as teaching a roomful of third graders.  Maybe that’s why the transition was an easy one for me. When I attended college, I did so with an intense love of learning.  I was the first in my family […]

­­­­Teaching is not only a career for Alex Buck; it’s his destiny. One of Alex’s earliest memories is from second grade when he drew pictures of himself as a teacher – complete with a classroom full of students.   Fast forward to college: Alex studied History and French at the University […]

Nicole Johnston always wanted to be a teacher. In fact, in high school, she chose to work at the on-campus pre-school and took pre-education classes that provided her with hands-on experience at the local elementary school. A true love of teaching was ignited and nurtured at a young age, and […]

Keri Gordon’s first teacher training experience occurred early in her life when she was an elementary school student playing school with her cousins. She always played the teacher with her cousins, who were her sometimes willing and often excited students. “From the very beginning, teaching felt like the right path […]

PEBC Teacher Residency Alumni Brent Appelbaum, Kathleen Campbell and Meg Cypress share their thoughts about the importance of the PEBC Teacher Residency model.  Online and in-person information sessions are being held right now, so please share this video with someone who would make a great teacher! PEBC Teacher Residency Alumni […]

While some people are moved by a beautiful piece of art or well-crafted, stirring poetry, Nicole Snelgrove is inspired by science, saying her connection to science is “almost spiritual.” Even when she was a little girl – living in poverty – she knew science was her way out, and she […]

What does a bartender with a math degree do when they realize their true calling is to be a teacher? For Sathya Wandzek the path was revealed through her work with PEBC’s Teacher Residency program. “The application was long, and I was just proud to finish it and turn it […]

As a math and science teacher at William Smith High School in Aurora, Colo., Brendan Harrison says he consistently utilizes the training he received from PEBC. He credits PEBC with giving him the courage to step outside the box, from incorporating geometry to build a chicken coop with his class […]

Autumn Wright’s life could have taken many paths, between IT, philosophy or teaching. A chance encounter with folks from PEBC, and an introduction to the teacher residency program, sealed her fate, and she has never looked back. “(The program) was different from a traditional college program,” Wright says. “I liked […]

Resident Name: Audrey Gutierrez Region: Denver Metro Cohort Placement School/District: Creativity, Challenge, Community (C3), Denver Public Schools Mentors/Grade: Robin McCarthy & Linda Durgin, 1st Grade With a background in cultural anthropology and nonprofit administration, Audrey Gutierrez knew she wanted to work in a nonprofit with kids. When she came across […]