We continue our "Quakers Teaching Quakers" theme as we speak with Sean Kirkland from the Class of 1986 in our fourth episode of the season. Sean serves as Superintendent in the Salem City School District.

In our conversation, we learned about Sean's experience growing up on the west side of Salem, attending Prospect School, and experiencing the City of Salem back in the 1970s and '80s (playing outside and not coming home until the street lights turn on). Sean spoke about the tough times his family experienced, the wild turns his athletic career would take--both in high school and college, and the influence a few great teachers had on him that led him to realize education was the career path for him.

We also learn about Sean's rough first day of his first full-time teaching role, how he was ten minutes away from becoming a West Branch Warrior, and his experience moving from teaching Industrial Tech to sitting at the Superintendent's desk. We hope you enjoy!

Be sure to tune into the intro for a few reports regarding the Salem High School Alumni Association's classroom grant program and the Career Day program for Salem sophomores.

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Our third episode of the season continues our "Quakers Teaching Quakers" theme, as we speak with Teresa Huzyak Sisson from the Class of 2002. Teresa is currently a third grade teacher at St. Paul School in Salem. In her free time, Teresa loves hanging out with her two sweet kids, reading too many books at once, and watching documentaries.

In our conversation, Teresa recounts her experience growing up in a large family and describes her path to graduation from SHS, including her experience attending St. Paul School through sixth grade and transitioning to the junior high and high school. As we learn, Teresa's professional journey started with a plan to major in Integrated Literature Education at the beginning of her college experience, continued through her earning a bachelor and master degree in Sociology at area universities, and then shifted after becoming involved in administering a research project that persuaded her to become an educator. Teresa then reflects on her greatest success, the lessons from her teaching life that spill into life outside of school, and the advice she has for current SHS students. We hope you enjoy!

We want to once again thank our partner the Salem High School Alumni Association for their support of this podcast.

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In the second episode of our second season titled "Quakers Teaching Quakers," we speak with a father and son duo: Dennis Niederhiser '71 and Jarrod Niederhiser '04. We spent time getting to know the stories of each Niederhiser. We talked with Denny about growing up in Salem in the 1950s and 1960s, his educational journey, and the importance of doing whatever it took to make sure students learned what they needed to learn. We spoke with Jarrod about his experience growing up in Salem in the 1990s and early 2000s (with a well-known principal as a father), his process of identifying education as the career for him, and the importance of meeting students where they are to get them excited about learning. We also got into favorite Salem restaurants--past and present, favorite Salem memories, and what it was like to work alongside their former teachers as colleagues.

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