A fine jewelry crafter, Jessica Russell

If you are seeking a lovely gift for a special someone, or if you would like to add some bling to your collection...look no further. Jessica Russell is my great friend from Oregon and her jewelry is the only decor I don. If you peruse her website, I guarantee you will find something you fancy.

Those of you who know me will certainly recgonize this amazing piece of Jessica's artwork:

Teacher talk, my job at Chavez

This is my school. If you have time peruse our website and learn of our history, our mission, our staff and our events. I thoroughly enjoy my work as a teacher, yet I can't let this statement pass without adding how incredibly hard it is to begin a teaching career. I have had a unique teaching career thus far, for I was able to research and learn of pedagogy, curriculum development, best practices, comparative and international education and reform before stepping into an American classroom. Also, I worked in the nonformal, nonprofit educational sector for years, plus taught overseas in Thailand. These experiences and learning has allowed me to begin a formal teaching career with one step forward, at least in my opinion. I constantly seek progressive, radical teaching methods and topics. One of my commonly-used resources is Teaching Tolerance. This resource consistently provides lively and needed articles, lessons, ideas, and creates a positive forum for progressive, radical educators to share their passion for educating tomorrow's youth. Please share your passion for educating, if you partake, and I will certainly keep you posted on the work I am doing!

This is where KB be mostly, at school

This is a small group of the wonderful people I have been working with this year. This is my classroom, room 324. In this room I tend to smile often as I challenge the insatiable minds of ninth graders.


This is KB.

Late late night, early morn

It is now 'bout 4am and I am antsy and wide-awake...good thing I started a blog today. Since we are still in the getting-to-know-all-about-you stage, here is some further information on who I be.

Like previously mentioned, I lived in Bend, Oregon for a few years, but let's jump back to where it all started...I was born in Baltimore, Maryland but moved when my little sister was born and I was two years old. We (mom, dad, brother, new sis, and I) landed in Salisbury, Maryland and this became where we are from. This small town is just minutes away from Ocean City on Maryland's eastern shore. After graduating from Parkside High School, I started college at Salisbury University. I majored in English and ran cross country and track there with success. This success guided me away from home and to the University of Maryland.

As a "terp," I attained the perfect college major, American Studies, and the perfect athletic goal, running for a Division 1 college. My five semesters at U of MD were a wonderfully confusing learning experience. I was suddenly attending a school with more enrolled students than the population of my hometown but I knew only four people, and where I learned that we really are all alone in life. I learned about being "alone" and about "life" mostly because I was not entirely happy in College Park, Maryland and I had always been happy before. It was hard for us all when we first realized that unhappiness exists, right? Oh, but I met Aaron there and we found Keba when we escaped there together. After college we made the excellent decision to move to Oregon.

The years In Oregon are still vibrant and real, in fact, I return to Oregon every chance possible. Life in Oregon was ideal. I met most of my closest friends, learned to appreciate mother nature's splendor, and truly found harmony. Ironically, after harmony and I hang out for awhile I am often compelled to rock the boat. During this time we traveled and worked through South East Asia and, after years of harmonic Oregonic-splendor, I applied to grad schools on the east coast, just to rock the boat a bit more.

The application process was not too tedious and the easy decision was American University in Washington, D.C. I studied International Training and Education (coined ITEP) for two long years. I thoroughly enjoyed my graduate studies because of the intriguing people I met and the fact that I had to learn many new skills. Graduate school ended last May and the plan was to run away, quickly, from the city's buzz. However, those plans were flushed when I started working at Cesar Chavez Public Charter High School for Public Policy . This school has cultivated my career and sparked ambitious lifelong dreams. I started working at Chavez while still in grad school and haven't been able to pull away. I am now the ninth grade English teacher and Literacy Coach. More on my job soon (it deserves its own focused piece). But, back to me and who I be...In addition to where I live and what I do, I also care lots of my role as a human seeking harmony. And like you know, when harmony settles in, it will surely be time for sudden change!

Old residence

I lived in Bend, Oregon before moving to the nation's capitol. This picture is of the Three Sisters in the Cascade mountain range, and this is what inspired me on a daily basis for nearly three years. These mountains, plus Mt. Bachelor and Broken Top, were my playground. In Bend I not only found a peaceful mountain calm, but also met very important and special people. The plan was to spend the winter after college as a ski bum but this place captured us for many joyful years. It was hard to pull away from these hypnotic ridges. As I now peer out of my DC window I am flooded with memories of "coffee kiosks and horizons of broken mountains" (This description belongs to my great friend, Jason). Many times I wish I was still in Oregon, but alas, I am deeply twisted into this buzzing city.

My wet-nosed delight, Keba

This is my puppy dog. His name is Keba and he is from Lake Tahoe, California. Just outside of South Lake Tahoe you will find Meyers, a small town sandwiched between the debauchery of Lake Tahoe and the glory of Kirkwood (ski resort). We found Keba at an animal shelter out there. We were on a getting-to-know-you-and-I-think-I-love-you escapade during college and to our overwhelming delight, we added a dreaded, malnourished, smiling ball of golden fur. He was nine months when our family formed and even though he is six years old, he still wags like a puppy. Keba likes long runs at dusk (especially on a mountain trail), cool evenings at a campsite, being scratched behind the ears, and spending time with his close friends: Hobie Cat, Abby, Kia, Jack, Nellie, and BrownDog.

And it's on...

I feel as if I just leapt from a cliff and am soaring down into gentle aquamarine waves, yet, like every dive, I am unsure if I will safely break the water's bond or if I will smack flat-backed. I am hoping this will be more like a solid, smooth dive into a new world of wondrous learning and sharing. That said, hello virtual and eager world of cyberspace. I am Kerri Bowers...note the evolution of this sentence into IBeKB. As this descent continues I am confidently reminded that even if my breath is taken away I will recover, even if my back glows red from the impact it will heal, and even if the rolling waves are cold I will warm up. I am a current radical (and exhausted) educator, avid environmentalist, and constant seeker of knowledge and adventure. I have spent the past three years in Washington, D.C. with my partner, Aaron and dog, Keba. Together, we share a small apartment and continuously seek non-concrete covered land. Ok, the waves are quickly approaching and as the splash nears (read: As I press "publish post") I sincerely hope to find jumping partners soon! Please grab my hand, climb the hill, peer for a moment towards the horizon and together let's take lots of plunges!