Episodes

Cara Logan was born in Illinois and attended Unit 5 schools from kindergarten through high school. During her junior year of high school, she was in Bloomington Area Career Center’s Health Careers and Medical Terminology class and participated in the cadaver dissection lab in LeRoy. During her senior year of high school, she had the privilege of being in both BACC's EMT-Basic class and the Certified Nursing Assistant class. She also served as a student proctor of the cadaver lab that same year. ...

Dr. Katie Bruemmer was recently named the 2023 Illinois East Central Teacher of the Year by the Illinois State Board of Education’s Annual Those Who Excel Awards. Dr. Bruemmer is the College and Career Readiness Coordinator at Heyworth CUSD 4. As an English Teacher at Heyworth, Dr. Bruemmer saw a need to expand AP courses and has expanded Heyworth’s AP program to include 14 dual credit courses, teaching four of those herself. One is Education 101, an introductory course for students interested i...

Cameo Williams has worked in education for almost 20 years! She has served as a first-grade and third-grade teacher and will be the new Assistant Principal at Pepper Ridge Elementary. Cameo, who goes by Cami in her district, was recently recognized in our ROE # 17 Regional Recognition program for her work on the Grove Care Closet, a project to give back to student educators.

Colonel (Ret) Jeff Palomino served in the United States Air Force JAG Corps for over 2 decades before retiring in the fall of 2022. During his Air Force career, he held a variety of legal positions culminating with assignments at the Pentagon and in the White House. In this episode, Superintendent Jontry visits with his lifelong friend, and Chenoa High School Graduate (1988), about his career path, the value of education, participating in various activities, and the variety of experiences he has...

Brandon Thornton is a Special Education teacher at Bloomington High School and was the 2021 East Central Regional Teacher of the Year through the Illinois State Board of Education's Those Who Excel Awards. Brandon is an Illinois State University Graduate who started in the math classroom and rose to the occasion when the opportunity came up to get into Special Education.

Join ROE # 17 as we chat with Dr. Lindsey Jensen, the 2018 Illinois Teacher of the Year and fierce advocate for all things education. Dr. Jensen is the Early Career Development and Student Director for the Illinois Education Association, a former high school English teacher, and a former academic dean. Dr. Jensen is a leading force in Educators Rising, a program that promotes and educates high school students that want to become teachers.

Back to School is right around the corner, and with that comes the need for school supplies. Join ROE # 17 as we visit with Jan Meadows. Jan is a retired educator that was named the Illinois Prairie Community Foundation's 2022 Philanthropist of the Year. Among other local service initiatives, Jan serves as the chair for the the Back to School Alliance, which is a coalition of groups that provides more than 4,000 backpacks annually to low-income families from Unit 5 and District 87.

Join ROE # 17 as we sit down with Dr. Josh Olsen, the Executive Director for Livingston County Special Services Unit (LCSSU). Dr. Olsen has been in education for almost 25 years and has been with LCSSU for the past five. In the episode, we will learn about special education services available to students, why special ed cooperatives exist, and how guardians can advocate for services for their children.

Bloomington Area Career Center (BACC) the BACC prepares today’s high school students for tomorrow’s jobs. Students can earn certification in high-demand fields such as welding, cybersecurity, cosmetology, and geometry/construction while still attending high school. Join ROE 17 Pod as we chat with Tom Fraizer and Bryce Hansen.

The goal of the Learning While Leading program is to address the principal shortage by identifying educators with principal certification (Type 75 or principal endorsement) and preparing them to successfully fill assistant principal or principal vacancies, especially in rural and low-income schools. Visit https://roe17.org/programs/roe-17-lead-hub/learning-while-leading to learn more! Guests: Sarah Crowder, Assistant Principal, Mary Gordon, Lead Hub Coach at ROE # 17; Dr. Erika Hunt, Project Dir...

IAS provides children, youth, and their families – from all neighborhoods and backgrounds – with transformative learning through hands-on experiences in the visual arts. Join us as sit down with Executive Director, Hannah Johnson, to learn about the different ways families and the community can get involved with IAS. https://illinoisartstation.org/

Phaedra Morris works as the ROE # 17 Licensure Specialist. She with our school districts and educators to make sure that all personnel in our local schools are properly certified for the roles that they serve. Phaedra also works with aspiring educators as they go through graduation, transfer from another state or county, and gain endorsements for their educator license.

Emily Kull is a member of the ROE # 17 Transition Specialist Team. Also on her team are Ryan Deason, Marie Yoder, and Maureen Roach. Together, they serve students through the Secondary Transitional Experience Program (STEP), which is an evaluation, training, and employment program that prepares students with disabilities for transition to employment and community participation during and after high school.

Sharing the Ability to Read (STAR) is a non-profit organization funded through an Adult Volunteer Literacy grant from the Illinois Secretary of State Literacy Office to the DeWitt-Livingston-Logan-McLean Regional Office of Education #17. This annual competitive grant has been awarded to the STAR Adult Literacy program annually since 1985. Join ROE # 17 as we sit down with the Program Director, Andrea Canales and discuss the program in depth.

Janet Moore is a Math Instructional Coach for ROE # 17 with a passion for empowering students and teachers to be confident, curious, and competent mathematicians, regardless of their past experiences in mathematics. In her curriculum development and professional development endeavors, Janet emphasizes an inquiry-based, SEL-focused approach to mathematics instruction that allows students and teachers to understand mathematical concepts through meaningful experiences.

Bryan Kendall is the Principal of the Regional Alternative School (RAS) Bloomington Campus. Bryan has been in education for over 22 years and discusses how his students and teachers strive to be "the lab school of alternative schools."

Kevin Jones has spent more than 35 years working in the fields of social services, mental health, and education philosophy, with particular emphasis on working with youth and their families. He has honed his practice through direct care and as an administrator in residential treatment programs, group homes, mental health organizations, and alternative schools. Kevin earned a Master of Science in Restorative Practices from the IIRP Graduate School in 2017, which he considers the culmination of a ...

Join Regional Superintendent Mark Jontry and Assistant Regional Superintendent Molly Allen as they discuss what you can expect from ROE 17 POD.