The Education Borg – Update
The Education Borg
But this is not a pity party. We’ve come too far already for that. I know that we have a sustainable and scalable business model for educational empowerment in place. In fact, now that we have this model in place, we also know that there are other potential partners better suited for what we have to offer.
I went to the mat for our current major funding source and came up short. But now, with the proper infrastructure in place and taking students through the E4 Youth sequence of Engagement, Education, Employment & Entrepreneurship, our students will measure up by whatever standards we impose on them – standardized testing or otherwise.
Smoothies Are My Friend
I have to admit that I’m enjoying making these little food videos. I don’t really plan them out. They are rather spontaneous musings between me and my iPhone. I realize that after four years on my journey to better health that what seemed insurmountable to me has been broken down into manageable chunks or phases. Being more healthy takes work but that doesn’t mean that you shouldn’t enjoy it. You should be able to eat something healthy that makes you smile everyday (Twinkies and ice cream don’t count. Sorry.)
I’ve been experimenting with blending smoothies, juices and shakes. In this episode, I use the ever popular ingredients of strawberries (120 calories) and a banana (72 calories). Then for a little extra flavor and smooth texture, I add chocolate whey protein (100 calories), almond milk (40 calories) and ice (0 calories). So, I’m able to make a smoothie at 2/3′s of a pitcher that only has about 300 ultra healthy calories in it. I usually drink 1 or 2 glasses before and after hitting the gym and never feel as though I’m missing out.
So, I hope enjoy this video as much as I did making it. More soon!
Changing My Eating Habits
Well, it was bound to happen… I made a video featuring one of the seminal dishes I used to start changing my eating habits – the veggie egg white omelette.
Today, I started off the morning with a chocolate whey protein smoothie that had some strawberries, a banana, ice and almond milk along with my daily supplements. Then, I hit the gym for a good solid 40+ minutes (sweated off a pound) and returned to finish off my smoothie and cook up my omelette for lunch. Gourmet style with lots of vibrant color and flavor, the egg white omelette is full of protein. Served up with some whole wheat toast and a drizzle of raspberry chipotle sauce, it’s a delicious filling meal and only about 400 calories. One of the keys to eating healthier is cooking both good looking and good tasting meals. From day 1, I’ve never felt as though I was sacrificing anything in the way of taste or sustenance because I looked forward to making and eating my meals.
So, there you have it. I hope this inspires you to think about what you’re putting in your body!
More soon!
Do Soul Mates Exist?
As I sit here, I am reflecting on love and my search for a true partner. It’s difficult for me to write this because I tend to be intensely private about my relationships. But I feel as though I am not doing myself any justice by not exploring my feelings. Over the past 4 years, there has been one woman that has had a profound affect on me.It’s weird. I often wonder if there is anything such as a soul mate. I mean, I believe that there are soul mates for some but not all. My parents appear to be an example of true soul mates. Carl and Carol Settles were married when they were 18 years old and had me, Carl Jr., just under a year later. I have watched them go through so much together. They’ve had fights but they have always supported each other.
They are still together and recently, my father’s health has started to come into question. I watch them… the care and concern that my mother shows for my dad on a moment to moment basis. It’s moving to say the least. My father is a truly great man. He has always been there for us. Not just financially but he is emotionally present as well.
I remember my father saying how the main thing he looked forward to as a child was having a family, a real family unit. Well, he has succeeded. Carl Sr. Carol, Carl Jr. and Corey. We were and still are a family. Both me and my brother graduated from college and have gone on to successful careers. In fact, my brother went to the West Point Military Academy, eventually got married and now lives in Seattle with his wife and two beautiful daughters.
Me, well, I graduated from the University of Texas at Austin but I have yet to be married and have a family. At 43 years of age and a male, I still have some time but I’ll admit I do feel a new sense of urgency. And that brings me to this one woman… *********. I had known of ********* through a mutual friend for maybe a couple of years but it wasn’t until about late 2007 before we actually began to entertain the idea of seeing each other.
She came over with her sister and my friend to hang out one day. I remembered meeting her before and I thought she was attractive but I also thought she was well “difficult”. Anyway, as the night progressed we kept talking and eventually ended up riding together to check out some club. As the night unfolded, I remember being struck by some of her insights. I thought, she’s difficult but there is something special there and growing up with a strong woman in my life (my mother) I was intrigued. I also wasn’t that sure if she was really into me.
Nevertheless, we exchanged numbers and eventually began to hang out. We’d talk on the phone and kind of giddily hold hands when we went out. There was something deep there. I couldn’t really put my finger on it. There was a fundamental connection that we were making. So much so, that I wrote her a song (one of the best songs I’ve ever written). I didn’t start off saying “Hey, I’ll write her a song”. It just happened. I mean it flowed right out of me. It was pure. It was beautiful. It was heartfelt and to my chagrin, it ultimately scared her to death.
I have written songs in that manner before… you know, they just flow very easily. But this was different. I sang of wanting to be a better man and my vision of her as my wife. I couldn’t help it. That’s how I felt. Well, that’s about the time she told me about her reservations. She said I was “obese” (which I was) and I owed back taxes (which I did) and had some bad habits (also true). This floored me. I could handle the back taxes and the bad habits but being FAT. “Why would you spend all this time with me if you’re not even attracted to me?”
She went on to explain that it was the way that I made her feel. I just made her feel “good” by my presence. We didn’t stop seeing each other right then but the end was near – at least for then. It’s funny because I had been in denial of my weight for most of my adult life. I was a musician and somewhat eloquent so I was able to hold my own for the most part in the romance department. Thinking on it now, perhaps I didn’t long for a life partner and a family because I took being a part of healthy family for granted. Oh, but ********* had awakened something in me. I did want to be a better man. I was not living up to my potential. I was turning 40 years old and I was sleepwalking through life.
I had to do better. Not for her but for me. Although we stopped seeing each other at that time, I began to read up on healthier eating habits and slowly started riding my bike. I got myself one of those bicycle flywheels for Christmas so that I could ride inside even when it was cold. Pretty soon I was riding everyday. I talk more in depth about my Physical Transformation in another section. But eventually I moved from the bike to walking and running and to my most current routine of High Intensity Training at the gym. It took the better part 4 years but I have dropped more than 5 full sizes and I look and feel much better. In fact, I am a better man. I know what I want professionally and I have made great strides in that direction. I am dealing with my finances and habits. I also know what I want in my ideal partner.
I guess what I am saying here is that throughout the past 4 years, ********* and I have had our ups and downs. Neither one of us is perfect but I do know there is a deep and profound love between us. Is she my soul mate? I truly can’t say – at least not yet. I do know that we have made a pledge to be friends forever and I am prepared to love her unconditionally.
My Physical Transformation
Me in 2007 and three years later in 2010.
I’m not sure how heavy I was at my peak but I do know that was about 5 full sizes ago. Now, as I enter the fourth year of my journey, my ideal weight is within sight. It hasn’t been easy but I’ve come to love the process and I’ve added many years to my lifespan, not to mention my quality of life.
I’ve fundamentally changed my diet and developed a personal cross training regimen that has me dropping 1 – 3 pounds a week. I’ve learned to love gourmet portabello egg white omelets, veggie bacon and almond milk. I’ve cut down my red meat consumption to about once a month on average and eat a lot of fish, a fair amount of poultry and many more fruits and vegetables.
In reflecting on this transition, I’ve noticed that as I have become more focused on my diet and exercise, my business acumen has also increased. When I started, I would ride my bike at first for 30 minutes and then as much as 1.5 hours a day – every day. I was making some progress but I plateaued and even though I was exercising an hour a day, I wasn’t seeing the type of improvement I really wanted.
Much the same could be said for my business. Once I resolved to make it happen no matter what, I spent many hours cold calling and driving around Texas. During the months of November 2008 – January 2009, I estimate that I cold called at least 300 companies asking them to host tours for students or attempting to get them to write me checks in support of my cause. I also was putting over 30,000 miles a year on my new Mercedes Benz E 320 (more on this later), the only real possession that remained other than my laptop, since I moved in with my folks to start my pursuit.
I can’t say that I regret going through either process although I believe that I could now accomplish things much more quickly if I had to start all over again. Both processes taught me humility and an appreciation for successes as they now seems to flow much more easily in both realms of my life. Nowadays, I still work incessantly but my exercise routine is now only 3 – 4 days a week for 45 minutes to an hour. I discovered High Intensity Training (HIT) and circuit training. So instead of walking or riding my bike for 50 minutes a day at a steady pace, I do more explosive 30 second interval training that focuses on cardio and building my core (gut, chest, thighs). I hardly ever lift weights. Rather, I do calisthenics such as push ups, crunches, stairs, kicks, squats, medicine ball exercises and the treadmill all in relatively rapid succession.
Check out the guns! Lol.
My current routine is to divide the workout into four 10 minute periods. I will alternate through a series of 3 exercises in 30 second intervals in one period such as:
Period 1
35 push ups, rest 30 seconds
30 seconds of stairs, rest 30 seconds
30 seconds of kicks, rest 30 seconds
repeat cycle 2 more times.
Rest for 2 – 3 minutes
Give it a try. You can take it at your own pace but by the second full period, you should have a good sweat going… The goal is to keep up the heart rate for a good solid 40+ minutes as you work these varying muscle groups to the point of failure. Then, give your body time to recover by resting for 1 – 2 days in between. So now, I get better results in half the time and that allows me even more time to focus on building my business. I will also say that this routine helps me be more focused about the rest of my life. I can’t tell you how many moments of clarity I’ve had regarding my business as I exercise or how I can feel stress in my life dissipate as I complete my routine. I’m sure that I will continue to refine this approach but it is an essential part of my life now and will be well into the future.
Organic Infrastructures: My Approach to Social Entrepreneurship
As I write this, I am 43 years of age and on the cusp of what I believe to be substantial growth as a social entrepreneur. For the past three years, I have been working with youth, schools, business leaders and community organizations to create what I call “organic infrastructure”. By organic infrastructure, I mean creating sustainable community partnerships that are mutually beneficial for all that participate. I believe that we as a society have drastically under-invested in our youth and only by providing them with a steady supply of Cultural Capital (more on this later), will we be able to pull out of the current educational and economic crisis in America and indeed many parts of the world.
Through this process I have come to believe in a new sense of philanthropy that is based on a fundamental exchange of value. That is, it’s no longer about one group of people that has resources giving to others that are needy but about those with resources seeing value in those they serve and cultivating that belief so that they get something of value in return. Of course, this is not a new concept. It’s based on that proverb “Teach ‘em to fish” but I feel as though the essence of this concept is too often lost in practice. “Why?” do you ask. It’s not easy. There are no quick fix remedies to make this happen but I am convinced that this is possible because I have seen it played out several times over since starting this journey.
Our educational system plays a large role in this process and unfortunately for all intents and purposes, it is fundamentally broken. We tend to educate our students like widgets rather than people. Of course, there are fundamental skills and knowledge that we all need but I believe the biggest questions that we need to ask ourselves and our youth is “What are you passionate about?” and “What do you believe in?” As educators, if we can help our students understand that, then the steps they need to become educated start to emerge much more readily. That is, identify your passion and then build your educational path around those aspirations.
When I taught 6th grade science, about 1/2 to 2/3′s of my students were not reading on grade level when they entered the class. Now, was my job to teach them to read? How can they score well on a written exam if they can’t even read it? I was supposed to be teaching them about topics like cell division or the laws of motion. So, I was in a constant dilemma. I focused on teaching them science concepts but I also made it a point to have them communicate in complete sentences. I know, it sounds a bit ridiculous, but you’d be surprised at how few students have well developed written and oral skills. I figured by getting them to process the concepts in their minds first and then translating that to a cogent written format, we had a fighting chance at getting them to improve both their knowledge of science and their ability to read and write.
I retired from the classroom back in 1998. Since then, I’ve worked in educational publishing as an interactive developer, producer, instructional designer and creative talent among other things. So, after ten years away from the classroom and witnessing first hand the technological revolution that has taken place since that time, I found myself reluctantly (at first) back working directly with teachers in 2008. That time away from the classroom gave me some valuable perspective on the disconnects between our educational system and the day to day work life of the rest of the world. Teachers are under more pressure than ever while their compensation continues to stagnate and ironically many are being laid off due to reduced funding.
Humberto Perez, a great teacher and friend. We've collaborated for 3 years and counting.
I believe that great teachers teach students, not subjects. That is, they listen at least as much as they lecture. They facilitate rather than dictate. This is hard for teachers at times because they often feel as though they don’t have control. The enormous pressure to improve scores on standardized tests and to cover one’s ass places many teachers in a state of paralysis. A fundamental part of what I do as a social entrepreneur is help teachers by providing them with stipends, interactive tools, training and a now a team of professional and college mentors that can coalesce around them and their students allowing them to become true facilitators of knowledge.
These 5 person teams are made up of 3 college mentors, a professional mentor and a media producer. Mentors are from the broad fields of Media Communications, STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering & Mathematics), Business and the Arts. Their job initially is to understand the teachers’ goals and then develop a plan that can help them be successful. They facilitate class visits, discussions, demos and field trips designed to expose students to careers. Students eventually choose a field of interest and then work side by side with their mentors to solve real problems within their chosen fields of interest. Then, having developed portfolios through this process, students become eligible for up to six weeks of summer employment within their fields of interest.
By taking students through this process of Engagement, Education, Employment & Entrepreneurship, we provide teachers with an array of “teachable moments”. Rather than the onus being placed on the teacher to “educate” students, students feel empowered and take ownership of their educational destinies. Teachers become facilitators of their students’ educational paths and can show them knowledge and skills in context. This “in context” learning is powerful and everlasting. Apathy is eventually replaced with intrinsic motivation and over time a culture of achievement is created.
Growth and Acceptance
Well, as we approach the 10 year anniversary of 9/11, I’m reflecting on all that’s happened in my life and the world at large since then. In 2000, I had made the successful transition from the classroom into interactive media and software. I was working, ironically, for Neil Bush (Yes, George W’s brother), as a Flash developer initially and then as the Director of Audio of Ignite Learning.
I remember when I met Neil, I honestly didn’t know who he was… it was late 1999 when I interviewed for the job and he was introduced to me as Neil Bush from Houston. I was focused on getting a J-O-B, so that superseded any other thoughts I had at the time. The election results were still in question. So, there was no real fanfare associated with meeting him. As far as I was concerned, he was just some well connected guy riding the the tech tide and we were going to be the “AOL of education!” LOL…
Even after I got the job, I still didn’t understand who he was. He was writing my checks and he seemed genuinely interested in me as human being. So, I honestly didn’t think much of it. I was still performing music with my band Blue Construct back then and invited him out to a show. Neil actually showed up and even hung with my band mates in between sets… It finally dawned on me a little later that he was a part of the “Bush Posse” when a co-worker directed me to check out the photos on the wall behind Neil’s desk. Oh, snap! There was Barbara, George Bush Sr. and the rest of ‘em in their glory. Damn, damn, damn!
I have to admit that revelation kind of freaked me out. But like I said, I was being treated fine and paid more money than I had made at that point in life, so I wasn’t going to rock that boat. Besides, that was pivotal time for me. As the Director of Audio, I was livin’ the dream. I was being paid well to produce songs and voice overs. I made my own schedule. I had nearly 30 musicians and voice over talents that I got to hire and collaborate with on a regular basis and I discovered that I had a knack for solving production problems and innovation. I’ve always known that my destiny lay within the realm of education and media but that was the first time that I really had access to the proper tools and cash resources to make high quality stuff.
And then there was 9/11… I remember we had a company meeting and hearing Neil say “The world has changed”. Indeed. The tech bubble burst and we braced for the slow decline of our start up dreams. Eventually, I was swept away in a round of lay offs. It was pretty devastating at the time. I attempted to start my own audio production company while continuing to interactive development projects. I have many failed business ventures under my belt. Not to mention, my poor luck at finding sustained satisfying work. From 2001 – 2008, I was laid off 5 times. Not one of those times was I fired for cause. It was always, we ran out of funding or we just got bought and we’re eliminating your position.
In 2008, I was working as a Project Manager at an educational media firm and once more, we were informed that the company was shutting its doors. At the company meeting where this was announced, I remember stepping out of the room to call an old friend of mine from high school. He had started a non-profit back in 2004 and had become very successful. I had visited him a few months earlier and in fact, he had let me be Spike Lee’s personal escort for a conference he had produced in Houston. We had talked about my entrepreneurial aspirations and he told me a few things that have stuck with me to this day.
1. Create something worthwhile and people will want to be a part of it.
2. No one can drive your agenda but you.
So, as he picked up the phone, I simply told him “We’re shutting down and I’m ready”. I wasn’t fully aware of the sacrifices and course corrections I’d have to make but I was certain that I couldn’t simply get back on the treadmill of getting another J-O-B. I enjoyed most of the people that I worked with but I never really relished the work itself. I was fat, complacent and approaching 40 years of age. I had to start pursuing my passion or I was destined for an early grave.
More soon…