Deborah Martel Rogers' Blog

  Remember your Why photograph by Déborah Martel-Rogers      I still remember my first year as a full-time teacher. I did not have my own car yet and walked to the bus stop early in the morning while carrying my red briefcase, which I so proudly had saved for with the money I had made during my weekly tutoring sessions all over the city. The city where I worked and lived back then, Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, is on an island, making me see the ocean from wherever I look.      That first day was magical. I even had the impression that everyone was looking at my shiny red-laced shoes while thinking to themselves that I was obviously a teacher. When I got to the bus line, several ladies asked me to proceed since they were not in a hurry, and I was obviously busy. I thanked them right before paying for my ticket and sitting all the way to the back.       Some young men stared at me. I ignored them. Some young ladies looked back tow...

     Remember your Why photograph by Deborah Martel Rogers, Harris' TOSA, BCSD May, 2022      I still remember my first year as a full-time teacher. I did not have my own car yet and walked to the bus stop early in the morning while carrying my red briefcase, which I so proudly had saved for with the money I had made during my weekly tutoring sessions all over the city. The city where I worked and lived back then, Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, is actually on an island, and that made me see the ocean from wherever I looked.      That first day was somewhat magical. I even had the impression that everyone was looking at my shiny red laced shoes while thinking to themselves that I was obviously a teacher. When I got to the bus line, several ladies asked me to please go ahead of them, since they were not in a hurry, and I was obviously busy. I proceeded to thank them right before paying for my ticket and sitting all the way to the back....

 My Vision By Déborah Martel-Rogers, Ed. D. Abraham Lincoln Jr. High 7th/8th DELD Lead      This month of March, when the adult children in our family continue to work on their college dreams, I choose to share with you my vision as an Educational Ambassador, a vision which I first publicly shared in my Master's in Educational Administration, Ethics and Integrity class, at CSU Bakersfield, in 2017:       I want to help to create a better world, a world in which our students' heads, hearts and souls  flourish in unison, both academically and socially; a world in which there is success for every single student, regardless of socio-economic status, race, gender, national origin, ethnicity, religion, or sexual orientation; a world in which our students know that they are the reason of our own very existence, and that we are here to make sure that every one of them is successful because failure is not an option. 

August 31st, 2020 "In Loco Parentis" II, by Deborah Martel Rogers, Harris' TOSA Bakersfield City School District         Before the pandemic, I wrote that I was more and more aware that -as an educational leader- I had to make a conscientious decision every day to align the heart, head and soul of our collective mission, in order to ensure that ALL of our children are served with excellence.    Then, the unthinkable happened. Not that it was the first time it had, but this time our common humanity decided that it was time to empower our disempowered brothers and sisters.    Yes, I am referring to empathy and compassion, social justice and a conscientious removal of systemic racism.    I am also making reference to pondering the subtle ways in which we can alienate or inspire our students and their parents, based on our words and actions. Beauty, like blue, black and brown, begin with the same letter as Best.   ...

Be prepared, not scared                                            Photography by Deborah Martel Rogers, Bakersfield, CA, 2020      We are living in very unique times. This has always been the case, but we all  probably got caught in our unique lives, and forgot about looking at each other in the eye, until one day we were reminded that the power of we is more empowering than the power of I.      We then began to see how, although some people continued to focus on themselves, so many others who chose to, like Mr. Rogers, look at the helpers in the back, the good people who continue  to believe in the human race, in the power of the human spirit.      If you are like me, you  are going to faith it, dance it, cry through it, laugh at it on its very face, and show, one more time, that we will kneel down to pray, ...

I Choose to SELebrate -by Deborah Martel Rogers, Harris' TOSA Bakersfield City School District     How often have you wondered what would have happened if you had taken a different path? When we were children, we all had friends who regretted not having shared their dream of becoming a teacher, pilot, astronaut, surgeon, or professional dancer with their teachers. They thought they were not good enough or that they would not be able to pull it off. Whichever the reason, they already had the No! Before they even dared to ask.      On the other hand, we also knew those lucky people who dared to follow their dreams and accomplish unimaginable goals that the rest of us might have thought about here and there without really having stopped to ponder the real work it would take. Probably because, precisely, it would have taken a lot of effort.      What about if we reveal these secrets to our students and their parents? Are they secrets, or ar...

My Weekly Reflection              "Talent wins games, but teamwork and intelligence win championships."                                          – Michael Jordan       As we are heading towards our eighth week of school, our collective efficacy continues to strengthen and bloom, inevitable reaching reaps of success in our students' academic and social performance.