Intro: Welcome to the Teacher Interview Podcast. I’m your host, Wes Kriesel. I work as Director of Innovation and Instructional Support in Fullerton School District, and every week we sit down and get to know a teacher better. My goal is to learn what drives and guides teachers, especially when venturing into that risky territory of trying something new. Join me. In this episode, we talk to Katie Duchsherer. She teaches kindergarten at Orangethorpe Elementary. Join us.
Matt Mankiewicz: This is the teacher interview podcast. Again, I am not Wes Kriesel, but I am Matt Mankiewicz and I am back to guest-host in his place. I am joined today by Mrs. Katie Duchsherer.

Katie Duchsherer: Yes.

Matt Mankiewicz: From Orangethorpe Elementary School, where you teach kindergarten.

Katie Duchsherer: Yes.

Matt Mankiewicz: All right. And what other grades have you taught before?

Katie Duchsherer: At Orangethorpe, I taught second grade before, and then prior to that, I was at Pac Drive and I worked in fifth grade there, and I did third grade for like almost an entire year as a long-term sub, and I could go way back.

Matt Mankiewicz: Let’s do it. This is your journey through education and it’s all about you.

Katie Duchsherer: Awesome.

Matt Mankiewicz: How often does this happen?

Katie Duchsherer: I’ve been teaching for—it’s my sixth year at Orangethorpe, but prior to teaching, I was an instructional aide and I started off at Golden Hill, where I met you.

Matt Mankiewicz: That’s right. That makes it sound like we’re married.

Katie Duchsherer: No, no, no. Friends. And, yeah, the amazing staff that’s over there. And so, I worked there for about five years as an instructional aide, one-on-one, with one student in gen ed. And then, I got my degree and then went on to the credential program and had to do student teaching, and I actually was able to do my first round of student teaching with the kids that I moved up with since second grade, which was really neat.

Matt Mankiewicz: Cool.

Katie Duchsherer: And then, I moved over to Pac Drive and worked with the amazing Leah Wathen over there, and then I got a long-term and then I got a 50% contract there, and then from there I moved over to the Orangethorpe and that’s been my home for six years.

Matt Mankiewicz: All right. And, outside of a teaching, what other teaching/educational/mentoring-type things have gone on in your life?

Katie Duchsherer: Since I danced my entire life growing up, so competitively dancing and jazz, tap, ballet, lyrical, all that, and then cheer as well, but at a young age I started teaching dance. So, I think that gave me like a huge background working with kids and just learning things like just little teaching, I guess, ways.

Matt Mankiewicz: Working with kids is its own skill set.

Katie Duchsherer: Yes. So, it’s something I’ve always wanted to do. I think it’s something that I feel like kind comes naturally a little bit to me and just that’s where my passion is. I know that’s what I’m supposed to do, is was put on this Earth to be a teacher.

Matt Mankiewicz: Very cool. So, teaching and cheer, was there ever a moment in there as you were progressing through there where you’re like, “Okay, this is it, this has got to be the job of a teacher?”

Katie Duchsherer: Oh, absolutely. I think that I’ve known that for so long. I mean, there were a few times where I kind of thought maybe I would do something else—I most wanted to be a nurse in the neonatal unit—but I don’t know if I could have emotionally handled that. And then, I thought maybe a physical therapist because I had injured my knee a few times, and so I thought maybe that’s something that I wanted to do. But, neither one of those stuck for very long and I always went back to teaching.

Matt Mankiewicz: Well, all professions where you could help people.

Katie Duchsherer:  Yeah.

Matt Mankiewicz: And neonatal where you could help the kids.

Katie Duchsherer: Yeah.

Matt Mankiewicz: All right. Don’t mind Pablo. He’s [00:03:47 got some puppies there.] Very cool. Okay, so one of Wes’ I think hallmarks of his podcast is that he contacts people that you know, whether professionally or personally, and asks them personal information about you.

Katie Duchsherer: Oh, goodness.

Matt Mankiewicz: So, that’ll segue us into some comments from your husband, [00:04:07 Craig] Duchsherer. So, they asked [00:04:11 Craig], “What’s one word to describe Katie?” And he said, “I would not be able to describe Katie in one word.” He said there are too many wonderful aspects to you. He said you’re kind, you’re smart, you’re caring, funny, and his personal favorite, beautiful.

Katie Duchsherer: Oh.

Matt Mankiewicz: What a good husband right there.

Katie Duchsherer: He’s a keeper for sure. I love him.

Matt Mankiewicz: But all those words right there, kind, caring, I think it lends itself to the classroom right there. We’re kind of laughing about this, but do you feel like aspects from your personal life or your relationship ever like carry over, the way you care for a husband or care for a family member, do you feel like that ever carries over into your classroom, your professional life?

Katie Duchsherer: Oh, absolutely, especially I think in kinder, this being my first year in kinder. I mean, I’ve always felt like you have many hats you put on in the classroom. You’re not just a teacher. You’re a nurse, you’re a mom, you’re a dad, you’re a therapist, you’re all kinds of things. But, really especially this year, now that I’ve switched to kinder, is they need to know that they’re cared for. And I truly like that as something I strive for in my classroom, is I want them to know that they are loved and cared for and it’s a safe space for them. So, I do think that that, I carry that in my classroom with me.

Matt Mankiewicz: Very cool. Thank you for mentioning kindergarten, too, because that’s where I was headed with that question but I don’t think I said that very well. And then, they also asked [00:05:41 Craig], “What’s one moment where basically Katie is being Katie?” And again, he said he can’t just pick out one moment because he said every moment with you, every moment, is significant. He says he falls more and more in love with you every single day. But, you know, we’re kind of going, “Oh, every moment’s significant,” but again, is there something to that—you talk about building relationships and some people are like, “Seize the day,” right? You never know when the last moment’s going to be, so you got to make everything count. Whereas other people are like, “Oh, you can just sit on the couch right now. This is a throwaway moment. I’m just trying to get through this to the next thing.”

Katie Duchsherer: Oh yeah, I know.

Matt Mankiewicz: Where do you fall in that spectrum?

Katie Duchsherer: I totally think, “Seize the day.” You do not know when your last day is going to be and you don’t know when you’re going to lose a loved one, and life, that’s life. I know that and I’ve lived that. I’ve had to go through a loss that was really dear to my heart. I lost my dad four years ago very suddenly, and I think since then it’s kind of opened my eyes to I let a lot of things go, I don’t hold onto grudges, and I do, I seize the day. I think I live for the day and I try to enjoy it the best I can.

Matt Mankiewicz: Have you ever had a moment in the classroom with the kid where you losing your dad has ever, like having that experience you’ve been able to take that and use that to help a kid?

Katie Duchsherer: I have, actually. I had a student a few years ago, they actually don’t go to my school anymore, but during conferences I have a speaking with the mom and she was telling me how the child in my class had lost his father, and I didn’t know that. He had lost him a few years prior, and then the mom had like a significant other at the time who was being a great role model and stepping in as the dad role. And so, I shared that with her at conference and she had no idea, and she’s crying and I’m crying. And I think by just knowing that and so then, when things come up and people are talking about their dads, it’s like I know to be a little more sensitive with him. And I kind of always have that in the back of my mind, though, now. I can’t always assume that my students have both parents because, I mean, they might not share that with you but, I mean, it’s a real possibility.

Matt Mankiewicz: Yeah, that points to a larger issue where you never know someone’s back story [00:07:56 unintelligible] that day, right? Maybe they need a little more grace because, who knows what just happened to them?

Katie Duchsherer: Absolutely.

Matt Mankiewicz: It’s very cool. Well, okay, so we’ll transition from home to school. We got some questions answered by Dr. Erlinda Soltero-Ruiz, your principal. One word to describe Katie, and she simply said dazzling.

Katie Duchsherer: Oh.

Matt Mankiewicz: Why do you think she described you as dazzling?

Katie Duchsherer: Well, she’s my former principal. So, she’s moved over to VP.

Matt Mankiewicz: Oh.

Katie Duchsherer: But—that’s okay—she was my principal for I think about four years over at Orangethorpe. I think dazzling, it makes me kind of laugh because she knows like if you know me, you know my favorite color is glitter and sparkle, and I just think that like it’s totally what she means.

Matt Mankiewicz: Glitter and sparkle are not colors.

Katie Duchsherer: Oh no, glitter is a color and it’s my favorite.

Matt Mankiewicz: I love that.

Katie Duchsherer: I always tell the kids that, too, like right away, first thing. They know that about me. What’s Mrs. Duchsherer’s favorite color? Glitter, sparkle, all that. I think she, you know, dazzling, I think she kind of did a little play on words with that.

Matt Mankiewicz: I was going to say, from doing so many musicals with you over the years and getting the shirts, I know you have the affinity for [00:09:06 unintelligible].

Katie Duchsherer: Oh, yes.

Matt Mankiewicz: Cool. So, they asked Erlinda a significant moment with you, and she said, “Celebrating success is always important to Katie. She finds very creative ways for students to know that they’re doing well in her class.” So, the first thing that jumped out at me was not that you have very creative things or ways to celebrate their accomplishments, like they pass this test, but very creative ways for kids to know that they’re doing well in your class. That’s more like an overarching complete day, whole child kind of thing, as opposed to, “You got a 90 on this test. Good job, kid.”

Katie Duchsherer: Yeah. Yeah.

Matt Mankiewicz: So, tell us about some of these ways.

Katie Duchsherer: Well, I think it’s really important to celebrate not just that they’re high achievers, that they’re trying their best. Even if they didn’t do great on something and I know they put a ton of effort in, I want to recognize them because, I mean, later down the road, I want them to continue that great effort and then it’ll pay off later down the road like that. So, I think like with, we don’t do i-Ready in kindergarten anymore, but when we did it in second grade, we would really encourage them to try their best and we would celebrate all of their growth. So, we had a special assembly. So, me and my teaching partner, Alyssa Larnerd, who’s amazing, she and I did assembly just for our kids and…

Matt Mankiewicz: Just for your two classes?

Katie Duchsherer: Just for our two classes, and we did it [00:10:39 in the MP room] and used the projections. So, we wanted it to be really special for them, and we even included our little bitmojis on the slide presentation, made it’s funny. And so, they got certificates and for any growth. Like one point or a hundred points, it didn’t matter, as long as they really tried and put that effort in, and we wanted to recognize them for that. So, we would do special lunches with us and we used to do brag tags, which are like necklaces where they can earn these badges and wear them around campus. We always try to change it up and make it really special for them.

Matt Mankiewicz: The thing that jumps out at me is hearing about the assemblies that you guys would hold. Especially for kindergarten, that’s got to be so powerful, right? It’s not just your teacher telling you that you did a good job. You get to go to the [00:11:26 MP room] and get up on the stage.

Katie Duchsherer: Oh yeah, it’s huge.

Matt Mankiewicz: That’s so awesome. I love that. So, one of the other things that she talked about was how you often spend out of your own pocket, and I know that’s not unique to just you, lots of teachers do that, but she also said that you spent out of pocket to make your brag tags, not just buy them but make them, and to make T-shirts for students.

Katie Duchsherer: Yeah. Oh, yeah.

Matt Mankiewicz: I want to hear about these T-shirts.

Katie Duchsherer: So, we had made T-shirts. Alyssa and I both have Cricuts, and so that’s like stable I feel like for us. It’s just another tool [00:12:07 unintelligible] out there. But, when students had passed we were using a system, accelerated reader for AR, and so when they had met their goal each trimester and the last trimester, so they had to have met it each time, and excelled even a little bit on each of their goals, they got this awesome shirt and it says, “I’m a reader,” or “Readings my,” you know, something, something creative and funny. And so, but they got it and they got to wear it like on spirit days or whenever they wanted, and we would go up to the office and [00:12:36 whether Linda] like take pictures in their office and do boomerangs with them, like shaking the shirt, just really celebrating them trying hard and being good achievers. So, we wanted to support that reading, too.

Matt Mankiewicz: That’s awesome. I love that they have something that advertises for them, right?

Katie Duchsherer: Absolutely.

Matt Mankiewicz: It’s not just their own personal thing but other people can see that.

Katie Duchsherer: And all the other kids are so excited for them and they’re pushing themselves then to get a shirt. They want them badly.

Matt Mankiewicz: Love that. How long does it take you to make a shirt?

Katie Duchsherer: I try to kind of do it in stages where we design—Alyssa does all the designing. That’s not my…

Matt Mankiewicz: Oh, so this is a team effort.

Katie Duchsherer: This is a team, yes. No, we are a team, for sure, through and through. So, she is definitely the creative one and so she’ll design it, and then we cut it on the vinyl and I like to actually the weeding part, like the tedious. I love that stuff. It’s weird. But, I’ll weed out all of the other parts, and then you have to iron it on the shirt. So, I would say like one shirt, I mean, by the time you like, after it’s designed, I think that probably takes the longest part maybe, like maybe 15 minutes a shirt, I guess, if you’re like really on a roll.

Matt Mankiewicz: I’m just asking because being someone who has no clue how a Cricut works, I’m just curious. I’m like, “What’s the difficulty level here from novice to advanced?”

Katie Duchsherer: We use them pretty frequently, so it’s a little faster I think for us. But, if someone had just like got one and jumped on that machine, it would be a few days. You would be very frustrated with it.

Matt Mankiewicz: All right. Well, Katie Duchsherer and Alyssa Larnerd apparently are the ones you can talk to. You can reach out to them for your Cricut PD.

Katie Duchsherer: We are not masters of that trade at all, but we try our best.

Matt Mankiewicz: It’s all we ask, absolutely. Okay, so then, a bonus, a little factoid here from Erlinda about you, is she says your creativity is unbelievable. You always reach out to help a friend at a moment’s notice and it’s whether you need ideas to decorate your classroom, your office or even your home, your creativity shines. So, as amazing a teacher you are, you’re an even better friend.

Katie Duchsherer: Aw.

Matt Mankiewicz: So, classroom, that makes a lot of sense. Office or home, has there been some decorating advice?

Katie Duchsherer:  Yes, which is funny because it’s [00:14:52 unintelligible]. So, she had decided to redo her office there at Orangethorpe, when she was there, and she came to me and asked for my advice, and I actually had done Rochelle’s over at Woodcrest. When she got to be principal over there, she called me up and she’s like, “What do you think? What should I do?” And I was like, “Well,” I kind of gave her some ideas. And she’s like, “Okay, here’s some money, go buy what you need to buy.” And so, I totally just like—it’s fun when you get to decorate for somebody else, spend somebody else’s money. But, I got to go and decorate their office and I thought it was super-fun. I think it makes it like warm and welcoming, and that’s something I strive for. So, I think maybe that’s why they had come to me for that. And so, after I did Rochelle’s over at Woodcrest, Erlinda had asked the same thing. She’s like, “Okay, now it’s my turn. Come to my office.”

Matt Mankiewicz: [00:15:41 unintelligible] pick up a following there.

Katie Duchsherer: Yes. I don’t want to advertise that. I’m not going around [00:15:46 unintelligible]. I mean, I would.

Matt Mankiewicz: So, what does your classroom look like when you walk in? What would we see?

Katie Duchsherer: Oh. Well, my classroom is farmhouse-themed, so it’s Chip and Joanna, like Fixer Upper in kinder. So, it’s not—I mean, I had to have a few barn things everywhere, but it’s more like galvanized steel and kind of like a rustic feel.

Matt Mankiewicz: Sure.

Katie Duchsherer: But, my true labor of love is I converted a playhouse into, like it’s a playhouse in the classroom but it looks like something straight off of Fixer Upper from Chip and Joanna. So, it’s like my favorite piece in the classroom and I think on that first day when parents came in and saw that, they were like, “Oh my…” They had no idea. They were like, “What is this?” They were all taking pictures in front of it.

Matt Mankiewicz: Oh, too fun.

Katie Duchsherer: It’s worth coming to check out. So, it’s definitely something I’m really proud of.

Matt Mankiewicz: Oh, all right. Do your kids like it?

Katie Duchsherer: Oh yes, everybody wants to play in the house all the time.

Matt Mankiewicz: Oh, right on.

Katie Duchsherer: Still all the kitchen toys and stuff in there, too.

Matt Mankiewicz: Sure. Sure, sure. So, that’s a little reward, a little carrot right there [00:16:50 unintelligible].

Katie Duchsherer: Yes, exactly. Very cool. Cool. So, okay, funny you mentioned Fixer Upper and Chip and Joanna Gaines because this brings us to the third person that Wes talked to, which was your colleague and teaching partner, Alyssa Larnerd.

Katie Duchsherer: She’s the best.

Matt Mankiewicz: She said the same thing about you. I guess I’ll jump down here. This is the extra little tidbit here. She described you as the Chip to her Jo.

Katie Duchsherer: Oh.

Matt Mankiewicz: And she said yes, you’re Chip because you fix it all.

Katie Duchsherer: I do, I fix everything.

Matt Mankiewicz: That is so funny.

Katie Duchsherer: And she has a great creative design mind. I always ask her opinion with everything. “Where do you think I should put this? Where do you think I should put this?” And she always has like a totally different idea than what I do, and I’m like, “Wow, I didn’t even think of that.” And so then, I steal her idea all the time.

Matt Mankiewicz: [00:17:39 unintelligible] You’re a good team. I think you guys have a Halloween costume idea for next year.

Katie Duchsherer: Oh yes, that would be great. I don’t know if our kids would get it, but we’ll try.

Matt Mankiewicz: Okay, so they asked Alyssa for one word and, again, she said, “Too many words to describe you, but one would be assertive/hardworking.” That’s two words but that’s okay. She’s [00:18:00 unintelligible]. So, assertive and hardworking. You seem pretty humble, so I don’t know if you describe yourself as hardworking, but from the stories you’ve told and from knowing you, I can agree with that and I can testify that you are a hard worker. Assertive, would you consider yourself an assertive person?

Katie Duchsherer: Probably not when I describe myself. I don’t think I would use that word, but I think…

Matt Mankiewicz: Why do you think she did?

Katie Duchsherer: I think probably more so like in the classroom and with students, I’m more assertive with things like that. I guess maybe because of our really [00:18:35 unintelligible] relationship, I may be more of the assertive one. Like, we have to do things as a team or something like that. But, that’s funny that she said that. Because I’m the boss and I tell her what to do. I’m just kidding.

Matt Mankiewicz: Well, there you go. Every team needs a leader.

Katie Duchsherer: That’s me.

Matt Mankiewicz: So, they asked Alyssa for a significant moment, and Alyssa talked about the first time that you met her. Do you remember this?

Katie Duchsherer: I think so.

Matt Mankiewicz: Do you want to tell us about it.

Matt Mankiewicz: No, go ahead. What did she say?

Matt Mankiewicz: No, no, please do. This is more fun to hear it from you first.

Katie Duchsherer: I’m thinking she probably—well, I’m not sure of the first time. I mean, I know she—because we didn’t cheat on same team her first year. So, she was teaching kinder at that time, and then life I was teaching second. So, I mean, I probably met her in the teachers’ lounge or something or in the workroom, but I was just thinking of the time when we got moved. I was working as a team with [00:19:31 unintelligible], who I adore, and she’s now retired and we were so close, and we still are very close. But, to be split up from her was like, oh, devastating, and so I had to be put with Alyssa, which I didn’t really know her very well. So, I don’t know if she meant that or when we truly first met.

Matt Mankiewicz: She talked about how when she was a brand-new hire and she hadn’t met anyone yet and you were the first teacher at the site to introduce yourself to her and that you were so welcoming to her at Orangethorpe. She said that you also added her on Facebook right away, but she thought it’s because you were trying to get the inside scoop on her.

Katie Duchsherer: I absolutely have to check out those newbies.

Matt Mankiewicz: She described you as “your very first Orangethorpe friend and now your bestie.”

Katie Duchsherer: Yes, we are besties. We are a team. We do everything together. Everyone around campus knows that, too.

Matt Mankiewicz: Was there anything about her in particular that drew you to her or you were just thinking, “Here’s a new person, we got to say hi and welcome her in?”

Katie Duchsherer: Her energy is amazing. If you have not, I know you’ve met her, but anybody out there in podcast land that hasn’t met her, you would, as soon as you meet her, you know. Her energy is amazing. She’s so positive and you are drawn to her. You want to work with her. How could you not want to work with somebody who’s that uplifting and positive all the time? So, I think that kind of drew me to her, and she was young coming in, fresh new teacher, and I’m only, a few years prior to that, I was that person coming in. And so, I think you kind of like pass the baton on and it’s like, “Okay, now I’ll welcome you in and it’ll be your job the next time someone comes in.”

Matt Mankiewicz: Oh, I love that. Passing it on. Okay, so we’ll close here with jumping back to her Chip and Jo comment. She’s talked about how lucky she was to be partners with you and how you’ve really taught her so much. So, it sounds like friends, obviously.

Katie Duchsherer:  Yes.

Matt Mankiewicz: But, she also sort of sees you as that mentor person to her as well.

Katie Duchsherer: Oh.

Matt Mankiewicz: And I think, like you just mentioned, you got to pass it on to her.

Katie Duchsherer: Absolutely, yeah. I think teaching’s all about sharing, and so I don’t ever see myself as above her at all, like never. But, I just think we make a really great team, and I just adore her and I think I learn so much from her as she learns from me, and that’s what it’s all about. So, we learn from each other all the time.

Matt Mankiewicz: I’m a big believer that you have to find the yin to your yang when it comes to teaching to survive in this world, and it sounds like you guys are a real good fit between your design and fixing and all that kind of stuff.

Matt Mankiewicz: Absolutely. It’s fun in kinder together, I’ll tell you that. It’s fun there.

Matt Mankiewicz: As kindergarten should be, right? Kindergarten, should never be a bad, boring day, especially when you have a farmhouse.

Katie Duchsherer: Absolutely. It’s my favorite, so I love it. I didn’t care if anybody else did, but I loved it. I took a long time this summer sanding and painting it. But, it’s fun. It’s fun in there.

Matt Mankiewicz: I love it. Well, Katie Duchsherer from Orangethorpe, thank you for joining us and talking about yourself and all the wonderful, awesome things you guys are doing over there in kindergarten land.

Katie Duchsherer: Thank you.

Matt Mankiewicz: Hope you had a good time.

Katie Duchsherer: I did, thanks.

Matt Mankiewicz: We’ll see you next time.

Outro: This has been the Teacher Interview Podcast. Thank you for joining us.

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