Blog Masonry

We're quite the bloggers

Reflecting on Yourself as a Leader

This week’s blog post is shared with permission from Elena Aguilar. Enjoy!

It took me a long, long time to accept the notion that as a teacher, I was also a leader; that as a department chair, I was also a leader; and that as a coach, I was also a leader. This was because I was operating within traditional definitions of leadershipREAD MORE

The Teachers’ Lounge Podcast – Karen Atkinson

Welcome to our 13th episode of The Teachers’ Lounge! Our guest is Karen Atkinson who is a community catalyst encouraging all adults in St. Louis Park, Minnesota to play a role in the healthy development of young people. For more than two decades, she has worked to transform the community based on Search Institute’s 40 Developmental Assets research. Karen and Sally chat about the positive impact educators and all adults can make in the lives of young people.READ MORE

These Are Our Kids

By Joe Cavanaugh, Founder & CEO

Recently, I was a chaperone on one of my daughter Tess’s fifth-grade field trips. We were at a ropes course in the woods on a platform about 50 feet up in the trees. I proudly watched as my daughter swung from tree to tree with a huge grin on her face. She was so brave and was enjoying every moment.READ MORE

Josh Cleveland's Family

Don’t Stop. Ever.

By Josh Cleveland, Youth Frontiers Retreat Musician

Allow me to flash back to seven years ago. I was thirty years old, I had a failed marriage and a four-year-old daughter whom I lived five hours away from because I was living with my parents. After a decade of living a life where I put more effort into building excuses than building anything of substance, I had come to a startling realization:READ MORE

Who do you want to be in 2016?

By Ben Nordquist, Communications Intern & On-Call Retreat Staff

Last year my New Year’s resolution was to journal every day. I remember it well, mostly because of how little I wrote in my journal this past year and how often I told myself I should.READ MORE