Faces of ACE

This week we caught up with ACE graduate Jeffrey Kerscher. After three years of teaching in inner-city Washington, DC and a year serving as a dean of a Catholic high school in Florida, Jeff has just taken a job as a blended learning manager and school culture consultant for Seton Education Partners at St. Therese Catholic Academy in Seattle, Washington.

Walk us down the path of how you became involved in Catholic schools and the Alliance for Catholic Education.

I became obsessed with the idea of the achievement and opportunity gap when, as a sophomore in college, I ran a mentoring organization for inner-city kids at Xavier. I saw how much it meant for both the kids and their families to have exposure to faith-based role models. As a product of Catholic education and the child of a Catholic educator, I knew that serving in ACE would enable me to fulfill my social justice oriented mission of closing the achievement gap while ensuring that a faith based option existed for the less fortunate. In my work now at St. Therese, our goal is to create and expand opportunities for disadvantaged children to receive an academically excellent, technologically advanced, and vibrantly Catholic education.

Why do you value Catholic schools? What drives you to get up every morning?

I value Catholic schools because they provide a community unlike any other – a community grounded in faith that provides students with the tools to become morally, spiritually, and intellectually excellent individuals eager to serve the common good. They have a transformative power and there is no place where that power is needed more than America's inner-city neighborhoods. Every morning I wake up determined to bring that opportunity to every kid and family that wants a better life. I serve them not because they are Catholic, but because I am Catholic.

Explain how ACE has played a role in forming you as a leader, teacher, and person.

ACE allowed me to dedicate my life to an issue that I feel passionate about while giving me the opportunity to grow professionally and spiritually in the process. It has ignited a passion to learn and a desire to always find a way to do more for students.

To see a video about the work of Seton Education Partners, click here.

What do ACE Teaching Fellows, film-making, entrepreneurship, and Catholic schools have in common? Brick Maier. Over the last several years, the ACE 8 graduate has put his ACE teaching experience to work, honing his skills as a filmmaker and entrepreneur to create educational resources for community and classroom.

Of his years as an ACE teacher, Brick writes, "The actual experience of learning how to teach was very humbling." But the result was confidence. ACE taught Brick to take on new challenges boldly, knowing that "if I could survive the first couple years of teaching, I could do pretty much anything."

Most recently, that has meant developing tools that foster creative play and media literacy. Specifically, he has created a Tabletop Moviemaking Studio Kit, which enhances the power of story-telling. Catholic schools, he tells us, are particularly amenable to such a resource. "I have found that [they] are uniquely positioned to move quickly on implementing innovative ideas because the organizational leadership is nimble." Currently, Brick is raising funds for the production of these kits via a Kickstarter campaign.

The former Fulbright scholar with a heart for today's youth sees that Catholic schools are a powerful force for positive change, "especially in our inner city schools. From my teaching experience in Los Angeles to filming in Catholic schools in Haiti, I have learned that Catholic education, simply put, opens doors."

Support Brick Maier's work here. See his video about Haiti here. To order a Tabletop Moviemaking Studio Kit, click here.

Their backgrounds vary, and so do the reasons they took part in the ACE Teaching Fellows program. But these ACE Interns (above, L to R, Justin Novotney, Andrea Krebs, Kyle Pounder, Casey Flynn, and Jim Murphy) are united by their faith, their commitment to Catholic education, and their views about what ACE is doing for Catholic schools.

With a father who is a deacon and a mother who was in charge of RCIA at their parish, Andrea Krebs has been a practicing Catholic since her earliest years, Still, her first experience with K-12 Catholic education was in the year after college, when she served as a missionary in Mexico, and her second was as a teacher in ACE. Of that experience, she says she especially appreciates the freedom to talk about God in the classroom and is purposeful about teaching her students to enjoy that freedom, too. "I spend a fair amount of time helping kids develop ways to talk to God." She counts her ACE experience significant in preparing her for that. When asked about how ACE makes a difference in her school, Andrea says, "ACE provides an energy and motivation for all the school's teachers and students to keep improving, to keep learning more."

Kyle Pounder agrees. "ACE is bringing young, enthusiastic, and," he adds with a grin, "naively ambitious people into Catholic schools." Unlike Andrea, the faith was not a big part of Kyle's life until he attended a Catholic high school with a largely non-Catholic student body. There he became a Christian when friends took him to a Methodist church. He also met a teacher who graduated ACE. By the time this service-oriented youth graduated college, he says, "I felt like I had received so much from people, things I didn't deserve, and I wanted to give back." He talked with his former teacher, who steered him toward ACE. Today this Protestant is passionate about Catholic schools, saying, "In addition to providing good academics, [they] provide a place of belonging for students. They are concerned about the overall well-being of each student."

Casey Flynn and her family exemplify that fact. Her dad helped start a Cristo Rey school in the Washington, DC area and now sits on the board, while her mom serves as volunteer coordinator there. And when Casey graduated from MIT, she says, "I was looking for a faith-filled service program and wanted to do it in education because that has been such a big part of my family's life." ACE filled the bill. About the program, Casey says, "[It} provides great, well-educated, young, spiritual role models for kids across the country. Each school is different, and each needs different things, but the unifying factor for all 180 ACE teachers is that they are role models."

She took the words right out of Jim Murphy's mouth. "ACE teachers are young," says the son of two Catholic school educators, "Kids see that they're comfortable with their faith." This, in addition to their emphasis on academics, makes them uniquely valuable in the lives of students. "ACE gives students both academic and spiritual role models, reinforcing learning and intellectual development as well as strong and public faith lives." Jim emphasizes that value in Catholic education writ large, too. "[It] gives students a chance to connect faith life with academic life, so instead of faith becoming a part of what they do, it becomes a part of who they are."

Justin Novotney put it this way, "Catholic education forms the whole person." Justin particularly appreciates the historical rootedness of the institution. "I believe in Catholic education," he says, "because I trust those who came before me." A product of Catholic schools, Justin graduated college with the desire to become more involved in the community and the Church. "ACE fell into my lap in the most wonderful of ways," he says, recounting his casual decision to apply after hearing an announcement about it at Mass one night. His simple thought was, "if I get in then I will do it." Now that he's finished with ACE, he speaks about the difference it is making "because it is bringing talented, enthusiastic individuals into Catholic education who otherwise might not be there. Over time, that influence adds up to supplement what the Catholic school system in America has going."

Justin, a former middle school science and math teacher, will be a student at Moreau Seminary this fall. Jim will teach world history, government & economics for a third year at a Catholic high school in Los Angeles. Casey, a math teacher, will join the faculty of a Catholic high school in Chicago. Kyle, also a high school math teacher, will begin doctoral work in math at the University of Arizona. And Andrea will return to her high school in Los Angeles, teaching Science and math.

Anton Taruc, ACE 18, answers questions about his background, his inspiration, and his commitment to Catholic education.

What is your background—degree and experience of education—and your current position with the Alliance for Catholic Education?

I was born in the Bay Area but grew up in Bacolod City, Philippines. I moved back to the Bay Area for college: Saint Mary's College of California. I also spent a semester studying abroad at Oxford University. During my undergraduate years, I was an aspirant to be a brother with the De La Salle Christian Brothers. As I discerned my calling to enter the religious life, I had many opportunities to engage in service—most of which involved education. I was able to spend 2 summers teaching and living in community with minors in conflict with the law back in the Philippines. This experience allowed me to see the power of an education that took into account the real life needs of students. While I ended up not becoming a brother, the formation I received as an aspirant—with its focus on faith, service, and community—gave me a strong foundation for what I would do next.

After college, I served as a Peace Corps Volunteer in Northeastern Thailand. I worked closely with the Thai Ministry of Education to develop programs that would help teachers in local villages apply student centered instruction. After my 2 years of Peace Corps service, I stayed on for another 2 and a half teaching English, Math, and Science. I was also able to spend some time working closely with a Master Teacher from the International School of Bangkok. All of these experiences gave me a wonderful vision of what good teaching instruction looks like and I've been blessed to take them into my 5th grade classroom in Compton, California.

One of the most important lessons I received before ACE was that teaching is a craft that has no ceiling. I've been fortunate to have had so much time to think and reflect about my beliefs and attitudes towards the craft of teaching (as well as being exposed to excellent examples of quality teachers) and I'm enjoying the process of developing this craft through the work I do in Compton.

What inspired your interest in Catholic education?

My desire to work with Catholic Education stems from my experience with the La Sallian tradition and the words, "Enter to Learn, Leave to Serve." These words are my slogan for every new endeavor. ACE is providing me with the right kind of formation to be the teacher I envision myself to be: a teacher led by faith; a teacher motivated by a desire to be of service to others; and a teacher who draws strength and energy from community.

How has your experience in ACE shaped your vision of education?

In ACE, I have countless opportunities to reflect on the difference between a job and a ministry. Through ACE, I've learned that at the heart of teaching is a desire to answer a special call. This call is often challenging, sometimes painful and always meaningful. My daily prayer is that all educators realize how fortunate we are to be involved in a vocation that is much more akin to a ministry than it is to a job. This is perhaps best expressed through one of my favorite poems:

Some people have a job in the church.
Others invite themselves into a ministry.
What's the difference you ask?
If you are doing it just because no one else will, it's a job.
If you are doing it to serve the Lord, it's a ministry.
If you quit because someone criticized you, it's a job.
If you keep on serving, it's a ministry.
If you'll do it as long as it does not interfere with your other activities, it's a job.
If you are committed to staying even if it means letting go of other things, it's a ministry.
If you quit because no one thanked you or praised you, it's a job.
If you stick with it even though no one recognized your efforts, it's a ministry.
It's hard to get excited about a job.
It's almost impossible not to get excited about a ministry.
If your concern is success, it's a job.
If your concern is faithfulness and service, it's a ministry.
If God calls you to a ministry, don't treat it like a job!

"It's hard to get excited about a job/ It's almost impossible not to get excited about a ministry"—how wonderful it would be if every teacher carried this in his/her heart. ACE has taught me that it is possible to view teaching as a ministry. My vision is that through our actions and the training we receive from ACE, we ACE teachers can inspire other teachers (be they neophytes such as ourselves or experienced veterans) to view teaching as a ministry.

This spring, Rachel Hamilton said yes. "Yes" to the ACE Teaching Fellows program, and "yes" to God.

The recent Notre Dame graduate just started her first summer as a teacher in ACE Teaching Fellows. And she speaks eloquently about how two weeks' experience in the program is already beginning to shape her.

"If there is one thing that stands out to me...it is the idea of 'saying yes.' This is not simply because we hear the ACE faculty and staff repeatedly saying 'Thank you for saying yes to ACE.' It is more than that. It is about agency. It is about affirmation.

We are not thanked for 'accepting' a place in ACE, and I think that distinction is crucial. A simple acceptance is passive; saying yes is active. By saying yes we have committed to continue saying yes for the next two years: to our professors, to our supervisors, to the stresses of daily life, to our students, and to God. Saying yes means that we are actively choosing to give of ourselves over the next two years to serve the needs of our nation's children, and that this choice is a response to our calling manifested through our gifts, talents, and virtues."

I know the next two years will be filled with obstacles and moments of great stress. The ACE staff has been honest about that the entire time. Yet, hopefully, this continued affirmation of our own agency in choosing to serve and choosing to give and choosing to follow God's call will sustain us as we embark on our teaching journeys.