That's So SA
That's So SA
Working From Home
Last week, we thought it would be fun to get a few snapshots into the “work from home” spaces where our staffulty are spending their days. We figured we’d get a few photos, but as always, our teachers and administrative staff went beyond expectations, and we received a wonderful cache of images of classrooms/offices/workspaces infused with ingenuity, personality, and the can-do spirit of SA. From neatly organized tables to makeshift outdoor standing desks with a view, our staffulty are making it work while working at home.
STEM teacher Dan Karbousky has a new desk with an SA pedigree: “I am really proud of the little homemade standing desk that I am using at my home. It was a group effort piecing it together. Travis Fierce helped me find the wood stand that my laptop is on. He also cut the 4x4's that it is standing on to make it the right height. The STEM department helped me pick out the iPad, annotation pencil, and software programs that I use to draw notes on for the students to see at home just like it is a classroom whiteboard. Finally, Changa helped with figuring out the cables and adapters to make my TV a second monitor so I can see the students in gallery mode on Zoom while I work on the computer. If that's not teamwork I don't know what is!”
Jamie and Kerry are, of course, working from home together, leading to some challenges. Of course, they have engineered ingenious solutions. Jamie says, “This is my MES (Mobile Educating System), v1. Because Kerry and I are teaching in the same house, it's designed to be used standing or sitting, and to be easily transportable if I have to move from the kitchen elsewhere. I threw it together out of plywood as a mockup, but then things jumped into high gear and I had to throw it into action. It has a drawer for pens and pencils and snacks with a slide-out shelf for iPhone storage, plenty of room for book/dry erase board/teaching material storage, and space for my laptop on the top, or on the bottom shelf. Nothing fancy, but it's been working for me as I work from the kitchen table.”
No matter where they are working, our staffulty members have been supported by the SA tech team: Director of Technology Sean Freese, HelpDesk maestro Changa Imara, and A/V Technician David Mahlaku. From recommending wifi boosters to hosting large virtual meetings, the tech team has been invaluable during this time, just as they are when we are all on campus.
Changa says, “helping Sonoma Academy's staff get online and connected for remote working has been truly galvanizing for me. Every day of this stay at home order, I think, ‘what can I do to make sure our school is getting the support it needs?’ The staff have been so eager to learn how to make this new dynamic work. It's been inspiring.”
Whether they are working from a tidy vintage mid-century desk, a breezy front porch, a creatively repurposed garage, or a busy kitchen table (perhaps surrounded by their own distance learning kids), our staffulty and community members are making the most of their new surroundings and utilizing their signature creativity and grace under pressure. Take a tour of our offices and see if you can guess whose is whose!
Sonoma Academy Is...
...the only private, independent, college preparatory high school in Sonoma County. On our beautiful campus nestled at the base of Taylor Mountain in Southeastern Santa Rosa, our students are able to explore their interests and passions in a rigorous and inspiring environment that develops a lifelong love of learning and prepares them for college and beyond.
Sonoma Academy admits students of any race, color, religion, ethnicity or national origin, citizenship, gender or gender identity and expression, sexual orientation, or disability, to all the rights, privileges, programs, and activities generally accorded or made available to students at the school. The school does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, religion, ethnicity or national origin, citizenship, gender or gender identity and expression, sexual orientation, or disability in administration of its educational policies, admissions policies, scholarship and tuition assistance programs, and athletic and other school-administered programs.
