How do we talk about elections, without getting 'political'? Why is civics so important, especially during the run up to elections? We wanted to unpack this as teachers, and come up with ideas as to how students could be more civic minded, even when making different choices. A tough topic indeed, but Victoria Tracy and Don Meyer took it on, a few days before the US elections.

September, being filled with Homecoming events, we wanted to give you give you a sense of what 'coming home' means to students who recently graduated. My guests, Emily, Drayton and Lincoln sat in the computer lab they once graced in seventh grade, and shared some poignant thoughts on the impact of Benjamin Franklin High School: The musicals they were in, the teachers they will never forget, their hobbies, and the school no-cellphone policy.

Sure, students love movies. But why would they spend their lunch recess in a classroom watching old movies? "Klicker's Classic Movie Club" is actually a club at Benjamin Franklin High School. They come here to explore various genres of movies. From "Gone with the wind," to "Princess bride" and everything in between.

In this podcast hosted by history teacher Jason Klicker, you'll hear from two seniors, Grayson and Leslie, about why they enjoy this activity and what they get out of classic movies.

His on-ramp was data science and geochemistry, but there are many other hats Dr. David Collings wears at Benjamin Franklin Charter Schools. Born in England, his career took him to South America and Africa before he came to the US. Before he departs on another exciting sojourn--Mongolia!--we wanted to catch up with someone who has always felt the pull of the Franklin magnetic field.

Coaches Dan Norris and Jace Smith discuss a powerful book, Extreme Ownership,' by two Navy Seals, Jocko Willink, and Leif Babin.

In this podcast you will hear how lessons learned on the battlefield could be applied to business and life. The coaches then go on to explain why Trust and Accountability are so crucial to their own leadership styles at Benjamin Franklin High School.

Two tough-as-nails cohosts, Coach Dan Norris and Ms. Yvette Rangel, talk to Lily Nugent, a student on the wrestling team about what sports men and women are up against. A fascinating insight into how they got to where they are!

"What did the Romans ever teach us?" a line from Monty Python, is one way of looking at why we teach and practice Roman virtues. Humor aside, the Roman empire wasn't exactly the paragon of virtue. Our two classical education hosts, Mr. Klicker and Mr. Finnegan take on this sticky topic with humorous analogies, but unfortunately no togas were used when they were in front of the microphone.

This year Student Government (STUGO) began hosting one day each of Opening Ceremony for Junior High, and High School - at the Gym, and Auditorium, respectively. Fasten your seat belts and listen to the back story of how they got there, and how they see it working out. Coach Pete, Logan Sargent, and Cameron Montanye host this show.