Click here to listen to the podcast and the song!

or find it on Apple Podcasts or Spotify.

Teaching Artist Amanda Cantrell Roche led this audio project to gather and honor, through the arts, stories of resilient public school educators in Nashville during the Pandemic. SORE brought six Metro Nashville Public School teachers together for a virtual Narrative 4 Story Exchange, in which they shared true personal stories of challenges, resilience, and triumph as educators. These stories were transformed into art through music, poetry, and narrative by teaching artists Alison Brazil, Jon Royal, and Amanda Cantrell Roche. The end result was a podcast featuring a song, an underscore, and a spoken narrative that celebrates the individual and collective stories of educators, as well as offering hope for teachers who are burnt out and considering leaving the profession. The podcast was distributed widely to the Nashville community and beyond to honor and uplift teachers, and offer a glimpse into their world.


Brazil, Royal, and Cantrell Roche are all lead TPAC Teaching Artists and professional artists, with decades experience collaborating with teachers in school arts integration residencies, as well as arts integration professional development. This project is sponsored by TPAC.

Thank you to all teachers who applied! Thank you for all your insightful comments. It was a tough choice. ALL of your comments will help inform this project. These are the six educators chosen for the Story Exchange:

Dr. Nikki Hughes, Warner Arts Magnet

Paige La Grone Babcock, Apollo Middle

Tania Mejia, Park Ave. Elementary

Thema Guzman, Hume Fogg High School

Dr. Shauntazia Shorter, Cane Ridge High School

Aaron Litvack, Maplewood High School

Here are some RESILIENT EDUCATORS honored by donors:

Michaela Adcock, Special Education Instructor at Wilson County Schools

Anne Zuberer

Caroline Sharp, Oliver Middle School

Gretchen Martuch, Glencliff Elementary

Cindy Pride, Elkton School and Martin Methodist College

Josh Naples

Dr. Nicole Glaze, Warner Arts Magnet Elementary

Zerlinda Jessee, Apollo Middle School

Sponsored by:

Thank you to everyone who donated, and made this project possible:

Anonymous

Anna Frazier

Ashlyn Cianciolo

Beth Anne Musiker

Blue Moves Modern Dance Company

Carolyn German

Chris and Maryanna Clark

Daniel Jones

Deanie French

Diana Johnson

Diana Morningstar

Doris Wasserman

Dr. Ron Messier

Ellen Gilbert

Emily Waltenbaugh

Jamison Sevits

Jennifer Hill

Jill Massie

Jori Martinez Woods

Julie Shavers

Kelsey Roberts

Ken and Sam Rippetoe

Laine Cantrell

Lattie Brown

Lee Anne Carmack

Leigh Ann Roberts

Leigh Jones

Leisa Hammett

Lynne Bachleda

Mallory Mapescoture

Marcela Pinilla

Marie Crowley

Michelle Sipes

Molly Breen

Paige La Grone Babcock

Pat Halper

Robin Wolfenden

Randy Tatel

Samantha Cantrell

Sara Sharpe

Sean and Carole Harrah-Siple

Umit Gunebir

Valerie Hackworth