Exploring Zen and the Art of Teaching

Hi, I’m Nate.

I am interested in the intersection of education, leadership, and Zen practice. As an educator, I’ve served as a teacher, founding principal, a district leader, and nonprofit executive. I am an authorized dharma teacher practicing in the Soto Zen lineage. Click here to learn more about me.

I offer teachings and writings to help educators (and anyone who teaches) become more conscious and adept in their craft. Click here to learn a bit more about my teaching.

Read some recent writing

Featured
Against Froot Loop Teaching
Against Froot Loop Teaching

This morning I ate a hefty bowl of Froot Loops. Sometimes our teaching can be like this: tasty but bereft of nutrition.

Education as Nutrition
Education as Nutrition

Bad analogies in education abound, so we ought to cherish good ones. In writing of the place of education in American democratic life, John Dewey introduces a metaphor of nutrition that feels useful now.

A Reflective Educator’s Reading List
A Reflective Educator’s Reading List

Conscious teaching does not require reading. But reading won’t hurt. Good hearts and minds have wrestled with questions of teaching and learning since the days of Aristotle and likely before. Let’s learn from our intellectual forbearers.