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- This is One-On-One.

- I'm an equal American just like you are.

- The way we change Presidents in this country is by voting.

- A quartet is already a jawn, it’s just The New Jawn.

- January 6th was not some sort of violent, crazy outlier.

- I don't care how good you are or how good you think you are, there is always something to learn.

- I mean what other country sends comedians over to embedded military to make them feel better.

- People call me 'cause they feel nobody's paying attention.

-_ It’s not all about memorizing and getting information, it’s what you do with that information.

- (slowly) Start talking right now.

- That's a good question, high five.

(upbeat music) - The Milken Educator Award goes to Taylor Trost.

(crowd cheers) - You just saw the video of this extraordinary announcement about Taylor Trost, who is elementary school teacher in Hightstown, New Jersey, a Milken Educator awardee.

Taylor, great to have you with us, congratulations.

- Thank you so much.

I'm happy to be here.

- Now, I wanna ask you what the, tell us what the Milken Award is first, and then I wanna talk about how you found out.

- Yeah, so the Milken Family Foundation is an organization that its goal is to recognize teachers.

They, you know, focus their thinking on that teachers are kind of unsung heroes, and so they search the entire country secretly without the teachers knowing to, you know, award and celebrate and recognize teachers that they think are doing something great for education.

It's a huge network of really incredible educators, principals, leaders, and so it's really just a super incredible honor to even be considered a part of the organization.

- How'd they find you?

- You know, that is still a mystery.

(Steve laughs) They seek out and kind of look you up and find out things that you are doing in your classroom through things like social media and your administration.

I remember them saying that you can't be nominated, they find you, and so that's what makes it a really cool process 'cause you know that they kind of organically decided that you are someone that is doing something great in the classroom.

- We should also make it clear it's 25 grand, unrestricted money, $25,000.

So-- - That was a shock.

(laughs) - Okay, so you're in the gym.

- [Taylor] Yep.

- [Steve] Do you know why you were in the gym?

- No, so I actually was on maternity leave.

Everyone was preparing for an assembly which was a little bit more organic, but I was asked by my principal multiple times to come in.

I just had given birth to my twin boys, (Steve claps) and so I had turned down, thank you, I had turned down the offer multiple times, but the invitation became more and more firm that I must attend.

(Steve laughs) And so I just thought it was gonna be a good opportunity to catch up with coworkers that I hadn't seen in a little bit, show off some baby pictures, see some kids, and it turned out to be a big surprise of a lifetime.

- When you heard your name, what did it feel like?

- I think that my first words was that I was shaking afterwards.

I think you see that in the video.

I just could not believe that the way that they spoke about the educator that they were announcing was in connection to my name, and it was shocking, I mean, I just, I barely remembered it at that moment between, you know, postpartum brain and just the shock of it all, it really was a mind-blowing moment.

- We're gonna show the video of you calling your mom right after in a couple minutes, but I'm curious about something.

- Yeah.

- Fourth grade, right?

- Yes.

- What's it mean, inclusion class?

- So, the past couple years I've been a teacher in an inclusion classroom, which means that there are both general education students and students who are classified with special education needs mixed into the classroom to, you know, create exposure and community, and it really is a beautiful structure of a classroom because everybody just becomes super inclusive and welcoming of people's differences and needs.

It's really an awesome program.

- When did you know you wanted to teach?

- I knew when I was very young that I wanted to do something with people, and it wasn't until I was applying to colleges that I felt kind of stuck on what my major would be, and I looked around and thought about the most impactful people around me and all of them were educators, and so I thought, you know, it's a great combination to be able to work with kids to make a difference and hopefully, you know, be a memorable person in somebody's life in their future.

- You've seen this video a lot of you calling your mom.

Now, did they tell you, you call your mom, or call somebody in your family?

- No, they say call somebody who you would like to tell the news to.

My husband's also a teacher, so I knew I couldn't call him.

He has, you know, classes.

(Steve claps) So I figured-- - Did he know?

Hold on, did your husband know?

- No, nobody has any idea.

Nobody knows except for your building principal and the foundation, from what I understand.

- So you didn't call your husband 'cause he was teaching.

- I knew he wouldn't answer.

And if you're on camera, you're gonna call someone who's gonna pick up, and who always picks up but your mother?

- [Mother] Hello?

- Okay, I'm warning you that you're on speaker.

(both laugh) - [Mother] Okay.

- I just won the Milken Educator Award and $25,000.

- [Mother] What?

- Yeah.

It's like, - (laughs) What?

- this crazy national award.

It's like the Oscars of teaching.

- [Mother] Oh my god.

You're kidding me, right?

- No.

- [Mother] Oh my goodness, Taylor.

(laughs) - I know, it's crazy.

- [Mother] Oh my goodness, congratulations.

- Thanks.

It's a good thing you came to watch the boys, huh?

- [Mother] (laughs) Good thing they're still sleeping.

- Oh yeah, (laughs) that would've been terrible too.

- [Mother] Oh my goodness, congratulations, I'm so proud of you, I'm crying.

- Thanks.

Yeah, me too.

(both laugh) - [Mother] Oh, way to go, all of your hard work.

- Thanks.

(laughs) So crazy.

(both laugh) - [Mother] All right, love you.

- Love you, bye.

- [Mother] Bye.

- Ooh, it's the moms, they always get you.

(laughs) - Ah.

What were you feeling in that moment, calling your mom?

- You know, it's such an incredible thing-- - By the way, what were you feeling just watching that again?

- As becoming a mom, like you just, I hope that one day my boys can call me with such incredible news on something that they, you know, have worked so hard for and dedicated themselves to.

I can totally understand the way that my mom was feeling in that moment, and, you know, when I was calling, you get emotional when you're talking to your mom about something that you worked really hard on because you, you know, you go to your mom when you have a rough day or you need some guidance, and so it felt like I was sharing news with somebody who had followed me along the whole path.

- How did COVID affect you as an educator?

- You know, COVID was difficult for education and the families involved as a whole.

You know, collaboration became the name of the game if you weren't doing it already.

I had worked in the lead teacher position to prepare the materials that we needed for those first two weeks home, and we sent home paper packets for the grade level and quickly realized that that wasn't going to cut it, and so when you were considering the physical and mental wellness of the families and the teachers that you work with, along with the economic factors that happened, the goal really was to create meaningful opportunities to connect with kids, trying out new programs, sharing new resources so that the teachers felt like there was a weight lifted off of their back with all they were dealing with personally, and the students felt like they still had a connection to the outside world.

- Hmm.

You know, I'm obsessed by the word and the concept of engagement.

People who work with me, I do a lot of leadership coaching in my other life and I talk about the need to engage people in meetings, engage people in all aspects of our lives, you need to pull them in, involve them.

There's a great quote from Ben Franklin that says, "Tell me and I will forget.

"Teach me and I may remember.

"Engage and involve me and I will understand."

- Yeah.

- What does that mean to you?

- When you think about the students that are in front of you, kids learn best from people who they feel like care about them genuinely, and so when I think about engagement, my mind immediately goes to making genuine connections, getting to know the students, and then tailoring your instruction to make sure that they feel included in the process.

You don't want somebody talking at you all day, you want somebody talking with you, so incorporating interests and making learning fun by adding silly games and activities just makes the engagement, especially in an elementary classroom with fourth graders that are really just seeking connection at this really pivotal age, super meaningful and it makes a difference when they know that you're there for them, not just to teach them.

- So, Taylor, lemme try this.

You have twins right now, right?

- Yes.

(laughs) - And you're teaching?

- Yeah.

- How?

- The eye roll, yep.

(laughs) You know, we're just making it work.

- That's what my wife says all the time.

We have three kids and she's a professional in her field and I don't know how she does it, but-- - Oh, that's awesome.

- Yeah, it's awesome that she does it 'cause, nevermind.

(Taylor laughs) I just do this, which is not that hard.

So here's what I'm curious about.

How do you protect against burnout?

- I think that the ultimate protection for teacher burnout for me, and what I've noticed amongst my colleagues, is protection and respect of time.

You know, the time that teachers have is minimal, so making sure that the resources and the planning and the day-to-day tasks can be minimized by your district and your administration really does make a huge difference in your daily to-dos, and also just making sure that teacher time is respected.

When teachers are pulled for PDs and meetings, making sure that the content is relevant, it's applicable to their instruction, and it's new information that can help them grow as an educator.

I think just coming up with systems to protect your time is what's worked best for me.

- Before I let you go, tell me about this Rowan University, Rowan's one of our higher ed partners.

You were an undergraduate there?

- Yes.

- Okay, and this is a mentoring program for upcoming teachers, what is it and how are you involved?

Got a minute left, go ahead.

- So my, a previous professor reached out to me.

They needed teachers to team up with students that were in the program to give them a look behind the classroom, and so we give these future teachers some examples of classroom management, how to build relationships, how to connect with families in your school environment and your students, because when you introduce some of those foundational skills when they enter the classroom their first year, they have something to lean back on to get themselves started, so that's the goal of the class that I help support.

- I lied, I got a little more time with you.

I heard the bell's gonna go off soon over there.

- Yep, around 3:15 we start calling kids outta here.

- Okay, I better be quick.

We're taping at 3:17 right now.

(Taylor laughs) 1 to 10.

The level of satisfaction I get, 1 to 10, from teaching is?

- I would say a nine.

You know, satisfaction, if I was to say a 10, right, like there would be ponies and unicorns and I'd have unlimited resources and just like, everything's (indistinct speaking) - Are you saying that's not the case?

- You know, you're handed a situation as a public school teacher and it's your job to make the year memorable.

Fourth graders, fifth graders, they're only a fourth grader one time, you are their experience, and so I say a nine because I love being that for my students, making sure that their experience when they look back as an adult, like, "Wow, when I was a fourth grader, "I had a good time."

You know, if I had endless resources and time, it might be a 10, but I'm a realist.

(laughs) - Hey Taylor, congratulations.

- Thank you so much.

- I wish you all the best and you and all your colleagues.

You do important work - Oh, thank you.

- every day with our kids.

(applauds) Well done.

The bell's gonna ring soon.

- Thank you so much.

Yep, gotta head outta here.

Thank you.

- Thank you.

You got it.

Stay with us, we're right back.

- [Narrator] To watch more One on One with Steve Adubato find us online and follow us on Social media.

- The assistant commissioner has an envelope with gold writing and the name on it.

May I have the envelope please?

(audience applauds) The Milken Educator Award goes to Virginia Fasulo!

(audience cheers and applauds) (audience cheers and applause continues) - There she is, Virginia Fasulo.

She is also a Milken Educator awardee high school teacher in Lodi, New Jersey.

Virginia, you just got 25 grand with this Milken Award.

We just saw the video of you, by the way, again, just the same thing with Taylor, you had no idea.

- No idea.

- What did you think you were there for?

- So they had told us that the state was going to be coming to basically congratulate us.

- The state.

- Yes, the state, very vague.

Basically to congratulate us on having been named in the top third of the high schools in New Jersey, which, you know, that's very exciting.

So they had told me to prepare my classroom so that I could lead the state dignitaries around and show them what, you know, the cool stuff that we're doing.

So I had no idea what was going on, it was a total shock.

And really, no one but my superintendent had any idea what was going on.

So it was a very exciting day, a huge surprise.

- Everyone kept it from you?

- Yes, actually, my superintendent kept it from everyone.

Even the other administrators didn't know what was going on.

So everybody was surprised, it was very exciting.

- It's hard to keep a secret in New Jersey.

- Very.

- And we'll show in a little bit, you made the call, and you made the call to your mom?

- Yes, I did.

- Yeah, we're gonna show that in a second.

So tell folks about your winding road into the classroom, please.

- Sure, so I did call my mother because she was actually a teacher herself for 40 years.

She was a cooking and home economics teacher, so she was very excited to hear from me.

Neither one of us ever thought I would become a teacher.

So my original plan was medicine, I had always been interested in, especially veterinary medicine.

So I had planned to go to school for that.

I went to SUNY Albany for undergrad and during that time I sort of got interested in human medicine.

I started to ride with Five Quad Ambulance and it just sort of, both of those things, the marriage of the veterinary world and the human world led me to public health.

So originally my plan was to get my master's in public health and become an epidemiologist and study zoonotic disease, which is animal disease that could be passed to humans and vice versa.

So it was during that time that I was actually diagnosed with cancer.

I got non-Hodgkin's lymphoma diagnosis at the age of 23, so that was a shock and it came a month after my father's non-Hodgkin's lymphoma diagnosis, so quite a year for the Fasulo family there.

We're both good, thank God, but that changed my trajectory entirely.

So I had originally, like I said, planned to go into medicine.

I started to work with patients at the American Cancer Society.

I was doing a little bit of patient outreach and education, just informing them about their own diagnosis and what the resources were for them.

And that changed everything, I found that I actually really loved teaching.

At the time, I was avoiding it because it was my mother's career, I thought I had my own thing going on.

It turns out that is my thing, it's in my blood, I suppose.

So during that time I decided maybe it's time to go back, get a second master's degree in education, and I wound up here in Lodi.

So I've been here for nine years now teaching.

- But you know, it's not an accident that you win the Milken Educator Award.

Your approach, everything I've read about you, everything I've heard about you, what our producers told me is that your approach to educational and to instruction is unique.

Describe it.

- Sure, well, I hope it is.

I think that it is, my students seem to enjoy it.

My approach is a hands-on, very focused on career and technical education in medicine.

So we have behind me, my lovely biomedical sciences lab.

We have the coolest stuff.

So my approach is to integrate just basic learning with hands-on labs.

So we do a lot of hands-on and that's all things that I wish I had had.

- Like what?

Help us understand.

Give us a couple examples of what goes on in the space.

- Sure.

So we have in the back here, we actually have a working hospital wing.

So it's two different hospital rooms, including the curtains that you could pull with working lab beds.

We have our training mannequins in those beds.

So those are mannequins that I can control using a tablet and I can set up all kinds of scenarios for the students to work through.

We have a phlebotomy lab where we're actually learning how to take blood with model arms where I could actually put fake blood inside the model arms so the students are able to really use their hands and experience things in the field that took me years to actually be able to do myself, so I love that I get to bring this to them so early in their high school career.

- What kind of reaction have you gotten from most of your students?

- Just absolute fascination.

This generation, they're really, really good with the technology, they were born into it.

So we have, I mean, we have augmented reality goggles.

These kids are excited about it.

It's something that... - What, what, what?

(Steve sputters) You couldn't just say that.

I don't even know what you just said.

Something about goggles, what?

- Yeah, so we have three models of the HoloLens 2, which basically provide the students with the ability to look inside the human body.

So we overlay the hologram over the actual mannequin and the students can look inside the body.

We can run through multiple scenarios with that.

So you should see them, they feel like Tony, you know, they feel like Iron Man basically.

- Who were you gonna say, who were you gonna say?

- I was gonna say Tony Stark, but that's his... - I knew you were going to.

(Steve and Virginia laugh) - His secret identity, I suppose.

- Okay, yeah, I know.

- But yeah, they love it.

- Go ahead, I'm sorry.

- For sure, for sure.

- Well, before we do the video with your mom, I'm curious about something.

So the argument is everybody's obsessed by their technology and we are, right?

How the heck do you keep your students engaged, interested, and off this?

- So it is always a challenge in every way that I can, I want to teach them how to use that tool, which is what it is, it's a resource.

So I don't ban it, I think that when we ban things entirely, it causes fascination.

So it's like almost like they want it more if I say no.

So if I can get them to look things up, if I can get them to use tools on it to teach them how to use it in a productive way, then they don't feel like they really need to reach for it.

I also try to keep things really active in the classroom.

So we have about five minutes per activity and then we switch it up, right?

- Keep it moving?

- So we have kids in stations all the time.

Bell to bell, you got to keep them busy, absolutely.

- You know what?

I also know that you used a phone, your phone, to make an important call, a call to your mom.

You want to check this video out?

Elvin, we ready to do it?

I want Virginia to see it.

She's seen it many times before, but she's gonna see it again.

- [Virginia's Mom] Hello?

- Hi mom, you're on speaker phone.

We're being recorded.

I wanted to let you know that I won the Milken Educator Award.

- [Virginia's Mom] Oh my gosh.

(Virginia laughs) That is the most amazing news.

- I'm very speechless, this is very unexpected.

- [Virginia's Mom] Oh my god.

Hold on, can you repeat that for daddy?

- Hi dad, it's me, I won the Milken Educator Award.

- [Virginia's Dad] Wow.

- Yeah, so we're on speakerphone.

There's a lot of people here listening to us.

We're being recorded, but it's very exciting.

So I just wanted to let you guys know what was going on.

- Thank you so much.

- That's cool, I love you so much.

- Mom, I won $25,000.

(Virginia's parents laugh) (group laughs) - [Virginia's Dad] Holy smokes!

- Yeah, so it was kind of a big deal, I have a lot to tell you.

(laughs) - [Virginia's Mom] My god, call us later, honey.

- Okay, I will.

I love you.

- Love you too.

- Thanks, mom.

- [Colleague] Oh my goodness, it's the best.

- Well, thank you guys.

(group applauds) My mom, she was a teacher for 40 years, so this is very, I followed in her footsteps and she is best teacher, so wow.

- Wow.

- Did you see me shaking?

- By the way, I found it fascinating at the last minute was like, "Yeah, by the way, I won 25 grand."

(Virginia laughs) - Actually, one of the other awardees was there in the background saying, "Tell her how much you won."

(Steve laughs) - Yeah.

- I was very overwhelmed.

- Amazing.

I can't imagine for your mom, given her background, what this meant to her.

What'd she tell you after?

That she didn't tell you when you were live on the phone?

- She was over the moon.

She had to tell me how she had to wrangle my father to keep him from being very, in the background.

But they were both extremely excited and very proud.

They called my brother immediately and they were just on the phone with everybody.

She was very excited, but she's very proud.

I think she was a little worried about me going into teaching.

She was on her way out when I was on my way in, and she was telling me how much it had changed over the years.

So I think she's just really happy to see how much I love it here and how happy I've been in my career.

And now to see me, it's very validating, you know?

It's something that feels really good to be recognized, especially because it sometimes feels like we don't get recognized very often.

There's so many other teachers in this school that are just phenomenal.

So it was very gratifying for me personally, and I think my mother too.

- Virginia, I want to follow up on that last point.

So we have a series that's simply called "Who Will Teach Our Children?"

Who do you believe, given all the challenges in the teaching profession, and the burnout, and post-COVID, who do you believe will teach, other than you and other than Taylor, who will teach our children?

- Well, we have to make it more appealing to the younger generation that's coming up because I think a lot of them have seen what's been going on and have really chosen a different path, but I do think that we'll come back to it.

I think that this is something that's a temporary hiccup.

I do believe that we are going to fix these problems.

I mean, now that they are really in the light, I think that that gives us a chance to kind of work through them and figure out where these holdups are.

And I think they're becoming pretty obvious what the holdups are.

So I do think, hopefully, they will see what we're doing and all these different things that we are bringing to the table and want to join.

I mean, I hope this is something that will inspire other people to want to become educators because it really, you know, when you ignore all the other challenges, teaching the students, it really is the greatest joy of my life.

And that's not an exaggeration.

It's such a wonderful experience to be able to get to know these young people, and see what they're capable of, and how they grow, and how excited they are to learn when you make it exciting.

You know what I mean?

Like, it does require that.

So hopefully we will inspire some new people to come in.

It is a real challenge.

I mean, everywhere is short teachers, people are picking up the slack, which is making it harder on us who are left behind.

So it definitely has its challenges, but I do think now that those challenges have become more obvious, you know, thanks to COVID in large part, hopefully we'll be able to patch up those holes and get more people on board.

But it is definitely a problem.

- You know, Virginia, I have this crazy idea that you just inspired some folks right now.

Not just to consider the profession, but for those of us who are parents and who have had our kids go through public schools, to remind us how blessed and fortunate we are to have educators like you and like Taylor, whether you win an award or not, but congratulations on the 25 grand with the Milken Educator Award.

Virginia Fasulo.

A great teacher, a great leader.

Thank you, Virginia.

Appreciate it.

- Thank you so much.

What an honor.

- I'm Steve Adubato.

Virginia and Taylor, two great teachers that have 25 grand now.

We'll see you next time.

(Steve clapping) - [Narrator] One-On-One with Steve Adubato is a production of the Caucus Educational Corporation.

Celebrating 30 years in public broadcasting.

Funding has been provided by The New Jersey Education Association.

Rowan University.

New Jersey Sharing Network.

NJ Best, New Jersey’s five-two-nine college savings plan.

Wells Fargo.

RWJBarnabas Health.

Let’s be healthy together.

The Healthcare Foundation of New Jersey.

NJM Insurance Group.

And by The Fidelco Group.

Promotional support provided by NJ.Biz.

And by New Jersey Monthly.

- (Narrator) New Jersey is home to the best public schools in the nation, and that didn't happen by accident.

It's the result of parents, educators and communities working together year after year to give our students a world class education.

No matter the challenge, because parents and educators know that with a shared commitment to our public schools, our children can learn, grow and thrive.

And together, we can keep New Jersey's public schools the best in the nation.