Joe DePaulo is a Third Grade teacher. He has been teaching since 2006, and when asked, serves as a mentor to first year teachers.  Joe's passion is bringing making into the classroom, and seeing students work through frustrations, turning struggles into success. Along with making, empathy is a crucial part for student's social emotional learning. Joe tries to encourage students to see the world through a designers eye, hoping they will realize their world was designed by humans, and will be redesigned by them. 

Teaching was Joe's second career choice.  He obtained his first bachelor's degree from The Richard Stockton College in Sociology with a minor in Criminal Justice.  After graduating he waited tables and traveled extensively.   A co-worker at the restaurant convinced Joe to start subbing in his district.  Joe took him up on it, and after a few times, decided to go back to Stockton & get his bachelor's in Education.  Upon completion in December, he was hired to fill a maternity leave in February, and by the end of that school year Joe was hired by his current school district and never looked back. 

Joe realize how lucky he is to be able to do what he does.  The job is extremely important and he takes it very seriously.  Preparing students to be successful in life with what ever it is they choose to do is Joe's main objective.  That's what fuels his fire for Teachernerdz.  Joe has seen Ron in action & has been lucky enough to sit in on his classes.  Joe feels that Ron has helped him improve as a teacher and as a person.  Joe looks forward to their Teachernerdz journey!

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Ron Nober, is a technology teacher for grades 3-8. He has been teaching since 2011 and teaching technology since September 2015.  Ron loves to help others incorporate technology into their classrooms and is also interested in the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), making in the classroom, design thinking, video and audio editing, and student entrepreneurship.

Ron loves encouraging students to collaborate, be creative, think critically, have confidence, and develop skills to be used in the future; maybe even encourage students to be the people who CREATE those jobs teachers always talk about, the jobs teachers say they are preparing them for, the ones teachers say don't yet exist! Some of our students WILL be the ones creating those jobs!

Ron is co-cfounder of the Southampton Student Design Company, on Twitter at @ssdesignc, a student run business. The students are involved in all aspects of the business, design, production, sales, marketing, inventory, accounting, and more. Additionally, a percentage of the profits benefit student chosen charities. 

Ron came to teaching later in life after jobs as an archaeologist and dog trainer. He is a graduate of Temple University with a Bachelors Degree in Anthropology and he earned his Masters Degree and teaching certification from Fairleigh Dickinson University. 

Joe, teachernerdz co-host,  was Ron's mentor teacher when he began and they have both geeked out on preparing students not just for the future, but working to prepare them with skills needed for whatever the future may hold. Ron feels blessed and lucky to be on this wild ride with Joe.

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