The White Rhino: A Blog about Education and Latino Issues

Archive for June 2013

How students read between the lines

Ending the school year is tough: students are tired, good teachers are exhausted. The start of our school year was rough; the end of it is rougher. So what’s a good teacher to do? I keep things moving by teaching students to read closely. After we read There Are No Children Here by Alex Kotlowitz, a... Read more »

By Ray Salazar, NBCT,
June 20, 2013 at 3:07 pm •

TribNation Conversation for Chicago Public Schools CEO too easy

I bought a ticket to the TribNation’s Chicago Forward conversation between the Tribune’s Editorial Page Editor Bruce Dold and Chicago Public Schools CEO Barbara Bryd-Bennett yesterday thinking, “This should be interesting.” The Chase Auditorium had lots of empty seats when I arrived minutes before it started. Many people greeted familiar faces. Most of the audience... Read more »

By Ray Salazar, NBCT,
June 19, 2013 at 12:39 am •

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About the Blogger

Since 1995, Ray has been an public school English teacher in Chicago.

In 2017, thanks to a former student, Ray received a Distinguished Secondary Teacher Award from Northwestern University.

In March 2013, The White Rhino tied for second place in the Best Blog category of the Education Writers Association's national writing contest.

Ray earned an M.A. in Writing, with distinction, and a B.A. in English and Secondary Education from DePaul University. He's been a National Board Certified Teacher for over ten years.

He graduated from a neighborhood Chicago public high school.

His writing aired on National Public Radio and Chicago Public Radio many times. His editorials appeared in the Chicago Tribune and on CNN's Schools of Thought blog, as well as on the National Board for Professional Teaching Standards' Web site. He's also written articles for NPR's Latino USA, Latino Rebels, and NewsTaco.

Ray is also a powerlifter and an aspiring guitarist.

For thirty years, Ray lived in Chicago's 26th Street neighborhood. Today, he lives a little more south and a little more west in the city with his wife, son, and daughter.

Photo credit: Rocky Jara: Rocky JPhoto on Facebook
The Blog’s Title

This comes from a conversation with another Latino English teacher when we met a few years ago. He said I was the only other Latino English teacher he knew: "We're white rhinos."
According to National Geographic, there are about 20,000 southern white rhinos struggling to survive in the wild.
The last male northern white rhino in the world died in March.
Like the animal, Latino English teachers exist in low numbers. And we know the low number of Latinos with college degrees in our city.
Therefore, I have a perspective that, like the white rhino, must fight to exist. The writing here includes my responses, reflections, reactions to Latino- and education-related issues.
Recent posts
- Chicago public school teacher discusses creating socially just and academically challenging classrooms »
  
  Ray Salazar, NBCT on The White Rhino: A Blog about Education and Latino Issues
  
  Posted April 6, 2021 at 8:47 am
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  Ray Salazar, NBCT on The White Rhino: A Blog about Education and Latino Issues
  
  Posted March 21, 2021 at 12:06 pm
- Chicago Teacher Offers Virtual Editorial-Writing Workshop for High-School Teachers »
  
  Ray Salazar, NBCT on The White Rhino: A Blog about Education and Latino Issues
  
  Posted March 7, 2021 at 10:10 pm
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  Ray Salazar, NBCT on The White Rhino: A Blog about Education and Latino Issues
  
  Posted February 23, 2021 at 9:42 am
- Chicago Public Schools students evaluate Biden's and Trump's speeches after Capitol insurrection »
  
  Ray Salazar, NBCT on The White Rhino: A Blog about Education and Latino Issues
  
  Posted January 14, 2021 at 2:36 pm
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