MY STORY
A Little About Me
HI! I’M ALLI. I have loved studying the world since I was a little kid. My third grade class did “World Traveler” projects, where we had to present on different countries around the world. Ever since then, I’ve been hooked on the world.
EDUCATION. My interest in global studies kept growing through some international traveling as a teen and a college student. After studying abroad in Jerusalem and traveling to the surrounding regions, I decided to get my B.S. in Social Sciences Education, with a minor in Spanish Teaching. Licensed to teach nearly all my favorite subjects (Sociology, Psychology, Anthropology, Political Science, World History, U.S. History) at the middle and high school level, I completed my student teaching in World History at a public middle school. I loved it, but still wasn’t sure if teaching was right for me, so I went back to get an MPA (Masters of Public Administration), emphasizing in Nonprofit Management. However, during my courses, I kept feeling like access to education was one of the root causes of many of the issues we were studying. I learned a lot in that program, yet a life in education was pulling me back. I ended up leaving my masters program to go back to teach World History. The choice was unconventional, but I’ve never once regretted it!
TEACHING YEARS. Teaching was challenging and rewarding. Every day I got to leave my insular little life, and go explore the world with teenagers. For most of the freshman I taught, it was their first real introduction to the world. I got to take the very complex world’s history and distill it down to the basics so that 14- and 15-year-olds could grasp it. This “explaining in an understandable way” was a skill I really tried to master. And whenever I’d talk to adults about what I was teaching, many of them said they wanted to be a “fly on the wall” in my room to relearn it all. Even back then, the wheels were spinning that adults need constant education and re-education as well.
THE PODCAST. I now stay at home with my kids, and in my (very spare) time, I inhale audiobooks. I was warned that in becoming a stay-at-home-parent, my brain would turn to mush. While there are days it feels that way, most days that has not been true—my education has absolutely continued!
This podcast is a way to motivate me to stay up-to-date on these subjects, and also to help other people who want to be well-read and educated, but have limited time on their hands. I hope you enjoy listening as much as I enjoy producing this show.
Some of my faves
