Our roots in education go deep here at Class Intercom, and we know what it’s like to implement new technology within schools and districts (even on a small scale). Schools need great technology, but they also need help training, implementing, and using it. At Class Intercom, there’s a whole team devoted specifically to that. That means, when you need a hand–whether it’s additional training for your team, help outlining policies and guidelines, student training and certifications, or just a quick technical question about a feature–you get somebody who gets it. Somebody like Kirk–a former high school music teacher with a passion for helping students and schools. We sat down with Kirk to learn a little more about his former life in education, his passions and interests, and his crucial role here at Class Intercom.
What inspired you to become a teacher?
My mother was my inspiration. She retired from Lincoln Public Schools in Lincoln, Nebraska as an elementary school teacher after 40 years in the district and is the best educator I’ve ever seen or met.
An old photo of Kirk from his teaching days.
What was most rewarding about your time in the classroom?
The most rewarding part was relationships with fellow teachers and students. I got to work with some brilliant people early in their lives as students and watch them develop. There were certainly challenges, but I try not to dwell on them; most were systemic and much bigger than me. Challenges in the classroom were exhilarating–trying to figure out what motivates students and how I could help them get from where they were to where they could be.
Tell us about your role at Class Intercom?
I am a Customer Success Specialist. I’m part of a team of passionate people who help different types of users at schools all over the country (and internationally) implement and use our technology at the student, administrative, and even district levels.
What do you find most rewarding about working in EdTech?
You can take the teacher out of the classroom but you can’t take the classroom out of the teacher. I still believe in the power of a school in a student’s life and I feel like I can support the experts on the frontline as well as their students, and I love that. I’m so grateful to be here.
Why is it important for schools and teachers to engage students in storytelling?
Because the most impactful stories in our schools are the stories of our students. If we want the world to know about the great things happening in our schools, they need to get a window into the stories of our students.
What’s something people would be surprised to learn about how schools implement technology?
Kids don’t love being on screens all day. They will often be the first to admit that sometimes a paper and pencil is a breath of fresh air.
Give us all your favorites:
Ice cream: Cherry Garcia Passtime: Watching soccer Song: Casimir Pulaski Day by Sufjan Stevens Color: Orange TV Show: The Sopranos Movie: Kingdom of Heaven (The Director’s Cut only)
“We are about to be in full swing with Classroom Intercom. We are ready to launch with our administrative team and our students. I wanted to give a shout out to Kirk–what a rockstar! He has helped me troubleshoot the mess of social media we had prior in order to hit the ground running. He is great and so professional. We wouldn’t be ready to kick this Classroom Intercom Era off without him! Thanks for everything y’all do to give this opportunity to our students and community.”
–Class Intercom Customer
What’s unique about how Class Intercom approaches customer success?
The job of our customer success team only barely starts when someone subscribes to our platform. Success, for us, is deep, authentic implementation.
