In this week’s episode of Holding the Line, we explore what it truly means to pick up the spot of the person next to you when they can’t hold their part of the line. From a devastating personal loss experienced by our principal to students testing boundaries, we reflect on how teachers and staff stepped in to support both our students and each other. This episode highlights the importance of relationships—not just with students, but with coworkers—showing that trust, loyalty, and resilience are the foundation of a line that won’t break. Through bending when necessary, standing firm when it counts, and carrying each other’s load, we demonstrate that holding the line is about showing up for everyone in it.

In this raw and honest episode, Colton Lee takes us inside the first week back at his Alternative Learning Center — a four-day whirlwind marked by new students testing limits, tech blocks adding fuel to frustration, and a chaotic parent blow-up echoing through the halls. He unpacks the harsh realities of working in a high-needs environment: a SPED caseload growing faster than prep time allows, kids gaming the system to avoid work, and teachers already drained by Thursday. And when a new hire walks out before day one even begins, Colton reflects on what it really means to stand united — and why these students need stability more than anything else.

If you've ever felt like you’re holding the building up with one hand and your sanity with the other, this one’s for you.

In this episode, we flip the script and hear directly from the ones who see it all — our students. Colton sits down with his own teenage daughter to talk about what teens really notice about teachers and adults online, how our digital lives can build or break trust, and why even students without social media still see our “shadows.” If you’ve ever wondered what your students think when they Google you — don’t miss this one.

In this episode of Holding the Line, we step outside the classroom walls and into the digital world we carry in our pockets every day. From late-night rants and “harmless” memes to privacy slips and viral screenshots, teachers today walk a line online that can make or break trust in an instant.

Colt unpacks why even good teachers slip up, shares practical habits to protect your digital reputation, and breaks down exactly how to repair the damage when a post goes too far. Real stories, real talk, and a reminder that we’re all human — but the line is worth holding strong.

Whether you’re a veteran teacher or just starting out, this hour-long episode will help you pause before you post, fix it when you mess up, and model the digital citizenship your students are watching for every day.

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In this raw, unfiltered hour, we crack open the real unwritten rules of the Alternative Learning Center — the messy truths you won’t find in a teacher handbook. From silent agreements to survival humor, meltdown moments to the weight you can’t carry home, this episode is your after-hours debrief for the trenches.
Grab your gas station coffee, take a breath, and remember: you’re not alone. Israel, Slovenia, Hong Kong, small-town USA — we’re all holding the line together.

What happens when you return to the district you loved — the one where you student taught, the one that felt like home — only to be thrown into a job with no training, no access, and no support? In this raw and honest episode, I share the story of being set up to fail as a new SPED teacher, punished for being resourceful, and pushed out for asking the very questions he should’ve been encouraged to ask.

This one’s for every new teacher navigating a broken system, for the ones quietly struggling behind closed doors, and for anyone who’s ever wondered, “Is it me… or is this whole setup backwards?”

Real talk, hard truths, and a reminder: you’re not the problem.