Mrs. Lori Baris on Personal Responsibility, Being Known and Loved, and Eighteen Years of Caring | Season 2, Ep 37

In Episode 37 of The Late Start Show, we sit down with Mrs. Lori Baris, the beloved longtime third-grade teacher at University School who spent eighteen years on the lower-school campus and still returns regularly as a substitute. Mrs. Baris takes us back to growing up in a freer, unscheduled Cleveland of the 1950s and '60s, riding the Rapid downtown to Indians games and playing outside until the porch light came on. She shares the quiet, profound influence of the fourth-grade teacher who took her under her wing the year she lost her mother, a kindness that shaped her entire understanding of what a teacher can be. She also traces her path from Cleveland Heights High and four generations of Ohio State Buckeyes to her first nervous days in the classroom, when a perceptive first-grader saw right through her and taught her to think on her feet.From the mentors who freed her to take risks to the colleagues who pulled her out of her comfort zone and into the woods at Camp Whitewood, Mrs. Baris opens up about the traditions that make US feel like a place where you are truly known and loved: the handshakes, the private third-grade wing, and the sweet treats given freely each morning and "earned" again with a story when students come back to visit. She reflects on teaching math from her dining room table during COVID, the loss of her father that helped her know it was time to step back and be present for her grandchildren, and why she keeps showing up for four-year-olds who wave at her through the library window. Looking back on a life in the classroom, Mrs. Baris shares her hope of fostering kindness in the next generation, the deep and lasting way teachers hold onto their students, and the relationships that, more than any lesson plan, define her "why."Credits to Theo Walter for Production and Editing, Russ Nobles for the Intro and Outro songs, Mr. Wickboldt for being our advisor, and you for listening to our podcast and keeping up with the latest US news.