Mariano Velez

INKBLOTZ

  • The Paradox of Connection

    You’d think, as a high school dean, I’d have a crystal-clear picture of youth culture. I mean, I see it all—hallway drama, TikTok choreography in the quad, debates over whose Crocs are cooler. I confiscate phones with the reflexes of… more ›

  • An Educator’s Love Letter to Liquid Sanity

    Let’s get one thing straight: coffee isn’t a luxury for teachers. It’s a survival mechanism. A coping strategy. A legal form of self-medication brewed in Keurig pods and staff lounge folklore. Coffee is what separates us from the animals.Also from… more ›

  • Finding Me

    There was a time when my creative spirit showed up everywhere—like glitter at an arts and crafts party. It got into everything. Teaching, storytelling, even rearranging the spice rack felt like an act of expression. I was a voracious reader,… more ›

  • More Me Than You Think: A Creator’s Spirit

    We all carry worlds inside our heads—some loud, some quiet, some a little strange.This is mine: a peek behind the curtain at the curiosity, the quirks, and the caffeine-fueled chaos that shape how I see and create in this world.… more ›

  • Year 26

    25 years as an educator—and at least a dozen more before that coaching, mentoring, running camps, leading arts programs, and engaging in general kid-centered monkey business (some of which may have included dodgeballs, duct tape, and popsicle sticks). It’s been,… more ›

  • Tales from the Inside: The Usual Suspects (Lounge Cut)

    It was the Thursday before the first day of school, and the teacher’s lounge had that eerie calm-before-the-storm vibe. You know the one—burnt coffee brewing, the hum of a vending machine that hasn’t accepted paper money since the Bush administration,… more ›

  • A quick Walmart run, a sweater vest, and three very stoned prophets.

    So this happened today….. Honest, it did. I only went to Walmart to pick up some meds and maybe a couple boxes of Oreos. Simple mission. In and out. You know the move: park near the pharmacy entrance, avoid eye… more ›

  • Before Viral Was a Thing: Mariachi vs. Migra

    There’s a series of stories I’ve been carrying for a while—stories that needed telling.But before I share the rest of my collection, I wanted to start here, with this oneto test the waters and see if my words find a… more ›

  • What Writing Looks Like (for Me)

    I’ve always been drawn to creating things—music, sketches, photos, splashes of color and sound—but writing? That one snuck up on me. I didn’t grow up thinking I’d be a writer. I didn’t carry a journal or dream of publishing a… more ›

  • Designing for Redemption: Rethinking Grading and Growth in the Classroom

    There’s something profoundly human about allowing a student the chance to redeem themselves—but redemption can’t be accidental or symbolic. It must be deliberately built into how we teach, assess, and relate to students. Too often, our systems—especially grading—treat learning like… more ›

  • What Teaching Used to Be —and What We’ve Lost Along the Way

    There was a time—not long ago—when teaching was built on short readings and long conversations. Classrooms echoed with curiosity. Students asked questions. Teachers asked even more.And the best days? The ones when we didn’t rush to answers. Yes, there was… more ›

  • Someone asked me today how I was doing.

    I am tired…. …of being strong. …of feeling sad. …of not having answers. …of needing a break. …of this continuing heat. …of not enough sleep. …of feeling tired. But, I am grateful, and thankful… …that I am alive. …for my… more ›

  • What Drives Me

    Over the course of my life, and career as an educator, I’ve been asked these questions more than once.I remember one time clearly—it was during a workshop on student resilience. Another time, it came up in a leadership meeting. We… more ›

  • Built By Hand

    There’s something to be said about working with your hands. The whole DIY thing—patching a leaky faucet, sanding down a splintered door, fixing the fence before it falls over—doesn’t get the credit it used to. These skills were once passed… more ›

  • Sunsets in the Valley

    I’ve said it before, and I’ll keep saying it—there’s nothing quite like a sunset in the Imperial Valley. Clouds or clear skies, summer heat or winter chill—it doesn’t matter. The sky catches fire, the desert exhales, and for a few… more ›