Spring Lizard Talks

Lizard Talks take place throughout the year and are an opportunity for professional adults, from within and without our school community, to share their expertise with high school students. This Spring has featured several Lizard Talks on the subject of meditation and consciousness, video game design, and better understanding of the LGBTQ+ community, gender, and sexuality.

Jaime Flores

Hacking Life: The Journey of Self-Knowledge

Jaime Flores is the IT Coordinator at Oak Grove School and a Facilitator of Pneuma Transpersonal Training & Pneuma Breathwork. In the talk, Jaime explored how to unlock the hidden potential of our consciousness by drawing upon the wisdom of both ancient and modern sciences of the mind, including the Allegory of Plato’s Cave. Through this exploration, students were shown ways to approach life’s challenges with greater clarity and purpose.

Michael Hemmert Jensen – Gaming

Oak Grove parent and Software Engineer with 15 years of experience, Michael gave a wonderful presentation on the inner-workings of computer game design and more. Since 2014, he has been working at Riot Games developing systems for managing professional players in Esports tournaments, tracking game stats for broadcast teams and viewers, and handling video for online streaming. Recently, Michael has been working on the League of Legends deploy team, building tools for delivering regular updates to the game. In his free time, Michael loves DIY projects, 3D printing, travel, and, of course, playing video games.

Azalea Corral

Understanding the LGBTQ+ Community: What is Gender and Sexuality?

Azalea Corral is Pacific Pride Foundation‘s Training and Education Manager. She is a Latina woman who is part of the LGBTQ+ community. She is completing her Master’s Degree in International and Multicultural Education. Azalea grew up in both Santa Barbara and Goleta, and has worked professionally to create inclusive learning environments throughout California in places such as the University of California, Riverside, and San Francisco State University. In her free time, she enjoys hiking, playing guitar, and practicing her photography skills.

Lizard Talk

Recent Blog Posts:

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Alumni Profile: Lewis Lu ’19

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It is from the small things of everyday life at Oak Grove, living with the people and the philosophy the school is so closely tied to. It can be how everyone is willing to listen to what you have to say and to live through the better and the worse of life with you; it can be feeling welcomed by everyone with open arms regardless of who you are and where you are from; it can also be a trip to India where you get to see the different lives people live in this world, just to name a few.
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Benjamin Mertz speaking at Pavilion

Welcoming Artist in Residence, Benjamin Mertz

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Through student assemblies, class meetings, faculty and staff in-service, and parent education, students of all ages, parents and staff will have the opportunity to engage with Benjamin throughout his stay in April.
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Seeds of Belonging

Seeds of Belonging

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Seeds of Belonging Ojai is an anti-bias/anti-racism initiative for early childhood educators and parents that aims to cultivate futures of understanding, accountability, accommodation, and respect among differences in the local community and in the world at large.
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