He teaches at Lane Middle School in southeast Portland, Oregon—about an hour drive from St. Helens, but galaxies apart. With nearly 450 students, Lane Middle School sees its diversity as its biggest asset. Nick Hull and friends from Lane Middle School Portland Ore. I don’t want to write about no white girl.”It was scary to drop off my students’ poems at Lane. Empathy key to human lifeLike any middle school teacher, I just plant seeds, hoping that they blossom, grow, and bloom into something beautiful, vibrant, and awe-inspiring.