Sixteen teachers choose high school
Pielmeier joins staff
Q: Where did you go to college and what degree did you receive?
A: I went to Mount Aloysius College, and I received a baccalaureate degree in secondary education/history and political science.
Q: Were you originally from Altoona, or did you come from somewhere else?
A: I kind of joined from the dark side. I went to high school and grew up in Hollidaysburg. I’m happy to be in my new home instead of back in Hollidaysburg
Q: Do you do anything outside of teaching?
A: I’m the assistant coach at Mount Aloysius for their men’s soccer team. I just got married, and I enjoy hanging out with my wife. We’re renovating a house right now, so lots of stuff is going on.
Q: Tell me about the hiring process you had to go through
A: My first interview I actually had a Zoom interview because at my previous job, I couldn’t get off in time. I was called back for a second interview and came in to Mr. Saboe’s room to teach a lesson about the Cold War. So after the two interviews and coming in to teach, I had a conversation with a panel of teachers and administrators. I actually received a call 20 minutes after I left the building.
Q: Why did you decide to become a teacher?
A: I had a traumatic injury in seventh grade playing kickball. I had one teacher that works at Hollidaysburg that was very good to me. Mr. Klausman was another teacher who had a similar role and kind of made me realize I liked teaching. I like having that chance to have an impact on someone’s life
Q: What is the biggest struggle you’ve faced so far?
A: I would say every day is a struggle. But the biggest one is probably trying to always be flexible. Between copiers being down, when kids didn’t have their Chromebooks and things like that, teachers just kind of have to be flexible to figure that stuff out on the fly.
Q: What is your favorite lesson that you’ve taught or plan to teach this year?
A: I like the time period we’re dealing with in class now, which is industrialization. I really liked my interview presentation on the Cold War. It sounds bad, but my favorite part about studying history is the wars. It’s one of the more entertaining topics in history.
Q: If you could give one piece of advice, what would it be
A: My classroom motto last year was if you’re not laughing, you’re doing something wrong. You’ve always got to find the the bright side of something; always turn a positive into a negative.
A whole new world for Prosser
Q: Where did you go to college and what degree did you receive?
A: For undergrad I went to Penn State Altoona, and I got a Bachelor of Science in Human Development and Family Studies, and then I went to Penn State University Park for my master’s in counselor education.
Q: If you weren’t teaching, what would your favorite subject be?
A: I would probably be an elementary school teacher, but if it was high school, maybe media.
Q: What process did you have to go through to be hired?
A: I was at a different school. I just graduated in May, but I was at a different school and then this job opened up, so I started three weeks into the school year. This is my eleventh day here.
Q: If you could change one thing about your interview, what would it be and why?
A: Honestly, probably nothing. I think the people who interviewed me were great. We had Mr. Nedimyer, the head of counseling, so obviously it was just appropriate people to be there.
Q: Why did you become a teacher?
A: I loved my elementary school counselors when I was growing up and then in high school, before I moved to Hollidaysburg, I had pretty awful high school counselors. I wish they would have been better. Then I moved to Hollidaysburg, and I loved my counselors there as well, so they have just always been people I’ve looked up to.
Q: What made you choose AAHS?
A: I was at a different school for a couple weeks, and I was driving really far away. I interned at Logan Elementary last year, and I just love the Altoona School District. I’m glad I got a job here.
Q: What struggles have you faced as a teacher?
A: I only have elementary experience, so high school is a whole new world to me. But that’s pretty much it.
Q: What was your dream job?
A: I wanted to be a marine biologist and an astronaut and then obviously that changed.
Q: What do you like to do out of school?
A: I definitely go on walks a lot, like hiking or even just around my neighborhood. In the wintertime, I will be skiing everyday after school.
Q: What was high school like for you?
A: I moved to a different high school at the start of my eleventh grade year. It was kind of confusing, but I joined cheerleading. I knew the wrestling manager, so I joined activities to get more involved. I really liked high school. I enjoyed it.
Q: How has school changed since you were a student?
A: I think mental health is changing. They’re looking into helping students more with mental health. I think whenever I was in high school, it wasn’t talked about as much so more of an openness to help students through issues that they’re facing.
Q: What’s the best advice you could give students?
A: I would say just be kind to others. You know, the golden rule: treat others the way you want to be treated. I see a lot of students that are struggling both ways, and that was just always something that stuck with me ever since I was in elementary school.
Czankner shares her story
Q: Where did you go to college and what degree did you receive?
A: I went to Penn State for my undergrad. My majors were Spanish and education, and then I had a minor in International Studies. I got my master’s from the University of Scranton in Curriculum and Instruction. At Penn State, double majoring was not difficult because I went in as a Spanish Education major, but to get a double major in Spanish, I only had to take one more class. By studying abroad, I got the International Studies minor, so actually, I only had to take one extra class.
Q: If you weren’t teaching, what would your favorite subject be?
A: Either history or English. I feel that they all go together, the humanities. With language, there’s a lot of history involved in it and how it came to be and how it spread. And then literature, well, I love reading.
Q: What process did you have to go through to be hired?
A: I taught at Mifflin County for eight years before this. And then in the process to be hired, I did an interview with Mr. Hatch and Mr. Neely and just the regular application stuff, like a resume, and then answered some essay questions. So, this is my ninth year teaching, first year in Altoona.
Q: If you could change one thing about your interview, what would it be and why?
A: I think whenever there’s an interview, you go over the questions in your head and think about a different way that you could have answered them.
Q: Why did you become a teacher?
A: I love learning, above everything. If I wasn’t a teacher, I would be a student forever. The best part about college was that I could just sit in classes and pick what I got to learn, so I think the next natural thing is if I can’t be a learner forever, if I can’t be a student forever, I’d want to be a teacher so that my students can learn.
Q: What made you choose AAHS?
A: My husband, Mr. Czankner, is the Student Support Specialist, so he has taught in the district for a while, at Pleasant Valley and in the junior high. I was teaching in Mifflin County, we lived in Bellefonte and we were both doing a long commute. We knew that we had to make a change; we had to move, and Altoona is such a great district. I’ve always heard such great things from my husband, so it was just a natural place to want to work at. We like the community a lot. It’s similar to how we grew up when we went to high school together.
Q: What struggles have you faced as a teacher?
A: Not having enough time in the day to get everything done.
Q: What was your dream job?
A: As a kid, I wanted to be an Egyptologist. I loved different cultures, history and different languages. I think my dream job now, well, I wouldn’t have one. This is my dream job. If I wasn’t a teacher I would be a stay-at-home mom, but I don’t think I could ever give up teaching.
Q: What do you like to do outside of school?
A: I like to listen to podcasts. I listen to a lot of reality TV. There’s a lot of them where they review episodes. I listen to a couple of news podcasts, and one that’s just about a random topic. They just explain it. It’s called “Stuff You Should Know”.
Q: What was your favorite lesson you’ve ever taught?
A: In Mifflin County, the kids would make a green screen video. They had to research a Spanish speaking country, make a whole script and pretend like they went there. It was in front of a green screen, so it looked like they were there. And I think my favorite day of that was when we would just watch everyone’s videos. That was always my favorite because people were super proud of their videos. They put so much work into them and it was awesome to see that their hard work really paid off. Kids would say ‘I can’t speak any Spanish’. Well, you just made a three minute video that did.
Q: What was high school like for you?
A: I went to a really small high school. There were only about 125 kids in each grade and I had class with the same 30 kids every single period from sixth grade to twelfth grade. It was good in a sense because we knew everyone, and on your first day of school, it’s not like you wonder who’s in your classes. You already knew who was in your classes. And Mr. Czankner and I started dating in high school. But, we didn’t have as many opportunities as there are here. There were only two AP classes that we could take, calculus and English. Since then they’ve added a lot more. But basically, you had no electives. It was all set. Your junior year you take this, your senior year you take this. The only options were honors or not honors, but there were no electives. It was not like here. Here, I don’t even know how many electives there are. It’s awesome to see how many opportunities there are for kids.
Q: How has school changed since you were a student?
A: School has gotten a lot more interactive. When I was a student, we sat at desks and took notes, took a test, notes, took a test, notes, took a test. Even in my Spanish classes in high school, we didn’t ever speak. We just took notes, did some worksheets, took a test, notes, worksheets, test. So, I try to get [my students] speaking every day.
Q: What’s the best advice you could give students?
A: Never stop learning. Education doesn’t end when you graduate, there’s always something more to learn.
Cron talks about life of teaching
Q: Where did you go to college and what degree did you receive?
A: My undergrad at Penn State and I got an art history degree. Now I’m in graduate school with Edinboro, and I’m getting my master’s in art education.
Q: So if you weren’t teaching family consumer science, what subject would you try and teach here at the school?
A: It would still be in family consumer science but sewing classes. So that’s my medium. I like using fiber arts, like learning to upcycle useless stuff into stuff you actually want. Make it cool.
Q: What process did you have to go through to be hired at Altoona?
A: I started out in a grant funded position as Keystone refresher classes and sort of jumped in there after. I subbed for four and a half years. I knew the people here, I knew what I needed to do. And I knew where I wanted to maneuver myself. So I started there. When Mrs. Kirsch retired, I was able to get into the right department.
Q: If you could change anything about your interview with Mr. Neely, what would it be?
A: I’m pretty open. So I was just very honest, and I might have overwhelmed him with all my ideas for sewing classes, but I would do it again.
Q: Why did you become a teacher?
A: First of all my kids are here. This is where we live. And I started many years ago as a lunch lady. All the little kids I know are now high school students, and I get to see them all the time.
Q: What struggles have you faced as a teacher?
A: Behaviors and how to seat students so that their behaviors don’t get worse. I struggle with kids that are absent all the time. I think it’s really frustrating that they don’t care. How can we get them caught up?
Q: What was your dream job whenever you were younger?
A: To be an archaeologist like digging up King Tut’s tombs, actually, was the kind of thing I loved. I love the Carnegie Mellon museum they had. They had mummies, and we went on an elementary trip. I thought that was possibly the coolest thing ever.
Q: What do you like to do outside of school?
A: I’m all things crafty. I like to make beautiful things, whether it’s art, whether it’s sewing. I just really like to complete the image I have in my head and have a successful project.
Q: What was your favorite lesson you’ve ever taught?
A: Development. We did a project called “Making Babies.” It was a DNA chromosomal, like what traits are dominant versus recessive. Students had to pair up and basically combine DNA. It was the most hilarious result ever because they had to draw a picture at the end of the experiment to see what their so-called babies would look like. And it was hilarious. Juran ended up with three or four boys named Iran one two three and four. And it was hilarious how they looked around the room to pick the other co parents, and they wanted pretty babies. It was hilarious.
Q: What was high school like for you?
A: I was chatty majorette, pretty outgoing. So I enjoyed my high school years.
Q: How has school changed since you were a student?
A: I was a student at Bellwood High. Things have changed drastically and the things you can say to a teacher. Things you can do at school. I didn’t have half the opportunities these kids have.
Q: What’s the best advice you could give your students?
A: Join the clubs, do the activities. A bunch of people might not be comfortable talking to people, but it opens doors and gives you opportunities.
Modico reflects on past learning
Q: Where did you go to college and what degree did you receive?
A: I went to Duquesne University. My degree is biology, but I am working towards my biology teaching certification now.
Q: What process did you have to go through to be hired?
A: I was an ESP in the Keystone classrooms last year, which is like a teacher’s aide. The teacher that was in it last year, Mrs. Cron moved to a different teaching position. I moved into her position.
Q: Why did you become a teacher?
A: I’ve always liked working with kids. When I was in college I was going to pharmacy school, but it wasn’t my passion. I had a lot of soul searching. Like: “What do I really like to do?” And just working with kids. I really love biology too so both things.
Q: What was your dream job?
A: If you would’ve asked me in high school, it would have been a pharmacist. But actually doing it was a different story. So it was a pharmacist but now I would say it’s being a teacher.
Salada talks about her teaching journey
Q: Where did you go to college and what degree did you receive?
A: I went to college at Penn State, and I received a degree in secondary English education.
Q: What subject do you teach?
A: English.
Q: If you weren’t teaching, what would your favorite subject be?
A: I would still say English.
Q: What process did you have to go through to be hired?
A: I was student teaching here with Mr. DeRubis upstairs. I saw the job posting, and I liked teaching here. So Ithought let’s make it happen.
Q: If you could change one thing, what would it be and why?
A: I wish I was able to see every class period for a little bit longer.
Q: Why did you become a teacher?
A: I actually did not enjoy school until about high school. My high school English teacher helped me realize that although I don’t like school, it’s important. I developed a really good relationship with that teacher, and it changed my mindset.
Q: What made you choose AAHS?
A: Since I was already student teaching here, I knew the staff and the students as well. I thought it was a nice school, and I wanted to be a part of it.
Q: What struggles have you faced as a teacher?
A: The stage fright is still a big struggle of mine. It’s scary to get up in front of 30 kids and all of them are staring at you.
Q: What was your dream job?
A: If I wasn’t teaching, I would love to be a marine biologist.
Q: What do you like to do outside of school?
A: I read books, I write and I love to sleep.
Q:What was your favorite lesson you’ve ever taught?
A: I’m going to say it was actually last year when I was teaching Greek mythology with Mr. Derubis, and I taught a lesson on Hephaestus. He’s my favorite Greek god, so it was fun to nerd out about him.
Crawford faces upcoming challenges
Q: Where did you go to college and what degree did you receive?
A: I went to Penn State, and I received my English degree in teaching.
Q: What subject do you teach?
A: Special education English.
Q: If you weren’t teaching, what would your favorite subject be?
A: It would still be English.
Q: What process did you have to go through to be hired?
A: It helped that I student taught here, but I went to the interview at Kimmel. I almost got that job, but instead they called me and offered me this position. I took this position, so I could stay at high school instead of going somewhere I didn’t know.
Q: If you could change one thing, what would it be?
A: I don’t like not knowing things. I would like a better understanding of what I’m doing now because I’m not familiar with anything in special education.
Q: Why did you become a teacher?
A: I started off with a theater degree. I realized that that really wasn’t what I wanted to do, and I didn’t feel like I could make a living off of it. My main goal was to be able to work with people, and I thought teaching would be the best alternative.
Q: What made you choose AAHS?
A: Being familiar with everything was nice. I love the building, and the teachers are really great. You guys have a lot of opportunities here that I didn’t have in my high school, and it’s cool to see that.
Q: What struggles have you faced as a teacher?
A: Relearning everything. I am still in 11th grade like I was student teaching, so I know the curriculum. Learning how to teach it to a different mindset of students is something to adjust to and learning how to do all the paperwork.
Q: What was your dream job?
A: It has changed a lot, but I have always wanted to go on Broadway.
Q: What do you like to do outside of school?
A: I spend time with my fiancé and my dog. I also love to hike and read.
Q:What was your favorite lesson you’ve ever taught?
A: The “To Kill a Mockingbird” TikTok. I really enjoyed watching the students put it together. The end product of that day when we all watched them and ate popcorn, it was so fun and so cool.
Buggey joins physical education team
Q: Where did you go to college and what degree did you receive?
A: Initially, I went to Grove City College where I got a bachelor’s in exercise science and then I eventually decided to teach. That required me to go back to school for my master’s degree. So, very recently, I went back and got a master’s of education at Indiana University of Pennsylvania.
Q: What subject do you teach?
A: I teach physical education here at Altoona Area High School, ninth through 12th grade and that looks like some sections of dance and fitness, some sections of weight training with assistant Coach Adams, strength and conditioning and then also just some regular PE classes as well.
Q: If you weren’t teaching, what would your favorite subject be?
A: If I was not teaching PE, my favorite subject would probably be maybe an English literature class. I didn’t always love everything that I read back in high school in my English lit class, but I do miss reading. I did love a good book and a good discussion every now and again. So, my answer for that one would probably be English but more the reading and the literature side of the English courses.
Q: What process did you have to go through to be hired?
A: My process for getting hired was pretty unique. It started at an education fair, where I stumbled upon the Altoona Area High School table. I actually knew Mr. Adams from human resources, and I had no idea that he was part of the staff at Altoona. So we got into a conversation, I filled out an application there, and then they wanted to conduct interviews while I was on vacation, back in May, actually. So my hiring process looked like a Zoom interview on the balcony of my condo in Puerto Rico. It was about a 45-minute interview. I wasn’t quite sure how it went. I didn’t know if my connection was great and if they could hear all my answers since I was in Puerto Rico. All of that was uncertain and nothing was stable, but that’s the day they wanted to do it. So I went through that interview and crazy enough, probably about two or three hours later, I got the call that I got the job if I wanted it, and that they didn’t want to take any other candidates to the school board. So I had a very unique and unconventional way of getting hired, interviewed on vacation and then didn’t even have to do a second-round interview. I was hired while also on vacation.
Q: If you could change one thing about your interview, what would it be and why?
A: My main answer to this is that I would have rather not have been at the beach with me trying to hold down my hair as the questions were being asked because the wind was trying to take it away from me and whip it around. I wish I would have been a little more educated on the educational resources and reading that is out there pertaining to education and for me, specifically, physical education because I was an exercise science student before. All of the professional or academic journals that I had known of or any of the organizations or current literature fell more into the exercise science strength and conditioning world than the health and and physical education world. I would go into my next interview more prepared on current literature on what’s talked about at the shape conferences as of late to do a better job of staying with the current events in the profession.
Q: Why did you become a teacher?
A: I decided to become a teacher after the strength and conditioning experience because after graduating, I went home and had many, many other jobs. One of those jobs was a job in ministry. I got to work with people a lot, specifically college-age students. And so after being in that environment and workplace for about two years, I just discovered that I really liked being with people. I really liked helping people achieve their goals. I really liked building relationships with people. I liked being there for them when they had a bad day. I just liked the relationships that you can create with everybody around you, and some of those can be really special. It can also open your eyes to what’s going on with the people around you. A lot of the time, there’s far more going on in people’s lives than you realize. And so, after that ministry experience, I was still very much in love with the teaching, coaching, training, exercise science world. And so, education became my next grand idea so that I could combine the exercise science, the knowledge, more of the nuts and bolts part of the profession, and then the ministry side, opened up the desire to work with people. Those two experiences landed on wanting to become a physical education teacher. Not to mention, I really enjoyed my physical education teacher in school. Her name was Mrs. Woods, and she was fantastic.
Q: What made you choose AAHS?
A: Only because once I saw the size of the school and the resources that it had, and that there was an entire department of PE teachers, that there would be a lot of resources and some freedom for me to do some of the things I love, like being in the weight room, for example. I chose Altoona because I knew that they would have more to offer for me to teach than just regular PE. Like I said, I also teach some dance sections and some weightlifting as well.
Q: What struggles have you faced as a teacher?
A: As a new teacher who is 26 years old and a five foot one female with a younger-looking face, a unique challenge that I have had to overcome is creating that boundary between teacher and student. What I mean by that is a lot of them think that or perceive that we were similar in age. So I got probably a little more disrespect, a little more not taking me so seriously. Students kind of treated me like a shiny new toy rather than a new teacher that they were going to respect and listen to. So I had to put my foot down and be a little bit more of a disciplinarian than I like to be for the first couple of weeks of school. I think I am finally over that hurdle, and they know what my expectations are and they know how classroom management is going to go and they will know how their grade suffers if they don’t take it seriously. But that is probably one of the biggest struggles I’ve faced, just some of the lack of respect and taking me seriously because I do look young. So that has caused some of them to try to treat me as a peer rather than their teacher.
Q: What was your dream job?
A: My idea of a dream job wasn’t super specific to me, but I knew that my dream job would include being able to train to be able to be in the weight room. I have a strong passion for weightlifting, especially for young females maybe in junior high or early high school to just give them the foundation they need for their athletics or if they want to continue to go to the gym after their time in school. And so, my dream job includes being in the weight room and instructing and analyzing forms and correcting them so that they are pros. And thankfully, I do get to do some of that here.
Q: What do you like to do outside of school?
A: Whenever I can find the time or I’m not preparing for the next day in any way, I like to do all of those hobbies that I mentioned earlier. Since I’m in a new place and I’ve never lived here before, I also like to explore a little bit and see what’s around. What kind of foods are around too.
Q: What was your favorite lesson you’ve ever taught?
A: So my favorite lesson I’ve taught here was probably a lesson that I came up with for dance. Even though my background is in weightlifting, I do need to teach a section of dance to make the curriculum complete. And so I wasn’t quite sure what I wanted to do to get this all started because I didn’t really have any great choreography up my sleeve at the beginning. So I had a lesson where I picked probably about six or seven well-known songs that you would maybe hear at a wedding or that the vast majority of people would know how to dance their songs that have very set dance movements, like the YMCA or the Macarena or the Cupid Shuffle. You name it. I had a few and some that were a little more with the times so that the students would know how to dance to them. These are songs that have specific dances and when they come on, people know exactly what to do. And so, I had a dance lesson where this was the assignment, and it was great because I had some advanced dancers in the class and I had some people who have never really danced the day in their life, but both knew how to dance the song. And so it was a really fun time and it kind of brought those two skill levels together and brought everybody on the same level, and everybody was having a really good time. And that’s how I started some of the dance classes here. I got everybody comfortable to get everybody moving. And then the next day, some of the girls wanted to do that again as a warm-up. So that was satisfying and sweet for me to see that they wanted to revisit that.
Q: What was high school like for you?
A: It was a good time. Sure, it came with high school drama and everything else that happens as far as growing up with people the same age as you and figuring out how to go about life or relationships, or how you felt about a teacher or an assignment. So like all of those things were in place, but high school was a pretty good experience for me for the most part, and I think it laid the groundwork for me being hard working in college.
Q: How has school changed since you were a student?
A: I would say that maybe teachers have become a little more lenient, and maybe students have lost their will to do good for themselves a little bit or to want to run after high standards or hard work. And some of that might be a result of the Covid pandemic. I think things are kind of chronically changed by that as far as education goes.
Q: What’s the best advice you could give students?
A: I think the answer that comes to my mind first is that what you do now lays the groundwork for your college years. Should you decide to go to college. If you don’t decide to go to college, the groundwork that you’re laying now is laying the foundation for you and your workplace. And so you might think that certain classes are blow-offs or you can just get the answer for this assignment from this person, or that you can just cheat because you don’t really feel like putting in the work to understand that one quiz or that one test. And that might be just fine and that might get you through and you might find ways to cut corners and get your desired result and graduate high school and think that things are all fine and dandy. And where I’m going with this is that what you do here is not pointless, the classes that you think you don’t need to know. Maybe you don’t need to know that information going forward, but the discipline that you have in that class to learn and understand it and apply it you will need those skills forever. Whether you are continuing your education in college or whether you’re going straight into the workplace. You will need social skills, you will need to know how to study, and you will need to know how to explain things. You will need to have independence. You will need to have ownership over your life and your work. So with that, set yourself up well for whatever you have going forward because if you find a way to cut corners now, you will struggle harder as an adult with whatever you decide to do. If you take things seriously and you can do all of the things that I said to build your groundwork to build your family, your foundation of who you are and what you stand for, your life after high school will go much easier. You will be able to deal with more, and you will be able to thrive in situations. You think you can see what’s ahead, but you really can’t. I couldn’t. I had an idea, but I saw the ways that what I had done in high school helped me in college. I saw some of the ways in which some of my peers or my good friends treated their high school experience and how that ended up for them. Hard work and discipline and doing the right thing when nobody’s there to praise you or keep you accountable for it will build an incredible character for you.
Beard brings new face into guidance office
Q:Where did you go to college and what degree did you receive?
A: I went to Clarion University for my bachelor’s degree, and that is in rehabilitative sciences. And then I went to Slippery Rock for my master’s degree, and that is in community counseling and school counseling.
Q: What process did you go through to be hired?
A: There was an online application that I completed and then an in person interview.
Q: If you could change one thing about your interview, what would it be and why?
A: I don’t know that I would change anything. In my situation, I applied in August, and I think they were looking to fill that position quickly for the beginning of the school year. So it was a quick time between when I applied and when I came in to interview and when I heard back in that process. I feel like if I would change anything, and I know that it was more so because of the timing of when I was hired, it would be more of the once I was actually hired, like understanding everything through the human resources department and expectations of the role, and more rollout of what things are going to look like when you get started.
Q: Why did you become a counselor?
A: I’ve always wanted to work with kids, and when I first started in college, I was a special education major. From observations and my intro classes and field experience, I realized that I didn’t really want to teach in the classroom, but I still wanted to help kids. So, in my undergrad doing my practicums and internships, I worked closely with counselors, and that’s what led me to counseling as a master’s degree.
Q: What made you choose AAHS?
A: My family is local to the area. So being close to home is very important to me. Less travel time from where I was before. And Altoona has a good reputation of the employees and the teachers in the district being very prideful. The high school has a good reputation and is good as far as graduation and looking through test scores and getting kids to graduation pathways. So, a good reputation and the pride that everyone has in the high school, and the school district in general being close to home.
Q: What struggles have you faced as a counselor?
A: I think it goes back to the other question, just being hired quickly and jumping in the first day of school, not really being as prepared as I would have liked to be. So, learning quickly on the go how things are handled here in the counseling office. Also making sure I’m telling kids the right things, and I’m doing the right things that I need to be doing on my end.
Q: What was your dream job?
A: I think I always wanted to be a teacher, and I think part of my background and coming from a small school, that was the main job that I was exposed to. I think that that was what I was around most, and I wasn’t really sure what else I could do related to working with kids, so I would say teacher.
Q: What do you like doing outside of school?
A: I like exercising, hanging out with friends and Penn State football
Q: What’s your favorite thing you’ve ever taught someone?
A: I don’t know that it’s really taught, but maybe showing kids and bringing in different speakers, and taking them on different field trips in places where we could explore both workplaces and schools to open up the conversations about what all jobs are out there, and what opportunities for life there are after high school.
Q: What was high school like for you?
A: I liked high school. I was busy and involved in multiple things, and I think it taught me and has helped me with where I’m at now. To be able to know what I think my counselor in high school did well or maybe wasn’t so good at so that I can do those things for students now.
Q: How has school changed since you were a student?
A: When I was in high school, cell phones were just coming out, and not everybody had them. They were slowly starting to become popular with all the kids, so there was no social media. There were no other outside distractions that are in the building now, so I think that alone is a big switch and how it affects everybody’s day inside and outside of school.
Q: What’s the best advice you can give to students?
A: It’s okay to not have it all figured out. Take the time to explore all options and be open minded to what might be out there.
Q: Do you have any prior experience as a counselor?
A: Yes, I was working at Philipsburg-Osceola High School before coming here.
Simington returns to AAHS
Q: Where did you go to college and what’s your degree?
A: I went to Lock Haven, and I got a bachelor’s degree in health and physical education. Then, I got a master’s degree in sports science.
Q: What made you decide to work at AAHS?
A: I wanted to give back to my hometown.
Q: What was high school like for you?
A: Fun. It was a pretty good time.
Q: What’s the best advice you could give students
A: Go to class so you don’t end up in BIC.
Q: What struggles have you faced as a teacher?
A: Probably trying to get students engaged in things that they don’t want to do.
Q: If you weren’t teaching, what job would you want?
A: I would probably want to be training athletes.
Corman reflects on his journey
Q: Where were you originally from?
A: I am originally from the Bellefonte area. I found a job here and moved down the road so not too far from here.
Q: What was your dream job?
A: I wanted to work for the Walt Disney company, but I already did that so now I am here teaching.
Q: Can you go more into detail about your Disney experience?
A: So what I did was I worked for Disney World in 2018. I did the Disney college program, which I highly recommend for anyone that is interested in doing an internship. You have to work at Disney World, and they pay you and provide you with a place to live and take the rent right out of your paycheck. And you get to work at Disney World and basically you get to live, eat, sleep and breathe Disney. It’s a hard job, but it’s pretty much a fun time all the time.
Q: What was high school like for you?
A: High school was a really fun time for me. I figured out who I was a little bit more and then I was able to make more friends and I became involved with theater. I was pretty involved in high school.
Q: How has school changed since you were a student?
A: Every student having a Chromebook, that is new to me. Whenever I was in school we did not all get Chromebooks. We had a program where if you had a laptop you were allowed to register it with the school, and you could use it. Other than that it was a no go. You had to do everything on paper so that is a big change for me.
Q: Why did you become a teacher?
A: I had an awesome ninth grade English teacher that inspired me, and I remind her at least once a year that she’s the reason I became a teacher for better or worse. She just made such a big impact on me, and I said that I wanted to do that. I wanted to try and change the world student by student if I could.
Q: What made you choose AAHS?
A: It was close to where I was originally living, and it seemed like a really good fit for me.
Q: What process did you have to go through to be hired?
A: I went through a couple rounds of interviews. First I did a quick little one day interview where they brought me in and asked me some questions. After that they must have liked me. They invited me to come teach a lesson, so I came in and taught an example lesson. The principals watched me do that. After they debated for a while, they decided to pick me for the job.
Q: What struggles have you faced as a teacher?
A: A lot of students seem to be more interested in their games than they are doing what they’re supposed to be doing. Everyone seems to have unblocked games that they’re always jumping on. They might have trouble with your vocabulary but when it comes to getting around Securly it’s like they’re hackers.
Brubaker reflects on life as teacher
Q: Where did you go to college and what degree did you receive?
A: Penn State main. Secondary education and history.
Q: If you weren’t teaching, what would your favorite subject be?
A: If I didn’t teach social studies, I would probably be teaching English.
Q: What process did you have to go through to be hired?
A: I submitted my application, and I was interviewed by a panel.
Q: If you could change one thing about your interview, what would it be and why?
A: I had a really good interview process. I wouldn’t change anything.
Q: Why did you become a teacher?
A: I always like to learn. So I wanted to have a job where I continue to learn new things. But I also like to be around people of all different types of personalities. So to be a teacher it the best fit for both of those things.
Q: What made you choose AAHS?
A: I’m from here. And I always knew that I wanted to teach here. I taught at Bedford for eight years before I was here. And I just recently had a baby, so I want to help build my community, so it’s a great place for him.
Q: What struggles have you faced as a teacher?
A: I think transitioning students from COVID-19 learning to traditional learning has been the biggest struggle.
Q: What was your dream job?
A: To be an Egyptologist. I wanted to go dig up mummies.
Q: What was your favorite lesson you’ve ever taught?
A: I taught a lesson about island hopping in the Pacific from World War II where the students were able to physically hop from island to island which helped with geography and to understand the island hopping strategy that we used during World War II.
Q: What was high school like for you?
A: I really enjoyed it. I had a lot of fun. I had great teachers, and I learned a lot. I was involved in a lot of different clubs and activities. So there was always something enjoyable to look forward to after school.
Q: How has school changed since you were a student?
A: Well there’s a new building. Because I went to Altoona. So there’s a lot of different technology aspects that we didn’t have access to. That’s probably the biggest change. We just had a computer lab where you guys have Chromebooks to carry around with you. A lot more opportunities for education because of technological advancements.
Q: What’s the best advice you could give students?
A: Find a club or an activity to get involved in so you can meet new people because there are so many different opportunities available here and there’s something for everybody. And I recommend expanding your friend group. Show up and do your best. That’s pretty much all you have to do here at Altoona is just show up and do your best and the rest will follow.
Changing it up
Q: What was your dream job?
A: When I was a kid, my mom tells me that I wanted to be a pizza driver. Even now, I still think it sounds pretty good. But, now, in all seriousness, I want to be an athletic director.
Q:What was high school like for you?
A: It was good, but like any other kid, I wish I wouldn’t have taken things so seriously. I didn’t live in the moment.
Q: How has school changed since you were a student?
A: It is night and day. There weren’t security issues. There were less issues. I graduated with 480 kids in my class and knew a majority of them. People were more friendly.
Q: Why did you become a teacher?
A: There are a lot of different elements that go under the radar when it comes to being a teacher. But, if you can make a positive impact in someone’s life, and put them on the right course, I’ve always admired that. It’s a really noble profession.
Q: What made you choose AAHS?
A: I’m an Altoona guy. I’ve been to other places, and I decided to come back. I feel I can help students with their very real issues. It is a smaller city with big city issues.
Q: What process did you have to go through to be hired?
A: I student taught here in the spring with Coach Palfey and Mrs. Palfey, and they were phenomenal. I then went over and student taught with Mr. McDowell over in the junior high. They put me on a job opening. I applied and I did well and could connect. I interviewed for a physical education position but was called back to interview for this position. I was offered it and accepted.
Q: If you could change one thing about your interview, what would it be and why?
A: I wouldn’t change a thing.
Q: What struggles have you faced as a teacher?
A: Student teaching was awesome, and there were no issues. Nerves were my biggest issue. You don’t know what they are thinking. My biggest challenge in BIC is the temperament. I feel my true personality can’t shine right now.
Q: What was your favorite lesson you’ve ever taught?
A: One of my last classes I ever taught for Mrs. Palfey was on mental health. From beginning to end, it went smoothly. Kids asked questions and were very receptive. They asked how to help improve their mental health.
Q: What’s the best advice you could give students?
A: Just be yourself. Find the people that make a positive impact on your life and stay with that crowd.
Hann joins faculty
Q: Where did you go to college and what degree did you receive?
A: St. Francis University Behavior Science
Q: If you weren’t teaching, what would you be doing?
A: I would probably be a behavioral health technician working on my master’s in counseling for school counseling. That would be my second choice. Right now, I’m actually working on my teacher certification, my master’s in education, [and] special education.
Q: What process did you have to go through to be hired?
A: I went through the whole interview process with many principals. Of course there are many openings within special education, and it was torn with the options of working in autistic support or emotional support. Mr. Neely said he would like me to join the high school team and emotional support. So I agreed. I enrolled in Boston College and started taking courses.
Q: If you could change one thing about your interview, what would it be and why?
A: I wouldn’t change anything. I think everything went smoothly, and the process started last spring. So there’s plenty of time to get acclimated to everything and get the paperwork in.
Q: Why did you become a teacher?
A: I worked as a special education aide in 2013 through 2017 and that is when I decided I liked working with in the special education field. That’s when I went back to school. I just enjoy working with students and trying to help them grow socially, educationally, emotionally.
Q: What was high school like for you?
A: I enjoyed going to school because I got to see my friends. I was involved in a lot of sports. So you have to attend school to go to practices and games. So I didn’t really miss that much. It was a social thing for me. Education was second, sports was first for me. I worked hard and had a good time.
Q: What struggles have you faced as a teacher?
A: Getting acclimated with the different applications that I need to use throughout the day to complete my paperwork.
Q: What was your dream job?
A: When I was a child, I wanted to open a candy and ice cream store. Of course I’ve changed over the years. I wanted to be a social worker or guidance counselor.
Q: How has school changed since you were a student?
A: You know that was a long time ago. I graduated almost 30 years ago, so schools have changed a lot. We didn’t have laptops. We didn’t really have email, I don’t believe. We learned to write on typewriters. Everything we did was on paper. If we wanted to look something up, we didn’t have the internet. We’d use a dictionary or encyclopedia.
Matish supports students
Q: If you weren’t teaching what you do now, what subject would you teach?
A: Autistic support.
Q: What process did you have to go through to get hired?
A: I had an interview and then I had a bunch of phone calls. And then I had a lot of paperwork, and now I’m here.
Q: Why did you become a teacher?
A: Because of students, not just my students, a lot of students, they need the extra love. And I feel like I could give them the extra love that they need.
Q: What made you choose AAHS?
A: I did my student teaching in the middle school, and I loved it. So I applied to the district, and I got hired up at the high school.
Q:What struggles have you faced as a teacher?
A: Building a rapport with the students and just managing our time, so we get everything done in a day. Also learning that it’s okay to not get everything done that you have planned.
Q: What was your dream job?
A: A nurse.
Q: What do you like to do outside of school?
A: I like to hang out with my friends and family. Go on little road trips to anywhere we think of.
Q: What was your favorite lesson you’ve ever taught?
A: I think the five senses. My students got to feel and taste and hear different things, and we could see how they reacted to them.
Q: What was high school like for you?
A: High school was hard. I didn’t have many friends. I wasn’t in like the preps, and I wasn’t with a bunch of groups. I just hung out by myself, and I did what I needed to do and got through it.
Q: How has school changed since you were a student?
A: It’s so different. The students are just not as respectful as they were when I was in school. They don’t put forth a lot of effort. Not all students but some students. And it seems like some of them just don’t care about their grades and what they’re doing.
Q: What’s the best advice you could give students?
A: Try your best, and it’s okay to make mistakes.
Student support specialist position added
Q: Where did you go to college and what degree did you receive?
A: East Stroudsburg University – Bachelor’s Degree in Middle Level Education
Wilkes University – Master’s Degree in School Leadership
IUP – Principal Certification
Q: What process did you have to go through to be hired?
A: Back in 2016, I had two rounds of interviews for my teaching position. First one was all interview questions and the second one was teaching a math lesson.
Q: Why did you become a teacher?
A: I had made many connections with teachers/coaches in high school, and I hope I can do the same for students some day.
Q: What made you choose AAHS?
A: The community support and plenty of opportunities for our students.
Q: What was your dream job?
A: Lawyer
Q: What was your favorite lesson you’ve ever taught?
A: Students researching authors they’ve read books by.
rayder dennis • Oct 18, 2023 at 2:09 pm
where’s the new band teacher