JASON GARCES, Editor-in-chief
Contributing Writers: Mass & Social Media 1 students, and members of The Banner
The new teacher feature is something that The Banner does to welcome all new staff to NBTHS. We want to give them the same respect that they give to us. Unfortunately, we could not get all of the new staff interviewed so we mentioned their name on the "We Also Welcome" page at the bottom of the article. We hope you learn a lot from the new staff and enjoy reading about them.
Ms. Gabriela Gonzalez (World Language Department)
Ms. Gabriela González works at the World Language Department, Spanish is what she specializes in. She loves teaching inspiring and motivating her students! She tends to approach teaching by asking me what I want my students to learn and then working backward to create meaningful lessons that get them where they need to be. This shows how she wants to be able to influence and motivate her students with her lessons and make something meaningful out of them. Although she is a young teacher she uses that to make her students more open and more comfortable given the fact that she likes the things they also like and uses that to connect more with each one of them, “I think my students understand that I am a young teacher who likes a lot of the things that they like and so that opens them up to want to learn from me.”
Ms. Sarah Wilson (English Department)
Ms. Sarah Wilson is a new teacher in the English Department. Wilson is a very open and approachable teacher. She feels as if NBTHS has a really good sense of community and communication, she expresses that NBTHS has such a friendly and open environment. NBTHS has affected her in positive ways, she also expressed she has been able to participate more in school events/activities such as musicals, Marching Band, dances, games, and more. This has made her feel really good about teaching here at this high school.
Jason Andreadis - Physical Education Department
Mr. Jason Andreadis (pictured on the right) is a new teacher in the Physical Education department. He is new to the NBTHS building but isn't new to the teaching profession. He has been teaching for about 4 years. His favorite hobbies are going to the beach and flying airplanes. Andreadis said, “Health is the hardest thing to teach.” In his opinion NBTHS is better than other schools because of the athletics and physical education department. If Andreadis wasn’t a teacher he would be airplane pilot.
Maiya Torres - Social Studies Department
Ms. Maiya Torres is a new teacher in the Social Studies Department. Torres isn't new to NBTHS , not only did she student teach at NBTHS, but she is a graduate. She was an amazing student in NBTHS honors classes and SGO. This is her first year as a teacher. Torres said that the hardest thing about teaching would definitely be time management. If she weren’t a teacher and would want to pursue another career; she would definitely be an author.
Cathy McCarthy - Librarian
Mrs. Cathy McCarthy is in the English department but doesn't teach English, she is a librarian in the library at NBTHS. Her hobbies includes reading, playing Animal Crossing, eating foods that aren't good for her, and watching YouTube. She's been teaching since 1985. She believes the most difficult thing about teaching is the education system, but she loves the kids. The advice she gives to the students at NBTHS is if you think you don't like reading you just haven't found the right book and school ruined it for you. See her if you want a good book!
Matt Fuzesi - Math Department
Mr. Matt Fuzesi is a new teacher working in the Math department. It is his first year teaching and so far he does like it. He came to NBTHS because it's close to his house and it is a good community. The most difficult thing about about teaching is planning and trying to create assignments the students enjoy. When Fuzesi was a student in school he was a good student and always did his work, but like every other student had his times where he would talk and laugh with friends. If he wasn't a math teacher he would be doing something in marketing. Fuzesi’s hobbies are hiking, being outside, running, and watching his favorite TV shows/movies. The things he would like to add and tell others is to stay motivated and dedicated in school; you only have 4 years to do your best.
Alyssa Lepinsky - Learning Center
Ms. Alyssa Lepinsky is a new teacher at NBTHS in the Learning Center/Child Study Team. She came here knowing how “diverse” the environment is. According to her, “ I wanted to be a Speech Therapist / Speech Language Pathologist in order to help students and because I enjoy how wide the scope of practice is, the areas of speciality, and the variety of settings I could work in. I also wanted to be a Speech Therapist / Speech Language Pathologist because I could help people in all areas and stages of life.” Her hobbies include going to the beach, gardening, crafting, and learning to cook as well as baking. To impact students, Lepinsky plans to help them achieve their goals and as far as philosophy goes, she is very big on a student led approach. She is currently in her second year of teaching. As far as any difficulty teaching goes, she conveys, “As a Speech Therapist / Speech Language Pathologist it is difficult dealing with a wide variety of behaviors. It can also be challenging to adapt and modify activities to an individual's needs.“ That’s all for our 2016 Alum.
Risa Krasnove - English as Second Language Department
Ms. Risa Krasnove is new to the English department at NBTHS, but not new to teaching or North Brunswick. She has been teaching for 26 years and previously taught at Parson Elementary School. Mrs. Krasnove came to NBTHS looking for a change. She became a teacher because of her love of kids and enjoyment getting to know and spend time with them. She hopes her excitement of teaching and learning helps them persevere and leaves an impact on them. So far she likes NBTHS and want the students to know “Always try your best, don’t give up, and ask for help when you need it”.
Nigel Hollis - Math Department
Mr. Nigel Hollis is one of many of the new teachers present here at NBTHS and he works in the Math department. He came to NBTHS as he loves the teachers here and attended this school when he was younger. His hobbies are gaming and crochet. He loves the science behind learning and hopes to put the knowledge to use. As he teaches students, he switches his ways of teaching every few lessons so it feels fresh and new, and tries to create meaningful understanding rather than simply remembering things. This is his first year teaching. Hollis gives a word to students, “Get Involved and make memories! Find ways to make your high school experience fun and memorable, but also do your homework.” Hollis says the the difficult thing about teaching would be the pacing, as different students have different needs and it is difficult to go through all these differences, but is also where he gets to be the most creative.
Courtney Short - Physical Education Department
Ms. Courtney Short is a new Physical Education teacher here at NBTHS and is in her first year of teaching. She conveys that as a first year teacher trying to accommodate everyones needs is a bit of a challenge. She came to NBTHS because she graduated from here not too long ago. Short claims her reason for teaching is because she is passionate about health and fitness and she likes working with students. Her hobbies include going to the beach, exercising, and being an NBTHS cheer coach. Her impact on students is uncanny. She says, “ I think being a younger teacher helps me understand the students as I just came out of being a student myself. I want to be someone the students feel comfortable coming to.” Her teaching philosophy is very simple, get kids engaged in physical activity and help them with their health and wellness. Overall, she is thankful for this opportunity and says, “Go Raiders!”
Daniel O’Hara - Business Department
Mr. Daniel O’Hara is a new teacher in the NBTHS Business department and has been teaching for two years. O’Hara previously taught at Cranford High School and transferred because he was “intrigued by the school.” Originally, O'Hara did not plan on becoming a teacher. He has a degree in economics and did financial analysis for ten years, but did not enjoy it. He wanted to teach because he wanted more social interaction. O’Hara says, “You will never know what career you really enjoy until you’re really there.” O’Hara has his own philosophy toward teaching, he believes that the connection to the students is important. “If the students do not like the teacher, then they won’t like the class.” A teacher must establish a relationship with their class and learn how to make a connect with their students. All together, O’Hara is extremely enthusiastic to be teaching at NBTHS and can’t wait to teach many more classes ahead.
Ryan Murphy - English Department
Mr. Ryan Murphy recently came to NBTHS this year to work for the English department. He had 8 years of teaching experience in his hometown, but wanted to challenge himself and try working elsewhere. He wasn’t always planning to be a teacher; he wanted to be an engineer, but realized it wasn’t his calling. thinking back to his own high school years, he remembered English and the sports that he did. Now he is the coach for volleyball and basketball at NBTHS, and varsity basketball in South Brunswick High School. Murphy wants to find ways to engage the kids and make connections to them as he himself was “internally motivated” during school and realized how hard work can be at times. He is overall a very chill teacher with many hobbies in sports and video games too. Overall Murphy has a lot to bring to NBTHS and expecting potential changes to himself because of the school, hoping that it would bring out his best qualities. Murphy has advice for students, he states, “The need for self confidence is important. Students should be able to be afraid to make a mistake, as there is an importance in flaws and we all learn from them.”
Alexis Diaz - Social Studies Department
Mr. Alexis Diaz is a teacher working as a new member of the Social Studies department. Diaz commented, “When I was in high school, my high school teacher was my biggest inspiration, which got him to do great things and slowly work his way to become a teacher to help others.” When asked “Why North Brunswick Specifically?” He responded with “Two Answers: It’s close to my house, and a lot more kids are close to him.” Which is also related to the reason why he enjoys teaching kids, he found his inspiration and found his “why” purpose in life. Diaz always has a “why” in life. And his message to you would be “Find your why, don’t stop until you get it.” So if you ever wanted a cool teacher that not only is chill and motivational, Diaz is the perfect teacher for you to talk to and learn with.
Jon Kane - Science Department
Jonathan Kane is new to the science department this year. He has been teaching for 4 years. Mr. Kane came to NBTHS because he wanted to work at a school in New Jersey and believed our school was very passionate and a great, diverse community. He became a teacher because of his love of science and belief that kids are capable of great things. To the students of NBTHS he says “continue to learn about each other, respect each other, and support each other”.
Lauren Crohan - Learning Center
We would like to welcome Mrs. Lauren Crohan to NBTHS! She can be found in the learning center. Mrs.Crohan has been teaching for 12 years and came to NBTHS looking for new scenery. She wanted to become a teacher because her whole family were teachers so it was always something she wanted to do. Her mission is to make students feel seen and heard by teachers because she believes they don’t learn as well without that. Advice Mrs.Crohan gives to student at NBTHS is “Don’t take things too seriously because in a couple days, weeks, or months, it won’t matter”.
Jeff Larmer - Learning Center
Mr. Larmer is a new addition to the Special Education department at NBTHS, having 7 years of experience teaching student. He thought about possibly going for biology or engineering due to him being good in math, however realized his passion for work came from trying to connect with the students, reflecting from his own high school years when he was a quiet and more introverted student. Mr. Larmer’s goal for himself is to be an open person and have the student be able to confide with him. He said that he recognized NBTHS as a very welcoming community just from the interview and knew this was the place that could prove beneficial to him and for the students. Mr. Larmer is able to recognize all the school’s resources and friendliness, believing NBTHS to be the perfect place for students to grow and learn their place in the real world. He is a very interesting person with hobbies in ice hockey (sports in general) and videogames. Overall, Mr. Larmer hopes the best for the students of NBTHS, with a few words of advice, saying, “Always have a plan. You don’t have to have one but it helps.”
"We Also Welcome"
Eleni Apostolakis - Clerical
Sarah Ciaccio - English Department
Anthony Fischer - Physical Education Department
Mahilnancai Sasikaran - Science Department