New teachers join the welcoming West Essex family every year, and often, some educators find themselves switching gears between the middle school and high school buildings. This year, five teachers have transitioned from working with tweens to teens – each one bringing their unique personalities and interests into their classrooms.
Samantha Minnella: Algebra I and Discrete Math. Minnella taught math foundations at the middle school. She coaches girls soccer and lacrosse at West Essex.
What advice do you have for balancing school and sports?
“I always tell my students they’re student athletes, and ‘student’ comes first. … I make sure that everything for work is set for my students, and then the coaching is a sub piece, and then I make sure that that is all taken care of.
What is your favorite part of West Essex?
I love going to sporting events. I love seeing Masquers. I like making sure that I’m supporting the students and everything that they’re doing, but I think West Essex makes it really easy for teachers to do that, because I feel like we’re one big, happy family.
What do you want your students to get out of your class?
I always want my students to feel like my classroom is a safe space. So that’s the first thing, that I’m always someone that they can turn to. My goal for them is to feel like they can advocate more for themselves.
John Regan: World History. Regan taught World Cultures and Geography for 17 years at the middle school. This year is his 26th year of teaching. He was the head golf coach for 10 years, and coached middle school baseball last year.
Do you have any hidden talents?
I could play drums, but I don’t know how to read music and never had a lesson. … When the teachers came in for a mental health and wellness day, I came in last year and I played drums with some of the other teachers here.
What is your favorite part of West Essex?
Even though we have four towns, when everyone comes here, it just becomes a ‘Knight family’ with the school spirit and the amount of clubs.
What do you want your students to get out of your class?
If you’re going into a biology class, you’re going in like a biologist. If you’re going to math, you’re gonna think like a mathematician. I’m trying to just hammer down that when [my students] come into history class, they’re gonna think like a historian. I’m trying to give them the tools to do that.
Mia Faieta: Intro to Business, Personal Finance, Business management, Digital Marketing and Entrepreneurship. Faieta coaches JV girls tennis and girls softball. Prior to teaching at the high school, she was a paraprofessional in the middle school.
What got you interested in teaching?
Honestly, I always loved business, so I knew I would want to incorporate that and I thought down the road I would want to be a teacher for business.
What goals do you have for your students?
I want to foster a wonderful learning environment where it’s more than just pen and paper taking notes. I like collaboration, group projects – it’s very similar to the real business world.
How do you feel about balancing school and coaching sports?
Honestly, I think it’s the fun part. You get to go out and see kids in a different atmosphere than just in the classroom, and it’s kind of a nice break in your day besides just doing grading and schoolwork.
Jessica Maidman: Special Education English 10 and English 11. Maidman taught 7th grade reading and 8th grade English for two and half years as a leave replacement in middle school. She is a producer for the Masquers of West Essex, and she manages hair, makeup, fundraising, ordering apparel, the playbill and more. She was a swim team and middle school softball coach for three years.
What do you want your students to get out of your class?
Just finding some sort of joy in English, whether it’s the actual curriculum, or if they can stray away … even if I can help them find a book that they might like, or get them into writing we do in my class.
What is your favorite part of West Essex?
It feels so fulfilling that I have made such good rapport with the students I love. When the kids invite me to their sporting events, or if they have a club activity, and they’re like, ‘Hey, come stop by,’ … just having such a nice student body is very sweet.
What inspired you to start teaching?
You never know what people are dealing with, whether it’s mental health things, or if it’s personal stuff that they’re just going through and then they’re having a hard time. …What my teachers did for me, I want to give back and be a positive influence and be a safe person for anyone to talk to.
Adestinee Nazaire: French. Nazaire also taught French classes in middle school. She attended Montclair State University where she got her undergrad and masters for translation. She is originally from Haiti and French is her second language.
What do you hope your students get out of your class?
I hope they understand the value of taking the French language class, not just care about the grade…I want them to understand the culture. I want them to go outside of the United States culture, so despite being here, [they] know French even though they’ve never been to France.
Do you have any hidden talents?
I can sing; I don’t really like to do it, but I do sing at church. I also know a little bit about playing the saxophone.
What is your favorite part of West Essex?
It’s the appreciation, I think, the togetherness. The way that the staff treats me, and the way they make me feel. I feel very appreciated here.
What got you interested in teaching?
The passion for and the love for kids. Since I was a little girl, I always wanted to be a teacher, and then I had a few family members who used to teach, so I was inspired by them.
