By Meghan Green, Lucy Levinson, and Anna McGurkin
Ms. A
This September, RPCS welcomed Ms. Agyei-Boateng to the history department. Ms. A wears a number of hats as she teaches Tenth Grade World History, Telling African Stories, and in the leadership institute. This is Ms. A’s first year teaching, something that she did not always know she wanted to do.
While finishing graduate school, Ms. Agyei-Boateng realized that there were various settings in her educational path where she was teaching and that she liked it a lot. After being in school for many years, Ms. A said that teaching “is like a direct giving back.”
Ms. A continues, “But also, I just really enjoy students. I enjoy encountering different personalities and being challenged. I think, as an adult, you put yourself in spaces where you know you will be accepted, but teaching sort of forces you out of those spaces...I think there is this perception in the world where students are people to be taught at, not to learn from...they offer so much beyond the fact that they are learning from you, they are also teaching you.”
Ms. A was drawn to RPCS because it was a “space that understood that humans are more than just knowledge and intelligence,” she said.
Ms. A continues, “I think to the school’s aim of educating women, and educating the whole child in general--I was a big fan of that. Probably, because of my background in neuroscience; so understanding that there are more components to a human being than just knowledge and intelligence, but understanding that in order for someone to learn they must feel comfortable enough to learn, they must feel safe enough to learn, and there must be mutual respect. And I think I saw that [here].”
Although she resides in the history department, Ms. A said that a degree in Neuroscience is applicable in the classroom: “I think it oftentimes presents itself in the behavioral aspect of teaching: being able to understand certain behaviors, being able to teach from the understanding of how the brain works...Memorization, for example: in history you’re expected to memorize all these concepts, all these ideas, all these dates. Because I am a neuro major, I know, for sure, how memory is consolidated. And so I try my best to add that into my lessons.”
Ms. A says that though it was shocking, she is a fan of the openness of students, “It makes me comfortable enough to teach, because teaching involves a lot of mistake making…when my students are open and approach me with all types of friendliness and eagerness to learn, it makes it easier to be like ‘oh wow, I made a mistake!’”
In the coming months, Ms. A says, “I am looking forward to being known by my students.” It is clear that Ms. A has been a great addition to our community and that she truly belongs at RPCS.
Mr. Ray
The RPCS staff has recently added a new smiling face (well, as much smiling as one can see under a mask) to the Math Department, Mr. Ray. Many sophomores have already experienced the mathematical wisdom that Mr. Ray imparts in his class and during office hours. As a new gem of RPCS’s pinnacle program, Harkness mathematics, Mr. Ray shows not only his knowledge of math but also his incredible teaching methods honed over his nineteen year career.
As a lifelong Baltimoreian, Mr. Ray attended Hazelwood Middle School, where he first started tutoring math to complete his community service hours requirements. Then, he continued tutoring during his high school years at Baltimore Polytechnic Institute. Eventually, he enrolled at Towson University, where he received a Bachelors of Science in Math with an education concentration and a Masters in Mathematics Education. When asked about why he chose to teach math, he simply said, “I think I was put on this earth to teach math.”
Before he stumbled upon the halls of RPCS, Mr. Ray previously worked at his alma mater, Poly, as a vice-principal for seventeen years, and he continues to teach collegiately at Towson University. When he decided to hang up the administrative hat and return to teaching, RPCS was the perfect fit.
Since arriving at Roland Park, Mr. Ray has been pleasantly surprised. When asked about his first impression of the school and student body, Mr. Ray, a man of few words, responded, “it's definitely positive.” The kindness within RPCS, the eagerness of the students, and the willingness to dive into the world of mathematics impresses Mr. Ray the most.
Overall, the addition of Mr. Ray to the community has not only livened up Room 114 but has been an integral part of the Math Department. And, for the highly anticipated answer to the question that many have been wondering since Ms. Kyle’s initial introduction of Mr. Ray, his favorite game is spades.
(Meghan Green)
Mr. Soloff
This year, RPCS welcomes a psychology and biology teacher, Mr. Soloff!
Before Roland Park, Mr. Soloff received his master’s degree from Emory University. In graduate school, he realized that he did not want to be a science researcher in a lab but rather wanted to teach as he always loved tutoring in college. So, he decided to leave graduate school to pursue teaching.
Mr. Soloff has always been fascinated by psychology and the capabilities of the brain, so he was excited to see that RPCS was looking for a new teacher in this field. So far, he is really enjoying the RPCS community. He senses a strong community and says, “People aren’t just nice, they are actually kind to each other.”
He says, “I definitely think the biggest surprise [about Roland Park] has been what you can do in a classroom: with how far you can go with doing fun and engaging stuff while it's still providing a useful lesson.” Mr. Soloff continues, saying, “that is something that I have observed from other teachers here, and is something that wasn’t really in my world view before I saw it here.”
Mr. Soloff is looking forward to being the sponsor of the Dungeons & Dragons club. He was introduced to D&D in graduate school. He said, “the graduate school environment can be very isolating.” Mr. Soloff values the relationships with the people he has met through D&D and is excited to continue to play as a DM (Dungeon Master).
Mr. Soloff has discovered numerous similarities between leading the game and teaching. For example, being both “an experience designer” and a teacher requires “leading an experience for a group of people, you want them to have a good takeaway, you want them to come prepared, and you want to manage any conflicts that appear.”
Mr. Soloff is excited to pursue his love of science and teaching at RPCS, and we are thrilled to have him.
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