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Bringing It Home – The Saint Rose Blog

Long Time, No See! Brendan Peo, Here!

Greetings! I was thinking about Saint Rose the other day and my time there as a student and as an employee! Moments later, I received an email in my inbox to submit an “update” post for the blog. It’s funny how coincidences happen!

After graduating with my Master’s in December 2013, I continued to work as a part time employee for ITS until the end of May 2014. I worked as a Graduate Assistant for Rachel Ramsey for two years, before working more formally for the department. In early June, I moved back to Long Island to begin my search for a special education teaching job. Leaving the Capital Region was a terribly difficult decision, simply because I had made so many connections and friendships in the region, as well as with folks at Saint Rose. But, I knew I needed to get out into the world and make new experiences for myself. I always reminisce about my times in the “518” and I do miss it.

At the end of June, I received a phone call from a great friend and alumna, Sophia Paljevic ’12 G’13, about a position that had opened at her school in the Bronx. One thing led to another and I started summer 2014 with a big smile and a new job. I was hired as a fourth grade ICT (Integrated Co-Teacher) teacher for the New York City Department of Education, in the Bronx. I ended up moving from Long Island to Northern New Jersey, to be closer to my school. My commute is 20 minutes from my school and I am in a fantastic carpool each day! (Don’t worry, I don’t pay those tolls every week!!)

Teaching in NYC is such a wonderful, eye-opening experience. Previously, I worked a little bit in Albany City Schools, so I thought working in the urban environment would help me in NYC. It has, to an extent, but NYC is so much bigger and faces way more challenges than our capital city. It may be cliche, but it’s accurate when I say “college cannot prepare you for everything.” I entered the school the youngest member of the faculty and although I had the most up-to-date education and strategies in my toolbox, there is always a situation that you can never be ready for. I am enjoying my time with my co-teacher and my school and I look forward to many more productive and fun years to come. The Lally School of Education at Saint Rose definitely helped prepare me for this real world experience!

I hope all is well at Saint Rose. I miss my frequent conversations with faculty and staff on campus, usually as I was setting up for an event or assisting with technical queries. I hope to get back to blogging more often about my experiences as a first year teacher, so be on the look out for future posts. That’s all for now! Thanks for reading!

 

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