It’s the most wonderful time of the year—and with the first day of school comes a fleet of teachers starting new jobs in city and county schools. We talked with some of the educators who are preparing for their first year, and learned why they’re excited about stepping into a new classroom. These interviews have been edited for space and clarity.
Tim Hamlette
Career specialist
Albemarle High School
Talk about your process in becoming a new teacher.
I started off doing a work-based learning retreat with the other career specialists in the county. We got together, we had a retreat, we talked over what our strategies will be, we talked over what worked last year, which I couldn’t contribute a lot to, since this is my first year, but we talked about what we want to do going into this year. And that was exciting. And now, starting new-teacher orientation, I’m just excited to see what we’re going through, see how the vision and mission work out, so I’m excited to see how that goes.
Tell me about your excitement, and, if you’ve talked to other teachers, what they’ve been saying as well.
Yeah, I’m excited. We’re all going to be working with students in some type of capacity, some different type of capacity, being able to learn from them, being able to teach somebody else something. So being able to come together, work as a team, whether you’re in Lakeside, whether you’re in Albemarle, whether you’re in Monticello, we can all learn and grow from each other. So being able to be here, connect and have this community of ACPS, I think it’ll be beneficial for the students that will be coming in this year, and also for us to grow as new teachers and specialists as well.
How important were teachers and specialists for you when you were growing up?
So being able to have that relationship was something that was very beneficial for me, being able to go to somebody at school to talk to when maybe you were feeling lonely, maybe you didn’t have anybody to talk to, you had that teacher there. And for me, personally, I didn’t have many male or Black male teachers or specialists in school. So, me being able to come into the school and be a Black male, able to be a face, or be somebody that can relate to somebody that they may not be able to see, is something that I’m super excited about. Being able to help point somebody in their career wherever they want to go is something I’m excited for, being able to build those relationships, being able to connect with different students. Because everybody’s going through something, you don’t know what they’re going through, but when you just show them that you really care, when you show him you’re there and build those relationships with them, I think is key for success.
Why did you take this new position?
I love working with the youth. I was in Richmond working with the youth, I was in Lynchburg working with the youth, and then being here in Charlottesville, I wasn’t in the students’ buildings, I wasn’t with them. So I felt like I needed to get back in there. And Albemarle High School is the biggest school, most diverse, being able to reach different types of people, different ethnicities, different types of students. That’s what really drew me there and being able to build up relationships, like I was saying, and being able to connect with different students. You get to see all aspects of Charlottesville in Albemarle High School, I feel, and that’s what led me there.
Ryan Robinson
Culinary arts
Charlottesville-Albemarle Technical Education Center (CATEC)
Tell me about the subjects and grades you’re teaching this year, and what makes you excited about it.
We offer a culinary arts class in part one and then we have a part two. So, I’ll be teaching students 10th through 12th grade. What makes me most excited about teaching? The opportunity to make a positive impact, really. In my case, food is the hook that gets the students interested in coming in and being a part of what we do. From there, that’s where I have the opportunity to make that impact. I leverage food, but it’s about making an impact on each kid as individuals. So that’s what I’m most excited about. It’s a challenge. That’s what we [the teachers] have been talking about the last week, all the challenges that teachers want to be ready for throughout the school year. You always have challenges, but to me that’s when it gets fun. Making that connection with each student.
When did you begin teaching, and what inspired you to teach?
I started with Virginia Beach City Public Schools in 2022. I got just under two years under my belt of teaching in a formal classroom setting. And what originally drew me to the classroom was, I did recruiting for about three years for the Culinary Institute of Virginia. When I was recruiting, I was in the classroom every day throughout the week. I saw the opportunity to make an impact. I hate to be redundant but I really did. In that short engagement where you have one class session with those kids and then you gotta leave, then it’s the next group of kids that come in. It’s a short form engagement, but I really saw the opportunity there. And teachers inspired me just as much as the students. Seeing teachers educate at a high level and make an impact in a student’s life, I wanted to be a part of that.
What is your cooking background? You said that you were in recruiting, but how did you get into the culinary arts?
I graduated from the Culinary Institute of Virginia in 2013, and I went right into the industry. My foundation really was in hotels and country clubs, private country clubs. So I spent about six or seven years doing that before I got into recruiting. But I’ve done a little bit of everything, man. One of my passions for food is healthy cooking. I actually started gardening for that country club that I was working at, Cavalier Golf & Yacht Club in Virginia Beach. We started a small garden, the members loved it, we were able to use that produce in the kitchens. For me, it was my first leadership role, which is significant, because I was able to actually hire for the garden staff. And I would also recruit people who worked in front of the house or back of the house who wanted to come out and help us. And so that was my first leadership role. That’s where I kind of got the bug for where I am now—leading people and making a positive impact.
Having gone into culinary arts as a student yourself, how do you inspire kids who are making the choice to go the technical education path, which maybe they’re not seeing a lot of their peers do?
It’s all about meeting the kid where they are, and that’s why I’m talking about making that connection with the kid. So if every day, you come to class, and I see you doodling a little bit, then I’m gonna ask, “Hey, Amanda, what are you drawing? That looks cool. What is it? Really, you draw? Did you take art at your school?” And it’s just making that connection. And we might not get everything that I need from you in that one day, right? Because I got 18 other students, I’m probably going to spend about a good minute and a half with you. But also I want to meet you where you are. Week one or week two, you might not be ready to tell me your life story yet. But I’ve made that connection. I know that you started when you were 11, I know that your older brother taught you—alright, boom, we got something. So that’s something for me to build on. I believe that students have within them who they want to be or what they want to be. Once you know the person, you can help them with all sorts of stuff. You know, that’s the goal. And that’s why I say, food is the hook to guiding the student where they’re gonna be a productive citizen of society. It’s not just about creating chefs. It’s not just about a job title. It’s about the fulfillment, and pursuit of happiness. You want to be happy. That’s success.
What do you love about teaching? And what would you like to see grow or improve in education?
Well, I think CATEC is doing it. I think about helping students get jobs, and things of that nature. I think that’s important with education, not just giving them the diploma, but helping them with their next step. Every student is at a different level. You might have a student that just barely graduated high school, right? We all know those kids. He just made it. Counselor was on him like the last two weeks of school. He passed that last SOL he needed to pass and then got his attendance together, didn’t come half the school year. So we all kind of know where this kid is gonna go, right? There’s a reason why he missed so much school, and there’s a reason why his test scores were down. He has a chance to get into trouble … or he’s probably gonna go into one of those entry-level jobs like fast food or something. How can the education system get better? In my opinion, I think it’s about helping kids with that next step. Maybe every school should have a career services department or something like that, something to help kids for that next couple years.
Alison Mutarelli
Fourth grade
Venable Elementary
What makes you excited about teaching fourth grade?
I am so excited to teach fourth grade. I taught it for my student-teaching placement and it was such an awesome opportunity. They’re at an age where they have that personality, they have a spunk, and they’re really ready to learn and grow. They’re starting to get some intrinsic motivation and take accountability for their learning and accountability for others. I’m also super lucky, my cohort is really, really small. They’re a cohort of 40. They have been together since first grade, they know each other really well. So I’m excited to have a classroom family that has been together. I’m also excited because in Venable, or in Charlottesville City Schools, fourth grade is the top of our elementary school. So I’m preparing my little babies to go off to upper elementary, which then trickles into the middle school. So this fourth-grade year is going to be a lot of preparation for taking accountability for your own actions, your own learning, your behaviors. That way, they are prepared to go on to the upper levels. But there’s still a little elementary school where I get to baby them, and I get to love on them. But getting them ready for that next step is really exciting for me.
So they’re going to be graduating?
Yes, they’re going to be graduating out of elementary school. They go off to Walker, which is the upper elementary, and then that trickles into Buford, which is middle school, seventh and eighth grade. And then obviously, move on to high schools. So this fourth grade is like, they’ve been here, some since pre-K. So it’s been a long journey, and then once they move out, it’ll be, I’m sure, emotional for many. I definitely have some fun activities planned for the end of the year. I would definitely want to do a field trip for the graduation ceremony where all the parents can come, just to celebrate not only fourth grade, but your entire Venerable journey, including all the teachers that they’ve had in the past. I’m a big part of their fourth-grade year, but I wasn’t here the other years to see how much they’ve grown. But you know, if there was a first-grade teacher that’s still here, I would love them to get to see how much they’ve grown.
You’re gonna leave such a big impression on them.
I’m just so grateful to have the opportunity to make a lasting impression on our young students. I have a really big sign that says “The future of our world is in this classroom,” because that’s what it really is. These are our future leaders, our future doctors, our future teachers, our future nurses—everyone is in here. They will be fostered to grow in that way. So I’m really excited to have that impact on them. I want nothing but positivity. I love all of them unconditionally and I don’t even know them. I didn’t have the best elementary school experience. So I’m gonna change the narrative. I’m really excited to do that.
When did you begin teaching, and what inspired you to teach?
This is my first year teaching. I am so excited. I just graduated from the University of Delaware. When I was at Delaware, it was obviously during COVID. So I had to take some other paths in order to get the experience. I taught in a preschool. And that was such an amazing experience, those little babies just loved you. It was COVID, so times are really tough. And they were just so happy to see you. So their little faces just made my days. I tutored and I student taught, I’ve had a first-, a third-, and a fourth-grade class during my student teaching. This will be my first class of little babies—I cannot wait, we’re going to learn together, that’s what my big message to them is. As an adult, I don’t have all the answers. I don’t even consider myself an adult sometimes. I’m only 22. So my students are learning, but I’m learning with them. They’re gonna know that it’s okay to say, “Hey, Ms. M, this lesson didn’t really work for me. How can we go about doing this in a different way?” They’re going to advocate for themselves. That’s something that’s really important. I didn’t learn that until I was 20. And even then, it’s still really, really hard for me. I want my students to be able to advocate for themselves, tell someone their needs.
What do you love about teaching? And what would you like to see grow or improve in education?
So what I absolutely love is seeing my students grow. And I’ve only seen it in a limited time, because I’ve only had my little babies for short increments. But the students that I had, in the beginning of my six months, were not the students that I had at the end. Seeing them grow, and in some aspects, just learning to trust me. For some students gaining that trust is really, really hard. And I acknowledge that, I don’t expect them to trust me on day one. But seeing them grow and develop—that light bulb when you’re teaching a lesson and it clicks. That is the most exciting feeling. Having a student who really really struggles and seeing them like, “I get it, I get it now,” is the most awesome feeling. I love my relationships with my students.
Going to be very sad that they’re going up to Walker and I won’t be going with them to see them in the hallways. But I know myself and I know I’ll go up and visit. I also am definitely gonna be putting an emphasis on building those relationships with my parents. I’m asking all my parents for any sports schedules or instrumental schedules. I only live 15 minutes away from here, so I really want to go to the sports game so my students can see I’m a real person and I don’t just care about their math skills. I care about them as a person.