I wanted to share this very powerful and intimate essay Keshab Bista wrote about our relationship from middle school. Keshab was an outstanding middle school student on Team Journey, and I believe this essay (he is now a senior in Ohio) reflects how impactful the Advisory model was for him. I am very proud of Keshab and agree he would make a terrific teacher. – Chris Magistrale, teacher on Team Journey
“Mista Bista” he would call me, and “Chris” I called him. When people think about teachers and school in general, they think about the one teacher that stands out the most, the one that inspires them the most. For me, that teacher was Christopher Magistrale, my middle school advisory teacher for three years. In those three years, he inspired me, helped me learn, helped me grow and helped me become a better me. For this reason, I was so quick to pick him to interview even though I haven’t talked to him in years. After I sent him an email with questions, he responded without hesitation, even though I’m just a former student. That’s one reason alone that makes him so great.
Chris was born and raised in the small state of Vermont, he currently teaches at Winooski Middle School. He graduated from South Burlington high school in 2002 then went off to the University of Vermont, where he graduated in 2007. He then went back to UVM to earn his Master’s degree in education. Since 2011 he has been working in the Winooski School District. As someone who had him as a teacher for three whole years, I can say that he loved all his students. He tried to build relations with you on a more personal level because he believes that “if you don’t build relationships with kids you can’t teach them because they won’t trust you” and he’s absolutely right about that. We always had a good relationship, we had a teacher-student relationship but also I knew, I could trust him with anything. That’s why he had such a positive effect on me.
When asked about what inspired him to teach, he replies, “I’ve always loved working with kids. As an adolescent myself I always wanted to lead other kids and be around younger kids because I felt like I had a positive effect on them.” This is the same exact thought that I’m left behind with. This is the same reason I want to also become a teacher, Chris was a big part setting that mindset for me. The influences he had on me and all the experiences and memories from advisory show me exactly how much a teacher can change a student’s life. As a teacher, you can literally make the student’s future, you can set them up for success, help them have a more positive mindset and much more. This is why teachers are so crucial to the world, without them the world wouldn’t function the way it does.
As great a teacher as Chris is, he does face some challenges as well. For him and a lot of other Winooski teachers, the biggest challenges come from the huge diversity in the school. Winooski has become a place with a large refugee population, in fact, Winooski is the most diverse school in all of Vermont. Chris says “I love our refugee population in Winooski. But it does cause some difficulties in teaching basic instruction.” He is very correct, for most of the students at Winooski, English is their second or third language, it becomes very difficult to teach an entire class if the level of standards is all over the place. However, the best part about Winooski is also diversity, every day you learn something new and find new cultures. For that reason alone, Winooski will always be number 1 in my heart.
Christopher was a teacher like no other, he truly loved and cared for all his students and he showed it time and time again. During those middle school years, we all created memories that will last a lifetime. In Chris, I found a teacher that I can never forget, he’s not just a teacher but a friend as well.