Ms. Leena Meola – Lincoln High School Teacher of the Year 2025

By | 16/05/2025



Join Jersey City Public Schools Chief School Administrator Dr. Norma Fernandez as she sits down with the 2025 Teachers of the …

Ms. Leena Meola – Lincoln High School Teacher of the Year 2025/a>

[Music] Today I’m interviewing Lena Miola who has been selected by her colleagues, the faculty at Lincoln High School as teacher of the year. You will be representing Lincoln for this year as the teacher of the year. So Lena, it’s so nice to meet you. Um, how long have you been a teacher and what do you teach? So this is my 12th year in the classroom. I’m an English teacher. Um, right now I’m teaching 11th and 12th grade and I also teach AP lit. Um, I’m also dual certified, so I actually started out mostly doing special ed. Um, I did inclusion. Um, I did self-contained. So, for the first half, um, I was really mostly doing special ed in the different schools that I was at. And then the last half I’ve been in a gened classroom. So, I’ve had a very unique experience where in the English sphere, I’ve kind of gone from special ed inclusion and then all the way up to like gened, APE, things like that. That’s wonderful. How do you use your uh training that you have as special ed in a gened class where you have such a diverse student body? I think the biggest thing that I learned when I was doing my special ed certification is the idea of equity um equity versus equality. So, um you know, when you’re constantly thinking of how you’re going to deliver the same material to a class of like 25 30 kids, obviously they’re all going to learn it differently. Um but the idea is that they have equity in what they’re learning. So um if I present it one way to five or 10 students and then I present it a different way to you know six or eight students but they come out on the other side having gained like a lot of the same knowledge. That’s perfect for me. So that’s something that they obviously hammer home a lot with special ed. You know you’re differentiating your instruction. Um, but you can carry that over into gened because you’re always going to have kids who learn differently. Even in the gened setting, there are going to be kids who really still are like, "I learn best by taking notes." There are going to be kids who are like, "I learn best by hearing you read this to me and then I read it myself a second time. I learn best with visual examples." So, it has actually been super helpful. I think that it it really is something that if you know someone is going to school to be a teacher and they just get even a chance to take an elective about teaching special ed, the stuff you learn is so helpful. That’s phenomenal. So you indivi individualize your lessons to the students needs and learning style. That’s magnificent. Um so what is your favorite English uh lid to teach? Oh my gosh, that’s such a good question. I really enjoy doing short stories that have twist endings because the kids reactions are just so wonderful to watch. Um so one of the stories that we’ve done is the lottery by Shirley Jackson. Um where in the beginning when we talk about a lottery I’m like you guys would love to win the lottery, right? They’re like yeah I would love to win the lottery. To us we think of the lottery as you know you’re winning the jackpot a bunch of money. In that story it’s not the jackpot. It’s not a bunch of money. And when they find out what it is at the end, they’re just like, they can’t believe it. And it’s just exciting to see them get really into a story and then have that feeling. That’s why we love reading, right? When it has a huge impact on you, whether it’s something like a twist ending where it’s like, "Oh my god, I wasn’t expecting that." or you’re reading something that impacts you emotionally. You’re crying, you’re connecting with these characters and it’s really enjoyable to see them go through that process, especially as someone who loves to read and I understand that not everyone loves to read. So, it’s also exciting when you see the kids who, you know, this might not be their favorite class and then they’re perking up a little bit like what is this story about? And and then by the end they’re all just locked in as they would say. I I think and I’ve never taught high school, so I’ve taught up to 8th grade, that all students love a good story. They may not necessarily like to read, but they do all en we all enjoy a good story line. Yes. Because a story is a movie, a video game. Those all have story lines. And we know that students like those. It’s exactly like you said, they might just not enjoy the actual reading of it. And that’s where I come in. Um because that’s okay. It’s okay that you don’t enjoy it. I’m here to help you, facilitate, and you know, we all have to go through English in high school. And it’s okay if you don’t like it. I think that’s why the teacher is there. Not just for the kids who are great students and who love your subject, but for the ones who, you know, are going to be interested in the content. they’re just going to need a little bit help with everything else. Well, even in today’s world when we don’t have time to read, um I know I do my audles because I love a good story. I just don’t have the time until bedtime and by then I fall asleep after two pages. So, yes, but you know, when I’m in the car, that’s my uh my story. So, um that’s a great concept. So, it’s obvious why you were selected teacher of the year. Thank you. And uh your passion comes through with the interview. So, you’ve done a phenomenal job with your interview and thank you so much for being such a valuable member of the city public schools. We’re very happy to have you. Thank you so much. Thank you.

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