By Lauren Silverstein

Sentry Staff Reporter

The Parent Teacher Association chose to name social studies teacher Michael Palermo as 2012-13’s Teacher of the Year, after considering the nominations submitted by students, parents, faculty and administrators. Palermo is teaching two courses this year: Advanced Placement Government and Politics, and Leadership and Diversity.

“He’s relentlessly positive, very encouraging, reasonable and gracious in his dealings with others,” said Principal Dr. Raymond Pasi of Palermo. “… a real asset to the school, a real asset to students, and like many other teachers in this school, really devoted to what he does.”

Pasi was proud to learn of Palermo’s selection, and made a point of visiting each of Palermo’s classes to inform students of his selection.

Patti Rosenberg, vice president of internal affairs for the PTA, collected the nominations for Teacher of the Year. She informed Palermo of his selection just before the beginning of winter break.

“It was exciting. I was surprised. I think the thing that made it such an honor for me is that I know there are so many good teachers here at Yorktown,” said Palermo of his nomination. “…being a Teacher of the Year is one thing, but being a Teacher of the Year at a place like Yorktown is a really big deal.”

“He’s got some amazing qualities,” said Rosenberg of Palermo. “…he’s a lifelong learner, he has studied diversity and leadership skills, and he imparts that to his students.”

Senior Tierney Patton, a student in Palermo’s AP Government and Politics class, readily agrees.

“…He definitely works really hard to make sure that his students know what they’re learning and fully understand it,” said Patton.

Palermo has had an interest in American history and politics since his student days. His favorite academic subject was social studies, and he says he was typically talkative in class. However, he did not anticipate a career in the classroom.

“Initially, I didn’t really plan on becoming a teacher,” said Palermo. “I was a political science major in college, and at least when I was growing up, I told everybody I was going to be President someday. Of course…you can’t do that right out of college, and so I had to figure out what I wanted to do in the meantime.”

Palermo began considering a career in education following a stint as a volunteer for an after-school tutoring program in Washington, D.C.

“It was probably the best thing that I ever did in college,” said Palermo, who attended American University in D.C. “I’d even interned at the White House at one point and this topped even that experience.”

In his senior year of college, Palermo also taught a freshman government course as a teaching assistant. This, he says, cemented his decision to pursue a Master’s degree in teaching. His first job offer was at Yorktown, where he was one of the first teachers hired by Pasi, newly hired himself. Only 23 years old at the time, Palermo says his fellow teachers used to joke that he looked as young as his students.

Sixteen years later, he has had no thoughts about switching schools or moving on.

“I’ve been here ever since [my hiring], and just fell in love with it,” said Palermo. “And so I think I’m definitely at a point in my career where I’m going to be staying for the long haul.”

Palermo obtained his teaching certificate in social studies, which allowed him to teach a broad range of subject areas.

“…I’ve taught pretty much every social studies class there is at Yorktown, every grade, every history,” said Palermo. “I’ve pretty much done it all over the years.”

In addition to AP Government and Politics, Palermo currently teaches Leadership and Diversity. The class began as a club at Washington-Lee, to train members in leading workshops promoting diversity and tolerance. In 2001, the club became a class offered during the school day at all three high schools in the area. The class took on new significance under Yorktown’s ROCS principles: Respecting Others, the Community, and one’s Self.  Palermo liked the idea of a course emphasizing community service.

“That’s something that I think has always really animated my teaching,” said Palermo. “And so when I saw a class that was really focused on [giving back to the community]… I jumped at the opportunity to teach it.”

Palermo believes learning should be about more than just notes. He structures many of his lessons as discussions or simulations, and says the interactive nature of both his classes helps students relate to and retain information.

“…The best learning takes place when everybody’s contributing, when it’s not just me standing up at the podium and lecturing for 45 minutes,” said Palermo of his Leadership and Diversity class. “And I think that class, but social studies in general offers a lot of opportunities for students to become engaged. When they do that, it’s more fun, but I think they also learn a lot more too.”

His students concur.

“There are a lot of hands-on activities that keep it interesting,” said Patton. “It helps you understand what you’re learning and it puts things in real-life perspective.”

Outside the classroom, Palermo uses Facebook and Twitter to connect with students and discuss topics related to his two classes. During the presidential debates last year, he tweeted questions to students in his AP Government and Politics class who were watching for extra credit.

Rosenberg says that Palermo was selected as Teacher of the Year in part for his innovative teaching style.

“You want somebody who’s creative and he certainly is creative,” said Rosenberg. “He keeps kids interested and he’s always striving to do more and to do better …you can’t ask for more than that in a teacher.”

Beyond his teaching duties at Yorktown, Palermo has helped to lead a seminar course through George Mason University called Seeking Educational Equity and Diversity, or S.E.E.D. The course is intended as professional development for local teachers, but is available for graduate students as well.

“It’s actually sort of similar to the Leadership and Diversity class, with the emphasis on diversity,” said Palermo. “But the focus is on teachers, on educators, and on ways that teachers can be more aware of diversity issues and how that affects their students’ learning.”

Palermo had participated in S.E.E.D. himself, and cites his involvement in the Leadership and Diversity class as one reason he was asked to become a facilitator for the course. He has been a S.E.E.D. instructor for about five years.

“One of the things I’ve always tried to do is not only be a good teacher for my high school students in the classroom but give back as much as I can to my colleagues,” said Palermo.

But to Palermo, the best part of the job is being able to teach the subjects he loves every day to students he enjoys spending time with. He says he is glad to have found his place here so early on.

“I think Yorktown is a place where I just lucked out…and I don’t think I would ever look back,” said Palermo.  “I’ve loved every minute of it.”