Although she is new to EHS, Ms. Christina Jackson has been teaching for ten years now. Previously, she taught Spanish, ESL, and Spanish Language Arts for middle schoolers. This year, she is teaching Spanish at EHS, continuing her passion and love for teaching.

“School was always my safe place as a child,” said Jackson. “I wanted to be able to be part of a community where I could reciprocate that exact feeling [of safety] for others. I knew teaching was for me from a very early age because I liked how it felt to learn new things and I can happily say I am still always learning new things in the classroom, especially from my students.” 

From a young age, Jackson has always loved school communities and the sense of belonging that the environment fosters. Keeping up with her love for school, she hopes to be further involved in future multicultural clubs starting next year.

When she has the opportunity, Jackson enjoys immersing herself in books and spending time with her three-year-old daughter, Camila. With another daughter on the way, she is expected to go on maternity leave soon, but she still looks forward to being a part of the EHS community. 

Always bringing optimism to the nest, Jackson goes by the quote “It’s never too late to start the day over.”

While this is Mr. Wayne Younghans’ first year at EHS, he actually has seventeen years of experience as a math teacher, educating at an alternative school in Chicago, a high school in Vermont, and Carteret High School in New Jersey. 

Younghans became an educator due to his devotion to helping the people around him, finding solace in making others feel accomplished. Also, he wanted to teach because of his positive experiences with his own teachers in high school. His favorite teacher, Mr. Powers, not only pushed him to succeed but also inspired him to think deeply and explore beyond the surface; Younghans wishes to implement these goals with his students by “want[ing] to not just help [students] get through a class or survive but really understand math a little bit better and hopefully enjoy it a little bit more and understand the process, even if they don’t love the subject.”

Younghans is not just new to the building but is stepping outside his traditional role as a classroom teacher, taking on the “Math Interventionist” title. As an interventionist, he goes into other teachers’ classrooms, aiming to aid those who struggle with math and believing in their abilities to find purpose in math.

“Even though I don’t think that everything you learn in math class is all going to be used outside of school, the process of thinking in a different way…and making a plan to try to figure that out is just a good life skill,” said Younghans. 

Overall, Younghans hopes that his students are open to trying new things and getting involved at EHS. Additionally, he constantly advises his students to focus on improvement and growing their talents.

“I don’t want you to compare yourself to anyone around you, just compare yourself to you yesterday or you the moment before. Every day, I hope you’re getting better. If your goal is for you to be a little bit better each day, then hopefully you can achieve more than you thought,” he shared.

Being a long-term substitute for a few years in Edison, Mrs. Angel Verma has some experience in the Edison school district. However, this is her first year as an official educator, starting her career teaching math at EHS. 

Verma was inspired to become an educator by her calculus teacher, Mrs. Nicholas, who helped instill her love of mathematics and left a lasting impression on her; Verma aspires to be as motivating to her students as her teachers were to her. As an educator, she enjoys giving students the confidence to find success.

 “[I enjoy] seeing my kids say that they got this. I [also] love seeing the product of learning, especially when students volunteer to go up to the board to solve problems,” Verma said.

Not only does she treasure teaching other students, but Verma also appreciates learning from them: “I love seeing the different perspectives on doing a single math problem that students bring into my classroom. That’s like an ‘aha’ moment for me as well.” Additionally, Verma acknowledges that many people dislike math, but she hopes to change their minds.

“Math is not hard,” she said. “You just haven’t encountered a problem that makes you think hard about mathematical beauty yet.”

Verma used to be a competitive state-level short-distance swimmer in India, participating in many competitions. But in the present, she aims to keep her students afloat, advising them to ‘just keep swimming’ to success.

Ms. Danielle Durso’s profession is an instructional coach. As explained by Durso, an instructional coach is someone who provides support for other teachers by creating new materials and approaches to lessons. Prior to being an instructional coach, Durso was a teacher for ten years, where she taught 9th grade English, AP Seminar, AP Literature, and Creative Writing. Durso grew up in Perth Amboy, NJ graduating from Perth Amboy High School. Following her graduation, Durso went to Rutgers University, leaving with a Masters degree in Secondary English Education. 

Durso proclaims two things to be her favorite: building relationships with students and planning for instruction. Durso loves to get to know her students, and encourages them to be their best. Durso also says that she loves to come up with opportunities and experiences for students. The roots of this teaching started when she was very young. She was surrounded with educators in her family and used to enjoy pretending to be a teacher at that age. Even though her journey started that young, Durso wishes that she was given a day where she could catch up on her grading. She supplements this with offering a day for students for catching up on work.    

Outside of her school and profession, Durso is very involved in the performing arts, as she teaches dance at Yvonne’s School of Dance. There, she teaches ballet and lyrical and choreographs for a competition team known as Starlights. Apart from the dance school, Durso also is involved in community theater as she worked with the Perth Amboy Community Theatre and Rethink Theatrical. 

Working in a school or not, Durso would still see herself in a people-oriented career. Lastly, Ms. Durso would like to leave her mark with Maya Angelou’s quote, “People will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel.”

Ms. Heather Guas is an English teacher who teaches 10th grade honors and 11th grade accelerated English. Before teaching at EHS, Ms. Guas started by teaching a self-contained class that was strictly behavioral. After that, Guas taught history for children with special needs. Recently, before moving to EHS, Guas taught a 9-2 class, which was a double period of English for ninth grade. Throughout her teaching career, Guas said that her favorite part would be the students. Guas finds joy in helping students see themselves as learners and watching them grow. This career was harnessed by Guas’s mom being a teacher. Although she was experienced in this career at a young age, she went to work her junior year at Camp Daisy Program in East Brunswick, where she worked with special needs. At this camp, Guas met a student who was very bright, and she was immediately determined to help him reach his full potential. This experience made her switch majors from law to education in her senior year of high school. 

Apart from teaching, Guas loves to give back to her community. She volunteers for a Community  STEM Program for elementary students in North Edison. She is also the Chess advisor at EHS currently after serving several years as advisor of the Gay Straight/Gender Sexuaity Alliance (GSA) advisor at JPS. 

If she did not go into teaching, Ms. Guas would go into social service law, which allows other output for community service. Not only is she an active volunteer, Guas also holds the position of Vice President in the Board of Education in her hometown, which makes her juggle two jobs.

Guas grew up in Milltown, NJ and went to public school until 8th grade. Following middle school, Guas went to Rutgers Preparatory School for high school. For college, Guas graduated from The College of William and Mary.

Guas hopes to continue creating an impact at school and her community.  

“If you see a situation where you say ‘someone should do something about that’ you should try to be someone,” she says.

For Ms. Samantha Belle ‘19, the English department is a great place for students to learn a multitude of things about the world around them, whether it be about the aspects of an argument or understanding the writings of certain authors.  

“Despite a busy schedule, I always look forward to getting my students engaged in a book or discussion we are having.  Reading here has also been a fun experience, whether it be with students or alone,” said Belle.   

In her short time here at EHS, she can agree that this school has been a cool experience and that this school has a vibrant community, with students and teachers.

“Seeing my students have fun alongside classmates or work hard on a challenging assignment always brings a smile to my face,” she said. “ That is the reason I teach here at EHS.”

She also has a goal of contributing to the community, as she is a former student at EHS.  Another goal of hers is to provide the tools needed in order for her students to find success and maybe see them graduate.  

“In the future, I want to see the students I once taught walk through the door being a graduate of this school. It will show that my goal of fulfilling their needs is accomplished,” said Belle. 

For Ms. Emilia Ascolese, teaching English Special Education here at EHS is definitely different from not just this state or country, but the entire world.

“Having taught subjects in other countries in this world, EHS has so far been the most student-centered.  Contrast to other schools, there is a strong student culture here and spirit here,” said Ascolese.  

The reason behind her choosing EHS was that people were talking highly of this school.  

In her short time here, she has already had a strong love for this community.  She hopes to continue her passion for teaching English and helping those who want to learn.  She states the best way that EHS can be described is as many American high school movies or series.  

“This school is the best example of those movies that describe what high school is like, such as Easy A or High School Musical,” says Ascolese. “That is what makes this school different in ways others cannot relate to.”     

In the near future, she looks forward to expanding her roots, whether it be with connecting with her students or teachers.  Overall, she hopes her strong love for teaching and the community here will make her time at this school meaningful.

A Metuchen native who grew up admiring his own parents as educators, Mr. Alexander Yakowenko ‘23 is no stranger to the world of teaching.

Yakowenko decided he wanted to pursue a career in teaching at a fairly early stage in his life during his middle school years. 

‘’I realized I enjoyed helping people learn and it felt rewarding when someone I was helping finally understood what I was telling them,” says Yakowenko.

As he starts his first year in the math department at Edison High following his time at Rider College, he offers some helpful advice that he has in store for his fellow students.

‘’Ask questions and don’t be afraid to make mistakes,” he says. “ There are so many people who want you to do well so ask them for help. Mistakes are inevitable and they can teach you a lot so make sure you learn from them when you eventually make a mistake.”

In the future, he looks forward to connecting with his students on a more personal level. He also expresses his anticipation in becoming a part of the Edison community.

Yakowenko’s love for and dedication to teaching and helping others will leave a lasting impact on his students.

Despite her making it on the list of “New Staff” this year, many students may remember Ms. Megan Thomas ‘08 working at Edison High as a substitute teacher last year. Now starting this school year working as the secretary at the main office, alumni Thomas  always had ambitions to have a career in education.

Following her time at Edison High, she attended Middlesex County College, next going to Rutgers to obtain her teaching certificate in Science Education, in which she also had a strong interest. Due to circumstances in her life, however, she made the decision to leave college in her senior year, just short of earning her Bachelor’s Degree. Thomas made it be necessary to still continue to provide for her family. She had to find something quick. 

Settling in as an administrative assistant at an insurance company, Thomas understood that such a job was not what she wanted to pursue. 

“I simply looked for any job that would allow me to provide for my family, with good benefits and a decent schedule.” says Thomas.

After a period of time, she describes how working as an administrative assistant at an insurance company was draining, demanding and stressful.

“I was getting tired of the demands, and missing so much of my children’s lives because of travel, that I decided it wasn’t for me” says Thomas.

 Although she did not initially finish her degree, Thomas describes her strong passion for working with children. She found joy in volunteering for her kids’ sports teams, which sparked her love for teaching once again.

‘’So this unusual journey has landed me here, but I still plan to finish college and pursue my teaching certificate, eventually. Hopefully before some of you graduate high school!” says Thomas.

Thomas’ unusual journey has also provided a helpful insight on life that many others can heed.

“Never give up! You may make plans in life that don’t turn out quite as you hoped, and that’s okay!” says Thomas. “As long as you work hard, and focus on your goals, you’ll achieve them – even if it’s a couple years after you had originally planned.”