Joseph Schmidt is a new Spanish teacher at WA. After graduating from Tufts University, he went on to work various food service jobs for around two years, until he transitioned to teaching. He is excited and ready to start the new year, with hopes that his students walk away with an appreciation of the Spanish language and culture.
Q: How was your first day of school?
A: [I’m] always a little nervous, hard not to be. That never leaves you. But honestly, I’m just excited to be here. I mean, it’s a really fun job. It’s really different from what I’ve done before, and every day I learn new stuff, that’s what excites me.
Q: Are there any aspects of WA itself that have shocked you?
A: [WA] is definitely a big school, and I do not know my way around yet. I have not gone upstairs since the first day I was here, and I’m not going upstairs until I need to. I definitely need to spend a lot more time exploring.
Q: Are there any co-workers that have mentored you so far this school year?
A: My official mentor is Julie Bostrom. She is great and super nice. My curriculum coordinator, Stephanie Devlin, has also been really helpful. Overall, the department is super welcoming. Whenever I need anything, [there are] always at least two or three people there for me. And to me, it feels like a really close-knit department, which is really nice to step into.
Q: So far, what has been your favorite part about WA and its community?
A: I love how focused the community is on learning. The average student here cares about learning, coming to class, and doing a good job. I think that should not be taken for granted. I like that a lot of students here play sports. I really love sports, and it’s cool to see people take that seriously as well.
Q: Have the students been excited and receptive?
A: In the beginning, some students were a little shy, some were a little confused about me. I’m young, and I look younger than I actually am. The students were very welcoming, though. I like to think they like me, and I like to think we have a good time in class.
Q: Were you nervous they might not have been excited?
A: No, I think at the end of the day I’ve always liked talking to people, and I’ve always been able to talk, so I think those skills translate. Obviously, we have our good days and we have our bad days, but I love my students.
Q: What are some goals you’ve set for yourself in the new school year?
A: I think my number one [goal] is to enjoy it. If I can get to the end of the year and still be enjoying it, that would be a very big win. Number two is to hopefully have the students step away knowing that Spanish is a skill that will help them for the rest of their lives. It’s undervalued how much learning another language can really help you [in] the future. One of the most unique parts about our class is that it is a life skill that sticks with you for the rest of your life. People will forget algebra, people forget calculus, depending on what they do for their job. But you won’t forget another language if you learn it well, and it will always help you.
Q: Why did you choose to teach Spanish?
A: In high school, I always enjoyed Spanish classes the most. I felt like the teachers had a lot of energy and were doing something really different from what other teachers were doing. When I got to college, it really felt the same way. That’s why I ended up studying Spanish. I always knew I could see myself as a teacher, and when I did, Spanish was the obvious choice.
Q: Did your exposure to Spanish start in school, or were you hearing it before?
A: It was something that I started learning in school, then I finished. I started in seventh grade. I studied through the end of high school. When I got to college, I took a year off from taking Spanish classes. I transferred to Tufts University, where I majored in Spanish. For my first two years after undergrad, I worked in food service. One year, I was a manager at Tatte, and another year I was a baker at a French place. In both of those jobs, I spoke a lot of Spanish at work.
Q: Where have you worked before WA?
A: I worked as a pastry chef prior to [coming] here, at this place called PRB Boulangerie. It is a really nice place out in Cambridge. I picked up lots of skills and made a lot of croissants, so I still do a lot of stuff at home.
Q: Do you like to bake?
A: Yes, it’s a skill that I really do hope to keep with me. I love to cook. I love to bake. It was such a blessing to be able to do that professionally for a while, but it was really difficult. I had to wake up at 2:00 a.m. to prep the dough.
Q: Aside from baking, do you have any other hobbies you like to do outside of school?
A: I love sports of all kinds. I play soccer in an amateur league in Boston. Apart from that, cooking and baking are the major ones. I do like to go to the gym when I can, but time gets tough sometimes.
