Name: Joseph Papa
Where You Teach/Work/Educate: Pittsburgh Beechwood PreK-5
Subject(s) / Grade You Teach or Once Taught: Taught: K-5 ESL, previously taught high school English
# of Years In Education: 11
Years At Current Position/School: 5 (this school year)
Have You Taught Previously Elsewhere? (y/n): YES
If so….where, what did you teach/do…and for how long?: I taught for 5 years for the New York City Department of Education, at KAPPA International High School in the Bronx (English 9, 10, 11, and 12, as well as IB Literature). I taught for the AIU for one year after returning to Pittsburgh, where I taught K-5 ESL at Elroy Elementary in Brentwood
PFT: What compelled you to become a teacher and/or to work in education?
JOE: My mother taught for over 30 years at the Western Pennsylvania School for the Deaf. I was fortunate enough to visit her classroom several times over the years, and to also be present when she on-the-spot interpreted for former students in need.
Being the child of an educator, you witness the stress of this work, the long hours, and the physical and emotional fatigue; but with that, you also see firsthand how meaningful our work can be. I was able to see the lasting impact that a teacher can make on the lives of the students they teach.
After graduating from high school, I did not go to college right away, and instead was an AmeriCorps volunteer in a program called City Year. I worked as a reading tutor and after school programming provider at an elementary school in Bedford Stuyvesant, Brooklyn. The year was challenging, but also opened my eyes to the impact I could make in the lives of others–albeit with additional training and a longer-term commitment. When the year was finished, I knew that teaching would be a good fit for me.
PFT: What do you like best about your career choice and job?
JOE: Teaching is rewarding in so many ways, both in the short and long term, which is probably what I like most about it.
When a kid who was having a rough day gives you a smile or a hug, you know you’ve made their day a little better. In the longer term, I’ve been lucky enough to hear from students I taught as high schoolers who are now doing great things, and have shared that their high school experience was a reason why they’ve done so well.
Seeing students succeed is intensely gratifying, and what drives me to stay in education. Additionally, though teaching can at times be lonely, it is also a collaborative pursuit, and I love that aspect of the job, working with other teachers to solve problems and meet the needs of our students.
PFT: What degrees and certifications do you hold? Do you have any professional awards or recognition you’d like to share?
JOE: My bachelor’s degree is in English Literature from Hunter College, a CUNY school located on the Upper East Side in Manhattan. It’s a public school that is one of the most diverse colleges in the US, and I loved my time there.
After Hunter, I enrolled in New York City Teaching Fellows (not TFA!), an alternative certification program that partners with certain colleges in New York City and the city Department of Education to staff hard-to-staff certifications and schools.
Through NYCTF, I earned my MA in Secondary English Education from Brooklyn College, while teaching at a DOE school in the Bronx. During my high school teaching years, I also completed IB certification through FLIBS in Florida and was a Stanford Hollyhock fellow, a program designed to support teacher retention at high-turnover, high poverty schools nationwide.
Additionally, I am National Board certified in English – AYA, which I completed during my last two years in New York. After leaving New York and moving to Pennsylvania, I added certifications in elementary and middle school grade bands, and the add-on certification required by Pennsylvania for ESL educators, through the AIU.
PFT: In your opinion, what are the greatest challenges faced by educators today? Students? School districts? Any challenges specific to your subject matter expertise?
JOE: It is certainly a tough time to work in education–but I suppose it often has been!
I believe that right now, public education is under threat from a variety of forces seeking to undermine our work for various reasons. Teachers are not valued as professionals–this is evidenced in political rhetoric questioning our ability to make appropriate curricular choices and support our students as we see best fit.
Public schools are not adequately funded (see the recent lawsuit in Pennsylvania), and yet are held to blame for many larger problems beyond our locus of control. We are witnessing a period where a push to bust unions, undermine our professional livelihood, and threaten our students’ right to quality educators in their classrooms has found a vehicle forward in the neoliberal nexus of charters, vouchers, and “school choice.”
At the same time, we have systematically disinvested in other institutional supports for children, such as childcare, mental health services, and community-based programming, which places schools in the dire position of often being one of the only service providers for families in need.
There is ample research available showing what children need to create an environment in which they can thrive–experienced educators, in well-resourced, safe, clean, and modern classrooms, with supports for the health of the whole child incorporated, are necessary. And yet, the provision of resources to create this is not a priority–new ways to siphon money to private interests seem to appear every year.
It is certainly disheartening. I worry that as this trend continues, people will not want to stay in education, the result being that our students suffer.
Specifically in the teaching of English learners (ELs), we are witnessing a period of significant enrollment growth in EL populations, without the needed increase in professional staff and outside supports. ELs and their families have needs that are often greater, and different, than other students we have taught. They often move frequently and have interrupted formal education, and are often processing significant traumatic events in their lives while also learning English. Their families often do not know how to best advocate for them, and schools and other institutions have struggled to adapt to their needs.
PFT: When did you join the union? Do you participate in any committees or hold any leadership positions? Ever taken any coursework or continuing education?
JOE: I joined the UFT as a first year teacher in New York. My first interaction with the union was with a cohort of teachers who supported each other through the National Board process, which was incredibly helpful (NYSED also paid for three of the components through a program teachers could access through NYSUT membership, which was an incredible benefit).
I became involved with the PFT initially through PAC volunteering during the 2020 election. I was connected with Brenda Marks, who taught me the intricacies of a successful phone banking operation and with whom I made many, many calls that year.
I loved the sense that I could make a difference through the PFT–and that I was needed! From there, I’ve stayed involved in other PAC volunteering opportunities, and have also completed the Teacher Leader program, which was very rewarding. I am a proud member of the Executive Board as well, as a Member at Large.
PFT: In your own words, why is having union representation important? What’s the best thing about being in a union, whether you are an active or more passive participant?
JOE: Union representation gives you a sense of agency in your profession. Through the union, we as workers can become empowered to effect change in our working conditions (which, in our case, also means our students’ learning environment) at various levels, from our buildings, to our district, to policy at the state and national level.
Unions give us strength and create a shared identity around our profession. If we are to improve the state of public education today, unions will be an integral part.
PFT: Do you have a mentor that introduced you to the PFT/Union? Please share who—and what that person meant to you and to your member development.
JOE: : There are so many folks I’d love to shout out who have supported me in my development as a union member.
Hopefully, I won’t leave out anybody! Teresa Partee at Beechwood introduced me to the PAC leadership, which started my journey in political organizing through the union.
Brenda Marks, as I said, was patient in teaching me the ropes of organizing and working with me many long hours in a critical election year at the state and national level, and has remained an inspiration and true friend.
Jen Mazzocco and Chris George have helped me to better understand the political work of the union, have encouraged me to become more involved, and are always great for a local politics chat.
Nina Esposito-Visgitis invited me to participate in the Teacher Leader Program, where I met Brittany Shoup and Sarah Mueller, who patiently mentored me through the year-long work of the TLP.
I enjoyed getting to know my fellow Teacher Leaders, all of whom were an inspiration to me in their work, and must of course shout out my Beechwood colleagues, who support me every day and for whom I am so thankful.
PFT: When it comes to me personally, people are surprised to learn that I….
JOE: I’ve run 4 marathons (Pittsburgh twice, Buffalo, and Niagara Falls); I love to hike and backpack; my ideal day involves a cat, a comfy chair, a book, a latte from Biddle’s Escape, and time for a long run in Frick, in no particular order.
FINAL NOTES–A quote to live by…. and Lightning Round:
JOE’s Quotes … In my most highbrow moments:
“Quote to Live By“
“Service is the rent we pay for being.
It is the very purpose of life, and not something you do in your spare time.”
― Marian Wright Edelma
In my less highbrow moments? Just about anything that Dorothy said on Golden Girls.…
JOE’s favorite …
Movie: Volver (classy), Flashdance (trashy)
Book: The Mysteries of Pittsburgh and The Wind Up Bird Chronicle
Author: Haruki Murakami, Michael Chabon is a close second.
Singer: Tough to pick one–lately I’ve been loving Cautious Clay
Song: “Valerie” by Mark Ronson with Amy Winehouse
Color: Blue in its various shades
Food: Pasta
Time of year: Cross country season in the fall
