Mr. Bernich
Although it is only his first year teaching History (US II and World) at MHS, Mr. Bernich has been teaching for 7 years. When asked what his favorite part about teaching is, he simply responded with “my students”. He treasures the relationships he forms with them and especially enjoys when the students understand more than “just dates and places and names”. An avid watcher of The Walking Dead and The Game of Thrones and a love of the NJ Devils, Mr. Bernich shows that teachers are more similar to students than their students think.
Mr. Braine
Yes. Mr. Braine is in fact a Physics teacher with the word brain in his name. In the year that he has been teaching, Mr. Braine has learned that his favorite part is getting to smash, blow up, and burn objects. Not only does he have the brains to teach physics, but also the brawns to play rugby for the Montclair Norsemen. What did he do before teaching? Pilot an Apache Helicopter.
Mr. Evans
Mr. Evans is not only a newbie to Madison High School, but also a newbie to teaching with this being his first year enriching young minds. In addition to being able to teach both History and Chinese, he is also a self-taught speed –reader. His favorite show is Mad Men and his favorite part of teaching is being able to see all the different directions students can take discussions.
Mr. Vasquez
Mr. Vasquez is very excited for his first year of teaching ever, having only graduated from college last year. This year he is joining the History and Spanish departments as a teacher’s assistant in some classes. Although he also teaches Spanish, he is very interested in History (US and World) as he loves to study about the US in the 1960s. Common to many Americans, his favorite shows are the popular Breaking Bad and How I Met Your Mother. Some of his other favorites to watch are the movies Zoolander and The Dark Knight. With a love of soccer and basketball, he supports the team’s Real Madrid and the Knicks. An interesting fact is that he is a first generation American.
Mrs. Carlson
A veteran teacher of 16 years, Mrs. Carlson teaches Physics and Chemistry here at MHS. Her love of science has made teaching everyday very enjoyable, wanting students to then reciprocate the love of science for themselves. Her favorite movie is the classic Wizard of Oz, and she loves watching the popular TV show, CSI. As a dog trainer with some of her own training for competitions, obviously her favorite animals are dogs.
Mrs. Duckworth
After teaching fifth grade for three years, Mrs. Duckworth is excited to be a teacher’s assistant for high school students. She can’t wait to be exposed to all levels of History and English. She is a lover of The Great Gatsby and the three-toed sloth. She has traveled to 40 US states and 10 different countries.
Mrs. Nellins
Teaching since 1999, Mrs. Nellins has expressed great excitement for her first year teaching English at MHS. Because of her love of literature, she has wanted to teach English since her sophomore year in high school and Mrs. Nellins is very excited about meeting students and colleagues this year. While most teachers said the students are their favorite part of teaching, Mrs. Nellins expressed that she is excited to interact with both her students and her colleagues, whom she admires. She has four children and also harbors a love for the New York Yankees.
Mrs. Mascia
Mrs. Mascia is the new guidance counselor. Her favorite part about being a guidance counselor is watching her students mature and make discoveries about themselves. She aims to make the stressful process of picking a college an exciting journey for her juniors and seniors. She loves snuggling up next to her little yorkie and watching Modern Family, The Color Purple, and Newsroom. Although watching sports on TV does not intrigue her, she loves going to Yankees baseball games. She has a secret past of being a childhood actor in local musical theater performances.