Classroom Coliseum

Alina Heinz is part of the New Hire class of 2024 in Goshen Schools and has enjoyed the first half of her year teaching at Goshen Intermediate School. She came to Goshen with experience teaching elsewhere and brings a lot of tricks of the trade with her to her students at GIS. Her passion for teaching and learning is contagious and I think you will catch a glimpse of that in this discussion. Give a few minutes of your time to listening to Alina and you will be encouraged about the future growth of our students here at GIS!

Michael Isseks dedicated over 30 years to students in Goshen High School in the Social Studies Department and beyond. As the 2nd Semester of 2024-2025 begins, Mr. Isseks will begin his next phase of life in retirement. Throughout his career, he has always been a humble servant leader even when he had official roles like interim Assistant Principal, Social Studies Department Chair, Goshen Teachers' Association President, athletics coach, class advisor, and more. Due to his deep humility, he was reluctant to join this special podcast series - until his Social Studies colleagues Mrs. Marie Jane Panzer and Mrs. Carmina Villegas (who were students early in his career) asked to interview him themselves to reflect on his career well-served. This episode highlights a special person who's career and relationships have left a lasting impact on the Goshen teachers, students, administrators, and community at large. Thank you, Mr. Isseks for your friendship, collegiality, dedication, and leadership to those who crossed paths with you in your incredible career.

When you look around Goshen High School, you may not realize just how involved Jim Quinlan is in some of the projects and initiatives! Mr. Quinlan is a Goshen High School English teacher who is passionate about how the English curriculum allows students to be creative and think independently. Beyond the classroom, he is a talented musician, drama/musical director, musician, and video producer. Just as much as the kids shine on stage, he shines in the background - happy to let other take the spotlight! In fact, in a podcast interviewing him, he gave a lot of credit to the phenomenal teams he has to support him. Listen to this episode and hear from the creative mind of Mr. Quinlan and you’ll certainly want to be a student in one of his groups! 

It is a truly special experience when a teacher enters the profession with a wealth of professional practice in the field. Jen Cascino was a graphic designer and illustrator for major professional publications for many years prior to entering the education realm. She spent two years teaching in Brooklyn prior to relocating to Orange County and teaching in Goshen. Her experience creating fine art and digital media for many years has helped her revolutionize the art department for Goshen School District. Her passion for art is rooted in visual storytelling and helping kids achieve more self actualization in their lives.

Some educators’ professional lives take a direct route, but GHS Assistant Principal Jénelle Hindell’s professional work has taken unique and interesting twists. She did not set out to be an educator out of college, and spent time working in political action and college admissions for some time. Her love for history brought her back to education and she loves that content so much that in this interview, it was hard for her to pin down her favorite topic! She worked in a variety of schools, cities, and states on her way through her career, and has landed Goshen as an Assistant Principal in her homecoming back to Orange County. In this episode we unpack her love for education, desire to help kids, and her passion for coaching teachers. Check out this episode and your paradigms about the role and perspective of an Assistant Principal may be changed.

Daniel Passante came to Goshen with an excellent pedigree in communications from his education at the Park School of Communication at Ithaca College, as well as professional work experience in TV studios and even in sports broadcasting. His passion for effective and clear communication with high engagement is an exciting thing to bring to Goshen School District. Most of the time, a public informations specialist is behind the scenes but in this episode you will learn about the guy behind the camera/webpage/newsletter, etc. Not only does Dan bring excellent work for Goshen Schools and the community, but he also shares some great tips for students and professionals working to build their brand, expand their reach, and communicate effectively.

Sarah Tierney is a veteran educator who pursues her intrinsic desire to help kids on a daily basis. She came to Goshen from NYC Department of Education with an incredible amount of classroom experience as well as counseling all age levels. Sarah’s desire to work with children to help achieve their best selves as they navigate their adolescent middle school years. There are tremendous challenges in the job, but she values peer mediation, self awareness, and interpersonal connections to help resolve their issues and develop stronger resilience. For any parents or students anxious about their middle school experience, knowing that Ms. Tierney is there should be a great comfort.

On paper, Shannon Bernhardt is a Math Teacher at Goshen High School, but that only skims the surface of what she brings to the school district. Her passion for working with young people and mentoring through athletic competition shines in the school and through this podcast interview. She studied Math in college, but minored in Deaf Studies where she continued her skillset in American Sign Language. She brought an ASL course to Goshen and hopes to continue to grow our program here as well. Ms. Bernhardt seems to manage all of these initiatives through her love and passion for working with your students.