I moved to California in 1990, right after the Loma Prieta earthquake. I guess I figured you guys wouldn't have another one for a while - ha ha. I should probably be getting a little worried now, 30 years later, huh?

Anyway, I grew up in upstate New York (not the city) and it took me until my late 20's to decide to become a teacher. When I was young I hated school. I was bullied all the time because I was very small and my teeth grew in sticking straight out. In fact, I couldn't even close my mouth until the 7th grade when my braces finally pulled my teeth in. (Now I can't close my mouth because I have so many cool things to tell you guys!) When I went to high school I was barely 5 feet tall and I was the only student who qualified to wrestle in the 92-pound weight class!

The sport I really liked, though, was cross-country and track. I actually still love running, but it's a lot harder for me now with this 60-year-old body! (My ultimate goal is still the Boston marathon!)

I earned a degree in microbiology from the University of Notre Dame. I was lucky enough to be there at the same time as Joe Montana when he led us all the way to the national college football championship in 1977. (That was before he became a 49ers legend.) After college my heart was set on getting a PhD in genetics and becoming a research scientist -- but I was not accepted into the graduate program I wanted. So I decided to join the Peace Corps.... and that changed everything!

For two years I worked in a hospital in Liberia on the West Coast of Africa. I was a tuberculosis control worker but I also taught some lessons in the schools and out in the field. This is when I realized how important teaching is. Even though I treated and cured some people, teaching about germs and how to stay healthy prevented many many more people from getting sick in the first place.

Well, the rest is history (or science I guess) because I've been teaching science ever since. I went through the Shady Hill Teacher Training Program in Boston and then moved out here to San Francisco. I came to Denman as a substitute back in September, 1990 and the principal hired me that day. Denman is the only school I have worked at in California. I even met my wife, Ms. Poulos, here at Denman. In fact, I proposed to her from the roof by having my students line up on the yard in the shape of "Will you marry me?" (I still can't believe I did that!)

Ms. Poulos and I have two children, Noah and Marina. Well I guess they aren't children any more, they are both in college now. Here we are at Marina's high school graduation.

But enough about me, what about you? I can't wait to find out what makes you get excited about learning. I hope this year you will see that science and STEAM are pretty fascinating subjects!