There is no doubt that these last few years have been filled with new experiences and situations that are harder than those we’ve ever had to deal with. it was one filled with shut cameras and disconnection and a feeling of emptiness and lack of contentment. sometimes, the pandemic and virtual school have given me a falling sensation: i’ve felt drowned in isolation, falling into a deep void of desolation. what i’ve learned from these years of isolation and desolation though is that the people who surround you (virtually or in person) can make a world’s difference. That's why I nominate Ms. Gia LoScalzo as the teacher of the year-because in a year of drowning and falling, she was a rope that pulled me back up. she was that difference between falling further down that depressive dark void and growing up and out of the ground even stronger than before. 

One chilly winter morning that was especially hard to roll out of bed and log onto Zoom must’ve been 10 times harder to physically get to the school in person, and log onto virtual school from an empty classroom, only to get a screen of black boxes and silence for students. Despite this, she always joined the Zoom with a smile, sometimes paired with a positive song like “Here Comes The Sun.”

In her curriculums, she has always gone beyond what is required of her. In her journalism classes, she teaches a happiness unit; a lesson that covers how to be happy in a pretty unhappy world. One day she told us, “Today we’re going to start our happiness unit. Because what’s more important than that?” Through watching inspiring films and having meaningful discussions, in addition to writing and reading the work of our peers, we had the chance to delve deep into what happiness is, and how we can all achieve it. 

I had Ms. LoScalzo for 1st period Creative Writing for the first half of the year, and 1st period Journalism for the second half of the year. Ms. LoScalzo never failed to join the Zoom with a bright smile, ready to face whatever virtual teaching may throw her way. She often began each morning playing music for both students at home, and later in the year when some students attended school in person, she played music for them too. She would do everything in her power to help us start our days on a positive note. 

Not only is she an incredible teacher, but she’s an amazing advisor of the school newspaper as well. Always ready to give positive feedback and ways we can improve upon our writing, she helps to make our school newspaper both functional and fun. She puts her all into her teaching and her advising. She is an incredible mentor, but she is an incredible person as well. Ms. LoScalzo is a life-changing teacher and person. She touches the hearts and changes the lives for the better of every student who is lucky enough to have her as a teacher.