Spotlight on Our Newest Educator: Mrs. Gioeli

Mrs. Gioeli: Room 504

I chose to interview Mrs. Gioeli because she recently joined Valencia, and I wanted to know more about her.

Can you tell me about your educational background?

I grew up in New York, and I went to high school in Liverpool, which was a suburb of Syracuse. So, it was very similar to Valencia, and it was like a traditional public school, and it was probably the same size, right around two to three thousand students. So, a pretty big school. And then I went on to Bingmington, which was a little bit closer to New York City, more on the southern side of New York State. It was a public state school. So here, you know, we have like Cal State, they call them Sunys. They’re state universities in New York. And I went to the SUNY Binghamton. It was at the time, and still kind of is, one of the best public schools in New York State. So, I was very proud when I got in. It was one of the better schools that I got into, and I was very proud to go. That was a huge school. I think at the time we had 15,000 undergrad students alone, which was very, very big. And that was the last time that I was in school until this summer. So, this past summer, I enrolled in a graduate program and I’m currently attending Columbia University in New York City, which is a big thing for my family, no one in my family even went to college. So for me to go to college, graduate, and now go to grad school at an Ivy League is a really, really big step for the trajectory of my family. 

Q. What made you want to become a teacher?

I was twelve when I decided I wanted to be a teacher. It was the first day of seventh grade, and her name was Mrs. Kope. She was my math teacher, and she was very sweet. She was my first period, and I walked in. My maiden name is Bohannan, and my first name is Brynn, so she immediately, while she was taking attendance, she nicknamed me B squared, and I don’t know, I just thought like “Wait a minute. This is THE math teacher.” Because in elementary, you only have one teacher and they teach you math and science and history and writing and everything. But I was like, “Wait, all this woman does all day is talk about math.” I was like, “This is the best ever.” And I had already been someone who liked helping other people in class, so I was already kind of prone to teaching. But then I was like wait, I could just teach math, because I didn’t want to teach everything, so I always was like upper level like high school or middle school is where I want to go. From that day on 12 years old till I graduated it never changed, I always wanted to be a teacher.

Q. What school(s) did you teach at before coming to VHS?

I taught in Texas, well, I did my student teaching in NY while I was attending Binghamton, then I moved with Teach for America to the Rio Grande Valley, Texas, and I taught at one of the biggest charters in Texas called IDEA Public Schools. I was actually a founding ninth-grade teacher for that charter school. So, they didn’t exist before we got there. And we only had one grade level the year that I worked there, which was ninth grade. So, it was just me, five other teachers, and 120 students. And we were the founding class of that school. And then when they moved up to tenth grade, we got a new group of ninth graders. So then we were two grade levels, and then until we filled out.  I worked there for two years, and it was called IDEA Weslaco. Then I moved to Colorado Springs, and I taught in Colorado for three years, at another charter school called Atlas Prep. And then I moved to LA and I taught at my school that I taught before here which was USC Hybrid High School. It is part of Ednovate Charter Schools down in Los Angeles and it’s still there, but it was just way too far of a commute. So after I bought a house up here a couple years ago, I was looking for jobs in Santa Clarita.

Q: Why did you choose to teach at this school? 

I lived across from Bridgeport, and Valencia was right down the road, and I pass by it every time I go to Paseo, or like walking the river path. I also really like this side of town, and so when a position opened up here, it just felt like the right move for me. I really appreciated the academic results here, the diversity of the demographics and the students that it serves, and that this is a very different school than all the rest in Santa Clarita in Park District. So, it felt like it would provide me with some new opportunities and challenges. It also saved me 4 hours a day on the road.

Q: What subjects/grades have you taught, and what do you enjoy most about teaching? 

I’ve taught basically all the maths except for the APs, so Algebra 1 and 2, Algebra 2 Trig., Pre-Calculus, Geometry, and Honors Geometry. I just haven’t taught AP Calculus and Stats. I’ve also never taught a 12th-grade class, but I’ve taught 12th graders before, and some seniors, but they were usually in a class that they missed. But I’ve usually worked with 9th through 11th grade, mostly 10th grade.

Q: Can you describe your classroom management style? 

I really like to treat students like practicing adults. I like to lean into trust and accountability as the foundation. Then, if the trust is broken, then we can approach different styles to support students that might need additional support. But, I call it like a no nonsense nurturer, like I’m not here to be mean, I’m going to nurture and try to create an environment in my classroom that makes it safe to learn, but I also don’t play, I don’t mean to say that in an aggressive way, but it’s like the rules are rules for a reason and they help us get our job done. And if I have to sit there and enforce the rules, then we’re not going to get our job done.

Q: What do you enjoy most about teaching? 

Being in the classroom with the students is 100% the best part of the job. I also enjoy planning, institutional planning. I really like thinking about what’s going to work for how to present new material, but actually presenting new material in the classroom from day to day, like that’s the best part. But grading is not the best part.

Q. What's your favorite thing about VHS? 

The students are very kind. Very, very kind, and I noticed that on my first day of my visiting, the amount of students that like held doors open or said things like, “Excuse me.” I feel like the students have been very, very kind. And when they’re not kind, because that happens too, it’s either they don’t necessarily think someone’s watching or listening to them. I’ve also given some harsh feedback, like really direct feedback to people, and they’ve taken it. They’ve been like, “You know what? You’re right.” They've been very receptive, even when they’re not being kind, and I really appreciate that.

Q. What has surprised you the most on campus? 

Since I’ve never worked at a traditional public school, even though I went to a traditional public school, the sheer size and like the massive amounts of programming is so cool. Like, you do, even this, you’re interviewing me at lunch. Like, this is crazy, this has never happened. The stuff that you all do, and again the programs and the opportunities you have exposure at Valencia is wild. And I’ve always worked at charters, where we’re trying to do that, we’re trying to give students that experience, but we’re always so tiny, and it’s really hard to do. But like you have a good football team, you like a good dance team, you have a good choir. Like, there’s so many good things here that you guys get to take advantage of, and it’s just been really awesome.

Q: What’s your favorite book? 

It’s the best day for this question! My favorite author is Philippa Gregory, and my favorite book she wrote is The Other Berlin Girl. She gave up writing during that period of time during like the King Henry VI part of England, like 10, 15 years ago. She hasn't written about it in a while; she’s a historical fiction writer, so she writes about all kinds of different ones. But today, she released a new book about the book I love. So, after school today, I’ll be going to Barnes & Noble and buying The Boleyn Traitor, which is her new one. But The Other Berlin Girl is my favorite. That was a book she wrote a couple of decades ago.