Lea Luniewicz

Reaching for Independence Through Structured Education (RISE) teacher Lea Luniewicz loves connecting with her students and giving them the tools they need to express themselves. Luniewicz minored in Special Education in college and is currently pursuing her Master’s degree.

What made you want to work in special education?

I always approached school differently and when I was growing up, students were told “no” so many more times than they were told “yes” or “let’s try it a different way”. When I minored in special ed, it really spoke to me that there is no “we can’t”, but there is a “can we do it another way?”. When I was growing up, sometimes I felt like I didn’t have a voice, and some of my students quite literally don’t have a verbal voice. Here in RISE, we give kids that voice. So it’s really beautiful.

What is your favorite part of your job and why?

Honestly, I love when we’re at the cafeteria eating lunch. I love when we’re in the STEM wing or in the restaurant, just sitting at a table, maybe we are having our morning meeting there. I love hanging out with my students and my paraprofessionals. [I love it] when we have moments to really connect with our RISE classroom community and just be with each other. We always have so much fun.

What challenges do you face in your job?

Day to day, you have no idea what you’re coming into, [and] you don’t fully know what your day is going to look like just by looking at a schedule. It completely depends on how students are coming in and what energy they have. As a new teacher, that’s definitely very different because I am trying to make all these plans and have everything be all perfect and planned out.

If you could have any pet in the world, what would it be?

I want one of those finger monkeys—the tiny monkeys that hang out on your finger. I don’t know if they are an illegal animal you’re not supposed to have. I don’t know if they’re truly real because they looked kind of fake when I Googled them, but I would want a finger monkey.

Why is the Brookline community important to you?

I started my career here. I came right out of college and then started [here] at the high school. When I first got here, I felt way more like a student. All the time I would get stopped for my elevator pass, and [people were like] “Why aren’t you in class?” So I feel like I grew up here, especially with the last RISE class that just graduated, we were like “we’re all Class of 2022!” So really, shout-out to Brookline. This is an amazing community, and it’s really special that I’ve been able to come in right out of college. But I love this job and I stayed. Then I went back to grad school, I’m getting my Master’s, and Brookline’s really supported me in becoming a teacher. I’m very grateful for this opportunity and I’m excited for my future in Brookline!