Originally from Los Angeles, Calif., Allegra Duda studied poetry at Bard College before discovering her passion for special education and teaching younger students. Duda spent most of her summer in California with her two kids, seeing family and friends and going to the beach.
Where are you from and how did you grow up?
I am from Los Angeles. I am an only child, and I kind of had a bumpy high school career but came out on top, going to college. I went to college in upstate New York: Bard College. Then I went to graduate school in northern Virginia and met my husband, who is also from Boston, and here we are.
How did you decide you wanted to be a teacher?
I was in graduate school for poetry, and I thought I was going to be a professor of poetry to college students. I ended up getting a job at a small private special education school while I was in graduate school [and started] working with younger students and liked it. So I changed gears and ended up getting my second master’s [degree] in education. I have always taught special education; I have never been in any other position teaching-wise, so I connected immediately with that field.
What are your long-term goals for working at the high school?
Well, I hope to retire here, so I think I am going to be sticking around for a long time. The position I am in [right now] is a one-year position for the Homebase program, so next year, I could be in a different role, hopefully still with the [high school’s] special education program.
Can you tell me more about what Homebase is and how it’s structured?
Homebase is a place where students get extra help on work. They also work on their IEP goals or anything that their team has identified that they need to work on in school. Students can also drop in here if they are just having a rough time or feel like they need a little break. So, we see students all day, I would say, mostly when they are scheduled to be here but sometimes during other times.
What is something you hope your students learn in Homebase?
One of the big pieces of Homebase is for students to learn strategies so they can stay in class more. The idea is that if you are stressed out and you feel like you need to come to take a break in Homebase, or maybe even spend the whole period in Homebase, [you can]. But eventually, you are learning skills, ways to talk with teachers and how to advocate and get what you need so that you feel more comfortable staying in class.
What do you like about working with high school students?
I’ve always liked working with older kids. I love [their] brains; [they] are sophisticated and complicated. Like I shared earlier, high school was not easy for me, so I feel like I want to pay it back a little bit, just like the teachers who worked with me and helped me get through stuff.
I know you’ve only been at the high school for a few weeks, but what do you like best about it so far?
People seem to feel happy and heard. There’s a high satisfaction level with the school, the district and with leadership, which is really refreshing and not the case in the school I worked in before.
