Science teacher Dan Costa is in his ninth year of teaching. He spent a year at Melrose High School, five years teaching physics at Lynnfield High School, and then two years teacher chemistry in Salem, MA and at Westford Academy before coming here.
How come you switched from physics to chemistry?
I have two children who were of college age while I was teaching, and I put them through college, and there wasn’t enough money to put me through college. The rules that govern teaching are you can pass a test and teach for five years before you get your master’s degree and your next level of certification, and I wasn’t able to pursue a master’s while my kids were in school. Basically, my physics license ran out, and I’m in a master’s program now, and I should complete it by the end of the year. And I’ll be able to get my physics license back and upgrade my chemistry license. I also have a license to teach math.
Why did you come to this school?
Generally I’m looking for a home, a school system that I fit into, and it’s all about personal taste and style when you’re working in a school system. And frankly, I taught summer school here for three years, and I got to meet a couple of the science teachers, and I thought this could be a good school system. I know it’s got a great reputation, but that doesn’t always mean that you’ll fit in and that you’ll agree with the way the school operates. This is just a one-year opportunity.
Did you have a good first impression of the school?
Absolutely! Absolutely, you know the teachers and administrators I’ve met in the three summers that I’ve taught here are highly professional, very knowledgeable, good teachers, good people, and I’ve assumed that would extend to the rest of the staff and teachers.
Why did you become a teacher?
I spent 25 years in technology. I’ve been a design engineer, I was a physicist, and I was in sales and marketing. My close friend was a housemaster at Newton South, and her father was our superintendent of schools when we were growing up. I was at the Fourth of July picnic one time, and he put his arm around me and said, “We need STEM teachers.” I had a boss once that told me I would make a good teacher, or something to the effect that I was a frustrated teacher, so when those things started coming together I thought, “Hmm, maybe I should take advantage of that. Maybe that’s a skill set I have.”
Where did you go to school, and where did you grow up?
I grew up about a 45-minute drive southwest of here in Franklin, MA, so I went to Franklin High—go Panthers!—and I went to college at MIT.
What was high school like for you?
I like to joke with my students that I rode a dinosaur to school, you know it’s been that long. So, I do remember, vaguely, the cliquiness of the high school. You know, you had your geeks and your jocks, and your other little groups, and looking back on it I was never really sure what group I was in. I remember enjoying classes, I remember paying attention, I remember listening. But it’s been a long, long time. Things have changed dramatically. In my day the teachers’ names were Mr. and Mrs., you didn’t ask them personal questions, you didn’t come in on Monday asking them how their weekend was, what did they do over the weekend. There was a more distant relationship between the students and the teachers, so it was really more you come in, you sit down, you do your work, and you go home, and there wasn’t as much a concern for the holistic being of the student. It was just for academics.
What are your hobbies outside of teaching?
At this point I play hockey almost year-round. I took this summer off, but I usually play at least once a week, and then in the fall and winter I play twice a week.
If you could give one word of advice to a large group of people or the kids of this generation, what would it be?
I’d say it’s a hockey term: keep your head up. I see kids today who are more focused on their grades than their learning outcomes. And the important thing is, believe it or not, no one’s going to check your high school transcript when you’re going for your first job out of college. They’re going to want to know what you can do, so basically it’s all about skill building. To me, whatever I teach, fundamentally I’m trying to help students become better problem solvers and communicators. Scientists don’t work in a vacuum, so you need to be able to communicate what you do to others and you need to be able to get along and work well with other people. Keep your head up and keep your eye on the skills, and you’ll be fine.
Is there anything else you would want your students or the school community to know?
Treat each other well, respect people, places and things, and let’s all get along.
Hannah Lowenstein can be contacted at [email protected].
