By Chak Kai Wong — Correspondent
Ms. Alberico-Hatcher, a beloved faculty member at Sharon High School, is retiring this year after 29 years of teaching at the school.
After graduating from college with a degree in math and a minor in secondary education, Ms. A worked in the business world for over 10 years, then she joined the middle and high school faculty as a special education teacher. During that time, she helped many students with math and science homework. The math coordinator, noticing her passion for teaching students in math, invited her to join the math faculty. Since then, she has remained an everlasting presence in the Sharon High School classrooms and community. She has taught various levels of math courses and has been the co-advisor for the Class of 2012, 2021 and the National Honors Society.
Discussing her initial passion for teaching and helping other students. Ms. A explains that she has always been a keen helper since her time as a high school student. “When I was younger, I always helped kids in the neighborhood with their homework and when I was in high school in Cambridge, I would walk to the middle school to help students with math as part of the curriculum. I had always loved to help others with math,” recalled Ms. A.
When Ms. A joined the faculty in 1994, math problems were still taught on whiteboards, and she had to copy problems with markers on the whiteboard and explain how to complete them for the class. Ms. A reflected on the changes at Sharon High School from when she first became a teacher to now. She explains how the new technologies such as smartboard and electronic notes significantly improved the efficiency of her classes and offered her the ability to help students who were missing from class to catch up. Despite the advancements in teaching technologies, Ms. A has always been a mentor on campus who has guided generations of students in the same thoughtful, intuitive, and caring manner. “When I started out it was whiteboards and markers so I would go over homework problem after problem on the whiteboard, erase them, then write the curriculum notes with examples and erase again, and do it all over again for the next class. When I tried to help the student who is out due to illness to catch up, I had to ask them to come to me for extra help and copy notes from another student. Now I can save everything I write, post it on Schoology by date. Technology has made teaching so much better,” said Ms. A.
Despite the changing teaching method, Ms. A still believes that having students do the classical problems from older textbooks can be beneficial for her students. “I have always kept my old things like I have my older textbooks and problem sets. Some textbooks have real life problem sets that I utilize in class. Good challenging problems,” said Ms. A.
Furthermore, Ms. A compared how the students she taught have both changed in some ways and remained the same in others throughout her time at Sharon High School. “I mean the students have changed. But after all, kids are the same. They would complain about homework, but then they love coming to class, and I love them all. It’s a little different for students today than it was 20 years ago, due to the advancement of technology. Students have calculators, online tutorials, teacher notes to review from home, and personal and home computers. I want all my students to follow their dreams, find their purpose in life and remain true to themselves and to be kind to others wherever they go,” said Ms. A.
During her time at the Sharon High School community, Ms. A has also become close friends with many of the fellow teachers here. Some of her best friends, Mrs. Marie Cioffi and Mrs. Tracey Smith, shared some of their best memories with Ms. A during their time as her fellow math teachers. “Ms. Alberico has been my colleague for over 20 years. During that time, has shown that she is a caring friend, attentive teacher and supportive colleague. Eileen knows her students because she takes the time to listen and get to know their interests outside of school. She is a wonderful and thoughtful friend who always remembers what is happening in others’ lives because she cares so much. I will miss seeing her daily at SHS as my colleague, but especially as my dear friend,” said Mrs. Smith.
“My best memories of Ms. A are her singing, dancing and providing snacks to cheer up the students or teachers. She can make you forget your troubles. I have enjoyed many miles of walking and talking with Ms. A over the years and will continue to after we retire! I have been lucky to work with her and have her as a dear friend,” said Mrs. Cioffi. She will also be retiring from the Sharon High School community after teaching here for more than three decades. Ms. A and Mrs. Cioffi were also the class and NHS advisor together.
Of all the things that she will miss when she leaves Sharon High School, Ms. A knows that she will miss the students the most because she has enjoyed working with all of them over the years. “I would like to shout out to all the kids: ‘You make me laugh every day. You teach me every day, and I learn from each of you. You are funny, happy, sometimes grumpy, but I can always get a smile out of you.’ I think the students are amazing, and I absolutely adore you all. And I always look online every once in a while, four or five years from now, I see my former students. I see them all grown up and have children of their own and move on with their lives and are successful. All of it is so wonderful,” said Ms. A.
The Sharon High School community bids Ms. A farewell and thanks her for the influential impact she has had on countless students and the school as a whole. We wish her well in her future endeavors.