By Rachel Clark
Adam Pomella is the teacher that everyone knows. Perhaps it’s because you had him as your freshman physics teacher, or because he is so involved with both the Oliver Ames track and field team and the Oliver Ames wrestling team; or maybe it’s for the simple reason that you just can’t walk past his room without receiving a cheerful good morning, or a heartfelt “how are you”. But while just about every student in Oliver Ames high school knows Mr. Pomella, very few know the tale of how he got to where he is today. All teachers have the same role: to teach- but what makes someone want to be a teacher in the first place differs for every single one.
Adam Pomella attended Marshfield high school, and it was during his time at Marshfield high school that Mr. Pomella realized his passion. In his own words, “I became a teacher because of my Junior year chemistry course”. A girl that sat behind Mr. Pomella was struggling in this class, a class that coincidentally Mr. Pomella was doing very well in. The girl- whom Mr. Pomella denies having any romantic interest in- asked young Mr. Pomella to tutor her, and he agreed.
Mr. Pomella found that he loved tutoring and helping others learn new things, especially in science. With Mr. Pomella’s help, his classmate, “went from getting Ds on her tests to a B on the next test” and Mr. Pomella realized he had stumbled upon a new passion he never knew he had. It made him proud to know that because of him, someone’s life had gotten just a little bit better. However, Mr. Pomella did not fully connect his interest in tutoring with a career in teaching until senior year. It was during this time when he was searching for colleges that his mom questioned him on what he wanted to do in life. Once she asked him that, all Mr. Pomella could think about was how good it felt to help tutor that girl in his junior year chemistry class. Suddenly it clicked for him: he realized that he wanted to be a science teacher. This realization was the reason that he chose to attend Bridgewater State University, a great teaching and science school, all while being not too far from his home.
Today, teaching is still Mr. Pomella’s passion. Years of teaching have taught him a ton about himself and the world around him. In his words, “Teaching has taught me to have more patience with people. It also has given me a much broader perspective on life”. Pomella grew up in, “a small town where everyone was Irish, Italian or a mix. There were only 2 minority families in the town until I got to high school” said Pomella when asked about his hometown. He also mentioned something surprising, “Also almost no one was divorced in my town” he told me. His sheltered hometown was something that influenced his teaching and life a lot, because it forced him to go the extra mile in order to empathize with and understand some of his students.
As he puts it, “there are so many difficulties in life that kids go through these days” that he had never encountered, or in some cases even had heard, of growing up. However, his determination to understand his students whom he sometimes has trouble relating to has helped him build lasting relationships with some of his students. In fact, he even states that, “My favorite part about teaching is the relationships with the kids. I have some of my alumni that I now consider friends.”
Teaching isn’t just a job for him, it’s an opportunity to better someone’s life and expand his own point of view and enrich his life. Teaching has made him so much more appreciative of the life he was blessed with growing up. In his words, “The thing that sticks out the most is that I have had an easy life. As stated earlier I grew up in a world where people were not divorced. I did not know of people who were abused as kids. After seeing and hearing some of my students histories I have realized that my life has truly been blessed.” Couples who have been struggling with various marital issues may read more about the benefits of couples therapy. However, sometimes the best thing for everyone involved is to just end the marriage. Naperville divorce lawyers should be able to help those who have finally decided to file for divorce. If you have kids you want to get custody of, you may need legal assistance from Illinois child custody lawyers. For property division issues, you may consult Rockville property division attorneys.
As a teacher, Pomella does his best to help these kids who have had hard times. He tries to always be nice to everyone regardless of if he knows them because, “you never know what someone could be going through”. This is why he always says “hello” and “how are you” and “good morning” to every kid he sees, and tries to show genuine care for all his students.