Living Environment and chemistry teacher Kevin Tranchina is constantly looking to improve his teaching skills and for innovative ways to make science an exciting subject for his students. He has won over the hearts of his students at LHS by letting his true self shine through in the classroom. In November, he was commended for his efforts by the State of New York, as he was recognized as a “master teacher” and accepted into the SUNY Master Teacher Program.
To be named a Master Teacher is a great honor to those in the education profession. The goal of the program is to “recognize outstanding K-12 public school STEM teachers and counselors and sustain a statewide professional network of educators dedicated to professional growth and development,” as described on the SUNY Master Teacher Website (suny.edu). Teachers are selected by a rigorous, multi-step application progress that includes written application material and the attendance of professional development activities. Selected teachers engage in professional learning opportunities to address challenges and provide new opportunities for students.
Tranchina’s acceptance to the program follows science research teacher Kathleen McAuley’s acceptance last year. For Tranchina, he takes great pride in the honor. “I’m proud of [being named a Master Teacher]. It’s an accomplishment that most people don’t know about or get to be a part of, so I’m grateful for the opportunity,” Tranchina explained. “Teachers whom I respect have gone through the program, and I look forward to being counted among them and improving my own practices. It seems like a great community of enthusiastic people who care about pushing science education forward and support each other in doing so. It’s also a cool-sounding title to have on an email signature or business card,” added Tranchina.
His colleagues share the same pride for his accomplishment as they can agree that Tranchina embodies a master teacher. “Mr. Tranchina is a master teacher for many reasons, including but not limited to his depth of content knowledge, his dedication to students and their families, and, most importantly, his ability to collaborate with other teachers to advance science education,” AP Biology and science research teacher Charles Vessalico explained. Physics teacher Amy Ezaugi added, “According to the NYS Master Teacher website, ‘Master Teachers have a deep understanding of professional knowledge for teaching. They continually evaluate, refine, and adapt their practice to better meet the needs of students.’ Mr. Tranchina is all of this and more. He consistently reevaluates his teaching practices and looks for ways to make connections with students, both inside and outside his classroom.”
Outside of the classroom, Tranchina is an avid reader and artist. He spends a lot of time watching sports games, plays, and supporting his six nieces and nephews in their activities. He is not a current pet owner but aspires to own a capybara in his lifetime.
Ironically, Tranchina never imagined that he would serve as a teacher in the professional world. After giving a guest presentation at a family member’s school, he knew it was the career for him. “I have family members who’ve taught everything from kindergarten to college, but never thought I’d be doing this. My sister-in-law was a science teacher, and her school needed someone to speak at Career Day. I was working in a research lab, so they invited me. I talked to the kids about mouse brains, and it was a lot more fun than anything I did at work. They had me back to do a presentation on genetic engineering to an AP Bio class, and a few months later, I was looking into education graduate programs,” he described. His current and former students are thankful that he made this career change because of his lively and energetic presence in the classroom. He shows immense care towards his students and is always rooting for them to succeed. “[Tranchina] always explained everything thoroughly and made sure to keep explaining things if anyone was confused. He always found a way to make chemistry interesting, no matter how uninterested the class was in the subject matter. In any other class during first period at 7:00 AM, I would be half asleep, but in chemistry, I was always laughing and loving the class,” Tranchina’s former student and senior Grace Loiselle expressed.
Within the classroom, Tranchina explained that his method to successful teaching is to just “act like himself.” He said, “I connect science to things that I enjoy, and trust that students will agree with me enough for it to work. Thankfully, I teach subjects that let me get away with a lot. If I carry around a Captain America shield to talk about metallic bonding or start singing Bee Gees songs while teaching Gibbs Free Energy, most people don’t question it at this point.” His methods have prevailed, and his teaching has touched the lives of many at LHS. Whether creating an elaborate demonstration, finding a fun video or song to use as a learning device, or dressing up for Halloween, Tranchina has the best interest of his students in mind, granting him his role as a “Master Teacher.”
