Summit Math Teacher To Be Honored At Princeton University Commencement

SUMMIT, NJ — A teacher from Summit's Kent Place School has received this year's Princeton Prize for Distinguished Secondary School Teaching.

Middle school math teacher Alicia Grysko Rodriguez is among four teachers who were selected for the award based on nominations from public and private schools around the state. Rodriguez will be honored at Princeton University's 2022 Commencement on Tuesday, May 24.

Each selected teacher will receive $5,000, as well as $3,000 for their school libraries.

When Rodriguez found out she was a finalist for the Princeton award, she said it was a very "emotional experience."

"It was totally unexpected," Rodriguez said. "I'm still trying to process the whole thing."

Rodriguez has been teaching eighth grade math at Kent Place for the past five years. Prior to this, Rodriguez taught at Summit High School for 12 years, which she said was "one of the most amazing experiences of [her] life."

She decided to make the switch to Kent Place, an all-girls school, because she wanted to help uplift young girls who tend to put themselves down, particularly in math classes.

"In a co-ed environment, especially in math, sometimes I was seeing girls using language of like 'oh, I'm no good at this,' or 'I'm so stupid' or really putting themselves down," Rodriguez said.

At an all-girls school like Kent Place, Rodriguez felt she had the opportunity to undo some of the self-deprecating language that girls tended to use.

As a teacher, Rodriguez is known for turning her math classes into fun and engaging lessons for students. For instance, one may find Rodriguez's students tossing Nerf basketballs into a hoop in order to better understand how to graph parabolas.

“[Rodriguez] goes out of her way to expose students to practical applications of math in their everyday lives,” Donna Gulino said, a colleague at the Kent Place School in Summit.

“What is this shape?” Rodriguez asks as the ball arcs in the air. “What is influencing this shape? What changes it?”

Rodriguez said she also does a cup-stacking activity with students as part of a lesson on linear equations.

“When she is teaching, she watches students’ body language to see how well they are understanding the content and looks for ways to make the material understandable for everyone,” an administrator said.

Besides teaching math, Rodriguez is deeply involved in the life of the school, reading applications as a member of the admission committee, planning student outings and serving as the diversity, equity, inclusion and belonging facilitator. She is also the Grade 8 team leader.

One student said Rodriguez helped her prepare to give a speech at graduation, encouraged her to get engaged in extracurricular activities and gave her frequent pep talks that boosted her self-confidence.

“After knowing her for just a year, she has changed the way I view myself, my capabilities in mathematics and my potential as a leader,” the student said.

Todd Kent, the director of Princeton's Program in Teacher Preparation, said the four prize winners have been able to provide an "exceptional education" for their students under the difficult conditions of the pandemic.

“Although they work in different subject areas and in very different school settings, they all share a total commitment to the intellectual growth and emotional wellbeing of their students," Kent said in a statement. "Their stories are wonderful and inspiring, and the influence of their remarkable work is felt throughout their school communities.”

The 10 finalists were visited at their schools by Rosanne Zeppieri, a member of the program staff.

The winners were then selected by a committee chaired by Elizabeth Colagiuri, deputy dean of the college. This also included Kent, Jennifer Jennings professor of sociology and public affairs at the Princeton School of Public and International Affairs (SPIA), Stanley Katz, a lecturer with the rank of professor in public and international affairs at SPIA and William Miron, principal of Millburn High School in New Jersey and a 1978 Princeton University graduate.

Princeton has honored secondary school teachers since 1959 after receiving an anonymous gift from an alumnus to establish the program.

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