Kenneth Simosko originally had no plans of teaching, but has now been part of the BHS family for nearly a year. Before working here at BHS, he was a meteorologist for all of his life up until around 3 years ago.

He works with Angel Young and Frank Losos to help students who have trouble learning in the typical classroom setting, whether that be because of anxiety, the noises of the classroom, or because they need a little extra help learning the material. 

“When kids go to class, they will take notes and are given homework, quizzes and tests. A lot of times if the classroom is noisy or they have a lot of anxiety with kids – I know I was like that in school – they want to come to a place in school that is a little more relaxed,” Simosko said.

They try to focus on teaching kids and making sure they actually learn the material. This can include going over homework, studying for tests, or reading through directions with them.

“They can come down and we can help explain things to them, especially for homework concepts and vocabulary, ” Simosko said. “When they’re taking quizzes and tests, sometimes it is unclear exactly what they’re asking, so we can help them decipher what the question is asking.”

Simosko originally took the position in order to use what he knew from his schooling to give back to other people. He enjoys helping and creating bonds with students, along with getting to learn more and more himself. He hasn’t been in high school in over 40 years, and there is a lot that he does not know or just forgot. So, he gets to learn more and more everyday while helping students. 

“What was taught to us back in the 70’s and early 80’s is much different from what is being taught now,” Simosko said. “Change with the time – I’m an old dinosaur, so sometimes I’m set in my ways. But, I have been changing.”

He admitted that when he is helping kids, he often has to also look at the book or even look up how to do something properly. One of the main goals as a teacher is to, not only teach students the curriculum, but to also teach them how to learn stuff on their own or be able to know how to look something up if they simply forgot. 

“The important thing is you don’t have to know everything, you just know where to look,” Simosko said. 

At the end of the day, Simosko is a great staff member who has some really good pieces of advice and is always willing to help. 

“I once had a teacher sum up a quote –  you know, in the year book – and he put Kenny, that was my name back then. He put ‘Kenny, remember, fear is the answer.’ What he was trying to tell me is to never get complacent, and to always have that butterfly feeling.” Simosko said. “No matter whether you’re going in for a test or a career, you should always have that feeling of being a little nervous. When you lose that little feeling of nervousness, you get complacent.”