Wallkill educator receives NYS Teacher of Year award

Posted 12/7/22

Longtime Wallkill educator Jennifer Gravelle was joined by her family, Wallkill teachers and fellow educators from New York State as she received the New York State Adaptive Physical Education …

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Wallkill educator receives NYS Teacher of Year award

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Longtime Wallkill educator Jennifer Gravelle was joined by her family, Wallkill teachers and fellow educators from New York State as she received the New York State Adaptive Physical Education Teacher of the Year award on Friday, November 18. The ceremony was held at the Turning Stone Conference Center and Resort in Verona, NY.

Joining Gravelle back in October, she shared she was contacted by the state in July and with only a few weeks away from the actual ceremony, she had been preparing her speech and anticipating the day to arrive. “I don’t know what to expect. So it’s all very surreal,” Gravelle said.

The award is a first time nomination and acceptance for Gravelle and will be a first time award of this kind awarded to a Wallkill educator. The nomination for the award was received by the New York State Association for Health, Physical Education, Recreation and Dance, of which Gravelle is a member.

Gravelle shared that she remembered she had made a presentation to the group in November of 2021 about a program called “Backyard Games” and focused on the work with her adaptive students in that specific program. In addition to Backyard Games, a Field Day for her adaptive students at the end of the year is looking to make its return to Wallkill following the COVID shutdown period. A written thesis was also submitted in order to receive the nomination.

The Adaptive Phys Ed classes primarily focus on the education and support of students with disabilities and allows those students to receive the same educational opportunities as a regular Phys Ed class. According to Gravelle, several of the students that she currently works with in the program have been with her since the age of five and continued to have her as an educator until the age of 21. With her adaptive students, Gravelle has welcomed several of her athletes and regular students over the years to volunteer and assist in the phys ed classes which has been a great experience for all. “What I truly value most and love to see is when I can get an athlete’s schedule, and I teach eighth period, and they have lunch, or study hall, or whatever, or early release. And I can say, hey, this is when I have adapted class, and they give up lunch, or study hall, or the opportunity to go home early, and they come into my class, and they want to participate and work with the students,” said Gravelle. “They end up getting so much out of it and at the end of that 40 minutes they’re like, “Wow, I wish I could do this every day.” It really is just about the joy that I can bring to my adapted students.”

Gravelle hails originally from upstate New York where she attended Norwood-Norfolk High School and was a multi-sport athlete playing soccer, basketball and track and field. Gravelle continued her education at the State University of New York [SUNY] at Brockport and while attending Brockport, Gravelle played for the women’s soccer team for several years. Unable to compete her senior year due to an injury, Gravelle joined the women’s golf team her senior year.

Gravelle completed her studies with a degree in Physical Education in the winter of 2001 and obtained teacher certification with a concentration in coaching. Upon completion of her time at Brockport, Gravelle admitted that she did not know what the next step would be in her career. Speaking with her college roommate, who was from Cornwall, she recommended that Gravelle move to the Hudson Valley area in search of substitute teaching positions. Gravelle thought it over and made the move to the area.

Arriving in the district, Gravelle admitted that she at first did not know where the district office was in. Meeting with the Plattekill principal at that time, Lou Pietrogallo, she joined the school as a substitute. “I began to sub right away, really fell in love with the district,” Gravelle said.

Later on into her substituting, Gravelle was approached by the phys ed teacher at that time, Rhonda Petrocelli, who was set to retire and was looking for a replacement. “I applied, went through the interview process. And yeah, I was hired that July of 2002 to start in September of 2002. I spent 16 years at Plattekill,” Gravelle said. “I was moved to the high school five school years ago. This [2022] is year 21.”

During her time at Wallkill, Gravelle coached 12 years of varsity girls soccer with her co-teacher Stephanie Cartica, she has coached 21 consecutive seasons of indoor and outdoor track and field and 2022 also marks her eighth tennis season. She will have completed over 61 consecutive seasons of coaching at Wallkill this year. Gravelle later went on to attend SUNY New Paltz and achieved her Masters Degree in Humanistic and Multicultural Education in May of 2006.

In March of 2020, the country and most of the world experienced the shutdowns of the COVID-19 outbreak. Health protocols limited interaction with each, restaurants closed for several months or forever, travel was restricted and a constant state of fear and uncertainty were present. Education institutions also experienced the various lockdown situations with educators and administrators adapting to online learning at each grade level. Zoom, Google Meet and other online learning platforms or connective programs became the norm for a time.

Despite the state of the country and world, Gravelle shared the time spent with her adaptive phys ed students were fun and the best part of that period of time. “When I tell you that was actually the best part of my day, the best part of their day, because they [the adaptive phys ed class] had 100% attendance every single day. We would do stretches, we would play games, we would do an in house scavenger hunt. I was teaching in my dining room and really, a lot of it for them was just the socialization on the screen,” Gravelle said. “In regards to the electronic Zoom piece, the adapted students really thrived in it, because they were, like I said, together but separate. When they came back to school, what I call live, when they came back to school live, it was like they hadn’t really missed a beat because they were with each other every other day on Zoom.”

Now living in Pine Bush with her significant other Josh and his children, Gravelle looks forward to the coming years of her work and was grateful to all who offered their congratulations and support as she made her way to November. Before she retires, she will look to see if she can get 90 or more seasons under her belt and will look to stay as the teacher with her current adaptive students.

Over the course of the past month, school staff, former athletes, some turned colleagues and other members of Wallkill contributed their voices and congratulated Gravelle on her award and wished her well as she continues on in her career.

Brian Masopust, Principal of Wallkill Senior High School:“From the moment I met Ms. Gravelle, it was clear to me that she was a special educator with a genuine heart. We coached varsity girls soccer together in 2014, and her positive, teambuilding approach had a profound impact on me. In addition to being an experienced soccer coach with multiple MHAL and Section IX Final appearances, Jenn had an innate ability to build great relationships with players of all abilities. It is no coincidence that she has remained one of our community’s most respected, and longest-standing coaches. Coaching soccer, track, and tennis, she has positively impacted countless lives, and continues to do so as she enters her 62nd consecutive season. In addition to her efforts on the field, Gravelle has been instrumental in supporting Wallkill’s athletic program in many other ways. She headed a Banner Redesign Committee, researching nearly 30 years of our own athletic team history, and organizing it in a way that made it easy for us to recreate the nostalgia in the Vinny DeAngelis Gymnasium. She has served on many athletic and scholastic committees designed to improve our programs and to promote “Panther Pride”. But perhaps where Gravelle shines the most is in the classroom. A master educator, Jenn takes pride in what she does daily.

As a gifted communicator, Jenn finds a way to relate to all students, setting the example for all of us to build relationships. She meets every student where they are and can get anyone to engage and have fun in Physical Education. Although she values high student performance and success, her focus continues to be the whole child. I consider myself fortunate to have learned from her as a colleague. As a parent of a future Panther, I can only hope that my daughter crosses paths with educators as compassionate and gifted as Coach Gravelle.”

Kevin Castle, Wallkill Central School District Superintendent: “We’re real excited about Jen and the award that she’s receiving. It’s well deserved. She does a great job, working with our students with disabilities, and giving them every opportunity to participate in physical education. On behalf of the Board of Education, we are extremely proud of her,” Castle said.

Samantha Rivera, current sixth grade math teacher in the Brewster Central School District and former soccer player of Gravelle: “Jen was actually my teacher starting in kindergarten all the way through sixth grade, she was my elementary school gym teacher. She takes the time out of her day, to see how we’re doing to see how our lives are developing,” Rivera said. “I was not shocked because it is absolutely well deserved. She is such a wonderful individual. She is a wonderful colleague. And I couldn’t have been more happy for her because it was just so utterly deserved.”

Marcelino Romero, senior at SUNY Delhi and former thrower for Wallkill track and field:“I would say she’s like, one of my top role models, I still look up to. No matter what situation she’s in, if she’s stressed or anything, she’s always there to help if any, back whenever I was in high school, if any of us had any issues, not just me alone. She was there to help as best as she could. She is and will always be my, I call her my Wallkill mom, because she helped me out through so much,” Romero said. “The only thing I would want in the future after she gets this award is just to keep doing what she does.”

Nicole Rivera, English as a new language teacher in the Wallkill Senior High School and former soccer and track and field for Gravelle: “She always puts her students first. Even her colleagues first. She was very inclusive and made everybody feel like you were important that you ever needed, that it’s really a team effort that makes, you know, the success of the team,” Rivera said. “One of the amazing things about Jen is that when she’s in your life, she’s in your life forever. I am so happy and proud to be your colleague, to be your friend, to be your former athlete, to be your mentee and I can continue to hope to learn from her and to collaborate with her and we are as a school district so blessed to have her.”

Sean Perrin, current senior at Wallkill and longtime student of Gravelle, happily claimed a small percentage of credit for the award as he already knew she was going to win. “Coming to school, like, I feel like you really need that individual to, like, be there for you when you’re like really in school. And I feel like I can always come to Miss G. Whether it’s, whether I need an idea, or I need help with a situation like, I feel like she always listens to me and gives her best advice,” Perrin said. “I’m so proud of her as a teacher. She’s just really a thoughtful individual. I just want to see her happy, you know, moving on and stuff like that. I want to see her be successful in whatever she does and be happy. She’s a very hardworking individual. And she’s a great, great human being.”

Erica Maisonet, former soccer player for Gravelle at Wallkill: “For the public. I just want them to know that she’s one of those great people that is a teacher and a coach, but always more than a teacher and a coach. She’s always a mentor to anyone that needs it, she’s one of those people that is always there and you can always rely on to be there for you.”

William Earl, Director of Physical Education of the Wallkill Central School District: “I teach the same period, she does the adapted phys ed class and just watching her on a daily basis, she goes above and beyond with her students in that class. Genuine, she’s straightforward, you know there’s no messing around. She just has this ability to give and to recognize what students need and that’s never going to stop,” Earl said. “If you think about kindness, if you think about acceptance, if you think about inclusion, if you think about work ethic, desire, drive, all of those things Jen has in abundance. She is truly dedicated to the Wallkill Central School District.”

David Moore, Wallkill Senior High School Phys Ed Teacher: “I would like to say is that she has a great sense of humor. She’s fun to be around. She’s a mentor and a leader to the students as well as to our department. She’s there if you ever need to discuss anything with her, she keeps an open mind to whatever it is,” Moore said. “I do wish her the best and she deserves every bit of this award. And I hope she continues to grow and improve in her final 10 to 12 years of teaching.”
Ruby Estrada, English as a New Language Teacher at Leptondale Elementary School and former soccer player: “Jen is such a friendly person, she really loves what she does, and we can tell she cares about all her students and athletes. Years later I still receive messages and cards from her especially during my life milestones,” Estrada said. “Jen congratulations! This is an award that is well deserved.”

Leo Sladewski, Plattekill Physical Education Teacher: “She does have great relationships with our students, and the students definitely do look up to her. I look forward to being there when she’s presented with the award,” said Sladewski.

Eric McLaud, Head Track and Field Coach at Wallkill Senior High School: “I’m just so proud of the award that she’s getting. To say she’s deserving of it is an understatement. What a great honor to bring to our school, to Wallkill,” McLaud said.

Michael Redmond, Assistant Principal of Wallkill Senior High School and Director of Athletics for the Wallkill School District: “I can’t believe that I am lucky enough to work with somebody who day in and day out. Just you know, outshines me. I just feel lucky to get to work with her every day and she deserves all the praise in the world,” Redmond said.

Stephanie Cartica, Wallkill Senior High School Phys Ed Teacher: “Those that don’t know Jen are really missing out on a great person. She’s a great friend. She’s a great co worker. She is someone who you can share many laughs with. She’s very humbling. She’s very professional. She’s someone that I would love my kids to have as a teacher because I know she is there for the kids to make the kids be the best that they can be,” Cartica said.

Shannon LaRocco, Life Skills Teacher at Wallkill and parent of an adaptive phys ed student: “I think we’re [Wallkill] incredibly fortunate and blessed to have her be such a, make such a profound difference in the lives of all these kids,” said LaRocco.

Other voices who congratulated Gravelle on her accomplishments and award included Lauren Klosterman, a speech language pathologist in the Washingtonville Central School District and former soccer player, Janna Daniels, a first year graduate student at the College of St. Rose and former soccer player of Gravelle, Melanie Calabro, fifth grade teacher at Ostrander Elementary School, fellow colleague Jane O’Donnell and students Emma Spindler and Alexandra Murphy. Parent Kari DeStefano also thanked Gravelle for giving her daughter, who does have special needs, the opportunity to play for her tennis team. “I would just like to thank her for giving Lauren the opportunity to be included in something that has made such a difference in her life,” DeStefano said.