Congratulations to Mr. Ramirez for being FDR’s Staffer of the Month! Mr. Ramirez is a Forensics and Living Environment teacher, who teaches mostly ELL students. If you ever happen to end up in his class, or just see him in action, you can tell he is a very dedicated teacher, who cares for his students.

He came to FDR 15 years ago after being let go by staff cuts at a different school. When he came here, he was amazed by the diversity of the school. According to him, when he first came here there were people from 97 different nationalities. He loved seeing people of different origins and creeds, come together and form the school’s community. That is his favorite thing about FDR, and it is why he continues to stay at FDR. He also likes how the school community came together years ago, when Mayor Bloomberg attempted to break the school up into smaller schools. Realizing that the building would not be able to provide quality education to multiple schools, due to competing for resource and attention in the same building, the community came together and prevented the closing from happening. Mr. Ramirez finds inspiration everyday at FDR.

Mr. Ramirez enjoys teaching Science, especially Forensics, as it has many real world applications. It can be connected to many other fields and subjects within the realm of Science. The art of analyzing crime scenes involves Chemistry (for chemical compounds and  residue left at the crime scene), Living Environment (to determine the causes of death, injury, when the victim(s) died), and Physics (for the trajectories of the victims, bullets, and other injuries). English is also an extremely important component of the course. Since Mr. Ramirez has many ELL students, he has the tough job of having to teach them terms that would be new to native English speakers, as well as having to make sure that the ELL students can properly understand the tasks at hand. He notes that there has been an increase in ELL students that he, and his co-workers, have to help. His ability to speak English and Spanish is a useful tool. A large number of his students come from Guatemala, and they may have a limited educational background. This is where you truly see his dedication shine. He enjoys the challenges of teaching and seeing his students succeed.

Mr. Ramirez adapts his lesson plans to the individual needs of the students, ensuring no lesson is ever the same. Early on, he assesses how his students learn best, such as whether they rely more on visuals, auditory instruction, or physical contact. He has vocabulary lists in which the students have to describe the new definitions, either through words or sketches. He has his students write often, encouraging them to expand their vocabulary to improve their English skills. The hands on labs he has are a favorite for his students. He enjoys seeing students, of all levels, progress and do their best. That is his favorite part of teaching, coupled with encouraging his students to become ready for college and graduate on time. About the graduating class of 2017, he says, “I hope they are ready [for college], I truly do.” Mr. Ramirez is truly a great man and a great teacher.