After 36 years of teaching at Vestal High School, Mrs. Darpino is preparing to retire at the end of this school year. Since arriving at this school in 1990, she has become one of the school’s most recognizable and beloved teachers, known for her positive energy, dedication to students, and involvement in countless school activities.
Teaching wasn’t originally Mrs. Darpino’s plan; she earned a degree in Physical Education and initially hoped to become a trainer or pursue research. However, after working at a Boys and Girls Club, she discovered that teaching offered a career path she genuinely enjoyed along with a schedule that better suited her. Vestal became the first and only district she has taught at.
Mrs. Darpino has taught both middle school and high school students, but quickly realized she likes working with older students. Because they are generally more focused and mature, she is able to engage in deeper conversations with them, allowing for stronger relationships and meaningful impacts from her teaching.
For Mrs. Darpino, “teaching means a lot because you feel almost every day you are having an impact on people”. She believes that teaching is so much more than just academics, saying “it’s not as important the content you are teaching as the impact you have on students”. One of her priorities in her classes is that everyone feels safe, because she knows health class can be very uncomfortable. She hopes students feel accepted, welcome, like they belong, and know they can talk to her if they need anything. In fact, her advice to new teachers is “at the beginning it’s very easy to be focused on content, but in the end the most important thing is establishing good relationships with your students”.
When asked what her favorite part of teaching was, she said, without hesitation, her relationship with her students. Whether through health classes, clubs, or school events, she enjoyed getting to know students beyond just the classroom. Working with young people has changed her as much as she has changed them. Through her students, she has learned about different cultures, backgrounds, and life experiences. These interactions have broadened her perspective and even influenced her role as a parent. One thing she wished students knew is that teachers were once in their shoes. “We sat in these desks too” she says, and “we want to make it a better experience for you then it was for us”. She hopes students understand that they are “people who were kids once too”.
Throughout her years at Vestal High School, Mrs. Darpino has witnessed a great deal of change in teaching due to technology. There have been positive changes such as the ability to make copies, use computers, and employ the internet, but there have also been drawbacks. She has noticed in her students that technology has contributed to fewer face to face interactions. “People are people so I don’t think people have changed as much as the environment around us has changed” she says. In fact, she had become heavily involved in efforts to reduce phone use in schools because of her experience in seeing what COVID-19 combined with the rise of social media had done to kids and how isolated they were, along with online bullying in school. Her concern is centered less on classroom distractions but rather the social effects she has observed, particularly after the COVID-19 pandemic.
Despite those challenges, she believes there has been tremendous progress in how people are treated in school since she started teaching. One meaningful change she’s seen is the “increasing diversity in the population that lives here” and with that the increased acceptance and inclusion of diverse students and minority groups such as LGBTQ+ individuals.
A very rewarding part of her career has been working alongside her daughter, who is the other health teacher at Vestal High School. She loves having someone else to collaborate with, who is young and has fresh ideas. She felt like her ideas were getting stale before her daughter pushed her to do new things, which is something that she is incredibly grateful for.
Outside of the classroom, Mrs. Darpino became known for organizing school events and spirit activities. Her involvement was inspired by her parents, who were active in community organizations and church events. She credits students for inspiring the Running of the Bears, which began as a student fundraising idea of doing a 5k race and has since become an annual event that she organizes each year.
Looking back, one of the most valuable pieces of advice she got when she started teaching was through a book she was given about starting off on the right foot. This book talked about the importance of the first few weeks of school, getting students to talk to each other at the beginning of school because in the middle it may feel too late, and how to make class feel like a group that is in this together.
Her advice for students in their future careers is to “choose something you think you are going to love and are interested in, don’t pick based just on money and what you think there is going to be opportunity in only. Go where your passion is”. For getting into colleges, she believes that “there’s too much pressure to have the perfect resume and combination of activities and roles. If you aren’t doing that in high school because you don’t want to do that then don’t do that, college wants to see what you’re passionate about. They want to see progress. It’s okay to get in trouble sometimes! Life is too short to give up time to prepare for the rest of your life; this is your life now.”
As retirement approaches, Mrs. Darpino feels both excitement and slight trepidation. While she is worried about staying busy after leaving a job she loves so much behind, she is also looking forward to spending time with her grandchildren, playing golf, and cooking gourmet meals. Even though she is retiring she still plans to substitute occasionally, staying connected with the school community. No matter what, the impact Mrs. Darpino has had on Vestal High School will never be forgotten. Through her years teaching, mentoring, and supporting students, Mrs. Darpino has left a lasting mark on the school. After reflecting on Mrs. Darpino’s career, one thing remains clear: teaching was never just about education, but rather the meaningful effect she could have on her students.
