The Buzz

In the third installment of The Buzz’s Teacher Feature, we looked at the life of Sara Tully, who teaches both US history II, alongside Academic and Advanced Placement Psychology at the high school. In our interview, Ms. Tully shared her true love of teaching and the experience she has earned throughout her many years here at North Reading High School. She expressed extreme gratitude for earning the title of December Teacher of the Month, stating that she greatly appreciates the acknowledgement of her hard work being shown in a school-wide effort by students. She explained that over her 20 years of teaching at North Reading High School, she has been thrilled by her work. “I love it,” She stated enthusiastically. “… the kids are great, my colleagues are great, and I love the subjects that I teach.” Tully recognizes the importance of Teacher of the Month and feels that this type of student involvement is absolutely necessary, “The most important feedback you can get is from your students, because they’re the ones there, everyday, learning from you.”

Background

In the social studies department, Ms. Tully works alongside Mr. Emerton who teaches US History II as well. She also collaborates with Mrs. Campobasso who teaches Academic Psychology classes. When asked about how she came to teach two different subjects, Ms. Tully explains that originally she entered Boston College as a history major, planning on eventually becoming a history teacher. However, she received an opportunity to work as an assistant teacher for one of her mentors’ psychology classes. Ms. Tully quickly found yet another passion alongside her love of history, describing her student teaching as an eye-opening experience which led her to eventually get a minor in psychology. Ms. Tully credits her psychology mentor with introducing her to the field that she now holds so dear. She maintains, “He taught me so much about psychology, I still use some of the lesson plans that he gave me to this day.”

So how did Ms. Tully transition from a college student with a history major and psychology minor to a teacher at North Reading? It’s quite the story, as Ms. Tully explained, “Me and Mrs. Campo got interviewed the same day, and she got the job and I didn’t.” She then went on to work in retail until another position opened up the following year. She continued, eagerly stating, “Mr. Bernard was the principal at the time, and he told me that 250 other people applied for that job, and I got it”  because they had remembered her from the previous year. Tully expressed a deep gratitude for this, feeling that their decision to give her the job made her immensely happy and she continues to love working with the students and her colleagues. The job was a perfect fit for her because it was close to her own home, and she was enamored with NR’s small community. She remarks, “It was such a good decision, because I really enjoy it.” 

 Ms. Tully did assure me that she holds nothing against Mrs. Campobasso for getting the job first, believing it all worked out in the end. Today they continue to work together to develop the psychology curriculum, deciding what to focus on more in-depth, eager to get their students the most updated and accurate information.

Now, onto the student-asked questions. We received a lot of participation in our form sent out with the Student Council’s announcement of the Teacher of the Month. Make sure to fill out the form with your questions for the next Teacher of the Month interview!

Do you have pets?

Sadly, Ms. Tully does not have a pet of her own, but she explains that the practicality of her living situation doesn’t conform to having one. “I travel a lot,” She states, “so I just feel bad if you have to put it in a kennel.” This is an understandable conundrum faced by pet owners throughout the world. Still, she hopes, “Maybe when I’m an old lady and I stop traveling, I’ll get a dog.” 

What’s your zodiac sign?

A Libra. Based on some brief internet research I conducted independently, qualities of a Libra include a friendly attitude in general, and they are also in harmony with themselves. Tully believed that she identified with the qualities of a Libra, and she too wishes to live a balanced and peaceful life. 

What is your spirit animal?

This question took her aback, and she contemplated it, remarking, “I’ve never thought about that before.” After some brief consideration her reply was a dolphin, which she has always admired for its playfulness and intelligence.  

What is your favorite TV show or movie?

Her answer was immediate: Friends. With the recent death of Friends actor Matthew Perry, Tully commented on the sudden loss of the beloved cast member. She explained that Perry, and the show as a whole, was an important aspect of her own adolescence, stating, “I still remember when I watched the first episode of Friends, I was a freshman in high school.” She continued, describing Perry’s death as “…heartbreaking… because he was so young”. Tully commented on the recognition Perry’s personal life has been receiving as well saying, “I understand the outpouring of grief… also I think the fact that he had spent so much time and energy trying to get sober and trying to help other people, and then he ended up dying” is why he’s experienced so much appreciation after his passing.

Do you think that the movie “The Nightmare Before Christmas” is a Christmas or Halloween movie?

Tully stated that she’s never seen the film, but she’s on the side that it is a Halloween movie. The graphics, she explains, makes it so it fits a more sinister scary movie than the light-hearted children’s film that a Christmas movie usually brings to mind.

What are your thoughts on Lady Gaga and the Saw Movies?

Tully tackled the question in two parts. First, for Lady Gaga, she replied tepidly, “I’m aware of her,” and that “she seems like she’s a good influence on kids, like Taylor Swift is, so I support her in that regard,” although Ms. Tully said she’s more interested in classic rock than popular music.

Secondly, for the Saw Movies, Tully explained simply that, “I like scary movies but I like suspenseful scary, not things where people are getting cut up.” Therefore she hasn’t seen the Saw Movies, saying, “it’ll probably be too scary for me”.  

What’s a unique fact about yourself that not many people know?

As a final question, we use this one to get to know a “secret” the teacher may have that students don’t know. After careful consideration, Ms. Tully indulged that she spent some time living in Ireland while she was studying abroad. She says she wholly enjoyed the experience staying at the University College Cork, a smaller regency of the larger National University of Ireland, and she believed studying abroad gave her a love of traveling and seeing new places as well. She remarked with a chuckle, “I don’t think any of my students know that about me.”

Overall, Ms. Tully was eager for the interview and happy to talk about her work as well as her personal life and opinions. She truly does appreciate every day that she gets to work at NRHS and loves every minute of it, which is evident through the passionate way she speaks about her work. As such, she was undoubtedly grateful for the opportunity to be December’s Teacher of the Month.