Chiara Kupiec is Pascack Valley High School’s new Supervisor of World Languages, Multilingual Learners, Music, and Family and Consumer Sciences (FACS).
Kupiec started at PVRHSD on Aug. 1 of this year. Her job is to oversee these departments in the Pascack Valley Regional High School District.
“[What drew me to the district was] mainly how innovative the district is,” said Kupiec. “I can tell the district likes to try new things. I was so impressed by the offerings of courses…in each department, so I thought, ‘Wow, I really want to work for this district’.”
The innovation is not one-sided. Dr. Mark Russo, Director of Curriculum, Instruction, and Assessment for the district, commented on his experiences with the new supervisor so far.
“It’s nice to get some fresh perspectives on some of the work we’ve been doing. So far, it’s been great,” said Russo.
Kupiec’s new perspective should not be mistaken for inexperience, as this is far from Kupiec’s first time working in a high school.
“[Before becoming a supervisor in the district], I taught Italian and Spanish at the high school level,” said Kupiec. “I was teaching full-time for about 13 years, and then after that, I was an instructional coach for seven years. But while I was an instructional coach, I was still teaching AP classes.”
In her 20 years of teaching, Kupiec’s focus was on world languages, so she was excited to get to manage her departments in PVRHSD.
“I love anything that has to do with languages and culture, and I love to reinstill this passion for world languages in students,” said Kupiec.
Kupiec wasn’t kidding when she said she loved world languages. In fact, she can speak three different languages.
“My native language is Italian. I also speak Spanish… [and] English,” said Kupiec. “And I understand French, but I don’t speak it anymore.”
Kupiec’s passion for languages came naturally to her, having spent a large part of her life in different countries.
“I grew up in Rome, Italy, and I moved here to the United States right after high school, so I was 18 when I moved here,” said Kupiec. “Up until I got this job, I used to spend every single summer in Italy and literally leave in June, the last day after school ends, and come back the day before school started. Both my parents live in Italy, so Italy was always my summer [trip].”
Kupiec’s love for visiting her homeland is clear, but her travels don’t stop at Italy.
“My other place that I love to travel to is Kenya in Africa, because I have had the honor to work in collaboration with schools there, so now I have established friendships there with the teachers and the school directors. So when I can, that’s my destination that I absolutely love to travel to. It’s amazing,” said Kupiec.
Kupiec has worked in collaboration with community schools in Nairobi, Kenya, with a program called Ustahimilivu Dadas (Resilience Sisters). The program is a collaboration between Kenya Big Picture Learning and Elena Aguilar of Bright Morning Consulting, where Kupiec contributed to other works.
She joined “Ustahimilivu Dadas 2019” along with 19 other women to work with educators in Kenya. Kupiec was then asked to return for the “Ustahimilivu Dadas 2020” Exchange Program the next year to help organize the trip.
According to Kenya Big Picture Learning’s website, the program is a “week-long learning exchange with Kenyan educators who work in Nairobi’s community schools.”
In Kenya, Kupiec created workshops for Kenyan educators and worked hand-in-hand with them to improve leadership in education in Kenya and work against cultural divides.
Kupiec’s life experiences working to facilitate this program connect to her work at PVRHSD. She not only works with all of the teachers in the departments she supervises, but she also helps to bring new ideas to the school.
What stands out above everything else to Kupiec is the welcoming atmosphere of PVRHSD.
“I have received so much support, and everyone always has a smile on their faces,” Kupiec said. “Students, staff, teachers, administrators, and everyone is just very kind, and it seems like everyone is just so happy to be here. That’s really making me happy.”
