PUSD Teacher of the Year: Martin Reisert

Who knew students could get excited about PowerPoint?

In Oak Valley Middle School teacher Martin Reisert's sixth grade class, it's one of the things students seem to love; they named it as one of the teaching tactics that make Reisert worthy of his newly bestowed Poway Unified School District Teacher of the Year honors.

Reisert was surprised in his classroom Thursday by a crowd of school and district officials, announcing his selection as one of three district honorees. He had already been named Oak Valley's teacher of the year, but was then chosen by a committee as an overall district award winner. Reisert now will move on to the county competition. Should he win there, he will move to the state level.

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Here is the district's announcement about Reisert:

Martin Reisert, once a reluctant student himself, still remembers the teacher who inspired him back in fourth grade. Jack Ryan, a hands-on, involved teacher, encouraged him to try, and then celebrated his successes. Mr. Ryan celebrated the catch Martin made during a lunchtime football game. Then, while it took some time to achieve, Martin finally made the 100 Second Club for mastery of multiplication facts, earning another celebration from Mr. Ryan. Even now Martin often thinks, “What would Mr. Ryan do?”

It’s middle school, and it’s all about establishing personal connections, and encouraging middle school youngsters to be involved in their learning. With his students, Martin shares the challenges he had during his days in middle school, working with them to establish expectations for learning and sharing tips for success through organization and goal setting. Martin tries to model by example, and give them opportunities to reach out to others. He says that helping students discover and participate in something bigger than themselves has been his biggest accomplishment.

“Martin is an amazing teacher. He transforms his students in so many ways. They leave his class after one year with all the necessary knowledge, a new confidence about themselves, and a new awareness and passion about helping other people who may need help in our school, community or the world!” said Oak Valley Middle School Principal Sonya Wrisley. “Martin is not just their teacher for sixth grade—he stays in touch with them for years! He truly loves his students, he makes learning fun, and he teaches them to be compassionate.”

As the students study world cultures, Martin can often be found dressed in the clothing of the region. The classroom is filled with artifacts and pictures as students explore the cultures. Students are seeing they can look beyond the classroom and truly make a difference. They have raised funds for local and international charities from helping tsunami victims in Thailand to raising funds and awareness for orphans in Malawi. They have written essays and letters about issues of importance to their community.

Leading by example is a way of life for Martin. His compassion is a strong part of who he is. Teyva, one of the students in Martin’s class, was missing a lot of school due to her Spina Bifida condition. He would check on Tehya by visiting her and her family at home and in the hospital. Usually very upbeat, she had begun doubting herself and her condition worsened. Pep talks and tutoring were not helping. Martin thought about what he could do. He asked the family if it would be okay if he completed an Ironman triathlon in honor of Tehya, raising money and awareness for a charity of her choice. The family was touched by the gesture.The quote, “He runs for her... until she can run again” became the motto for the race. Martin had never run such a race and wasn’t sure he could complete the task. Tehya was his inspiration during the training.

During the next several months Tehya’s condition improved and she started to attend school again, earning A’s in her classes. Tehya and her family drove out to Tempe, Arizona to cheer Martin on at the event. Nearly 14 hours later, upon approaching the finish line, Tehya, in a wheel chair at the time, got up and walked with Martin across the finish line.

After the race a nonprofit organization named Tehyathon was set up to raise funds for Spina Bifida patients, and as is Tehya’s wish, to offer aid to the homeless of San Diego.

For a student who was just skating by and the family questioning low grades, changes in confidence and achievement came during the school year. A handmade card sent by the student and family thanked Martin for caring and making a difference, and contained the following quote: “Educating the mind without educating the heart is no education at all.” (Aristotle)

Martin offers differentiated instruction and assessment to his students targeting specific areas for basic, proficient, and advanced mastery. His LearningPoint site offers tutorials and interactive websites to help and challenge students. In the classroom, lessons are hands on, inspiring students to see beyond their daily middle school classroom into the world around them.

Martin was presented with a Permanent Motivation Award by the teachers of Bernardo Heights Middle School when he transferred to Oak Valley, and special recognition by Channel 10 News for initiating a recycling program at Oak Valley and in the community which recycles over 10,000 pounds of paper and more than 25,000 bottles and cans annually. He has helped students and parents at Del Norte High School and several elementary schools in helping them establish recycling programs.

Martin has been at sixth grade Basic Education teacher at Poway Unified for 11 years. He taught at Bernardo Heights Middle School from 2001 to 2004 before going to Oak Valley Middle School where he is presently teaching. Martin holds a Bachelor of Arts degree and a Master of Science degree in Education from Dowling College, Oakdale, New York.