By K.H 2021

The beginning of the school year brings lots of new and exciting things. Specifically, we were lucky enough to have a few new important staff members added to our St. Rose community. I recently had the opportunity to talk with Mr. Kempf, in order to get to know him a little better. He hoped that this interview would allow the students to learn more about who he is and his experiences. I started the interview with the basic question of where Mr. Kempf was from:

 

Mr. Kempf: “I’m from here in New Jersey. I graduated from South Brunswick High School.”

 

Kiernan Hickey: “Have you taught at any schools previously?”

Mr. Kempf: “Yes, I taught for 21 years at St. Dominic Academy in Jersey City. This is an all girls college prep school. More recently, I have taught mainly AP Classes and Precalculus at Keansburg HS and Rutgers Prep (I taught summer school and at other schools for very brief periods before SDA.)”

 

KH: “What are your hopes for this school year?”

Mr. Kempf: “I just want to provide the best learning experience I can for my students here and to try to fit in with the St. Rose community.”

 

KH: “In your opinion, what is the best part about teaching?”

Mr. Kempf: “I love seeing my students overcome obstacles. I take great joy in seeing them gain confidence when they do things that they thought they couldn’t do. I think you work very hard and still really enjoy what you’re doing.”

 

KH: “What is the hardest part about teaching?”

Mr. Kempf: “The part I dislike most is grading! But one thing that can be hard sometimes is convincing students that they need to change certain things that they are doing in order to progress. Sometimes students are taught very bad notation or other bad habits in math and they have become comfortable with that way and as a teacher I have to tell them that they have to change these habits or they won’t progress.”

 

KH: “What possessed you to want to become a teacher?”

Mr. Kempf: “I was very poor at math until 9th grade. My HS math teacher (Mr. Shelusa) encouraged me to study algebra and really helped me a lot. I still stressed, but ultimately it changed my life. I would like to help my students in the same way. They may not want to study math or become math teachers, but hopefully they won’t be afraid of it and they will be able to master the math they need to be successful.”

 

KH: “If you were to have any other occupation, what would it be?”

Mr. Kempf: “It’s hard to imagine, but I did work as an auto mechanic for a couple of years, so probably something along those lines.”