History Teacher Jessie Belfer. Photo taken by Jennica Ruan.
Malden High welcomes new History teacher Jessie Belfer.
Belfer grew up in California before moving to the Boston area. She attended Tufts University and majored in American Studies and music. This is Belfer’s third year teaching History. Before that she “worked in schools, [but] not as a teacher.” She worked at San Jose High School in California before moving all the way to the East Coast. She moved to Massachusetts to be closer with her fiance and help her family.
Belfer stated that “everyone [she] has met have been super welcoming.” She appreciates not just the teachers but the students as well for welcoming her and helping her adjust to the new school and schedule.
She mentioned that with this “being [her] first year [at Malden High], [she wanted] to get to meet as many new people as possible and get involved in many things outside of school as possible.” Her hobbies include music and sports like soccer and ultimate frisbee. She also “grew up playing string instruments like viola and did a lot of singing in college.” Belfer is also excited to participate in the many events the school has and be apart of the community.
Kerry Veritas is the teacher leader for the history department and has been teaching at Malden High since 2007. Veritas said that many of her answers during the interview “showed that she would be a good fit with [the] department’s values and approach to learning.” She believed that Belfer’s previous experience in California made her a good candidate for teaching in an environment like Malden High. Veritas’ impression of Belfer was that “she was very intelligent and understands the topics [taught] very well” while also having “really good instincts about teaching.”
Ann Pember is Belfer’s mentor as a new teacher. Pember meets with Belfer once a week to go over the norms of Malden High and help her with any help she needs adjusting. Pember volunteered to be her mentor. She has been a mentor before and has had many student teachers. She states that she “likes working with new teachers” and “likes sharing [her] material” to help because she had a difficult experience being a new teacher at a different school.
Pember describes her as “passionate, very dedicated, believes in social justice, and really connects well with kids.” She is “very excited to have [Belfer] in [the] department” and is “excited that she has moved across the country from California . . . to be [at Malden High].”
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