Ms. Michelle Alphe Pozotrigo is a new teacher in the language department at JP Stevens, teaching the introductory and AP levels of French. After graduating from Cardinal McCarrick High School in South Amboy, she went on to receive her undergraduate degree from Rutgers University, and then her master’s degree in teaching French from Southern Oregon University in Angers, France. She has a certificate in Educational Leadership from Seton Hall and is currently completing her second master’s degree at William Paterson University.

Although originally majoring in pre-med, Ms. Alphe longed for something to make her happier, which happened to be the minor she was taking in French at the time. Eventually, she decided to go into teaching as a stepping stone to be a professor in French, but fell in love with the teaching experience, and decided to stick with it as an end-goal profession rather than a bridge to get somewhere else. While jumping from pre-med to a career in French education was quite the change, she believes it was the right decision and could not be more glad.

Her goal for her students is to find learning new languages an enjoyable process rather than a stressful or tedious one, as many students may feel. Ms. Alphe wants to make a difference, not only here with us at JP, but also in the wider world outside of school. She also likes to look at things from her student’s point of view, as this helps her check in with them to see if what she has to offer works for everyone. She never wants to inhibit a student’s learning, and wants to make sure that everyone has all the proper tools to learn and have fun doing it.

“I think it’s really important that it does not feel like punishment when you’re not progressing in a language—it’s part of the process,” Ms. Alphe said enthusiastically.

Ms. Alphe wants to make sure that students know that mistakes are simply going to help you get better and help you learn. She hopes for her students to feel encouraged and successful as well as enjoy learning new aspects of a different language in her class as French is one of the many languages that create a backbone for new languages and understanding communication overall.

“I really do think that being able to appreciate different cultures and understand language and communication on a different level is important,” she said. “When you know how languages work, you can better manipulate them on your own.”

Besides teaching, Ms. Alphe has spent a lot of time caring for her new baby and family. When she has time, walking, playing tennis and piano, going on picnics, and other nature-related activities.

Having been a teacher at many different schools for several years, Ms. Alphe says that she recognizes a hardworking and motivational mindset in students as well as the struggles within the teenage mind. Ms. Alphe ultimately looks forward to being a part of the JP community and instilling a joy for language-learning in her students for many years to come.