Q&A with Sonia Nieto, Ed.D. ‘65Ed, LEAD Honoree

The School of Education at St. John's University celebrates our outstanding alumni and faculty at our annual Leaders in Education Awards Dinner (LEAD).

Congratulations! What does it feel like to receive this award?

I am honored to receive this award from my Alma Mater. It is especially significant to me because it recognizes the work I’ve done as an educator, what I consider the most important vocation in the world, second only to parenting, because it helps prepare the next generation of young people for a life of consequence and service in a democratic society, a system that though flawed, is the best hope we have for working towards equality and fairness.

Can you please tell us a little about yourself and your current profession?

I was an educator for over 50 years beginning as a middle and elementary teacher in Brooklyn and the Bronx, and completing my career as a professor, researcher, mentor, and writer at the University of Massachusetts, Amherst. My work has focused on teacher education, multicultural and bilingual education, and the education of students of diverse backgrounds with a special interest in Puerto Rican and other Latin@ students. Although no longer teaching, I continue to write and to mentor young scholars.

How has a degree from The School of Education (TSOE) impacted your career path?

I knew I wanted to be a teacher from the age of 10. My parents came to the States from Puerto Rico to seek better lives than the poverty in which they lived. Neither had completed high school. My father, in fact, had to leave school in 4^th grade when his mother of ten children became a widow and he became "the man of the house," working on a farm. Yet both were staunch believers in the promise of public education and made sure to give us all the support they could to help us achieve it. I was attracted to education because to me, teachers seemed so powerful, so instrumental in my life, that I wanted to be like them. It never occurred to me to study anything but education. The many education courses I took at SJU helped prepare me for the classroom, although I believe that nothing prepares you as well as time on the job. Though I had a full semester of student teaching prior to beginning my career as a teacher, I wish I had been offered more practice before stepping into the classroom. I also wish I had been prepared to teach students of various backgrounds and those with special needs, two areas that now thankfully are included in most schools and colleges of education, as I’m sure is the case with SJU. That said, one of the major benefits I derived from my time at St. John’s was the ability to develop my leadership qualities – through membership in various campus organizations including becoming the president of the International Relations Club, the Spanish Club, and my sonority, DKD, experiences that helped me immensely throughout my life.

Were there any professors in The School of Education (TSOE) who influenced your life? 

I remember Señora Doyaga, a professor of Spanish - my minor - because of her knowledge and ability to teach, her feistiness (she was one of the leaders of the effort to unionize the faculty), and her mentorship. She was the first Latina teacher I had and it motivated me to believe I too could someday become a professor. Also, I had a professor whose name I do not recall but who taught a class on the Constitution – one of the very best courses I have ever taken.

What are your most cherished memories from your days as a student in The School of Education?

The Brooklyn campus, which I attended, was quite small but also a good place to be after having attended a high school of over 5,000. I made many good friends at both the SOE and the college as a whole. Through my volunteer and leadership experiences at the School of Education, I learned that I was meant to have a life of service to young people and their future, especially the most marginalized who have not always been afforded the high-quality education they deserve. I hope that my work in the ensuing 50+ years as an educator has made a difference in those areas. Unfortunately, though, at the time I attended SJU, the student body was almost completely white. Besides my sister Lydia and me – she preceded me at SJU by one year – there was only one other Puerto Rican and I remember one African American student, Bob, who became a friend. I am very pleased to see the dramatic changes at SJU over the years in that regard!

What wisdom would you like to share with the next generation of alumni? 

I encourage the next generation of alumni in the School of Education to recognize that their work as educators has only begun. Life is about learning – after all, we as educators who are committed to the field know this – so their learning is just beginning. Given my long career in education, I have found that the best and most talented teachers have been those who identify as life-long learners. Teaching is hard work, and the first year can be incredibly trying. That was certainly the case for me. That being the case, I also encourage teachers, whether novice or experienced, to rely on their colleagues and mentors for support to withstand the challenges they are certain to face throughout their careers. Finally, I encourage them to remember the quintessential question that one of the most consequential educators of our time, Paulo Freire, asked: In whose service do I teach? The answer should not be administrators, politicians, or policymakers, or even public opinion, but rather students and their families.