Ed Palermo

Being creative and presenting challenges as a teacher in the classroom can have a tremendous impact on the life of a student. "I had a wonderful biology teacher at Leechburg that I really enjoyed. That's what got me interested in science." Ed Palermo, Science and Biology teacher at Freeport High School, found it to be the most motivating thing as a student to have a good and interesting teacher, and he has used these positive experiences as the foundation for his own teaching.

When Ed Palermo left for college, he wanted to use his talents in math and science in the medical field. During his college experience he had an opportunity to work teaching in a lab class. He found that he really enjoyed the teaching aspect and decided to go in that direction instead. Ed graduated from Indiana University with a Bachelor's and a Master's of Biology Chemistry Science Education. He did his student teaching in Lower Burrell school district and moved on to a full-time position at the Freeport High School. He currently has spent thirty-four years in front of the blackboard.

Ed incorporates many hands-on activities requiring a lot of student interpretation, investigation, and drawing their own conclusions. Before, science classes were more of a lecture type setting, but now there is more interaction between students and teachers. Mr. Palermo described how his students are very inquisitive, and they can get into serious discussions. They have a tremendous amount of opinions, and he likes to hear what they have to say. As a teacher Ed finds it exciting to see the "spark" in students when they finally "get it" and understand what he is teaching. "I push hard and the students rise to the challenges. It makes the class interesting because the students become active learners instead of passive learners."

Besides teaching in the classroom setting, Ed devotes a lot of his time to science tutoring during the school year in addition to helping graduates with college classes. He also stays involved with the students by volunteering as a coach for student teams. His investment into the students brought him the honor of winning the Armstrong County Educator Excellence Award. This award is given to someone from the school district that has made a positive impact in teaching.

Ed doesn't leave his teaching job at the school when he comes home for the night. In fact, education tends to be one of the main topics at home as well. His wife, Anna Mary Palermo is the Superintendent of Burrell School District. "It is great having a spouse involved in education." They have many common interests and always have a lot to talk about.

In the future, he would like to see students continue to be more academically challenged. "If we challenge all students to increase knowledge, kids rise to the occasion."

Outside of education, Ed has quite a few hobbies. He enjoys golf and many outdoor activities as well as collecting trains. He is also active in his church, St. Margaret Mary's Church in Lower Burrell.

The face of education is constantly changing and with that change comes opportunity to better educate the children of the Alle-Kiski Valley. Ed possesses the ability to evolve his teaching techniques right along with those changes keeping students enthusiastic about what they are learning. Besides the satisfaction of winning an award for his efforts, Ed has the satisfaction of looking into the eyes of his students knowing that he's given them the best that he has.