Tara Sakelarios, an elementary school teacher at Al Seeliger Elementary School in Carson City, has had many roles over the years, first as a substitute teacher two years after graduating high school, then as a full time 1st and 2nd grade teacher, to now being a long time PE teacher for nearly two decades.
“Since I've been at my school for 26 years, it's my family,” she said during a recent interview which can be heard above. “It's like, you know, you have new family members come in and out, and I get really close with my coworkers. We have a lot of history together, we have a lot of memories together, and my students, because I know every student in my school because of my PE position, I have known many of their siblings and their parents, and so I'm at a point where I have my students' children now coming into our school. And, I mean, if I leave, it's a small town, and if I go anywhere, I usually run into people I know.”
She’s been known to really get into Halloween costumes, and getting her colleagues to create a festive atmosphere.
“When I'm having a bad day and I'm tired and I come to school and I'm still super happy to be here because I still love my job,” she said.
This year, she is retiring, after pouring so much love and care into her school and the many students in her classes.
“I really am going to cry. The kids are so fun in the morning and they bring, like, good energy. Even when they're naughty, it's like, you know, we all roll our eyes and we all but we're here for them and and and we care so much about them that we just are so excited when they when they achieve things and they've grown,” she said.
She survived difficult years such as the pandemic, when behavior, social skills, and mental health deteriorated.
She said students of the past would never talk back to a teacher – when now it is an everyday occurrence.
“There was no questioning. And now the children question everything,” she said.
Being respectful to students' boundaries, but also not letting them do whatever they want is something that Sakelarios has to deal with everyday as she says her goodbyes.
A new generation of students has meant lots of change, but it is still a job she loved, and a job she will miss.
“I wanted to leave loving my job because I watched people leave when they were not happy and left because they were not happy, and I didn't want do that. So I'm leaving still happy,” she said.
Reporting and photo by Samantha Wittke