A little shuffling in the science department made room for Regina’s newest science teacher, Ms. Ciesla. With Ms. Mueller’s retirement, Mr. Butkovich took over her chemistry classes and Ms. Ciesla was hired to teach Biology, Honors Biology, and Forensic Science.
Ms. Ciesla grew up in Norwood Park and attended catholic schools. Since she was young, she knew that she wanted to be a teacher because she enjoys both learning and seeing other people learn. She was raised in a family of teachers who attended and coached at Regina who encouraged her to pursue a job in education leading her to Regina. Despite having to switch from in person to online learning and missing out on lab experiments due to the pandemic, it never stopped Ciesla from pursuing her dream of teaching.
She began college at The University of Texas for two years until the pandemic struck forcing her to switch to online learning. She decided to transfer to Northeastern Illinois University to complete college with a biology major. She received her Bachelor’s Degree in Science and Arts in Dec. 2022 and one year later graduated with her Masters in Secondary Education. This is Ciesla’s first year teaching.
She enjoys reading fantasy books such as “Lord of The Rings” as well as playing action and adventure video games like Baldur’s Gate III and board games like Dungeons and Dragons.
Ciesla, so far, is loving her time at Regina. She appreciates that Regina is woman-based and empowers young women, which she feels she could have used when she was in high school. Also, she is grateful for the support she receives from her fellow colleagues. She loves her freshmen students who are “Balls of energy as they are transitioning into High School.”
She’s passionate about teaching and determined to help her students grow as scientists. Offering advice to her students, she said, “Most of your teachers just want to see you try. They want to see a drive, and that you care about your education. If you show them that you care and that you are trying, you’ll do amazing.”