by: David Beliveau
As a new addition to the science department here at WHS, Ms. Purdy says the transition has gone very smoothly and that the department and administration have been warm and welcoming.
Ms. Purdy grew up in Brockton, Massachusetts and attended Brockton High School. She then continued her studies at the University of Massachusetts Amherst. After college, she began participating in leadership roles such as becoming a field biologist and a substitute teacher. Later on down the road, she began teaching AP Biology, Biology, Chemistry, and Math at Newton North High School for nine years. Some reasons Ms. Purdy says she came to WHS was because of the commute in the morning. Ms. Purdy lives locally, so the commute to Newton North was always a stretch. Also, WHS’s reputation has always been strong and the school lives up to its name.
Ms. Purdy also wants her children to attend WHS. Although the transition has been mostly smooth, there have been some speed bumps in her journey. Ms. Purdy says it’s hard getting used to the “norms” of the school, such as the attendance and the copy machine. (At Newton North High School, they had a copy center.)
Ms. Purdy describes herself as an activity based teacher. She likes to conduct experiments for the experience first, and then figure out what has happened. Ms. Purdy also cares very much for her students and is very willing to help, but she says it’s not all about what is done in the classroom. She says her students need to be self-directed, independent, open, and academically curious in order to succeed.
Ms. Purdy explained to me some personality traits a person would need in order to succeed in her place as a part of the staff here at WHS. She says you would need a sense of humor, an adaptive flexible mind-set in order to work with young people, and you need to be organized to set students up to be successful in their given environment. “I love biology, teaching young people about life, and helping them find their place in it. I can’t imagine teaching anything else.”
