Welcome, Alyssa Provencher!

Alyssa Provencher
Grade 3 Teacher

Please tell us about yourself.
I grew up in Hawthorne, and lived in the Boston area for 10 years while I was in school and starting my teaching career. I went to the Hawthorne Public Schools and have memories of playing Eastern Christian in tennis matches, wondering what it would have been like if I attended EC like some of my youth group friends. I spent my childhood and teenage years in Cornerstone Christian Church’s Sunday school and youth group and am back serving and attending that church with my family. When I have free time I enjoy reading a book on the beach, going for a run, meeting a friend for coffee or cooking dinner for my family.

How did God bring you to work at EC?
Like many aspiring teachers, I always knew that I wanted to work with children and found myself constantly babysitting and helping at Sunday School and Vacation Bible School. I did all of my teacher training in Massachusetts. I earned my Bachelors of Elementary Education and English and my Masters degree in Reading and English as a Second Language at Gordon College. For six years I taught third grade at an Innovation school in Revere, Massachusetts. There I had many opportunities for teacher leadership through leading professional development and creating new systems for teacher growth. In 2019, God called me to move back to New Jersey. I taught in the Passaic Public Schools at their newest Elementary School, Sonia Sotomayor School 21. There I taught fourth and fifth grade Reading, Social Studies and ESL. I am very excited for how each of these experiences have prepared me to come join the Eastern Christian community.

Why Eastern Christian School?
One of the things you quickly learn in teaching is that in order to reach students academically, you have to teach the whole student. We have to care about a child’s social emotional well being as much as his or her academic progress. One of the things I am excited for at Eastern Christian is how I can now care for a child’s spiritual journey as well. At Eastern Christian, teaching the whole student means I can pray with that child and teach how our story is a part of God’s larger story, I can teach that our motivation for excellence is fueled by the biblical command to do everything to the glory of God. I am excited to be able to share this worldview with both my students and coworkers.