Ed Boyko during his teaching days around 1970 at St. Joseph School in Port Vue.
I heard about a teaching position at St. Joseph's School in Port Vue. I had previously only taught Sunday School. The projected yearly salary was $4,000 or $400 a month.
I needed a job, and a responsible one at that, so in August 1968 I took a chance and applied. I had to do two interviews and I had no teaching experience. If I got hired, I had to enroll at Duquesne University for certification. Also, no health care of any kind was provided. I was told to take my vitamins and do push-ups daily. It was easy to get to school, even if I had to walk because I lived with my mother five miles away.
The two interviews were with the Pastor Francis Rieke and the school principal, Sister Judith. The job entailed teaching these subjects, English, U.S. history, science, math. The class had was equally divided between 15 girls and 15 boys for a total of 30 students. During third period I taught 6th grade social studies, while the nun came to my class to teach religion.
Were they going to be angels or brats? All of them were in 3rd grade. Did they have grouchy parents? I did not know, but the other teachers cautioned me about that.
The kids did not have to wear uniforms, but neat clothes. No jeans, but shorts were allowed on gym day. Gym class was always a game, usually co-ed volleyball or dodge ball in parish parking lot.
Employees, including three other lay teachers and five nuns, were provided a free lunch and free parking. We had to eat with the kids and spend time with them on the playground. I did get hired despite all these conditions for school employee conduct. The other teachers and a few nuns warned me that the intercom for each classroom had a microphone, so the principal could listen in on any teacher or classroom. It was like "Big Brother!", but this was more like "Big Sister!"
There was no Teachers’ lounge. This was the late 1960’s; there were no computers, no cell phones; no internet. Each Tuesday we had to go to 8 a.m. Mass with the kids. "We must set a good example for the kids." said Sister Judith.
I met Mrs. Rizzo, the school nurse, who was provided by the local school district; She was there Mondays from 1 to 4 p.m. and Thursdays from 8:30 am to 12:30 p.m. She was my grandmother's age, and this was to be her last year working as a school nurse before retirement. She was pleasant, encouraging and helpful.
The first Parent Teacher meeting was held on last Tuesday of September. I felt a little nervous. I was more nervous about meeting the parents than the kids. Not all parents came to the meeting. Some parents had to work an evening shift while the significant other had to be home with the kids.
One Tuesday morning during our day to attend church, a little girl blacked out and fell in between the pews. Her name was Janice. I rushed over and picked her up. There was a minor cut on her forehead, but a lot of blood. I carried her to the nurse's office. One of the nuns called the child's mother and she came to pick her up to go to their family doctor.
By chance, I saw Janice ten years later at a church picnic when she was a sophomore at Slippery Rock University majoring in education. The tiny scar was visible on her forehead. We laughed about it. I could never forget that incident.
We had a letter grading system and I had to fill out report cards for all parents, even the grumpy ones. Another teacher reminded me, "You're not grading the parent, but the child's school progress or lack of progress.”
In the first week of December, I taught my third graders the Slovak Christmas carol Heaven and Earth and included the corresponding verses in English for the school Christmas program. The Pastor and the nuns were impressed. I also taught the kids how to play chess to help them develop critical thinking skills during rainy days at recess and after lunch. We would have up to four games between the kids going at the same time.
During the winter of 1969, two or three different kids were absent every day due to colds, the flu, measles, chicken pox, or pink eye. A different ailment infected a different child daily, but I was the one who needed to be immune to everything. I had to send schoolwork home to the sick kids.
During the first week of May with the help of parents, we arranged permission slips, received tickets and organized a five-car caravan to a Friday evening baseball game between the Pittsburgh Pirates and the Milwaukee Brewers baseball at Three Rivers Stadium. We all enjoyed the game, and the Pirates won.
After the ninth inning we lost a kid; Matthew was not with the others. We searched everywhere and police officers and stadium personnel helped us with our search. Three boys in our group said Matthew had gone into one of the men's restrooms with them, but they did not wait for him to come out.
Back then no one had a cell phone. We ultimately found Matthew in a phone booth. He explained that he took a little longer in the men’s room than the other boys. When he came out and saw they had not waited for him, he noticed a phone booth and stayed in there. He realized that he was lost and had some change, so he called his mom. It was two policemen who found Matthew in the phone booth. He stayed in the booth until the two officers and I came by. We finally got the kids home safely.
The next morning, Matthew's mother called me and said she incredibly grateful for me finding her son. She had even called the Pastor to tell him what happened. In June, a couple of parents called to invite me to their older child’s graduation party. I made excuses because I could not favor one child over another. I said thanks, but I could not attend.
It was a successful school year. All 30 students advanced to the next grade level. I received a dinner gift certificate in the mail from the Pastor for $50.00 for the Star Restaurant in McKeesport in addition to my monthly paycheck.
My time at the school lasted five years. I received several raises, but I resigned when it was revealed the Pastor was closing the school at the end of the 1972-73 school year. I had no hope or political connections for a teaching position at another school, parochial or public. I finally ended up in National Tube Works as a laborer and earned double the pay I received at the school
— Edward M. Boyko
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