Mrs. Albuquerque has been working in the NAHS English department for 24 years. She attended Montclair State University and graduated with a BA in English for Secondary Education. She teaches AP Language and Composition, English IV, and English I Honors. Mrs. Albuquerque’s main goals for her students are, “To see the potential that they have when they open their minds and broaden their intellect as well as to develop and strengthen a love for reading and writing.”

Mrs. Albuquerque enjoys reading classical literature and nonfiction. She feels that texts, specifically autobiographies, are important to read because the authors usually write about the struggles that they encountered and what they did to overcome them. Mrs. Albuquerque also wants her students to appreciate writing as well because it is a skill that is necessary for any future career of choice. 

She enjoys teaching high school students in particular because they are older and can communicate with teachers more easily. She is normally capable of encouraging them to do well and believe in themselves just by having a simple conversion. As an educator, Mrs. Albuquerque loves to see when her students finally have an epiphany and realize that they have the aptitude to succeed because so many students underestimate themselves. She always strives to see students develop self-confidence in their abilities and appreciate English class because it helps them develop intellectual knowledge and a plethora of other pivotal life skills. 

As a veteran teacher, Mrs. Albuquerque certainly has many memorable moments to share. However, the craziest moment would have to be one from her first year of teaching. She recalls, “One of my seniors asked me to put her pot in her locker. I asked her to repeat what she said, because I couldn’t believe it at first. The rest of the class and I just looked at her in total disbelief and shock because we thought she was referring to the drug. She was actually referring to a small cooking pot that she had brought to school for her culinary arts class!”  

When asked to look a bit further back to when she was in high school, she said that she was very active with athletics and extracurricular activities. She played soccer, softball, and participated in Drama Club, French Club, Biology Club, and Psychology Club. She had a very diverse friend group – she spent time with people that were very involved in clubs, student-athletes, and people that weren’t involved at all with any school activities. For this reason, she believes that students should have a diverse friend group so that they can talk to as many people as possible in order to truly appreciate each other, embrace the differences and love their unique selves.  

Mrs. Albuquerque is very involved in school activities. She is a co-advisor for the Viking Saga, the Class of 2022, the Class of 2024 and a staff mentor to freshmen. Something that may surprise many of her students is that Mrs. Albuquerque has a superb sense of humor which they may not get to experience simply through having her as a teacher. However, those who have interacted with her as an advisor, such as myself, have definitely enjoyed some precious, comical moments. 

Mrs. Albuquerque’s personal goals this year are to stay healthy along with her family and friends and to continue being optimistic as well as open-minded. Our school would certainly not be the same without Mrs. Albuquerque, especially because of the remarkable, enduring impact that she has on the lives of her students.