Janet Lupardo never dreamed of being a teacher, but parents in the Roslyn school district have dreamed of having her teach their children for the past 34 years.
The Little Art Studio in Roslyn was packed Tuesday with Lupardo’s former students of all ages and their parents to celebrate her retirement after 37 years as an early education teacher with the last 34 years spent as a kindergarten teacher at Heights School.
“She has the same energy today as she did 35 years ago,” Heights School Principal Regina Colardi said. “She goes for her kids above and beyond. She’s the teacher who goes in the pond to get tadpoles. She’s the teacher who bakes and cooks for them, who takes care of them during critical times and family emergencies. She’s amazing, and she will be totally missed.”
Though Lupardo began Stony Brook University as a math major, she quickly transitioned to psychology and focused on child psychology.
During her last semester of college, she worked at a school affiliated with the university three days a week alongside a team of psychologists, pediatricians and linguists studying the children’s behavior.
“It was the most in-depth thing I’ve ever experienced. I loved it,” Lupardo said. “I went back to school to become certified (as a teacher), and the rest is history.”
Former student Olivia Jacobson, now a fourth grader at East Hills School, said Lupardo made her feel both like a good student and a good friend.
“She’s always been nice and she’s always made me feel like we weren’t just her students, we were her friends,” Jacobson said. “Even if the lesson was really boring, she would make it fun.”
Though many former students in attendance were still elementary school students, one former student is the first generation taught by Lupardo.
Dara Librett Gelb, who had a chance meeting with Lupardo at Columbia University years later, came to wish Lupardo a happy retirement with her daughter Adrianna Gelb, who also had Lupardo for kindergarten.
In a speech by Jenna Freed, who organized the event with Shari Jacobson, she quoted the poem “Princes and Kings” by R. Lee Sharpe.
“You have taken these young, shapeless masses, seen each for who they really are, knowing immediately where their potential lies and have committed your whole self to being the stepping stone to get them there,” Freed said.
Emily Topel’s daughter Lily was one of Lupardo’s students a few years ago, and Emily said she still couldn’t talk about Lupardo’s retirement without crying, describing Lily’s time in Lupardo’s classroom as “the most extraordinary experience” and dubbed her “the best teacher ever.”
“She just laid such an incredible foundation for her, and not only educationally, but to make her a better person,” Emily said. “She focused on kindness and taught her about the world around her. The attention she gives to every child, the way she knows them, is really amazing.”
Emily said Lupardo was known for giving students personalized books for their birthdays and giving every student a framed portrait of Martin Luther King Jr. — a portrait Lily still has by her bed.
In the past few weeks, former students have been painting tiles at the Little Art Studio to create stepping stones in Lupardo’s home garden, each a compilation of 12 squares of memories and well wishes from students and parents.
Even though some weren’t signed with last names, Lupardo was able to point to many and explain the story behind it, including a vague tile from one former student who often said his mother, who had recently died, was eating lunch with King and Abraham Lincoln — two activists Lupardo taught about in her kindergarten classroom.
“They have enriched my world so much by just sharing more of themselves and telling me more about what the seeds I planted grew into and how they traced it,” Lupardo said. “People are very trusting with me and very open. It’s hard to do that, especially when a child is struggling. They really do trust what I say about where it is in development, and I appreciate that so much.”
