Williams College graduate Kristina Alvarado has always been an outgoing, athletic bundle of energy, defying gender stereotypes. Anyone could feel her vigorous presence, especially at basketball games, leading the thunderous chants of the crowd. With her unique personality and various talents, she has been a great addition to The Darrow School community, taking on the responsibilities of an assistant softball coach, head soccer coach, advisor, houseparent, and Academic Mentorship Program (AMP) mentor. It is as clear as a looking glass that Ms. Alvarado has been able to pursue her career interests while successfully finding her place on this vast, welcoming land once inhabited by Shakers. But as many have stated, “it’s about the journey, not the destination”. Without a doubt, Ms. Alvarado’s journey to this small, private, college-preparatory boarding school in New Lebanon, New York has been quite remarkable. Her origin story as a member of the Darrow community had to be told.
This journey began at Williams College. A senior at the time, Ms. Alvarado already had connections to The Darrow School. One of her professors, Ms. Holzapfel, was the wife of former Head of School Simon Hozapfel. Upon learning Ms. Alvarado’s budding interests in the educational field, Ms. Holzapfel recommended Darrow to the eager student, ultimately beginning her education career. With the strong bond between students and teachers, the school immediately grabbed her attention like a moth towards light. This special relationship contradicts educational stereotypes, or her experience in the education system as a student. She believes, “having a more personal relationship with students is actually pretty helpful with the learning experience”. The unique bond shared between faculty and students on Mount Lebanon would assist Ms. Alvarado with her transition into the community.
During the application process, Ms. Alvarado felt nervous at times, because of the judgement she would face for her accomplishments, and the intense evaluation for her suitability for the job. But through the process, she was able to maintain faith, believing that she would be seen for her true, unique self. Fortunately, Ms. Alvarado’s perseverance of faith paid off, as her application was prized by the hiring team, receiving a spot as a faculty member of the Darrow School!
Ms. Alvarado’s official acceptance into the Darrow community was pleasant news for many faculty members. When she told Director of Studies, Mika Sarela, that she would be joining, he emailed her, “you can’t see it right now, but I’m dancing around my office.” This was an introduction to the welcoming community that would embrace Ms. Alvarado’s arrival. In contrast to her background, it felt “weirdly overwelcoming, but in the best way possible.”
On her first day, she was gracefully bombarded with an enormous hug from Performing Arts Chair, Jennifer Pytleski. At first, Ms. Alvarado was a bit confused, with thoughts racing in her head, such as “oh my god, who is this!” Yet, she would begin to see Ms. Pytleski’s “amazing self” as a big sib, and a coworker she greatly admires. For Ms. Alvarado, Ms. Pytelski was a great example and portrayal of the extraordinarily amicable community, as welcoming as land to a shipwrecked sailor. After that heartwarming hug, she spent the next few days of orientation feeling “all turned around, but it was okay!” Little did she know that this would be the beginning of a series of unforgettable experiences.
Being a new faculty member was not a walk in the park, as Ms. Alvarado was faced with numerous tribulations, including the weight of advising 3 new students. Her main concern was that she would “play a role in how positive or negative their experience was at Darrow.” Could her advisee from Senegal, Fatoumata Sonko ‘21, become homesick? Would her freshmen advisees, Eyram Dzokoto ‘23 and me, find it hard to smoothly transition into the boarding high school setting? From experience, I can confidently assert that Ms. Alvarado was able to help avoid these issues with ease. From always being enthusiastically ready to lend a helping hand to knowing when it was the right time to give a supportive talk, she undeniably aced her job as an advisor.
Another major challenge she continues to face lies in her status as an ethnic minority among the Darrow staff. She is one of the very few faculty members who is Hispanic, or even a person of color. Ms. Alvarado feared that she would be improperly used as “a spokesperson” for the community of color “of Darrow”, especially through microaggressions. She could not be responsible for all those who are African-American or Asian on the mountainside. Though this apprehension had not ceased to exist, Ms. Alvarado has still been able to use her experience to best help students who might face potential racism or injustice.
Despite these challenges, Ms. Alvarado has been able to learn, and enjoy her time at Darrow. Working in the student life, athletic, and academic fields, she has been busy, with occupations where she can be herself. But from her many titles, Ms. Alvarado’s position as a mentor for AMP has definitely been one of her most enjoyable and prominent. Because she was a fresh face in the educational field, she felt as though the program would serve as a great look into the responsibilities and expectations as an educator. Through the Academic Mentorship Program, she has been able to enjoy learning from her students, which reflects on her overall experience at Darrow. In addition, Ms. Alvarado has been able to use what she’s learned from her Psychology major at Williams to help her cater to the academic needs of the student body.
Overall, Ms. Alvarado has learned from various challenges in the best way possible during this new chapter of her life. “I’m happy with the students that I’ve met here and the things that I've learned and the challenges that I’ve gone up against and had to deal with in order to learn how to support myself and the students….You learn wherever you go but this place has challenged me and made me happy at the same time, and I don’t think you can ask for more than that.”
Written by Alvin Agbenyegah ‘23 for Nancy Dutton’s Writing and Literature I
