Experience is a relative term, but when you have taught in other continents, countries, states, and cities, you tend to pick up some fairly specific skills. From classrooms in Perú to Title I schools in The Bronx, and eventually to Heritage High in Wake Forest, North Carolina, Leonardo Baquero has been making an impact on students all over the world.

Holding Master’s degrees from both NC State and The City College of New York, Leonardo’s real formative education was his High School Math classroom. There he learned daily that math must often take a backseat to students’ personal issues and family tragedies. Like many teachers, he was not only an educator but also a counselor, coach, and often a walking target for students to vent their anger and frustration about more than math but their lives.

Teaching has never been an easy profession nor for the faint of heart. But in a time when the needs of students often exceed just academics, Leonardo thrives. He thrives not because the job comes easy to him, but because he is willing. Willing to talk, willing to listen, willing to hold students accountable, and willing to show students another way of learning Math.