Photo submitted by Barb Neilson
Barb Neilson is currently a mathematics teacher at Port Allegany High School.

By Greg Reedy
Sports Editor

It didn't take long for Johnsonburg native Barb Neilson to decide her prospective career choice.
From kindergarten on, Neilson wanted to teach and she fulfilled her childhood ambition into a career as a 7th grade mathematics teacher at Port Allegany Junior-Senior High School.
"I decided in kindergarten that I wanted to be a teacher," Neilson said. "I had a great admiration for my teachers, starting in kindergarten, that continued on throughout elementary and high school."
As Neilson continued through high school, she named current Johnsonburg guidance counselor Judy Allegretto as an influence.
"As I got in to high school, I still knew that I wanted to become a teacher, but then had to make a decision as to what I wanted to specialize in," Neilson said. "Mrs. Judy Allegretto was my math teacher throughout high school, and she played a pivotal role in my deciding to become a math teacher."
Neilson graduated from California University of Pennsylvania in December 2001 and immediately started working in the Port Allegany School District. She received a Certificate of Advanced Graduate Study in Character Education from Edinboro University of Pennsylvania in 2004.
She said her role as a teacher goes beyond just teaching math.
"I have learned to expect the unexpected," Neilson said. "It is hard to prepare for everything that will come up on a daily basis. I have also learned that I am not only a teacher, but that I am a friend, a mother and sometimes the only person that students have to listen to their problems."
Each day also brings a unique and rewarding experience for Neilson as she gets to see smiling students walking into class.
"Every day is rewarding in itself," Neilson said. "Seeing the students come in to class with a smile on their faces, or hearing them explain how their game was the night before all makes the day worthwhile. Math is a subject that many students fear, so when a student finally gets the chance to say, 'I get it!' when they haven't had success in the past is probably the most rewarding part of teaching."
In addition to the rewarding experiences, Neilson faces challenges in the classroom every day.
"There are numerous challenges that any teachers faces on a daily basis," Neilson said. "The biggest challenge is to keep the students interested. In any given class, there can be a variety of learning styles and learning levels. Because of this, a teacher needs to be able to alter the instruction so that all students are actively involved in the learning process, as well as making sure that they are also learning at the same time."
Neilson is both a teacher and a student. She is currently working on her Master of Science in Education specializing in Curriculum and Instruction through Clarion University of Pennsylvania and she will be graduating in May 2011.
"Since I am also a student myself, time management is a challenge also," Neilson said. "I need to manage my time so that I can not only do what is required for school, but also manage to do my class work for my courses. Anyone who is a teacher and is involved in anything (including being a parent) knows that time management is one of the biggest challenges teachers face."
In addition to her teaching, Neilson is active with the school. She was the Band front advisor for the Port Allegany Marching Band from 2002-2008. She is also the bookkeeper for the girls basketball team and a timekeeper for the track team.
Neilson's work is not exclusively limited to Port Allegany as she is still active in fundraising activities at the Johnsonburg Fire Department. Neilson said the work with the Fire Department is important to her because of her father.
"My dad was a volunteer firefighter for 43 years before passing away in 2005," Neilson said. "The fire department is an extended family to me. When the fire department was putting up the building that they are in now, my dad spent numerous hours there helping to get it ready. When I would come home from college, I would go there to spend time with my dad. So, helping out with fundraisers is just a small way that I can give back to the extended family that I have and to continue my dad’s legacy as a giving person. Again, it is all in how I was raised, and I am proud to do it on a regular basis."
She is involved in organizing the Johnsonburg Band alumni for the Johnsonburg Bicentennial celebration in 2010. She credits growing up in Johnsonburg for instilling important values in her which she still utilizes.
"Johnsonburg will always be my hometown," Neilson said. "My family still lives there, and is also very active in the community. Growing up in Johnsonburg, I learned to not only receive, but to give back. Johnsonburg is the epitome of small town America. When I went away to college, and when I moved away when I started working, I realized how proud Johnsonburg, and Elk County itself, is. Johnsonburg prepared me for life by giving me the values that I have today."