Adding To The Litter

image credits: Gerald Newsome

By Gerald Newsome

What are a couple things you look forward to when you’re thinking about a new school year? Maybe it’s seeing your friends, maybe it's an elective that you are really excited to check off, or maybe, just maybe it’s the teacher that you’ve heard great things about from a couple of friends! Although that’s all well and good, what about the teacher or teachers you haven’t heard anything about yet? What about those new teachers nobody has really gotten to know?

If you’ve been in the gym at some point this school year? If so there’s a chance that you've seen the new, young, and charismatic Mr. Pound. Mr Pound (otherwise known as pound cake by some staff and students) is from Long Beach Island and was placed here in Pinelands Regional High School by Kean College as a student teacher. Before coming to Pinelands to be a Physical Education teacher, Mr. Pound attended school at Southern Regional and worked on a charter boat. Mr. Pound says that his favorite things about Pinelands are the atmosphere, energy, and how willing the students and staff are to smile. A fun fact about Mr. Pound if you haven’t guessed yet is that he loves to fish!

The next staff member you may want to get to know and have probably seen around the school is Mr. Shaffrey, our new school hall monitor. Mr. Shaffrey, known by some as ‘Big Guy’ and known by most as simply ‘Pat Shaffrey’ is originally from Elizabeth, New Jersey, but moved to South Jersey and graduated from Southern Regional. Pat Shaffrey made his way over to Pinelands after being recommended for the job from a couple colleagues. Shaffrey was formerly a police officer for 25 years in the town of Barnegat before coming to work here. Pat Shaffrey said his favorite thing about Pinelands is the staff and students and how welcoming and kind everyone has been towards him. A fun fact about Pat Shaffrey is that he ran 36 miles straight from the lighthouse to the island and back! One thing Mr. Shaffrey loves the most is that he’s gotten the chance to become a grandparent.

These two new staff members are really trustworthy and honest so if you have a problem in school, need to vent, or just walking past them to get to your next class don’t be afraid to say hello or even reach out to those two for anything because they are here to help!