While many know him primarily as an art teacher, Antonio Montalvo also serves as a  ‘teacher leader,’ representing the art/music department for art. After assuming this role, Mr. Montalvo looks forward to working closely with the art department to establish a gallery room at Townsend and create more shared opportunities to showcase students’ artistic and musical skill.

“I’ve known Mr. Montalvo for [about] 15 years…[and] he’s a fantastic teacher,” Principal Brian Condon said. “Kids and parents appreciate him, and he cares a lot about the school and the kids. So having Mr. Montalvo as a teacher leader seems to be a natural thing to me.”

According to Mr. Condon, the teacher leadership program is an opportunity for teachers to “become a leader” by listening to, communicating with, and speaking on behalf of the other teachers in their department.

Mr. Montalvo spoke to The Classic about numerous goals he has for the art/music department. One of his goals is to turn the courtyard attached to the art studio, Room 543, “ into an artsy space.” He aspires to potentially do fundraising, paint a mural, and purchase outdoor furniture for the area. He also wants to create a gallery one day: The Townsend Harris Gallery. “We can… have a kid or a group of kids… have a little show every month where we [can] display their artwork,” he said.

He also plans to work more with the music department to collaborate on events. There could be “a little more showcasing of both sides,” he said.

In addition to these plans, Mr. Montalvo also runs a “teacher team” called the “Alternative Assessment Team,” where teachers from various departments work to find the most efficient ways to assess learning. He said the team collects data on the effectiveness of each type of assessment to identify which assessments are most effective.

Spiro Schmelke, a freshman in Mr. Montalvo’s workshop arts class, feels that “he’s a great pick [for teacher leader] because… he’s lively and enjoyable, and he certainly cares about art and the students.”

Prior to being an art teacher at THHS, Mr. Montalvo worked at St. Francis Prep, where he worked as a student teacher. He eventually became a substitute at Louis Armstrong Middle School. Mr. Montalvo’s first job as a teacher was at Martin Van Buren High School, where he was an art teacher and a dean for nine years. He then transferred to Business Technology Early College High School, and finally, THHS.

“I feel like I have a wide view of the education system. I’ve experienced [elementary schools], middle schools, private schools, inner city high schools, and I now see Townsend Harris,” Mr. Montalvo said. As a result, he said,  he truly understands “just how special Townsend Harris is.”

As one of the newer teachers at Townsend, Mr. Montalvo felt that “coming in, you have imposter syndrome when entering a place like this, especially from where I was.” He would wonder if he would be able to teach students who were “much smarter” than he was. Over time, he realized “I am good enough. I’m not the best, but it became like this was my home.”

“It was always a dream of mine to work here,” he said. “I never thought it would happen, but I guess I was at the right place at the right time, and I got the opportunity.”