Teacher wins $5,000
from Staples contest
BY JASON COHEN
Since she was young Melanie
Curro knew she wanted
to follow in the footsteps of
her mom and be a teacher.
Recently, the 10-year educator
was recognized for her
efforts.
On Dec. 9, Staples announced
the winners of
its #ThankATeacher contest.
Of the 3,000 plus entries,
Curro from Girls Prep Bronx
Elementary, 681 Kelly St., was
selected as a winner for going
above and beyond for students
this year.
When learning shifted to
online, Curro created and
shared “How To” videos to
help parents and students
navigate the new technology.
She held Zoom 1-on-1
meetings as well as class instruction.
She researched and
shared links to interactive
resources that helped students
with their studies and
emotional well-being. This
year, she welcomed her new
class by creating and sending
Flat Teacher (inspired
by Flat Stanley – printed
and laminated at Staples) to
each student.
“I’m really grateful. The
award is amazing,” she said.
“The teachers and staff all
work so hard. It’s really
nice to hear our efforts are
appreciated.”
Curro, of Astoria, grew
up in Maryland and as a
child was always solving
math problems and puzzles.
She volunteered at a Girl
Scout camp and felt she
would one day be a teacher.
“I loved working with
kids,” Curro stated. “I feel
like this is what I was meant
to do.”
Her mom had a big infl uence
on her and instilled in
her the values of hard work
and effort.
“I wanted to spread my
love of learning,” she said.
“It’s defi nitely nice that I’ve
Renewable
generation
for every
generation.
BRONX TIMES R 14 REPORTER, DEC. 25-31, 2020
always had someone to go to
for advice.”
According to Curro,
working in the south Bronx
for the past four years has
been a privilege. The students
are always eager to
learn and make it fun to
teach, she explained.
“It’s a great group of
kids,” Curro commented. “I
love how the students have
a positive attitude towards
math. I feel the girls at
this school rise to the challenge.”
Teaching during the pandemic
has been the toughest
time of her career. She had
never used Zoom before and
in September; had a whole
new group of students she
had never met.
But, they adjusted and
have gotten used to remote
learning.
“Nobody was prepared
for this,” she said. “We defi -
nitely had to fi nd new ways
of doing things.”
Melanie Curro, Girls Prep Bronx Elementary School won $5,000 from
Staples. Courtesy of Melanie Curro
New York deserves clean energy.
That’s why we’re working to make
renewable energy accessible
across all five boroughs, and all
the way up to Westchester.
See our commitment to clean energy
at conEd.com/CleanEnergyForAll
/CleanEnergyForAll