Gabrielle Sergi has a dream of one day becoming a grade school teacher. This year she became a teacher’s aide at Salisbury Elementary School and hopes to move up to her own classroom eventually.

Sergi has always wanted to go into teaching. After three years of working at an Alternative Middle/High School she has finally found herself being a teacher’s aide in fourth and fifth grade at Salisbury Elementary School, hoping to get herself into the district so she can eventually have her own classroom.

Sergi got her undergraduate degree from Bates College in Maine and achieved her graduate degree from Lesley University in Cambridge. She is now licensed as a teacher and reading assistant, certified to teach in grades one through six and certified in reading in kindergarten to grade 12.

Sergi grew up in Newburyport and says it is “a great area to grow up in.”  Sergi said she decided to become a teacher’s aid at Salisbury Elementary because she wanted to get a feel for how things were at a new school, and get settled in.

“I just wanted to get my foot in the door in this district because I was very interested in being in this school district and it seemed like the best way to get it,” said Sergi. She chose Salisbury specifically because, “it’s always been one of the schools I’ve been familiar with.”

For the past three years Sergi has worked at Crest Collaborative, an alternative special ed school for middle school and high school students. She was employed as a teacher’s aide, a substitute teacher and an art teacher while she was there.

After working in a middle and high school for three years, she realized it wasn’t for her, so she decided to try teaching with younger elementary school kids. Sergi loved it and knew that was what she wanted to do.

“I’ve worked with high school and middle school, and I think I’ve found myself really loving it but recognizing that I enjoy being in the elementary school a little more.”

Sergi said her first few weeks at Salisbury have been “so far so good.” Sergi says that she has not been very stressed “but I think as the year goes on hopefully I’ll get to try my hand at more things and we’ll see how it goes.”

She says “it was wonderful to come in, all the staff has been very friendly.”  

“We have the pleasure of mentoring Ms. Gabrielle Sergi this year,” said her mentors, Dawn Lesage and Valerie Ryan in an email response to reporters. “We are so fortunate to have her working with our students!”

Lesage and Ryan, said “her enthusiasm and knowledge has been instrumental in her success with her students.”

As for her students, Sergi says “ the students are really great, I love working with them, they’re definitely a great group of kids.”

Sergi says she will “absolutely” continue teaching after this year and that she’s just “ kind of seeing what comes my way.” She is hopeful that one day her dream of having her own classroom will come true.  “I would love to teach any of the elementary grades,” says Sergi.