A Tribute to Saybel Pipitone
By Victoria Gilbert
Growing up, I moved every three years, and quickly learned there were some people I would never let go of, despite the physical distance between us. Saybel Pipitone will be one of those people in my life, and I am sure many of her colleagues here at Saint David’ s School have the same feeling.
When Ms. Nuñez( who later married Giuseppe Pipitone) joined us from another school in the city, she made it very clear she was here to return full time to the classroom rather than occupy any administrative roles as she had at her former school. Our boys have been the wonderful beneficiaries of that choice as her warmth, humor, and high expectations have engendered some of the best learning experiences for all in her midst.
Ms. Brenes remembers how she and Mrs. Pipitone shared a classroom with the art department during the compression years, the language department office, and finally transitioned to becoming homeroom teachers during the pandemic. In her words,“ Ms. Pipitone has always been a very close friend and a fantastic colleague. She is incredibly talented whether singing or simultaneous translating just to name a few of her gifts. And, she is always ready to give you the wisest advice. Positive interactions are simply her way and she has definitely taught this not only to her students but also to us, her colleagues.”
Mrs. Pipitone was one of the first to adopt the Integrated Performance Assessment framework used to create authentic language acquisition experiences. This gave boys a chance to interpret authentic materials and reinvent their own versions, making it possible for so many boys to share the creativity of their reinvented Llorona or Don Quijote stories as a result. Always kind and understanding of boy foibles, but never one to waste time, Mrs. Pipitone’ s students knew there was important learning business to accomplish and would push themselves to level up. Some of the best interpersonal exchanges I have ever witnessed were the result of these student authors interviewing each other in Spanish to discuss the choices they made in their writing. Her understanding of the importance of getting boys to use language rather than just learn about it has paved the way for many more in our department to move in this direction.
In 2023-2024, Mrs. Pipitone also completed one of the most challenging projects a teacher can undertake, becoming an International Boys’ Schools Coalition( IBSC) action researcher. With grace and intelligence, she introduced her religion class to the Non-Violent Communication protocol and documented the impact these new skills played in the lives of her eighth graders. After learning how to distinguish between making an observation about something that was happening and expressing their feelings and needs, her boys role-played how to make a reasonable request of someone in a difficult situation. Once mastered, the eighth graders invented lessons to teach boys in the Lower School about
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