Life of a Brave: 21 Questions With New Teacher Dr. Francesca Po
by Nicholas Cortez
Dr. Francesca Po has been places. From earning a PhD at Oxford University in England to being a former teacher at the school for the “Team in Red,” Dr. Po is a one of a kind addition to the St. John Bosco High School community.
Q: Where did you grow up?
A: I grew up in Norwalk, but I was born in San Francisco. I lived in the Philippines from when I was about one month old to about seven years old.
Q: How many siblings do you have?
A: I have a younger brother, Paul, and a younger sister, Juliet.
Q: What is your favorite food?
A: I really like Lebanese food, Turkish food and Mexican food. I really like dolmas, which is a Mediterranean dish.
Q: What is your favorite fast food restaurant?
A: In-N-Out for me. My local taco place is Holé Molé.
Q: If you were to choose Chick-Fil-A or Raising Canes?
A: Canes because the chicken stays good and tender.
Q: What is your favorite restaurant?
A: In Los Angeles, there is a high end vegan place that I really like called Crossroads Kitchen.
Q: What do you do in your free time?
A: I publish things in spirituality and social justice and also teach workshops in those subjects. I am also a musician and write and perform poetry, as well.
Q: What instruments do you play?
A: I play a lot, but my main instrument is accordion. I also play theremin and ukulele. Those are my main three, but I play other instruments too.
Q: When did you start getting into music?
I enrolled in an official music school when I was nine years old. The school was located in Downey, and it’s called Universal Music Schools.
Q: What type of music do you like?
A: I really do listen to everything. I don’t discriminate. The music I tend to gravitate towards is any kind of rock music, classical music and world music.
Q: What is your favorite show to watch?
A: I like anything that is fantasy or sci-fi as well as historical and horror.
Q: Where did you work before coming to Bosco?
A: I was working at the school for the “Team in Red” before I came here. It was my first job after my undergrad at UC Berkeley, and when I finished my PhD, I decided to go back.
Q: How did you come to find St. John Bosco?
A: I’ve always known about St. John Bosco because I grew up in Norwalk. Growing up, a lot of boys in my parish at St. John of God went to Saint John Bosco. I live in the city of Long Beach so its so much closer than the school for the “Team in Red,” which is convenient.
Q: How do you like Bosco so far?
A: I like it because people seem nice and down to earth. There’s a lot of trust between people.
Q: What is it like teaching at an all-boys school?
A: I barely notice it because I see everyone as human. I notice there’s a lot of boys, but it doesn’t recur to me that it’s an all-boys school.
Q: What is the difference between a co-ed school and an all-boys school?
A: The boys are more playful, but other than that they’re all good kids.
Q: What subject did you teach at the school for the “Team in Red” and what are you teaching now?
A: I teach in the Theology Department here at Bosco, and I teach all the juniors and senior classes. Same goes for the school for the “Team in Red,” but for them, it’s called the Religious Studies Department.
Q: What advice would you give to students to pass your class?
A: Keep up with the work because it is the majority of their grade, and by them doing that, they should do well.
Q: What college did you go to before teaching?
A: I got my PHD at the University of Oxford in the United Kingdom.
Q: What inspired you to become a teacher?
A: It was really working at the school for the “Team in Red” because it was my first job, and I ended up loving it. My students really inspired me to keep doing it.
Q: What do you like most about teaching?
A: I like the feeling when students get a ‘light bulb’ moment, because it inspires me knowing that I was the person who gave them that light bulb moment.
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