From Custodian to the Head of the Class
In a social studies classroom he once cleaned, Keith Reardon is showing seventh graders film footage of the unrest that erupted during the 1968 Democratic Convention in Chicago.
“Does this remind you of anything that happened recently?” Reardon asks after clashes between police and anti-war demonstrators flash across the screen.A student notes that some of the footage looks similar to the nationwide unrest experienced during the summer of 2020.
“There were a lot of groups there who felt their voices weren’t being heard,” Reardon says of the 1968 demonstrators, drawing a parallel between that chaotic, uncertain time and today. “They went to the streets and made their voices heard. Remember: History can repeat itself.”
While the classroom itself may be a familiar place for Reardon, taking a place at the head of it is a switch.
This spring, Reardon, 34, traded his day job as a custodian at Julian Middle School in Oak Park for a student teacher role ahead of completing his bachelor’s degree in elementary education from Dominican University.
他走进一个家庭的传统:嗨s grandparents were teachers, as is his sister.
“I love that I will be a student for life — I will constantly be learning along with my students,” Reardon said.
Reardon’s road to the head of the class didn’t take a straight path. He enrolled in a state university after high school with an intention to major in education, but left after three years without completing his degree.
“I wasn’t ready for college,” he says. “It was a big university and it was easy to get lost there.”
Instead, Reardon went to work, taking a full-time job as a custodian with Oak Park Elementary School District 97, where his father worked as an electrician. His job initially involved heavy cleaning of an entire school floor at night, but over the years, he took on new, skilled responsibilities, like repairing HVAC systems or fixing plumbing problems across district schools.
He enjoyed his job — especially the student interactions that came with it.
“Everyone was telling me, ‘You have to get back into college, you have to be a teacher,’” Reardon said.
Former Julian Middle School Principal Dr. Todd Fitzgerald was one of Reardon’s most prominent supporters, even helping him obtain much-needed classroom observation time in the district where Fitzgerald is now superintendent.
“Keith always had ambition and he and I spoke of his desire to become a firefighter or a teacher,” Fitzgerald said. “I am pleased he chose to pursue a career in education, as I know he has the qualities and characteristics that will make him asuccessful teacher.”
Reardon enrolled in community college in 2017 and transferred to Dominican two years later.
The university’s “Go First” motto — which he saw displayed whenever he came to campus — stuck with him as he took his own first steps toward completing his education, he said. A father of two young children, Reardon attended classes part timearound his custodial schedule and welcomed the support and guidance offered by his academic advisor Dr. JosephineTabet Sarvis and other professors within the School of Education.
“Everyone’s been understanding and is extremely intelligent within their field,” he said. “I’ve learned so much from them and I felt very confident going into my student teaching. I thought I was going to be a strict teacher, but after learning atDominican about different classroom-management skills, teaching styles and the many methods that go into a lesson, mywhole philosophy changed.”
Penny Silver, one of Reardon’s professors, said his sensitivity and empathy will be strengths in his new profession.
“As an educator, he will make sure his students have structure in their classroom so they know what the rules are, but they也知道他们可以学习的风险teacher who is compassionate and kind,” she said.
A self-professed “history buff,” Reardon hopes to keep teaching middle school social studies and aims to be a role model to the students who enter his classroom, as well as his own children.
“I want them to look up to me,” Reardon said. “They’re going to hear about all the hard work it takes to go to college and get a degree. It’s not easy and it’s not for everyone, but if you really work hard, you can do it.”