New Teacher Interview: Mr. Simoneau
BY MAX LITVAK ‘20
Mr. Simoneau is new this year to the Upper School’s English Department, teaching Creative Writing, Advanced Creative Writing, Seeing Literature, Class IV English, and Man in the Natural World. He lives in the town of Milton with his wife and three daughters.
Mr. Simoneau has always loved reading and writing and, back in the day, was an avid reader outside of school. However, it was his high school English teachers who really inspired him and allowed him to pursue his interests. Initially wanting to become a novelist, Mr. Simoneau realized that he was more interested in poetry during his time at Amherst College. He enjoyed the freedom which poetry allows to explore different ideas from poem to poem.
After college, Mr. Simoneau obtained his Master of Fine Arts in creative writing (poetry) from the University of Oregon, and his Master’s Degree in English and American Literature from Boston University, where he began writing seriously. After receiving these degrees, he worked in dorms at boarding schools, where he could write during the day while students were in class. In addition to writing, he also did a lot of reading which, in turn, shaped his writing. He always knew, however, that he would find his way back to the classroom. He says: “The way to maintain [his] own energy around writing is to be exposed to others’ insights and energy.”
Mr. Simoneau has always been drawn to teaching, from working at a daycare to coaching Little League baseball. His first real teaching experience was at Choate Rosemary Hall, and having previously worked at a summer camp, the transition to the summer academic program was “smooth.” At Choate, he taught Creative Writing, Grammar Workshop, and some SAT preparatory classes. He continues to love exploring literature with students and seeing where both the students’ and his own curiosity can lead a discussion.
Before coming to Milton Academy, Mr. Simoneau spent seven years as a stay-at-home dad with his daughters. He continued writing poetry and occasional book reviews in his had free time. After a year, a collection of his work was published. He found it exciting but also challenging to balance the work of taking care of his kids with books tours and other work surrounding his poetry.
Missing the fun and exciting “sense of not quite knowing where a class might go after you ask a question,” Mr. Simoneau decided to go back to teaching. Milton Academy seemed like a good fit because he could teach both creative writing and English classes.
Despite his move back to teaching, Mr. Simoneau still writes poetry; he keeps a journal with him at all times to document his ideas. More than writing new content, however, he is focused on revising old pieces for another collection of poems set to be published in 2021 in a book titled “No Small Comfort.” Many of the poems talk about “fatherhood, the natural world, and finding a place in the broader, changing landscape of the city and suburbs”—where he’s been in the last 10 years with his family. Recently, he has also found influence from the future and has started to write about “what his [daughters’] lives might look like down the road.”
Mr. Simoneau has lots planned for this year but most of all he would love if students in his classes would “ask a question they hadn’t considered asking before.” He wants students to remember that reading and writing can be enjoyable and doesn’t need to be viewed as work. To spread this message, he hopes he can be a role model for the rest of the community.
Image courtesy of mymilton