In our school, we have new teachers come in every year, providing us with a fun and unique teaching experience. This year at Marco Island Academy, we had two new teachers join our school. One of these teachers is Miss Allison Blanco, teacher of history and law studies.

Miss Blanco graduated from Florida SouthWestern with an Associate’s Degree in Law Studies, then went on to go to the University of South Florida. From there, she earned a Bachelor’s Degree in Social Studies Education. She then went on to complete internships with Hillsborough County.

“I was originally going to go into the area of law studies, but found that working with students seemed more fulfilling than working in law,” said Miss Blanco during an interview. “The students seem very passionate when they step into the class and it is so much fun guiding them through their studies.”

After all this, she decided to teach at our school. “I’ve always felt that Marco Island Academy has been a home to me, and was very excited to start teaching here. There always seems to be a tight-knit relationship between the teachers and the students, which I believe is something extremely important for a teaching environment. I also love being the underdog and always beating the odds, that is something you can easily do in a small school.”

“When it comes to bringing energy to a classroom, I believe Miss Blanco is one of the best at doing so,” said Ryan Sullivan, a sophomore in Miss Blanco’s U.S. History class. “She offers a lot of assistance to the students and gives a ton of resources out on Google Classroom, making it insanely easy to do the class assignments.”

Not only does Miss Blanco teach history and law studies, but she also coaches the cheerleading team as well. She stated that she has “been doing cheer since she was in seventh grade, and just has a great passion for it. She loves being part of a team and being in a positive environment, just seeing the girls in cheer, making others smile, brings her such joy.”

“It’s great to have a coach with a background like hers,” said Jenna Palumbo, a sophomore cheerleader for Marco Island Academy. “She knows what she’s doing and knows how to come up with fun, creative, and useful ideas for our team.”

Miss Blanco is making a great impact on our school and we wish to see her do this for many more years to come.