Rewind back about a few years, fresh out of elementary school when we had to start waking up at 6:00 am, use lockers, had about six periods per day, and were either on the red, orange or green team. Moving from the elementary schools to Junior High was certainly a big change growing up. This would not have been possible without the amazing teachers during those times. One of the teachers who has been a fan favorite and big contribution to students is Mr. Sarneckis.

Mr. Sarneckis is the 8th grade Orange Team Social Studies teacher and has been teaching at Victor for four years but eight years in total. After asking him as to why he chose Victor he explains, “I wanted to be in a big district. Also the district is closer to where I live, and my wife works here already.”

Before he began his career he attended Nazareth College. He “chose Nazareth because of how small and local it was, everything felt very relevant and easy to get around and connect to.”

Another interesting fact about his college life is that he played for the Nazareth Men’s Volleyball team, which helped grow his passion for the game all around.

The time that Mr. Sarneckis has been at Victor he has been growing the game of volleyball more and more. He started off as the assistant coach for the Girls Varsity Volleyball team and now is currently the Boys Mod A Volleyball coach. He chose to coach volleyball, because he really enjoys it and

has been playing almost his whole life. “I also enjoy being around the game and teaching others more about it.”

In the classroom and even outside of the classroom, students describe Mr. Sarneckis as upbeat and that he has a good sense of humour. As a teacher Mr. Sarneckis has many strengths one of them is to make sure his students feel supported and prepared in class. All of this is achieved by his positive energy and care for his students.

One of the colleagues that Mr. Sarneckis is closest with is his wife Mrs. Sarneckis. Mrs. Sarneckis is one of the art teachers in the Junior High and is definitely one of the most passionate teachers in the school. Mr. Sarneckis elaborates on why he loves working in the same building when he said, “It’s great. We get to see each other throughout the day, and share a lot of the same experiences. We also commute to work sometimes.”

Mr. and Mrs. Sarneckis are expecting a newborn baby soon and after asking Mr. Sarneckis on what he is looking forward to as a first time Dad he explains, “I’m excited to learn how to be a dad, and the new experiences of taking care of a baby.”

Having a newborn baby and being a full time teacher is a challenge. In order to manage this challenge he shares that it will be difficult to manage time and get enough sleep but he is looking forward to developing a new routine and raising a child with his wife and family.

Outside of teaching Mr. Sarneckis has many hobbies. One of which is watching and playing sports. His favourite sport to play of all is golf, whether it’s with friends or family. He also likes to watch basketball along with football where his favorite team is the New York Jets.

Some other interesting facts about Mr. Sarneckis is that if he didn’t teach Social Studies he would love to teach PE. He would love to teach this subject because you have the ability to stay active all day and get to wear sweatpants to school over khakis and a nice shirt. Who wouldn’t love that?

His go-to song to listen to is “Whiskey Drink” by famous country singer Jason Aldean who is a fan favorite to other country fans as well.

As students we have seen teachers do some pretty embarrassing things. I asked Mr. Sarneckis, have you? He shares, “I accidently tackled a kid playing kickball which was pretty embarrassing.”

He also says that many of his students find his high school yearbook photo online.

Overall Mr. Sarneckis is an excellent teacher and coach. He also has a lot of passion for his job and students which is why he is a great fit for Victor!