Most students at Jesuit are accustomed to walking down the hall toward the cafeteria and athletic lockers and seeing the face of former Jesuit hockey coach, Mr. Campbell. This year, however, there’s a new face lurking around the hallways of Jesuit, the face of Andy Civello. Civello is the new Assistant Dean of Student Affairs at Jesuit, and no one is more fit for the job than he.
After Campbell left, Mark Knize was looking for a replacement, a new assistant for himself; he came across Civello and knew that the job was for him. “We needed someone who knows the students and knows this school,” said Knize, “and what worked out well was he already was familiar with many of our students through his coaching and teaching.”
“He moves into this position already understanding the culture and students, so there was no training or anything needed,” Knize continued, “He’s a good coach, a good teacher, and he understands the students.” Civello is one of the most well rounded teachers here at Jesuit, and now he looks forward to continuing to get to know the student body even better. “I was surprised at how many students he already knew” marveled Knize, “From coaching to teaching, I was just really impressed with how well rounded he was and how many of the students he was already interacting with. Those two things together just made him a perfect fit for the job.” Civello, who graduated from the University of Texas at Dallas, taught Health at Jesuit up until this year, and has coached a wide variety of sports, including tennis, golf, and baseball; he also acts as an integral part of the Anglers Club. Golfer Sam Rosenberg ’14 said, “He’s a really fun guy to be coached by. He’s laid back and knows how to interact with us.” English teacher and junior counselor Mr. McDaniel agreed, “He’s a really talented guy who picks things up quickly and gets along with the students. He picked up tennis really quickly and knew how to communicate with the players really well.”
When asked about getting the job Civello commented, “Having the chance to work with Mr. Knize is a great opportunity, he knows the ins and outs of the school better than anyone, and I hope to learn from that.” Civello is taking on much more responsibility than he has had previously at Jesuit but he also emphasized that he is really looking forward to getting to know the students here at Jesuit even better than he did before. “It’s an awesome chance that they’ve given me. I’m going to be able to have more interaction with the kids than I did before. Now I can interact with all of the students during lunch, and free periods, and the library and what have you. Whereas before it was only in passing or in my classes or my teams.”
Everything is new for Civello, even though he will still teach senior psychology and continue to coach. “I’m glad he’s still going to coach, but it will also be cool seeing him more around the school” said Rosenberg ’14. Now Civello’s days are filled more with close interaction with Knize and Ms. Woolnough, taking on responsibilities including handling parking and dealing with minor disciplinary issues. “We are trying to make sure all the needs are met,” he said, “and I will just be doing what’s asked of me the best I can.”
Students now can get used to the sight of Mr. Civello prowling the halls and mingling with students, and luckily for everyone, now he will be able to get to know the whole student body, and help Jesuit school days run smoothly in any way that he can.
