Physical Education has always been an essential part of Salvatore Biondo’s life.

As a three-sport athlete throughout high school, physical education came naturally to him.

“P.E. always came easy to me, and I was always the student who tried hard in class, so I always knew that I wanted to be a physical education teacher,” Biondo said.

Working with cooperating teachers Samir Chaudhari and Brian Lee, Salvatore Biondo is on his way to becoming a physical education teacher. The fall semester of the 2023-24 school year at Elk Grove High School is where Biondo completed his student teaching. 

Biondo, currently a student at Concordia University of Chicago, is majoring in physical education and with a master’s in business administration. And although P.E. may have always come easy for Biondo, that doesn’t mean his other classes did.

Biondo wanted to graduate high school with an athletic scholarship, but school didn’t come as easy for him as athletics did. 

During his junior year of high school, Biondo said he had a 2.1 GPA, so he knew that wasn’t going to be appealing to colleges in the recruiting process. So, he decided to start making academic changes.

“I went to my geometry teacher at the time, I told him my goals, where I wanted to be, and what I was looking to accomplish, and he would meet me every day before school and stay late after school to tutor me,” Biondo said. “That’s something you don’t forget, having a supportive teacher who wants to see you succeed and achieve your dreams.”

Biondo has enjoyed being a student teacher, but that doesn’t mean it hasn’t been challenging. He shares how he has struggled with time management and has improved since student teaching.

“There’s a lot going on, and managing your time effectively is an excellent skill,” Biondo said. “I think being an athlete in college helped me learn time management and find time to ensure all my work gets done.”

Lee, one of Biondo’s cooperating teachers, also echoed this statement from his student teacher.

“When Mr. Biondo first got here, he had a lot of questions, but one way he’s grown is that he’s really taken a look at multiple teacher’s classes, getting a feel for Elk Grove high school and the students,” Lee said. “I think he does a phenomenal job of listening to the student, while still maintaining the line that a student and a teacher should have.”