Though freshman and sophomore religion teacher Mr. Noah Banks is a familiar face to many, consistently bringing joy and curiosity to the classroom, his experience at La Salle did not begin on his first day as a Lasallian educator six years ago.
Rather, it began 16 years ago when he started his high school career as a Falcon. In 2012, Mr. Banks became the fifth La Salle alum in his family.
He highlighted community as a prominent influence on his decision to come back and teach at his alma mater.
“One of the things I love about La Salle from that time and now is the sense of community that we have here,” Mr. Banks said. “I think it’s one of our greatest strengths.”
He also values the sense of fellowship built through the network of Lasallian schools across the country, appreciating the opportunity to connect with alumni from these other schools during retreats and conferences.
“Whoever’s here defines the community,” he said.
His biggest motivation for becoming an educator was his junior year religion teacher, Mr. Ryan Mainard, who encouraged him to pursue teaching at La Salle. Though he grew up Catholic, Mr. Mainard’s class encouraged Mr. Banks to think more deeply about his faith.
“I’ve never not been in Catholic school,” he said. “So it’s been a part of my life in a certain way since as long as I can remember. But that class in high school just really asked me to think differently about my faith.”
Throughout his time teaching, he’s grown a lot in many aspects of the job, developing new strategies and more effective skills for use in the classroom. In his first year teaching, he had a very different perspective from what he has now.
At the beginning of his career, Mr. Banks predominantly prioritized the curriculum, and he enjoyed the idea of teaching the subject more than interacting with his students. However, once he got to know his students more, he began to really enjoy teaching in its entirety.
“Teaching is not as much about the content as it is about the people,” he said.
Since the start of his career, Mr. Banks has observed that his perspective is not the only thing to have expanded; his knowledge on the subject and his comprehension of the curriculum have also greatly increased.
He finds that to be himself while teaching is important, and he values different styles of education.
Outside of the classroom, Mr. Banks has many hobbies, including baking, watching British TV with his wife, and reading.
Mr. Banks has recently been on paternity leave for the birth of his second child, Esther, who was born on July 12th.
He received the summer and 12 weeks off the school year for his paternity leave. He enjoyed taking time off, as he was able to be with his family and adjust to a second child in addition to two-year-old Ben.
“I could just focus on being home and being present to the family,” he said.
Since Mr. Banks has been back from paternity leave on November 12th, he’s still adjusting to being on a schedule and changing his routine. Although he misses having quality time with his family, he’s glad to be back in the classroom.
Before he left, Mr. Banks prepared material from the first three units of the curriculum to assist Vice Principal for Academics Ms. Kat Coughran, Director of Campus Ministry Mr. Carter Powers, Social Studies Department Chair Mr. Alex Lanaghan, math teacher Ms. Sue Pinto, and religious studies teacher Mr. Otto Wild in the substitute teaching of his freshman and sophomore classes.
As he was absent at the beginning of the school year, he’s still getting to know most of his new students, but he feels that the substitutes were a great help. They worked hard to ensure that he had a smooth transition back into his classes.
Mr. Banks enjoyed seeing all of the familiar faces and still feels the strong sense of community as he returns to La Salle.
