The interviewee of this episode is Joe Ezrati, a science teacher at Woodside High School. He teaches Advanced Placement Biology and has been teaching at Woodside for 20 years. Ezrati attended San Mateo High School in San Mateo, California.
How would you describe yourself as a teen, and what was your friend group like?
“In high school, I had a lot of friends and so many of them I’m still friends with [today]. I would describe myself as the least cool of the cool group of kids. I wasn’t so good at sports, so I was very big into music. I directed the band at the football and basketball games, and I was the lead saxophone for the jazz band and the concert band. I also decided in my freshman year that I had to learn to play guitar, because it would help me get girls. [The music community is where] I felt that I really thrived.”
What did you do for fun in a non-academic scene?
“My friends and I would go out to Downtown San Mateo and just hang out. We would go to the movies a lot. Back in the day, there were a few arcades like Fashion Island, The Tilt and Malibu. Other than those activities, we would mostly go and hang out at someone’s house. We [would] just go back and watch TV, listen to music [and] chat about whatever.”
Were you a going-out or staying-in kind of teenager?
“I liked being at home, but if people [were] going out and doing something, I [was] down to go out and do something. My dad will always joke that he never needed to set a curfew for me, because he knows how much I value my sleep. [When I would hang out with friends,] if it got to 10-11 p.m., I’m gone, I’m going to bed. Nothing could happen that is so good that it would make me happy to have lost out on a chance for a good night’s sleep.”
What kind of music did you listen to?
“I like to describe myself as ‘polyjamorous,’ where I have varied interests, but I listen to various genres of rock. I listened to a ton of Metallica, a lot of Nirvana, Korn and some others. It’s amazing how long these bands have been around. Due to my playing the saxophone, I also listened to a bunch of jazz and classical music.”
Did you drive to school? And if so, what car did you drive?
“I drove an 84 Volvo station wagon. It was cream colored. It was just terrible, but it was a tank. It would go from zero to sixty in about two days. If you tried to roll down more than one window at a time, a fuse would blow and then it would be stuck. But I was happy to have a car. It was a lot of fun.”
What was your family like in high school? Were they strict? Were they lenient?
“My parents are divorced, and they both have very different philosophies on parenting. My mom was very hands-off and would let me do whatever. My dad was very hands-on. He would come home at the end of the day and would go over my homework.
I think at the time if you had asked me which of my parents I preferred, I would have said my mother, because she kind of just let me do whatever. Although looking back on it now, considering I have my own children, I think that the role my dad had has more value and his level of involvement.”
Did you know that you wanted to be a teacher when you were in high school?
“In high school, I didn’t know I wanted to be a teacher. When I was in college studying biology, I started tutoring others in biology. Everywhere I went, I found myself kind of helping people with biology. Then I found out that at the university I attended, they offered an additional fifth year to get my master’s in teaching, and I was already kind of teaching all the time, so I decided to go for it.”
How did you stay motivated throughout high school just to keep going?
“I think there was a fair amount of fear involved in my motivation. There was also some guilt involved because I recognized from an early age that I had a pretty nice, privileged upbringing, so for me to squander that by not doing well, I would feel really guilty. The last thing was [that] there’s just no other option. It’s not like, if you don’t do well in school, then all these other opportunities will present themselves, and it’ll be fine. It’s this kind of thing that you have to do, so don’t mess it up.”
If you could go back to high school, what would you do differently if there was anything?
“My dad had a rule that I could only get two B’s every semester, so I regret not trying to get better grades than those two B’s. My other biggest regret is not putting myself out there more socially. I was scared of asking people out and trying to make new friends. I had a solid group of people, but I could’ve reached out more. The fear of rejection is so powerful.”
Do you have any advice for current high school students?
“In high school, you learn so much. You think you’re mainly learning from your teachers, but you learn so much more from the company you keep. So if you’re wondering, how are things going to turn out for you, or if you’re going to do well, you’ve got to look around and see how things are turning out for the people that you’re surrounding yourself with. Chances are, that’s exactly how you’re going to turn out.”
