Veteran Teacher In Newtown Schools Is Retiring After 36 Years

By Susan Coney

Veteran teacher, Margitta Savo, is retiring after over 36 years of teaching in the Newtown schools.

Mrs Savo began her teaching career at Sandy Hook School teaching fifth grade. She moved to Newtown Middle School where she taught sixth grade math and science for 25 years and is currently at Reed Intermediate School.

Mrs Savo herself attended Newtown schools. She graduated from Newtown High School where she received the Florence Gaffney Most Likely to Succeed in Teaching Scholarship. She received both her undergraduate and graduate degrees from Western Connecticut State University.

Born in Dresden, Germany, Mrs Savo came to the United States when she was a young girl. Her family had to leave their homeland in the middle of the night because of her father’s outspoken views against the communist party.

Mrs Savo vividly recalls the seven-day journey aboard an ocean liner to come to the United States. “I have a deep and abiding love for this country and it upsets me if kids don’t say the Pledge of Allegiance,” Mrs Savo said. Her favorite holiday is Thanksgiving and one of the most exciting events of her life was seeing the dismantling of the Berlin Wall. “My Mother and I watched it and we just cried,” she said.

Asked if she would choose the teaching profession again Mrs Savo quickly replied that she would. “I’ve always wanted to be a teacher. I sat my four sisters down when I was a child and made them play school. I was always the teacher,” she chuckled. “Once you’re a teacher, you’re always a teacher,” she said.

After retiring she plans to attempt to learn to relax, something she admits to being not very good at. She looks forward to traveling with her husband and enjoying time with her grandchildren and family. Her next area of interest is to learn to play golf.