Meet Matthew Bachiochi!

As part of our ongoing series Meet Our GDS Faculty and Staff, we are excited to present: Meet Matthew Bachiochi! 

Read the Q&A below to learn more about Matthew.

Primary Roles: High School Innovation & Computer Science Teacher

Pronouns: he/him

Years at GDS: Four years down and halfway through year five 

What do you love about GDS?
GDS is truly a place that encourages everyone to be their authentic selves. That's what attracted me to GDS in the first place and what keeps me coming back.

A favorite part of your job?
For me, there is magic in seeing a student finally "get" coding for the first time. There is a spark of recognition when a program works for the first time, or when one finally finds the error in the code that was preventing it from running. Helping to create that spark is a moment I live for as a teacher.

Other GDS activities or roles students and faculty may not know about? 
Matthew serves as the GDS High School Maker in Residence and is the coach of GDS’s FIRST Robotics Team.

Your work style in three words?
Try Something New

A top hope/wish for your students and/or colleagues?
My top hope is for people in the community to discover a new skill that they didn’t know they had, whether it is creating designs to go on t-shirts or creating the next innovation in artificial intelligence. A lot of the products that we see every day are not that complicated to make if people have access to some basic tools.

Personal passions/hobbies/pastimes?
I do all of the cooking in my household and enjoy discovering new dishes to make. I've also recently taken up golf again. This speaks volumes about why the last two High School Minimesters* I've offered up are Bar-Ba-Curious and FORE: A Golf Minimester.

A few favorites…?
Favorite Album: Miles Davis’s Kind of Blue
Favorite alternative to GDS Dining: Seoul Spice
Your Happy Place: My porch in a rainstorm.

One thing about yourself your students/colleagues/others probably don't know?
I have a musical side that few at GDS have seen. Throughout high school and college, I played guitar and trumpet and sang in choirs. I have even performed for princes, presidents, and popes: As a member of my college marching band, I had the privilege of performing for the Prince of Monaco as well as in President Clinton's second Inaugural Parade. When Pope Benedict visited New York City, a choir I sang in at the time was invited to sing at one of his services. Here is a clip of me performing with a faculty rock band from my previous school.

With a tip from Matthew, we reached out to hear what a colleague had to say...
Director of Innovation & Technology Tim Lyons said, “Matthew is an excellent, highly experienced teacher, a quietly creative thinker, and just a wonderful, warm, and thoughtful person to work with. During the past four years, GDS has been the beneficiary of his wisdom and steady presence in our School's budding Innovation and Computer Science Department. One of Matthew's greatest qualities is his willingness to find a way to say, "Yes" and get something done whenever asked. Whether that's a fellow teacher wanting to bring their class into the innovation lab to print 3D models of objects they've designed, a student who's curious about learning how to use a piece of equipment, or a colleague asking his advice on how to repair a cracked hinge on his home refrigerator, I don't think I've ever heard Matthew say "No" to a request for his time or expertise. I also deeply appreciate Matthew's ability to take the simple beginnings of an idea and run with it. Exhibit A: The High School Robotics Team, which began from a passing suggestion to look into what running a program would entail, is now a successful, robust, and enduring program that participates annually in the FIRST Robotics competition. With that kind of initiative, I wonder if I should also ask Matthew what it would take to organize my office...my house...my life?! Matthew's a great colleague and an awesome person—we're lucky to have him here at GDS.

*High School Minimester is a three-day immersive experience of creativity and learning beyond the classroom. Teachers and staff offer up their expertise in areas you might not have even known about!