Ashley B. MSJ '21
Leonard Bartenstein, a current faculty member at Mount St. Joseph Academy, has lived in Vermont all his life. He attended Christ The King School from Pre-k to 8th grade then he attended high school at MSJ. After graduating as the class of 2013’s valedictorian and receiving the honor of being a Green and Gold scholar, Mr. Bartenstein then attended the University of Vermont in Burlington. His four years of study at UVM earned him a dual major in English Literature and Secondary Education.
While at first Mr. Bartenstein didn’t necessarily picture himself as a teacher, he always knew that he wanted his career to be centered around reading and writing, and to him, “teaching seemed to be a good way to be able to talk about books all day and have fun doing it.” As soon as he discovered that teaching was what he wanted to do he felt very strongly about it, and when met with the chance to teach at MSJ, our Mountie alumni seized the opportunity. He was met with a welcoming staff upon his return and his experience as a teacher has been as enjoyable as his student experience.
Mr. Bartenstein mostly teaches English, and in the past he has taught 9th and 10th grade but he is currently teaching grades 11 and 12 American Literature and British Literature respectively. He also teaches Advanced Placement Literature and Composition and a 10th grade religion class which focuses mainly on the preparation of religious sacraments. In addition, he teaches an elective of Psychology and Criminology. Outside of the classroom, Mr. Bartenstein is the advisor for the Electronic Sports team. The students on the E-Sports team compete with other high schools in both League of Legends and Rocket League.
In his free time, Mr. Bartenstein enjoys skiing, mountain-biking, and working at the local Pine Hill park during the summer. He helps to build and maintain hiking and biking trails at the park. He also enjoys reading books, which goes along with the profession.
His class motto is “Let’s go party squad” which encapsulates the idea of getting started and motivated to work while having a good attitude and fun time while doing it. For this reason, and many others, including Leonard Bartenstein’s dedication to his students, he has been chosen for this Teacher Spotlight. The hard work that he puts into his teaching to keep his students engaged and ready to learn has not gone unnoticed by his colleagues and students, and we thank him for it.
Mr. Bartenstein is a great role model for all the students at MSJ... he also is a great waiter at the Southside restaurant in Rutland. Kudos to Mr. Bartenstein!!!