Mr. Margarites has been a staple of the Wantagh High School Community for the past 30 years. He will be retiring at the conclusion of the 2024 school year. He has done it all in his time here. He taught from grades 6 to 12 in all subjects with his special education certification. For the first 16 years of his career, he taught middle school grades 6-8 and for the second half of his career he taught grades 9-12 in Wantagh high school, where he really enjoyed seeing the students’ growth.
Many people know Mr. Margarites as a “student first” teacher. His plans for retirement include traveling, working on his house, and having more time off than just during the Christmas, February, and April breaks. Mr. Margarites looks forward to camping in the off season and fishing midweek. He is considering eventually doing something “with education on a larger national scale”. Mr. Margarites noted, “I have met some of the most wonderful people here at Wantagh, both the students I have taught and the friends I have made. I’ve gotten through some of the most difficult times in my life with the support of them. The people here have seen marriages, divorces, births, deaths, success and failures.” He adds, “I have helped students reach their potential, learn to read, believe in themselves and have made lifelong friends in some of that – it’s been an amazing career.”
When asked what he will miss most about teaching, Mr. Margarites responded, “I’ll miss the staff and the relationships I make with students and the feeling you get when you have a class and you get in deep in a discussion… That’s the best part of teaching…. No amount of technology can replace that…. The interaction between human to human… no AI or anything will ever replace the human to human connection.”
My personal relationship with Mr. Margarites has been nothing short of amazing. He genuinely cares for all of his students and will always have your back. He will always put the time in to help a student in need. The Wantagh High School community will not be the same without his presence.