Interview With Poly Teacher and 9th/10th Grade Dean Aquita Winslow
We had the privilege of interviewing beloved Poly teacher, former library director, and current 9th/10th grade dean Aquita Winslow. Aquita has spent 26 years working in academic and independent school libraries, and she’s been at Poly for nine of them. A graduate of the University of California, Santa Cruz with a degree in legal studies and philosophy, Aquita also holds a master’s degree in library science from Simmons College and a J.D. from Loyola Law School. Among Aquita’s numerous accomplishments and accolades, the newest one is being a parent of an alum. Aquita’s son, Aaron Tyler ‘20, is a seasoned soccer player, global scholar, artist, and future student and athlete at Emerson College. Aaron, Aquita, and Aquita’s daughter Avery, who is home from college, have all been living together since March. Here is Aaron and Aquita’s interview about their time together during the "Safer at Home" orders.
Aquita, how does it feel to be a new Poly parent of alumni?
Surreal, because Aaron is my youngest and it seems like just yesterday he started kindergarten and now he’s going to college. It all feels super fast.
What has it been like having Aaron and Avery home?
It’s been interesting. There’s a flow that your kids have when you've been living with them non-stop. They each have their own independent activities and some with each other. Avery has been in college for two years so when she was home it was like ships passing in the night. But COVID has made us figure out what the dynamic is going to be, and how do we still spend time together and relate to each other?
Aaron, how have the past few months been with your sister and your mom working from home?
[Aaron speaking to his mom] It’s a lot to have both of you in the house, always telling me what to do.
Aquita: We do tell him what to do and he doesn’t listen, but we try.
Aaron, what does it feel like to be a new Poly alum?
It honestly feels the exact same, but I know I’m not going back, and I don’t have PolySummer, and I don’t have practice. It feels good to be done with high school but I miss a lot of the people.
Aaron, what are your plans for the summer?
Just working out, taking a trip with a couple of my friends to Big Bear. I had planned to go backpacking through Europe and I was going to visit a friend I made while on the GIP Italy trip. He invited me back. But we can’t do any of that, so I’m going camping in Big Bear with my best friends. I’m working now too at Taco Bell. It’s fast paced but I like it.
Aquita, what has been your favorite memory during these past few months together?
Aaron’s graduation and birthday, which were a week apart. For his birthday his two best friends did a drive-by birthday from all of the different places. Poly friends, soccer friends, and Sequoyah friends all did a drive-by. It was really sweet. For graduation his family came and they did a social-distance graduation. All of his friends and family were able to come out and we hadn’t seen them in forever. The whole thing was just done well, the best thing was the photography. The school had Jennifer Godwin-Minto come out and do pictures in our backyard. The photos made me cry, they really did it!
What’s the best part of having your kids at home, and what has been challenging?
The best part of having both kids home was just getting to spend all this time with them. Usually Aaron plays soccer on the weekends and we’re driving up and down the state. He had games scheduled in Arizona, so even though I’m with him he’s tired or recovering and it’s never relaxing. Having both kids home meant I could see them everyday and we could talk, and we’re not rushing off anywhere. It’s the last time I’m going to have them, they’re both going to college in the fall. It really was the gift of time.
The hardest part is… being with them all the time. Like sometimes I think, “Are you both still here?!” They had their own lives and friends, and they got frustrated being cooped up in the house. It was also hard when everything started happening in the news about Black Lives Matter with all the protests and activity, but I liked having them here because I knew they were safe.
Have you all gotten closer as a result of being at home together?
We’ve always been pretty close, but we’ve been fighting more as we get on each other’s nerves. I make a point to tell them I love them almost every day. I know that I’m a pain in the butt, and so I just want to remind them that I love them.
The other thing that has been interesting and I’ve been appreciative of is as I walked past Aaron’s room I could still hear class discussions and they seemed interesting. There was never a time where I felt like he wasn’t still in school. I appreciated that even though it was really hard on the teachers. They still gave him a fourth quarter experience that was full of rigor. Aaron didn’t appreciate it, but I did.
As a new parent of alum, what is something you’d like to see from the Parent of Alumni program in the future?
I would be interested in hearing from a retrospective point of view. What’s different being a parent of an alum 5-10 years out? What should we expect? I would be interested as a first-time Poly parent about what I should expect? What do alumni parents do? I’m gonna be an empty nester, I need some tips!
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