Teacher Feature: Mr. Fusaro, a Talented Drummer, Science Teacher, and Automotive Guru

A sturdy man inside a contractor bag is immobilized as the students frantically suck the air out of the bag. The classroom erupts into laughter as their teacher demonstrates how pressure can be created by a vacuum. This is Mr. Fusaro’s favorite lesson to teach, and it perfectly captures his teaching philosophy: Make learning fun and hands-on. As the new school year begins and fresh faces fill the hallways, Mr. Fusaro stands out not just as another chemistry and algebra teacher but as someone whose passion for teaching has ignited since childhood. Now in his 22nd year of teaching, he brings a depth of experience and a drive to “make it happen” to every lesson. 

Mr. Fusaro began his post-secondary education at Stony Brook University and transferred to St. Joseph’s University, where he earned his bachelor’s degree in biochemistry and a minor in secondary education. 

“I liked it [at St. Joseph’s]. I had great professors. I still keep in contact with two of them,” he says. 

He also attended Dowling College for his Master of Science and the College of St. Rose for his degree in Administration. However, his experience in this college was far from enjoyable. “It was a year-long program, so it was grueling, like eight hours a day on Saturday for a full year. I literally took 30 credits in one year. It was rough,” Mr. Fusaro recalls. “[I had to] work 70 hours a week…to pay for school. I knew what I wanted to do, and I knew what sacrifices had to be made. So the only way I was going to get there was to make some sacrifices.” 

After spending five years in administration, Mr. Fusaro decided that he preferred the classroom environment. In fact, it was his childhood dream to become a science teacher. “I knew since I was 15 years old because of those two teachers that I really liked.” His 9th-grade earth science teacher, Mr. Carey, and 10th-grade biology teacher, Mr. Grimkowski, inspired his love of science. “They just made it seem like so much fun.” 

Inspired by his own teachers, Mr. Fusaro aims to help his students gain a comprehensive understanding of science while also developing their analytical skills. “I want them to have the ability to reason and form their own opinions and not just be told…because that’s what science is: Challenging the idea. Try to figure out a better way.” 

“If we just stuck with the way that it always was, we would still be walking. People wouldn’t be flying [in airplanes] and going to the moon…So I think it’s good to challenge and try to figure out a better way.”

While Mr. Fusaro is a science teacher, he has many interests outside of science. He has been “playing drums since [he] was 12 [and] working on cars since [he] was 15.” He was in three different bands with musicians whom he met. In one band that he was in, they won the Battle of the Bands one summer. He first took drum lessons in school before being introduced to a drummer who had played with Meatloaf, a famous musician popular in the 1980s. Mr. Fusaro is a talented drummer who can mimic music he has heard after listening to it a couple of times. At one point, he and his band even started writing their own music. 

His favorite songs are “One” by Metallica and “Rooster” by Alice in Chains, but he also recently got interested in country music. He also enjoys the comedy film “Tommy Boy,” where a clumsy, good-hearted heir must save his father’s struggling automobile parts business. With his unlikely sidekick, he embarks on a chaotic road trip filled with mishaps, laughter, and unexpected lessons about friendship and responsibility. 

Beyond his musical talents, Mr. Fusaro is also skilled in restoring and fixing cars. “I actually started working at a gas station pumping gas when I was 15. And there’s this … guy…Told me to call him Uncle Robbie. And he was building this old car. It was a 65 Plymouth Belvedere. I’ve only seen that car once in my life.” Seeing his curiosity, Uncle Robbie taught Mr. Fusaro everything he knew about cars, including how to wire car stereos. “I’ve taken cars that literally just got pulled out of a junkyard and made them look brand new.” Mr. Fusaro also delves into the chemistry and physics of a car. “You have chemical reactions going on where gas is getting converted into energy. In turn, you have an alternator which takes that mechanical energy and then turns that to electrical energy. As far as aerodynamics, you have to be able to figure out a way to make the air travel around the car with the least amount of resistance and also make sure you have proper weight distribution,” he explains.

Mr. Fusaro says he is “not that big of a reader,” as he read a lot for college, so he never got to read for leisure. However, he enjoys reading articles on how things work, such as those in the How It Works magazine. “I know how a regular car engine works, I can explain that to you forwards and backwards and in my sleep. But then when the electric car engines came out, now I’m researching that because I’m just always curious about how something works.” 

This school year, Mr. Fusaro is looking forward to creating a successful open science curriculum and preparing students for the upcoming Regents exam. Most importantly, he wants to make sure students “realize that they have to be the ones who are in charge of their education.” 

For students looking to pursue a career in STEM, Mr. Fusaro advises that “it’s going to be challenging, but it’s definitely worth it if you really do love science. Find something you love to do because then you’re not going to hate going to work every day.” A good studying strategy he used during his education was “rewriting [his] notes several times” and listening to recordings of lectures. He also has advice for all students: “Definitely prioritize education. Don’t slack off. And anything that you’re going to do, you’re gonna have to work hard for it.”  

From pumping gas at 15 and learning from Uncle Robbie to pursuing his dreams of becoming a science teacher, it’s clear that Mr. Fusaro’s motto, “If you want something bad enough, you will make it happen,” shines throughout his life and into the classroom. As he stands in front of his class, Mr. Fusaro hopes to be the kind of teacher who once inspired his love of science.