Mr. Sala is a Pre-Calculus, Algebra II/Trig, and ACT/PSAE math teacher. He has been at Rich Central High School for six years, though has been teaching for eight.

Regarding his first day at Rich Central, Mr. Sala said, “Coming from a school where you would get two detentions for chewing gum, I wasn’t sure what to expect.”

Before deciding to become a math teacher, he enrolled in college as a Pre-Med student in hopes of becoming a pediatrician, but soon realized that he wasn’t as interested in it as he first thought.

However, during Mr. Sala’s senior year of high school, there was a peer leadership program that allowed him to help the teacher. By doing so, he was able to explain the answers to the students. Mr. Sala stated, “I realized how much I enjoyed watching the light bulb go on in their heads.”

Mr. Sala attended Marist and was enrolled in all Honors and  AP classes and earned straight As through out his years there. By graduation, he was ranked fourth in his class. “I guess I did okay,” said Mr. Sala laughingly.

Like many RC students, Mr. Sala found high school challenging between homework and ice hockey, but stated, “It was a good experience for me to learn good work ethic.”

Mr. Sala attended Illinois Wesleyan University. “I decided to go there,” he said, “because it is a good school (the average ACT is a 28) and I wanted a place that was away from home, but close enough for me to go home.”

On what weird talents he has, Mr. Sala stated, “I can do the one-handed clap [as he flops his wrists to make a cracking sound] and I can sound like Smeagol from Lord of the Rings.”

Mr. Sala is known by his students for his hilarious ties and claims that his most interesting ones include his tie shaped as a fish, and his tie that has a cow.

Mr. Sala’s mother has also made a name for herself among his students with her famous Mama Sala treats. They are made of Golden Grahams, peanut butter, marshmallows, and chocolate.

“When I was younger, my mom made the treats for my hockey team whenever we won games,” expresses Mr. Sala. Back then, Mr. Sala and his friends called them “Christ Cakes.”

Mr. Sala has traveled to 31 states, Canada, and Peru, but the most interesting place that he states he has been to is Costa Rica. “I found the wildlife there to be interesting,” relates Mr. Sala.

However, Mr. Sala’s scariest adventure occurred when he was in Peru hiking through Machu Picchu. “While there the I climbed high slippery mountains, and nearly fell to my death four times,” continues Mr. Sala.

Something that most RC students do not know about Mr. Sala is that he has played hockey since he was 5. He has also been a hockey referee for 18 years and was one of the varsity hockey linesmen for the state championship team at the United Center. “Other than that, I play roller hockey every Thursday, and I am involved with my church,” states Mr. Sala.

When asked if he had any advice for Rich Central students, Sala said, “In order to succeed in life, hard work is required. If you learn to work hard and apply yourself you can achieve a lot.”