Bittersweet Goodbye: Gravina’s Last Days at BHS

By Paige Johnson

Gary Gravina, a beloved math teacher, spent his last month Branford High School recapping and reminiscing over his time and accomplishments before he said his final goodbye last month. 

Gravina has been a pleasurable tribute at BHS for almost 30 years now, being involved in a variety of communities within the school such as horizons, the math department and athletics. He has decided to make the switch over to Sheehan High School and take on the role as their athletic director.

His last day at BHS was on Feb. 9.

While speaking with Gravina, he brought us back to his initial interview for the job here. It was 1994. Gravina was 31 years old, still relatively new to the teaching world. He applied for a position as a math teacher and was interviewed by at the time the head of the math department, Nick Rinaldi. 

During the interview, in an attempt to get to know each other better, Rinaldi asked Gravina what his favorite baseball team was. Gravina said he confidently replied, the Red Sox, which was when Rinaldi let him know they were Yankee fans at BHS.

“I was scared I wasn’t going to get the job because I chose the wrong baseball team,” Gravina said.

Despite the difference in team preference, Rinaldi welcomed Gravina into BHS with open arms. He served as a mentor towards Gravina. When new to the math department, Rinaldi gave great ideas for teaching and incorporating creativity, bringing life to the classroom. They spent a lot of time working on real world math problems, not just text book-based work. He looked up to him as a math teacher and was grateful for the wise advice he never failed to give to anyone who needed it. 

In his time at Branford High School, Gravina, 59, has taught basically all the math classes available here, and has spent time as the math department leader and teacher in the Horizons program. Gravina played a huge role in  the progress of Horizons; he states he is extremely proud of the development of the program.  

He reminisced over funny instances with his honors classes. He explained how the kids tended to have more challenging questions that were typically harder to answer, kept him always on his toes; kept math fun. 

For nine years Gravina was also the head football coach. One of his greatest accomplishments was leading the team to the Class M State Championship game two years in row in 2004 and 2005. In 2005 the team won the state championship. He said that he’ll never forget the feeling of winning, the feeling of victory and getting to watch the kids grow each season.  

Not only did Gravina make bonds with the children, but he is grateful with the relationships he made at BHS. He gave a special shout out to teachers Jen Kohut, Jake Palluzzi, Savas Synodi and Rich Biondi.

“It’s a really nice place to work when everyday you can count on the support of your colleagues,” Gravina said. 

It was Biondi who recruited Gravina to join the school’s Horizons program. At the time, Gravina was assigned to regular education classes but entertained the idea of leaving a traditional classroom for the alternative setting in Horizons. 

Every morning Gravina and Biondi would talk before class, which was when Biondi invited him to observe a day in Horizons. Gravina saw the interaction between students, the flexibility and elements of fun everyday. Shortly after, he became an integral part of the development of the program.

Over the years Biondi and Gravina grew to be extremely close. Biondi said he knew Gravina wanted to become an athletic director and went to school to earn his credentials. He braced himself for the day that Gravina would get a position, and he knew he was such a good guy so he would get a job. 

On the topic of Gravina, Biondi had nothing but good things to say when describing him. His most admirable traits in the classroom is his great deal of patience, he said.

“He is very patient, has a pleasant personality, and has the ability to understand people and cultivate people of mutual respect,” Biondi said. His personality allows his interactions with others to develop relationships quickly, and within those relationships he is able to challenge his students and bring out the best in them, Biondi said.

“Good things happen to good people,” Biondi said. He was extremely happy and proud of him yet also felt a deep sense of loss. Not the loss of a friend, but the loss of quality of a professional here at BHS. Biondi knows he will do a great job as Gravina knows what it takes to build character.

“Life is a roller coaster, not everyday will be a good day but Gravina’s patience helps that,” Biondi said.

Gravina’s said he has also felt bittersweet emotions about leaving.

“I’ll miss the relationships with the students, watching them grow and mature over the years at BHS,” Gravina said. He won’t be teaching classes at Sheehan High school. He won’t be able to witness kids mature and develop like he once did in a classroom.

At the end of the day, being an athletic director has always been a goal of Gravina.

And he said he wouldn’t have left BHS to pursue a teaching job at a new school. This opportunity was a huge milestone for Gravina. He was ecstatic to fulfill this goal before his retirement.

The BHS faculty and students wish you nothing but the best of luck Gravina.