You see her in the halls, you might have had her for English, and you notice her bright smile. Ms. Gladys Puig became a teacher at just 21 years old and has been teaching for over 30 years, but is retiring this year from Miami High.

Teaching at MHS

Her favorite part of being a teacher is that she makes a difference in kids’ lives. “I love to see that gleam in their eyes when I’m teaching them something and they seem to connect,” she said.

However, the one thing she doesn’t like about her job is grading papers. “It’s too much work,” she said.

Ms. Puig became a teacher because of her love for kids, and her desire to become a role model for young adults too. She has taught a variety of English classes at MHS from English I to English IV Honors.

Her favorite memories from MHS as a teacher would be dressing up for Halloween and the Homecoming parades. “I love to see the kids having fun,” she said. “It brings me joy too.”

Retirement

After working many years as a teacher (she wouldn’t say how many), Ms. Puig is retiring and plans on traveling to Europe and “having a life” outside of teaching.

“I’ve finished my job,” she said, “and it’s time I give focus on myself too.” She’d like for her students to remember her as someone to look up to and as a bundle of joy.

She’s going to miss the kids and her colleagues, but not the commute to school. “I will certainly not miss the one-hour drive from my house in Kendall Lakes to school every morning,” she said.

Alumna at MHS

Ms. Puig was once a Stingaree student too and a member of several clubs including Future Secretary, Future Teacher, and Corporative Business Education (CBE,) which is now known as FBLA. Her favorite subject was English and least favorite science. “I’ve always loved reading,” she said.

Her favorite memory from MHS as a student, would be her math teacher Mr. Gallaher always calling her his “little sophomore,” because she was taking a senior math class as a 10^th grader.

After graduating from Miami High, Ms. Puig then attended Miami-Dade College, FIU, and Nova University. She received her bachelor’s from FIU, and taught elementary students for three years. She then went back to Nova University and received her Masters Degree in English.

“I enjoyed teaching elementary kids,” she said, “but I wanted to give high school students a try.” Before teaching at MHS, she was a legal secretary and also taught language arts at La Progresiva, a private school, and at Henry Filer Middle school.

Life outside of MHS

Ms. Gladys Puig was born August 10 in Havana, Cuba, and moved to Miami just three days after turning 8 years old. She describes her childhood as really happy and fun. “I was a really happy-go-lucky child,” she said.

Her family was traditional, very united, humble, and school-oriented. “My dad would attend all my open houses,” she said, “and I will always thank him for that.”

She has a younger sister named Emily, and recalls having lots of fun with her as kids. She attended Riverside Elementary and Citrus Grove Middle School and then became a Stingaree here at Miami High. She married her high school sweetheart and has two daughters named Annie and Michelle.