Cincinnati Public Schools’ legacy is coming full circle for two families.
Lesley Ciani taught Krystal Bostic in kindergarten at Frederick Douglass School in the 1980s. Nearly 40 years later, the teacher and student are reconnecting as Lesley’s son, Joseph, is teaching Krystal’s daughter, Kasiah, at the School for Creative and Performing Arts.
“Kasiah asked if Mr. Ciani’s mom taught kindergarten and he said, ‘yes, my mom taught kindergarten at Frederick Douglass,’” Krystal said. “I said, “oh wow that was my kindergarten teacher.’ She was pregnant (with Joseph) when I was in kindergarten.”
“It's just wonderful that at this stage of our lives, we can reconnect and have my son teaching Krystal’s daughter,” Lesley said. “It’s just amazing.”
Both families united to share memories and stories about the influence teachers and students have on one another.
“My favorite part about Mr. Ciani’s class is doing hands-on experiments and having conversations with Mr. Ciani, and having conversations with all my teachers about work or if I need help because they give me that time and help me out,” sixth-grade student, Kasiah, said.
“I remember my kindergarten teacher Ms. McCann and my first-grade teacher Ms. Church. Those teachers had a great impact on me, coming from a family of teachers where my mom was a kindergarten teacher and my dad was a professor at the University of Cincinnati. It’s just always been something I wanted to do,” Joseph said. “I remember going to classes with them and seeing what they did and now, obviously being a teacher on my own and seeing the impact that it has as well.”
