Ferndale Teacher Puts Student Success into High Gear

Rick Piornack knows the importance of quiet reflection. He also knows the satisfying purr of a vintage Ford truck engine.

Most of all, Piornack knows how good it feels when light bulbs go on in his eighth-grade Language Arts classroom.

It seems that even on a cloudy day, Piornack could bypass the light switch and still have a classroom filled with the illumination of eager students ready to learn.

While earning the distinction of Teacher of the Year last March is pretty nice, seeing his students achieve and grow throughout the year is the best payback there is, said Piornack.

“Oh, that’s why we become teachers,” he said. “We build the foundation, that’s what we do. If I can be the one who is remembered, that’s lucky for me, but it’s the best feeling in the world when the kids succeed. There’s no other profession out there that gives back so often.”

It seems Piornack has found his niche. Beginning his career 12 years ago as a kindergarten teacher at Grant Elementary in the Ferndale School District, Piornack bounced from elementary to middle school a few times as needed by the district, then settled in at Ferndale Middle School.

At 32, Piornack is just the right age to teach young teens, he said.

“I’m not the most mature cat on the block, but I’m younger than my students’ parents, and I’m young at heart,” admitted Piornack.

Growing up on Detroit’s east side as the son of a Detroit firefighter, Piornack attended private schools before working toward his bachelor’s degree and teaching certificate from Albion College in Jackson — a background that makes Ferndale a good home for his skills, he said.

“It’s really a perfect fit for me. Ferndale is so diverse, and I have seen many sides of the fence because of my experiences growing up,” said Piornack.

The ability to see each student as an individual on a personal academic playing field is a skill Piornack said he has honed while at Ferndale Middle School.

“One of the biggest challenges for a teacher anywhere is that everyone comes in with different prior knowledge," he said. "The curriculum doesn’t necessarily account for that. We need to figure out where each student is and move them forward from there. As long as you see progression, you are doing your job well.”

'Mechanics in training'

The high level to which Piornack is able to engage his students in the learning process is a platform for his success, said Dawn Warren, principal of Ferndale Middle School.

“Rick is very energetic and passionate about what he does,” said Warren. “When I visit his classroom, making rounds or doing observations, he is so with them. He doesn’t even have a desk, he’s in among his students every second. He won’t even know I have been there, that’s how in tune he is with his students.”

His unique way of relating to middle schoolers sets him apart, making his Teacher of the Year award highly deserved, said Warren.

Drawing on his extracurricular passions, Piornack shares his love of cars and trucks with his students, finding comparisons between vehicles and language as often as he can and calling himself a “master mechanic” and his students “mechanics in training,” said Warren.

“I’m a real car guy, so I have Matchbox cars and models in my classroom,” said Piornack. “I have a whole trophy case. It’s quite impressive.”

Beyond day-to-day instruction, Warren said Piornack has, on a couple of occasions, put his mechanical skills to work by restoring an old bicycle to showroom condition, then gifting it at the end of the year to a student who has overcome a stumbling block during the school year.

Positive outlook, positive influence

When he’s not in the classroom, Piornack coaches varsity cross-country and track in Ferndale, and he spends time at home in Grosse Pointe Park with his wife, Shannon Piornack, 32, a first-grade teacher at and last year’s winner of Ferndale Elementary Teacher of the Year, and their 2-year-old daughter, Rylee. 

“Rylee is a ball of fury. Really a lot of energy,” he said.

During his daily journeys to and from school, Piornack reflects on each day, mining experiences from his own education and professional development to meet the challenging job of instructing middle school students.

“I’m naturally a reflective person, so when things don’t go right, I ask myself what I could have done differently,” said Piornack. “Then I go right back into the classroom and do what I can to get things back to where my students can progress.

"I build relationships that will stay positive," he said. "I try to build my career on the importance of good relationships.”

While Piornack is certainly entitled to claim his 15 minutes of fame as , he’s also quick to credit the wisdom of his past mentors.

He said he well understands the privilege of being in the position to provide a positive influence for his students.

“I always say that I believe to be a leader, you have to follow for a long time,” he said. “Those who follow make the best leaders.

"There are many people I have borrowed from over the years, many words of wisdom that I have soaked up," Piornack said. "I can recall those moments like they were yesterday.”