LEXINGTON, Mass.—As a youngster, Nishan Dagley had little regard for school. He hated his kindergarten teacher and other kindergarten students poked fun at his strange name and diminutive size. Because Armenian was his primary household language, faulty communication skills were another setback.
“Sometimes, I cried and got spanked,” recalled the 59-year-old. “As punishment, I got sent to the back of my class. I had my share of abuse and the teacher didn’t help. It was a lousy experience.”
At the tender age of six, his future was already predetermined. He wanted to become an educator and change the profession. He looked to give persecuted students a better experience than he was receiving in the primary grades.
Hundreds applauded as Dagley’s name was announced as Teacher of the Year recently in Lexington, a high-profile educational community where he teaches first grade at Harrington School.
It’s been a prolific career that has spanned 35 years during which time he has gained the admiration of students and teachers alike, ever since receiving his graduate degree from Boston University. Over that time, he has taught all elementary grades and the full curriculum gamut.
“Being selected to such a profound group is quite intimidating,” he says with humility. “It won’t change my style any. I tend to be a casual, low-key sort of guy. One of the best compliments came from a student’s parent. He told me I was more like a dad than a teacher. That beats any award.”
It’s Dagley’s impression that such a token be shared by those who teach alongside him every day and symbolizes a profession that often goes unsung and decimated, especially during these difficult economic times.
“I’m not an educator in a vacuum,” he’s quick to admit. “As teachers, we feed off one another every day. Any recognition is work we’ve done together.”
In addition to a full academic load, Dagley also serves as coordinator of the mentoring program that oversees the development of new teachers in the system.
What’s more, he also received a coveted award for implementing technology into the curriculum shortly after his dad was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer and later died. Dagley also lost his mother to cancer and has a wife Carolyn who is currently in remission for breast cancer. His brother Haroutiun, an Armenian Apostolic Diocesan priest, succumbed to a pulmonary embolism at age 46, leaving behind two young children and a wife of 13 years.
Nishan is Armenian on his mother’s side (Berberian) and was raised in both the Armenian Apostolic and American Baptist churches.
He later taught Sunday School for five years at Holy Trinity Armenian Church in Cambridge and is currently an ordained deacon at St. Gregory Armenian Church in North Andover.
In making the announcement, Assistant Supt. Carol Pilarski described a teacher who gives unassumingly and tirelessly every day in bringing out the best in his students and colleagues.
“Nishan Dagley finds enormous joy and satisfaction in helping students learn and seeing new teachers move forward with their careers,” said Pilarski. “This teacher conveys a deep caring and commitment to our profession through relationships with others and the high standards he has set for himself. He holds students accountable with a loving heart.”
Dagley was singled out for being a pioneer in using technology to improve student learning and has willingly taken on leadership opportunities to help the school system move forward.
Electronic portfolios are used regularly in his classroom to engage students and inform parents in authentic assessment. Through video vignettes, students have the opportunity to see for themselves how they are progressing in reading and mathematics.
“My first-graders are at a point where they are computer savvy for research and can give a PowerPoint presentation,” Dagley pointed out. “We’re in the process of introducing student response systems in class where answers are sent by remote control to my computer and nobody can hide.”
Nothing has stymied Dagley’s efforts to bring innovation into the classroom. In this era of budgetary constraints, he’s written and received many grants to support new ideas.
Humble and unassuming by nature, Dagley is always willing to share his know-how through mentoring and coaching. He was a member of the science curriculum review committee and engineered curricular challenges in the elementary grades.
At high school commencements each year, graduates recall with fervor how Dagley made school fun for them and paved the way toward a better learning experience.
Despite all the adversity that has plagued his life, he continues to place his faith in God each day. His Sunday mornings are spent in a deacon’s robe, performing a myriad of roles in the Armenian Church.
Wife Carolyn has been in remission for two years following a rigorous bout of treatment. She serves as a notetaker for disabled students at Northern Essex Community College. Three children offer a tight network of love and support.
There was a time in Dagley’s life when he was beckoned toward the priesthood to finish the work his brother started. Nishan was prepared to go the distance, even if it meant being well into his 60s before being vested.
Now, that’s debatable. As teacher of the year, it seems education has a slight edge over the clergy.
Tom Vartabedian
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Thank you Tom for the article and best wishes to Nishan. By the way, you said Armenian was his primary household language. How did he communicate with his father if he was Armenian only on his mother’s side?
Dear Readers,
Fellow Brother Deacon Nishan Dagley is an inspiration to all of us at Saint Gregory Armenian Apostolic Church of Merrimack Valley.
Week in and week out he continues to inspire all of the people he touches with his spirituality, kindness and love, as he shares with all of us abundantly.
We are not surprised of the honor he has received, at Lexington, MA School System, as the “Teacher of the Year”; he would have earned that honor no matter where he taught!
Thank you Yeghpar Tom Vartabedian (National Treasure), for sharing a portion of Nishan’s professional journey with us.
There are stories like Nishan Dagley in every Armenian community in the United States. All we have to do is seek them out and report them to our Armenian press, whether we’re prolific writers which many of us aren’t or correspondents which might be more the norm. In a sense we can do our heritage proud by giving these unsung heroes their due respect and notoriety.
I knew Randy Dagley when we were in ACYOA together. I, in NYC and Randy in Mass. I was horrified to read about first Randy’s passing and then his wife Patty’s passing 7 years later. I knew about this brother and he has a sister too. I read this article and and I’m happy to know that Randy’s bro is still around. Sorry his mum passed but at least now she is with her family on the other side.
Best wishes to one and all in this story and Happy New Year.
So proud to know Nishan and happy for this well-earned honor.
I was a student of Mr. Dagley’s in first grade in 1993. To this day, he is one of the most incredible, memorable teachers I’ve ever had. I still remember the planetarium he had in the classroom where we could see all the stars lit up. He also was a pioneer in education + technology, as we learned how to type through an amazing program called PAWS on the first computers. My mom, who teaches around the world, also remembers him as the most conscious and compassionate teacher. She thought the way he started the day with a moment of silence was revolutionary for the time, and looking back, was a precursor for mindfulness in education.
We love you Mr. Dagley, And hope to see you one day soon!
In gratitude,
Zoe + Laury Rappaport