Am I a Teacher?

This is a memoir about a man who makes a significant career change in his fifties. He goes from a successful career in the corporate world to being a new teacher in an inner-city public school, a teacher to children with autism. The story largely follows his first year of teaching as he struggles to take on the challenges, confrontations and frustrations of working in an environment so different than any he had ever known. It is a real-life drama about facing fear of failure and self-doubt, and overcoming them with perseverance, compassion, and humor.

This is a memoir about a man who makes a significant career change in his fifties. He goes from a successful career in the corporate world to being a new teacher in an inner-city public school, a teacher to children with autism. The story largely follows his first year of teaching as he struggles to take on the challenges, confrontations and frustrations of working in an environment so different than any he had ever known. It is a real-life drama about facing fear of failure and self-doubt, and overcoming them with perseverance, compassion, and humor. But that is only the surface. This book is not confined to describing life as a schoolteacher in "the hood." It is a story of one man's venture to reevaluate his purpose in life. It is a story of loss and redemption, and how a group of autistic children help him find himself.

Mr. Borghesi's writing has been published in the "My Turn" column of NEWSWEEK. In 2006, he appeared on the Paula Zahn Show in a segment entitled "Life After Work." Mr. Borghesi holds the rank of fourth degree black belt in the Japanese art of Koei-Kan Karate. He lives with his wife Nadine at their homes in New Jersey and Florida. Together they have raised two children, Cara and Renée.