Students Award Mr. Cecunjanin Teacher of the Year Honors

Mr. Cecunjanin teaches AP Government and AP Macroeconomics to seniors. Photo: Jacob Loshinsky

By JACOB LOSHINSKY and CHRYSTIE WU

Students have voted Mr. Nermin Cecunjanin the 2023 City of Midwood Teacher of the Year, marking a significant milestone in his career. 

Although being in the spotlight is not usually his thing, Mr. Cecunjanin said receiving the award “was one of the best feelings in the world.”

“Something small like that completely validated all the hard work and effort that I feel I put in for my students,” he said.

Mr. Cecunjanin has been teaching social studies for ten years now. He began his career as a student teacher at Midwood with Mr. Pieter Chicofsky and Mr. O’Connor (who has retired). Mr. Cecunjanin has taught AP classes for the last nine years, and this is his first year being a dean.

“Mr. Cecunjanin is one of the best people I’ve worked with in my 31 year career,” Head Dean Jason Richardson said. “He is highly respected by the faculty and highly respected by the students. That was one of the main reasons I wanted him to become a dean.”

Muhammad Rizwan ‘23, a freshman at Baruch College and a Midwood alum, had Mr. Cecunjanin for AP Government and AP Macroeconomics last year. He described how charismatic Mr. Cecunjanin is and how involved he is in his students' educational careers. Rizwan still has fond memories of the inside jokes Mr. Cecunjanin had with the class.

A lot of Mr. Cecunjanin’s drive is rooted in the people who also taught him. 

“My government teacher in high school really inspired me a lot,” Mr. Cecunjanin said. “When the teacher is passionate about a subject, the students are automatically more engaged.”

Students of Mr. Cecunjanin say that he practices what he preaches. 

“He just seems like he is actually interested in the material he’s teaching,” said Mia Belkin, a senior currently in Mr. Cecunjanin’s class.

“He’s very enthusiastic,” said senior Brooklyn Lugo, who is taking AP Government. “He works really hard to get his students engaged in his lessons.”

Rasul Mohammad ‘24 praised Mr. Cecunjanin’s teaching style and added, “He is a genuinely interesting person. I feel like I could talk to him as me and have him do the same.”

Mr. Daniel Kreiger has known Mr. Cecunjanin for ten years and isn’t surprised that the students voted him Teacher of the Year. 

“I think they really feel that he’s willing to do anything for them,” Kreiger said. “He makes them feel comfortable and provides them with a warm environment.”

“A lot of teachers don’t build relationships with their students, but Mr. Cecunjanin made sure to mix fun with learning,” his former student Rizwan said. “It was as if your friend was teaching you rather than a teacher, which made everyone respect him more.”