By Emma Rosenbaum
Intern
There are people in high school that students pass by everyday in the halls, people who everyone knows and everyone loves. Joe Ciasulli is one of those people.
As a tennis coach and substitute teacher, Ciasulli has worked at Mira Costa for the past 13 years.
A veteran of the legal world, Ciasulli worked as a transactional lawyer for 20 years before changing his profession to teaching and joining the Costa family. As a transactional lawyer, Ciasulli worked with celebrities such as Jack Nicholson, Linda Carter, the Rolling Stones, The Doors and Queen.
His connections with the celebrity world landed him a small role in the 1984 movie “Chattanooga Choochoo” as a hard-core biker. Despite the intriguing life he led as a lawyer, Ciasulli says he was unsatisfied.
“I got to do interesting things but I hated it. Being a lawyer was not for me. I always wanted to be a teacher. I just got side-tracked with going to law school,” Ciasulli said.
He attended Columbia Law School, which Ciasuli believes helped him when he transferred from the court room to the classroom.
“Having a background in law has really helped me in teaching. It makes you think differently. It helps you solve problems in different ways,” Ciasulli said.
Government and psychology teacher Glenn Marx helped bring Ciasuli back to teaching. Marx asked Ciasulli to co-coach the basketball team with him. Ciasulli, who had played on the basketball team at the University of Pennsylvania, felt excited because this gave him the opportunity to coach a sport he loved .
“Basketball was my first love. I probably would not have given up being a lawyer solely for teaching,” Ciasulli said.
Seven years later, Bob Fish, the former Mira Costa athletics director, requested that Ciasulli coach the tennis team. After a few weeks of Fish’s begging, Ciasulli agreed to try it. He has coached boys and girls tennis for the past five years and says he enjoys it immensely.
“Joe is really great at motivating the team before a match. He always has a strategy for us,” sophomore Erin Murphy said.
Ciasulli’s coaching skills have had impressive results during the years he has been coaching. Both his basketball and tennis teams have been very successful. This year, the girls tennis team even advanced to the third round at CIF.
“I know how to get the most out of an athlete. I always have. Its what makes me the coach I am,” Ciasulli said.
Most Costa tennis players often attribute the team’s successes to Ciasulli’s great coaching skills. As an educator, Ciasulli says he is always open to subbing many different subjects, but the subjects that he is most passionate and most knowledgeable about are U.S. history and U.S. government.
“He knows his stuff and I really feel like I learn a lot in all of the classes he subs,” senior Jeff Whelan said.
Ultimately, Ciasulli shows his commitment to teaching through his philosophy.
“Everyone should be the best person they can be. I will do anything I can to help them become that,” Ciasulli said.
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