New faculty member, Mr. Cummings is a dedicated mathematics teacher at Hampton Bays High School, where he brings energy, patience, and a genuine love for helping students succeed in math. A graduate of SUNY at Cortland, where he earned his bachelor’s degree in mathematics, he later began working toward his master’s at Stony Brook University.
Although teaching wasn’t always his planned career path, Mr. Cummings discovered his passion for education while studying mathematics and observing teachers in action. What started as curiosity soon became a calling – the classroom became a place where he could connect, inspire, and guide students to discover their own confidence in math.
Mr. Cummings said, “When students struggle with math, I try to meet them where they are. I’ll give them extra practice problems during class, spend some one-on-one time when I can, and offer after-school help for anyone who wants to go over things more slowly. I also like to start with easier versions of a problem and build up from there so students can gain confidence step by step.”
Mr. Cummings teaches students that don’t know a lot of English. Spanish is not an easy language, but he tries to do the best he can so his students feel comfortable with him and understand while he is teaching.
“This is my fourth year teaching students who are learning English, which has been a really rewarding experience. I knew very little Spanish at first, but I’ve been learning right alongside my students. I always tell them, ‘I’m your teacher in math, and you’re my teacher in Spanish.’ It helps us connect and makes learning more fun for everyone,” said Mr. Cummings.
Mr. Cummings did not grow up in Hampton Bays, but his grandmother has lived in the area his whole life, and now he lives here too. “From my first day, I knew this was the kind of school culture I wanted to be part of – supportive, welcoming, and full of great people.”
Outside of the school he’s a big football fan. He likes to watch it, coaching it, pretty much anything football related. He also enjoys reading, especially books that teach new skills, like investing or learning Spanish. At the moment he is reading the book “Spanish For Dummies.”
“Coaching football has been amazing. It has always been my favorite sport, so I consider it a privilege to be a part of it. I have a good relationship with the players. Overall, I feel it is important to build a mutual respect amongst players and coaches,” said Mr. Cummings.
His main goal for each year is to be the best teacher he can be. He said he tries to, “Reflect each day, ask myself what I can do better next year. Ultimately for this year, I just want to be able to look back and say that I did the best that I can do. And I know I can still do better. Because everybody can always do better.”
For the short time he’s been teaching at Hampton Bays High School, he has made a great impact in his classes and students. Junior Madelyn Osofsky said, “He’s a very good teacher. Whenever someone asks him a question he explains it very well and makes sure everyone understands. I rarely have to ask him for help because he is very good at explaining things.” These words are a perfect example of how nice and great teacher Mr. Cummings is.
