PITTSBURGH -- A teacher at Brashear High School is credited with saving the life of a student who collapsed during gym class Thursday.
Mike Bosco is a physical education teacher at Brashear High School. He also teaches CPR so when one of his students collapsed in gym class, he was able to jump in and use his skills.
Bosco’s students had just finished a game of kickball when a 10th grader collapsed.
“If I wasn't able to get there to him and use the skills I have he definitely would have passed. He would've died," said Bosco.
When the student stopped breathing and had no pulse, Bosco jumped in and started CPR until a nurse and paramedics arrived.
"The student took a turn for the worse and stopped breathing and he had no pulse," said Bosco.
About 30 students watched as Bosco worked to keep their classmate alive.
"At first, honestly, I thought it was a joke. But then when I saw he was shaking, I got a little scared. Everybody was worried," said student Jordan Carroll.
"When he left he knew who I was, he knew my name. He didn't know what happened. He just knew that he was in the gym and that he had passed out," said Bosco.
Bosco said the student was very thankful and told the teacher that he appreciated what he did for him.
“In this particular instance Mr. Bosco took control of the situation he immediately assessed the student's physical well being. It's very satisfying to us to know that our efforts made a positive impact on that student's life, and that we were keeping him safe and sound," said Assistant Principal, Robert Frioni.
Bosco's students said they're not surprised their teacher was ready to help and ready to be a hero.
"He's just a really laid-back guy but he knows when to be serious and he can convey that to the students very well. That's how I knew it was serious," said Carroll.
The student is still recovering. There’s no word on if he'll be back before classes end this Friday. As for being called a hero, Bosco said he takes it all in stride and is just glad this story has a happy ending.
Copyright 2009 by ThePittsburghChannel. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
