With the start of a new school year, things are bound to change, like your teachers for example! Over the past decades, SBHS has had an influx of new teachers coming in. Some stayed for a long time, others didn’t last that long. As sad as it is, introducing new educators to the SBHS family has always been a customary tradition. Thanks to the help of one of our assistant principals, Natalie Spevak, we’ve gotten the chance to know one staff member that is freshly joining us. Starting with one of the core classes, our English section welcomes Tia Hannah and Andrew White! I’m sure they are quite swamped right now seeing as they are new to their positions, along with other new teachers. Moving on to the Social Studies section, we have Samuel Cordes. I asked Mr. Cordes what made him choose SBHS, and he responded with its history. “Between school taking place in an almost 100 year old building and seeing multiple generations of Dons at football games, you can feel SBHS is a special place.” As a History teacher himself, this response is quite fitting. I also asked, what he looks forward to in joining the Dons family, and Mr. Cordes answered that he’s looking forward to a lot of the events SBHS has to offer, like the sports or concerts. 

His opinion seems to be shared with others as well, such as Gustavo Montes-Chavez for example, a new Spanish teacher who is joining  us this year. Mr. Montes-Chavez has a lot of Santa Barbara spirit, as he grew up here and graduated from UCSB. He stated that he also looks forward to getting to know the students and staff around campus. “I’m a first generation college graduate,” he states, “just like many of our students here are soon to be.” Mr. Montes-Chavez could be of great inspiration to those who are looking to graduate from college. Speaking of graduating, if you need assistance with any college related questions or need resources, then look no further. Andrea Romo is here to help as SBHS’ new College and Career technician. Ms. Romo says that she plans on “creating opportunities and connecting motivated students and their families with the resources they need to ensure a successful next step following graduation.” Working alongside her is a returning Don, Spencer Barr. Although he was gone for two years to work at a different school, SBHS welcomed him back with open arms along with two other returning teachers. Natalie Spevak said, “I think they’ll be sad if they are referred to as ‘new’ when they’ve been Dons for a long time,” and I couldn’t agree more. 

The SBHS family is super lucky to have hard working teachers that care about our future. Some of these new teachers have been assigned to SBHS, and there has been nothing but positive feedback, one of them being Perla Martinez-Medina, a Health Science teacher. She says that she has been here before as a guest speaker, and that she really liked the environment SBHS provided. “I hope that I can bring a safe, and inclusive space for all learners, and make a positive impact here,” Martinez-Medina says. Someone that shares the same values as her is Elizabeth Jimenez, a new counselor to SBHS. “I am so eager to give back and guide students to reach their goals whether that is academically or personal,” she states. We are glad to have such experienced teachers coming to join us this school year.