K-12 Memories

Running for a seat on the Board of Education has led me to reflect on my own K-12 education in Goleta Union and Santa Barbara Unified school districts, an hour's drive up the 101.

There are so many memories that have resurfaced for me, and I'm reminded of how much who I am today is shaped by those experiences, those teachers, those classmates. But especially those teachers!

Mrs. Love, my fourth grade teacher who loved to read as much as I did and had little rockets that moved across the classroom ceiling based on how many pages you read (I hit “the moon” 13 times that year and to my knowledge, no one has broken that record).

Mr. Winn, my 7th grade science teacher who was known for his crazy ties! We dissected squid and then cooked them on Bunsen burners... and I met one of my best friends for life in that class!

Mr. Smith, my high school drama teacher and director, who always chastised me for dropping my medial consonants (!) but from whom I learned so much about the art of acting - and of course, all those play production experiences were priceless, whether it was the dressing room, the green room, backstage, or the cast party!

School is, of course, so much more than the academic instruction we receive. K-12 education is developing humans - helping them learn how to communicate, interact, think critically, include and embrace others who may be different from them, act appropriately in various situations, providing life lessons and experiences they may not have had otherwise....

What are some of your favorite memories of school or teachers?

[Photo: me in my Kindergarten Halloween parade at Mountain View School]