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a profile story of Hector Perez

oach Pérez wanted his players to loosen up.

As the varsity girls prepared for warm ups on the MVHS softball field, Pérez was getting his own body ready to hit softballs for a catching drill. I went to the softball field to catch the start of practice, with Pérez’s players throwing softballs to warm up or loosen their arms. He made adjustments for his softball players so their shoulders wouldn’t get hurt. He gave shoutouts about what they were doing

well. When the players were cleaning up the softball field, he was patient with them and showed them what to do to make sure they were safe.

He put up the net and joked,

“You see? Softball requires doing heavy duty work” (Pérez).

Mr. Pérez is not only an understanding coach but a compassionate teacher as well. His students at Mountain View High School know him as an energetic, kind, helpful, and funny English

By: Karen Ann Quero

teacher, especially. One of his favorite teaching books is The Laughing Classroom, in which Diana Loomans and Karen Kohlberg discuss

“the Native American tradition,” where “there were people who were designated (or self-appointed) as the ‘official fools.’ Sometimes they were known as ‘contraries - those who did things backward’”(218).

While some people might see Mr. Pérez’s humorous teaching style as backward, he is in

where his environment was filled with plenty of teacher, let me read Stephen play. The youngest King, Edgar Allen Poe, and comof four siblings and a first generation imic books instead of the books he migrant (his parents moved from Mexico had to assign” (Pérez). to the United States in 1960), Pérez was surroundfact ed by many children and had more fun fishing with his family. In in touch with chilschool, one of his teachers also dren. He is a self-appointed influenced his personal devel“official fool” who shows his opment: Having the freedom to wisdom in his ability to conexplore and enjoy learning colnect with every one of his ored his early experience with students, no matter the age, education. background, race, or gender.

In 1979 he moved to The roots of Mr. Pérez’s San Francisco to go to colege humorous attitude are in his at the University of San Franchildhood. Growing up in South cisco. He spent 12 years there.

City, also known as South San He left in 2001 from USF after Francisco, he had a good life doing all things he wanted to

“Mr. Arnold, my 6th grade

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do. Some examples are being an actor, journalist, radio broadcaster, a poet, writer, and a model. People would fall for his charm and geekiness. After changing majors several times, he earned a Bachelor’s Degree in Journalism and a multiple subject bilingual teaching credential and a Masters in Education. While he worked on his Master’s, he worked for the San Francisco Unified School District for twelve years until he got hired to work in Mountain View High School in 2002 with his friend John Payne. This year is his 30th anniversary of teaching.

His first teaching job was in 1986 from St. Rose Academy in San Francisco and in 2007 he received his single subject English credential. But

the most important part of his history is in the year 1987 where he had a life changing moment that he would never forget. It was a year where the excitement of his life died down and he felt depressed but a year later he came out of it. Every summer his family went back to Mexico to get a sense of where his mother came from and how his family’s culture worked including what they celebrated and how they spoke. During this time of exploration, he met a lady in Mexico that would change their future forever with true happiness and passion. He married her in 1991 and had their first child in 1996. As life went on he felt much better and more balanced. 1987 was a year that gave him strength and growth, and he was able to find the best version of himself. And they have lived happily ever after with a second child born in 2000.

Mr. Pérez understands what students need and helps them because he knows fully well how being a student can be difficult. He first felt that feeling when teachers would give him that look, the look of disappointment of why didn’t you do the homework? From that moment he promised to himself that he wouldn’t ever do that to his stu-

Recently,I went to his his classroom to work on this profile paper, thinking that his class would be done and students would be packing up their materials. But as I entered, I noticed that he was in a middle of reading The House On Mango Street and the seating arrangement had been changed when I last visited. I sat quietly at an empty table by the window while “Nobody is falling sleeping he was reading the book aloud for in my class. How can other his students. Once students fall asleep in other I sat down at the table, I started work on my paper again, classes?” (Pérez) but this time I was surrounded with his students’ reactions as he read the book. I dents. found myself being transported That is why he understands not back to my Freshman year all of his English students love when he would read this book to read and write. He is the kind and stop to make jokes and of person that tries to underpuns about Spanish words. The stand everybody. A teacher that audience went “ohhhh,” and you can relate to makes you bursts of laughter and smiles more comfortable learning. occurred often..

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Mr. Espinosa, Mr. Pérez’s friend and colleague, said that

“I can’t do things he does because I don’t have the time and the patience to do it.” One of his stories is

that if a student contacts me and tells me that

“You know, the book we make about The House on Mango Street where we tell our story, do you still have it? They know that I keep everything.

Makes me happy every time a student ask me that. That I made an impact in their lives” (Mr. Pérez). He is very

open-minded and just want to help if you ever you need it. No matter who you are. As we fast forward three years later he still does what loves most; and that is greeting his students everyday That great warm welcome.

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This shows his sweet and warm side that he takes for

as if he were a student trying to fit in or get involved in class. According to the PBS article “What is Happiness?,” gratitude, joy, interest, hope, inspiration, and love are some positive emotions that psychologists study to prove that these emotions help students learn. Mr. Pérez uses these emotions to discover how each student learns differently.

He brings a lot of his culture into his classroom also. For example, students are learning about the culture differences around the world through the books he teaches. He brings his Mexican culture into his classroom. Around the end of October, he gives his class skeletons that you dress and color. Looks fun right?

But it’s actually related to his students. He loves makDía de Muertos (the day of ing people laugh, smile, and the dead). He also makes “If I can made be happy. ofrendas in his room where a student smile or laugh he shows students his ancesthat person more retors. Latino students learn lax and if that person is their culture in a fun intermore relax I believe that esting way than just readmore of the learn i want ing a textbook or watching to in part would flow in a video about it but actually the mind of that person doing it. The students who and maybe they will remember it” (Mr. Pérez). are not Latino get to see their neighbors culture. The Day As I observed him he of the Dead teaches students always come prepared for that death isn’t always a bad what he is going to do in thing. It basically saying that class. He starts off with a not all good things are posiwarm-up called Jambles it tive and not all bad things is a puns puzzle game and are negative because he whichever class have the learned the hard way that achighest points wins a prize. tions and your emotions can This is an example of everyhelp or hurt a person. one getting involved in class Just as the Day of the warm-ups because, according Dead teaches us, Mr. Pérez to Mr. Pérez, Mr. Pérez emhelps students see the “light pathizes with his students,

ness and how you treat other people the way you MVHS, says, “You need wanted to be treated. That a little bit of both is why Mr. Pérez is not a to fully understand jokester all the time; for and appreciate example, he is completely both why we need serious when he teaches them ” because you can’t that racial discrimination be happy all the time beis harmful. It is a lesson cause you would think that that doesn’t require humor it is not important in life. or sass but the true underBeing able to be under the standing of what is going rain and being sad for a on in society.That is why while can improve you as he assigns books like To a person, and that is what Kill A Mockingbird, which Mr. Pérez teaches because helps students understand he is not only teaching you what racial discrimination how to be a better student is. To further his students’ by teaching you what you understanding, he shows need to learn but also bea documentary about Eming a good human being. As mett Louis Till, an Africanthey say, after rain comes American teenager in the a rainbow, and that is basi- 50’s. This documentary cally life. teaches the students to

Using emotions such earn empathy and how as sadness and empathy pathos drive your emotions can make you treasure to feel sad and understand the true value of happiwhat is happening in a and the dark side” of things.

Mr. Payne, P.E. teacher at

deeper level.

Having spent so much time in his classroom as a student and interviewer, I’m not surprised about how Héctor Pérez imagines his future: “I must

continue to grow as an educator, coach, husband, and father.” He says

the most important thing is spending time with his daughter until she goes to college in 2018. In the long term, his wish as a father is for his children to have a great education and fulfill the dreams he was once had. As a teacher and coach, he wants to continue to be the best guide for his students and athletes and give them a positive experience in school.

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Work Cited Espinosa, Tony. Personal interview 08. Dec. 2015

Loomans, Diana, and Karen Kolberg.

The Laughing Classroom: Everyone’s Guide

to Teaching with Humor and Play. Tiburon, CA: H.J. Kramer, 1993. Print.

Payne, John. Personal interview. 25. Sep. 2015.

Pérez, Héctor. Personal interview. 24. Sep. 2015.

Pérez, Héctor. Personal interview. 28. Sep. 2015

Pérez, Héctor. Personal interview. 02. Oct. 2015

Pérez, Héctor. Personal interview. 08. Dec. 2015 “What Is Happiness?” This Emotional Life. PBS 2009. Web. 18 Dec. 2015.