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TEACHER
mihsislander.org
Through Teaching, Staff Discover Their True Passions Hannah Whobrey
staff writer
High schoolers often face pressure to map out their whole future by graduation, yet many MIHS teachers know from experience that life almost never goes according to plan. For Peggy Aguilar, who has taught Spanish for six years at MIHS, her original aspirations transformed after an eye-opening work experience in college. “I was a Journalism major,” Aguilar said. “I ended up doing public relations internship for a non-profit, but sitting in front of a computer all day, the time went really slowly. It was not the right sort of work environment for me.” “I took a year off to volunteer in a school [and] really liked it. After that, I went back and got my Master’s in teaching — not what I
easier to leave a business situation, [and] I ended up coming out here.” “I worked for Sylvan Learning Center as a director of education, which was more management, but I didn’t like that as much. So I quit that and took a job at Mercer Island!” In Daniela Melgar’s case, a few years of exploration led to the realization that teaching allowed her to combine her biggest passions. “When I went into undergrad, and even grad school, my focus was theater and acting,” Melgar, who has taught drama on the Island for seven years, said. “I wanted to be doing something that involves theater for the stage, but I didn’t know exactly what that looked like.” “At some point, I started tutoring kids, and then I did a summer camp where I was working with kids in theater. All of these activities and
Hayes shortly after graduating college. planned to do going into college!” Michelle Hayes, who has taught math to both IMS and MIHS students for 18 years, spent more time on her path to education. “I didn’t teach at first when I got out of school,” Hayes explained. “I worked in business doing auditing of sales dealerships. At the time, I lived in New Jersey and I didn’t want to stay in New Jersey, so I didn’t want to take a teaching job. It was
Melgar directing students at “9 to 5” rehearsals this year.
worked 180 hours — so it’s exhausting! That’s the hardest part, keeping that stamina up.” “You’re juggling a lot of stuff all the time, with the lesson planning and the grading and the meetings,” Aguilar said. “There’s just a lot going on, always.” “The hardest part is probably all the work outside of school,” Hayes commented. “The day is not done when you guys leave — there’s a mountain of paperwork and tests to grade, and lesson plans and stuff like that.” In spite of these difficulties, students help these teachers stay motivated. “I love building relationships with my students and my colleagues,” Aguilar said. “Just to go into classrooms and spend time with kids, and build those relationships and have those moments in the classroom, is the most rewarding part.” “It’s an exciting thing to see students reach levels of understanding that they either struggled with, or that they thought they underPhoto courtesy Michelle Hayes stood and went beyond,”
jobs where I got to work with young people were all very eye-opening. I was like “Oh, I can use art and theater, which I love, to work with young people and help them find their voice.”” Even though these staff members did not originally plan to become teachers, they have always carried a deep love for their subjects. “Growing up, I was more passionate and geared towards math and science,” Hayes remembered. “I guess
between those two, math was my favorite.” “I get to teach what I love,” Melgar said. “I love how students can find their voice, and find confidence and be exactly who they’re supposed to be. Drama itself, theater itself, helps people have empathy for other people.” “I think learning languages are important,” Aguilar said. “Being a global citizen and knowing there’s other
Photo courtesy Daniela Melgar Hayes said. “It’s nice to be in a community where the arts are so supported,” Melgar explained. As they watch students prepare to make their own life decisions, these teachers offered some guidance from their own journeys. “Travel if at all possible when you’re young,” Hayes said. “Keep your options open. While I enjoyed math and science more in my education, I still pushed myself to excel at all of the subjects, just because at a young age I didn’t know what I was going to do, so I didn’t want to close any doorways.” “I think if you follow your passions and follow your interests, everything else falls into place,” Aguilar said. “I just want my students to be happy people and to be true to themselves.” “You have to love what you do, but you also have to have a hard shell,” Melgar said. “Just because you didn’t get this one role does not mean you are not talented and does not mean that there won’t be other opportunities.”
perspectives out there is the most important thing.” Although they are happy with their career choice, these teachers recognize that their job is not always easy. “I’m always emotionally invested,” Melgar said. “I hate people being upset. No matter what you do, not everyone is going to be happy.” “[During productions] it’s a lot of hours, for me, here in this building,” she added. “In Photo courtesy Craig Degginger the last three weeks, I’ve had two days off — I will have Aguilar upon receiving Teacher of the Year in 2017.