New Faces in the Classroom
Every year brings in new changes, and this school year is no different with the addition of four new teachers to the staff.
This year, Carmen Avila has joined the teaching staff as a Spanish 2 and Spanish 3 MCR teacher. Prior to teaching at Palos Verdes High School, she worked as a substitute teacher at Los Amigos High School in Fountain Valley. Avila decided to teach at PVHS because of its welcoming and inclusive environment.
“The best aspect of being part of the PVHS team is belonging to a place where everyone is hardworking and committed,” Avila said. “There is a schoolwide mentality of going above and beyond to reach in anything they do.”
Ana Driver is a returning social science teacher who has been in our school district since 2002. Prior to her return, Driver worked at Rancho Del Mar. Her first impression of the educational environment here was that the teachers really care about the students, and that the students really love to learn.
“Everybody’s become a lot more involved and encouraging in the athletic department and academics since the last time I taught here,” said Driver. “There are more clubs, groups, and activities on campus.”
Jenny Kao is a new algebra and pre-calculus teacher here at PV High. Before she taught here at PVHS, she was at Woodbridge High School in Irvine.
“When I was in high school myself, I had a math teacher who let me see math in a whole new way,” said Ms. Kao.
“He, along with another teacher I had, and discovering CalTeach at UC Irvine, inspired me to pursue teaching math, and just teaching in general, as a career.”
For Nancy Wei, this new school year is her homecoming back to Palos Verdes Peninsula Unified School District. After teaching at Lunada Bay Elementary School and Palos Verdes Intermediate School, she taught at Santa Monica High School for two years before returning to the district to teach all levels of Chinese.
“I’m very fortunate to see [students] grow,” Wei said. “They all grew spiritually. They became more capable and responsible, and do a lot of things for th
e school and for our community… It is great to see those changes.”
Sarah Liu, the Editor-in-Chief of The Point, began journalism when she was in 7th grade, starting as a Kid Reporter for Sports Illustrated Kids, profiling...
