The Student News Site of Monta Vista High School

El Estoque

The Student News Site of Monta Vista High School

El Estoque

The Student News Site of Monta Vista High School

El Estoque

The student teacher returns

The student teacher returns

Former Matador back at alma mater not to learn, but to teach science

 

 

He comes to class, sits in his seat, and opens up the Biology textbook. He cannot wait for lunch to tell his best friend in the next classroom what he's planning for a group project. As the bell rings, students rush out of the classroom, but he stays behind.

 

He is Biology and Physiology teacher Pooya Hajjarian, one of three new members of the science department this year. However, he has a lot more in common with his own students than just reading from the same textbook. Hajjarian graduated from MVHS as a member of the class of 1997.

 

Thirteen years ago, Hajjarian took Biology in room B104. After graduating from MVHS, he studied at the University of California, Santa Cruz for his undergraduate degree and received his teaching degree at San Jose State University. Now he teaches three Biology classes and two classes of Physiology. However, the subject is not what really matters when it comes to teaching for Hajjarian.

 

"I would be happy teaching anything. It's the fact that I get to work with the youth that really makes a difference for me," Hajjarian said.

 

Science teacher Pooya Hajjarian helps junior Winnie Cheung with a nutrition lab during Physiology on Sept. 8. A class of  1997 alumnus, Hajjarian returned to MVHS to teaching the science department alongside a good friend. Photo taken by Erin Chiu.Hajjarian is now back at his old high school, making that difference. Even though more than a decade has passed since he was a student here, he notes how the school hasn't really changed very much.

 

"There [is] a lot of physical difference," Hajjarian said. "The main office looks different. The D-building, the field house, that's all new. But when I walk around [campus], I feel that the culture is still the same. Back then, I always felt safe here and as a teacher, I get the feeling that students feel the same way."

 

Hajjarian thinks that having a safe environment at school makes learning better for students. As a Persian-American, Hajjarian admires the open-mindedness and acceptance of different cultures on campus.

 

"The culture is something that I used to be a part of and I think getting to be a part of it from another angle is what excites me the most," Hajjarian said.

 

Although the school's personality hasn't changed, he realizes that the people have.

 

"As a student, you don't always necessarily get to know people in administration, but as a teacher, I've gotten to know everyone here really well," Hajjarian said.

 

In fact, principal April Scott commented on how teachers and staff who are MVHS alumni compared to those who aren't.

 

"The piece that is nice about having [MVHS] alumni, is they know the community, they know the culture of the school, they know the expectations of the students and they are familiar with the staff," Scott said. Hajjarian, specifically, had an advantage because he also did his student teaching at MVHS for two years. This way, Scott could personally observe how he cooperated and interacted with students and fellow staff.

 

It is easy to see that Hajjarian works very well with his staff, especially considering that one of his best friends, Physiology teacher Jenna Smith, is teaching in one of the classrooms next door.

 

"[Working with my best friend] is a dream come true. While we were student teaching at Independence High School, we would fantasize that we would, maybe, be in the same district in twenty years. Now it's our second year teaching and we both got jobs at our dream school," Smith said.

 

He's teaching at his alma mater, working alongside one of his best friends and reliving his teenage memories in his own high school. He is living the dream he had when he was just a student at MVHS. So even though returning to school on the first day may be a pain for many students, for Hajjarian, it's not so bad.

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