Published Sept. 5, 2023
BY AVERY PALSHAW
Craig Tuana has taken a teaching position at Carmel High School as a special education teacher after being an assistant principal at CHS from 2018 to 2023.
After the 2022-23 school year, Tuana decided to go back to teaching for the first time in 12 years, expressing that he missed his wife and two children and wanted to be able to spend more time with them. He began as a dean of students at Palo Alto High School, then made the switch to teaching special education at Fremont High School in San Jose for 13 years.
Craig Tuana expresses he is looking forward to teaching special day classes this school year and getting to know his students. (photo by AVERY PALSHAW)
As he has been wanting to transition to a teaching role for a couple years now, Tuana says he missed the routine of working with students every day.
“I missed being with kids on a daily basis and working with them individually,” Tuana adds.
The special day class teacher enjoys being able to work together and connect with a smaller group of students, something he was not able to always do as an assistant principal. Tuana’s assignment entails helping CHS students with moderate to severe disabilities build self-reliant skills as well as learn the school curriculum in a way that accommodates their needs.
“It focuses a lot on trying to develop kids’ independent living skills so they can manage for themselves when they’re older and also get academic skills as well,” explains the former administrator.
While the 2023-24 school year has just begun, Craig Tuana says he is having tremendous fun with his students and feels excited about his new role as a special education teacher. He hopes to carry on with teaching throughout future years at CHS and plans on continuing in special education.
