Most students think that all teachers do is slave away grading papers and focusing on particularly hated students, but teachers really do have lives! To some this seems a mind-blowing idea, but Carmel High’s teachers actually participate in interesting activities with their time outside of school.
GUARDINO
A curiosity for the ocean and a desire to be a certified diver for a trip to Mexico with friends inspired science teacher Mike Guardino to become a certified diver in 1990. Since then he estimates he has dove about 4,000 times in the ocean, not including his bimonthly dives at the Monterey Bay Aquarium.
“[My favorite part of diving is] being weightless,” Guardino says. “It’s like the ultimate relaxation because you don’t have to deal with gravity the way that you deal with gravity on land.”
Diving has led Guardino to become a scuba instructor and work summers as a research diver at Channel Islands National Park.
Guardino also taught the Sub-Tidal Marine Research class at CHS for 12 years, where he certified students to dive and taught them how to be scientists under water.
“I enjoy every bit of [diving],” he says.
ROBERTS
“Have you ever had something you set your mind to, and when you accomplish it you just feel so proud of yourself?” asks CHS mathematics teacher Jody Roberts. “That’s kind of how flying is for me.”
Since Roberts was a girl, she knew she wanted to fly.
“I remember dreaming about flying,” Roberts says. “I just think it was something I was born with.”
Roughly 10 years ago, she began to pursue her dream of becoming a pilot at Watsonville Airport by practicing to earn her private pilot classification.
Before having her daughter, she flew weekly, working to get her instrument and commercial ratings.
“[My ultimate goal] is to become an instructor,” Roberts says. “I would still teach, but I’d be able to on the weekends and summer take students flying.”
Roberts adds that she hopes “somebody, especially a girl, is inspired to fly [after reading this].”
STAFFORD
Like many current CHS students, history teacher Marc Stafford started a band with his best friend while in high school.
Seventeen years later, they are still playing together in the band Bryn Loosley and The Back Pages.
“Bryn Loosley, the singer, is a guy that I’ve know since I was 17 years old,” Stafford says.
They played together in a band during college, but went their separate ways until Loosley moved back to Santa Cruz and they created a new band.
“We just did a kickstarter for an album that we are working on, which worked out well,” Stafford says.
The album, Blood Year, is based on the concept of having a song for each month of the year, and is scheduled to come out in February.
Additionally, the band recently made music videos for three songs off the upcoming album.
“[The three songs are] ‘The Alchemist,’ which is a love song of sorts, ‘Summer Time Girl,’ a fun rock song, and ‘Dance,’ a mellow sad song,” Stafford says.
