Tim Parnow

Imagine returning to high school after graduating from college. New to the staff, but familiar with the school, Tim

Parnow returned to his high school now as a member of the teaching staff.

“It feels weird to come back as a teacher, I never would’ve thought I would be coming back as a P.E. teacher.” Parnow said.

According to Rene Ayala, he is fitting in very well.

“Tim has many great qualities. He’s such a genuine guy we didn’t have to worry about his authenticity. The fact that he’s a former student is great because he knows how everything works.” Ayala said.

Although the transition of becoming a teacher at a high school after being a teacher at an elementary school can be challenging, students are happy that they have a younger teacher to bond with.

“I like that Mr. Parnow is very athletic so we can do the P.E. activities with him.” freshman Adam Van Voorhees said.

Parnow thought this job would be an amazing opportunity for him, teaching high schoolers has been his goal.

“Once I decided I wanted to become a teacher, I knew I wanted to teach at a highschool level. When this position opened it was my  dream job.” Parnow said.

David Gutfeld

Getting more than he bargained for teaching six periods, David Gutfeld is new to the school this year, teaching social studies in TLC north, now advisor to Peer Resource.

Gutfeld has previous experience with social justice, working with a community resolution center in Alameda county called SEEDS. According to Gutfeld, he is an obvious candidate to take over the Peer Resource class.

“It’s an interesting class. We figure out how to serve the community where it’s most needed. Peer Resource and Wellness overlap in some areas, so we often coordinate with Wellness.”  Gutfeld said.

Next year, the Peer Resource class will be smaller due to it becoming one class period instead of two, with a total of 32 students. The transition has not been easy for many students; change is often hard.

“It’s difficult with this many students because you don’t really get the chance to bond with everyone when the class size is that big. With the change between teachers the Peer Resource returners had to take on a lot more responsibility and had lots more hands on time.” junior Olivia Biegal said.

Marlene Kandall relocates to Boston

Marlene Kandall has been teaching social studies here for 15 years. However, this year will be her last as she embarks on a new life in Boston.

Many students remain solemn about Kandall leaving.

“It has always felt like Ms. Kandall cares for her students, and she’s one of the best history teachers i’ve ever had.” Sophomore Julia Haag said.

Kandall brings her unique teaching style to her classes.

“Ms. Kandall always brings an enthusiastic approach to teaching and brings a lot of light to the Da Vinci community,” said sophomore Kat Radtke.

Kandall is one of the founding teachers of Da Vinci, a small learning community focused on technology and engineering. She was formerly a teacher for Mobius before transitioning to focus on Da Vinci.

According to students and former students of Da Vinci Kandall has given them the tools to succeed in their current humanities  classes, and AP courses, such AP US History, and AP Economics.

“Ms. Kandall has successfully given me the tools to succeed in my AP classes next year, and I hope they are able to find a suitable replacement for her.” sophomore Amanda Maxwell said.

Monday schedule changes for upcoming year

Look ahead to next year, when the Monday schedule is about to change. The proposed Monday schedule for next year is not any different from the current schedule in terms of the class lengths. However, the periods will be arranged in a different way.

It is like the administration put a Friday schedule on top of a Thursday schedule; Second, fourth, and sixth periods are the first three classes, followed by first, third, fifth, and seventh period to finish the day.

According to Counselor Sheila Souder, the revised schedule was predicated on how the current small learning communities at the freshman and sophomore grades are scheduled.

“Currently, all the teachers in TLC, ROCK, and Da Vinci can be separated into two groups: those who teach on the odd-numbered periods, and the teachers who teach on the even-numbered periods,” Souder said.

The current Monday schedule means the students must run in-between their community classes and their other classes, such as Spanish and Physical Education. The teachers are under similar strain, as they must prepare for a different class of students almost every period.

“The current schedule is particularly challenging for the science teachers,” Souder said, “because they must prepare a new lab for a different class.”

With the revisions, teachers and students alike should feel less rushed when transitioning from class to class.