By Catelyn DiLeva
Staff Writer
Ryan Zachos replaced Mira Costa Algebra and Geometry teacher Denise Weber on April 11 due to a series of circumstances that has caused Weber to be absent during the school year.
Zachos was notified during Spring Break by Mira Costa administration to teach Weber’s classes for the remainder of the school year. Zachos is a mathematics major with a Bachelor in Science in Secondary Education and a Master’s degree in Educational Leadership. Zachos has had thirteen years of experience in teaching high school math.
“I was not expecting to land a teaching position until the fall because I had only moved here a while ago,” Zachos said. “To have landed the position so soon and to be in one of the top high schools in the country is so exciting.”
Zachos moved from Boulder, Colorado last summer and taught Algebra and Geometry in the Boulder Valley School District. According to Zachos, he moved out to California for personal matters.
“This is an amazing job opportunity and it came at the perfect time,” Zachos said. “I am really glad that I get to work with new students for the rest of the school year.”
According to Costa sophomore Katharine Rogerson, students were tentative about having a new teacher. During Weber’s two month absence students had multiple substitutes and missed three full chapters and parts of other chapters.
“We were a bit uneasy when we were notified about having a new teacher,” Rogerson said. “At this point we all just needed a fresh start because we missed so much of the lessons and didn’t have a stable teacher for a while.”
Zachos is still waiting to hear about being a permanent teacher in the 2016-2017 school year. According to Zachos hopes to stay at Costa for many more years and continue teaching Algebra and Geometry.
“I’m really trying to communicate with the students and prepare them for the rest of their math careers,” Zachos said. “They had a gap of time that left them out of the loop so I think they need extra attention with the material they are learning.”
Zachos has been teaching students the regular curriculum that they can get back on the learning schedule for the school year. He has been helping students catch up by allowing them to take a test home over the weekend and providing them extra credit worksheets.
“I hope this job turns into something more long term because I have so many goals and aspirations for what I want to do and how I want to teach,” Zachos said. “Being a teacher at Costa is and will continue to be a great experience.”
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