At YLHS, there are roughly 100 members of staff, each supplying a different, essential role at our amazing school. One of these amazing staff members is Mrs. Zywiciel (Staff), who teaches AVID10, which is an academic support system, aims to keep students organized and focused on school, engaging them in certain activities such as projects on their dream colleges, as well as four sections of English I. Her love of teaching began when she realized that reading, writing and discussing literature with different people each year would make her feel like she would “never work a day in [her] life.”  She even taught Newspaper and Yearbook at her previous campus, Valadez Academy, so the variety of subjects she teaches has contributed to her feeling that teaching does not feel like work; instead, it feels like sharing her knowledge with students. 

When she first came to YLHS, the 300 building seemed to her the size of Valadez.  However, she gives the “small school” feeling to each of her students by showing them how each of them is important and different to her, even more so because she makes sure to know them as individuals.  She wants them to remember the times she asks how their team played the night before and how she gave them granola bars when they were hungry. 

To Mrs. Zywiciel, the best part of being a teacher is that she genuinely looks forward to meeting 150 new students a year, “who all change my life for the better.” This positive attitude was noticed by PYLUSD who awarded her a “Teacher of the Year” award last month for her enthusiasm and dedication. This award is a great honor to anyone who receives it. Aside from the honor of receiving such an award, a fun aspect of it is that the district surprises recipients at their school site with the award.  This would be especially fitting for Mrs. Zywiciel as she loves the school and celebrating an award highlights one of her favorite aspects of working here, the school spirit. In fact, she says one word that would summarize her entire experience teaching is “fun.”  And what is the thing Mrs. Zywiciel wants her students to remember the most?   “I want them to remember they mattered.”

Teaching these classes summarizes Mrs. Zywiciel’s passion and love of helping students personally, rather than just with academic classes. She brings a new perspective to teaching while also making school fun. She’s very well deserving of her award and is a perfect fit for YLHS.