By Nayeli Esqueda

Spetember, 30th 2016

From silibi to the sounds of closing lockers Phoenix High School’s first weeks of school are coming to a close. This year Phoenix High School was introduced with the upcoming class of 2020, exchange students, but also a handful of new teachers and staff members.

In the office we have Beverly Miles who is the new school register. Before coming to Phoenix High School, Ms.Miles worked for the City of Medford. Fun fact about Ms. Miles was that she was a former student here at PHS, this influenced her to be our school register.

In the history department we have Mr. McAndrews and Mr. Buckley. This will be Mr. McAndrew’s first year teaching. McAndrews comes from Springfield, OR, with a family history that includes many teachers and a love to teach high school age students. Mr. McAndrews came to PHS for its welcoming environment and all the nice comments he has heard about the students. During McAndrews free time he watches over his puppy. This will be Mr. Buckley’s first year as a teacher here at PHS, but not his first time as a teacher. Buckley taught two years at a middle school in Idaho and a year at a high school in Utah. Buckley became a teacher in order to help prepare students for life. During his free time he hangs out with his two daughters and his wife. As the first week came to an end Buckley can only describe it as a “blur.” Like many of other teacher’s Buckley can described the school as “a wonderful place that represents students from around the country.”

In the english department we have Ms. Pettit and Mr. Holderman. This will also be Ms. Petitt’s first year as a teacher. We are glad to have her start her career at Phoenix High School. While growing up, she was surrounded by a family of teachers, her mother taught here at PHS for 20 years. This influenced Ms. Petitt to become a teacher. On the other hand this will be Mr. Holderman’s first year at Phoenix, but it will not be his first year teaching. Mr. Holderman wanted to become a teacher “to make an impact to the lives of high school students,” and after hearing great recommendations about PHS and the community surrounded by it, Mr. Holderman became one of our new english teachers. Holderman describes his first few weeks as an “even flow of good and bad days.” During his free time Mr. Holderman enjoys reading, writing and also watching fellow students in their extra curricular activities.

In the choir department we have Mr. Brock. After working four years at Cascade Christian and at Grace Middle school, Mr. Brock came to PHS after having an interview and finding the job as a great fit. During his free time Mr. Brock hangs out with his children.
Other new staff include Mr. Park who is an instructional assistant in Ms.Cox’s room. This will be his first year working in education. The main reason he wanted to work with students was to help others. His hobbies include hiking and swimming, while his favorite subject is mathematics.

Our final new staff member is none other than our new principal Don Rugraff. As many may remember Mrs. Hale retired last year after being our principle for 10 years. Mr. Rugraff taught for a total of 12 years before working for administration. Rugraff loves engaging with the students both academically and athletically. After being recommended to PHS Mr. Rugraff came to PHS for his interview and was astonished to hear all the news about the students and staff.

As the first few weeks come to an end, we would like to wish the returning students, the new students, exchange students, returning staff members, but also our new staff members to a great school year.