Art teacher, Sophie Rasmussen, has been awarded Teacher of the Year at Taft High. She will be attending a banquet where other nominated teachers in Kern County are selected to represent the county as a whole and, eventually, one will represent the state of California. This will be Rasmussen’s seventh year of teaching at Taft High. She graduated from CSUB, in 2006, with a double major in liberal studies and art for her bachelor’s degree.

Students are excited for Rasmussen to receive this award as she is a favorite amongst the Wildcats. Junior Katheryn White stated that Rasmussen is, “Accommodating. Not just a teacher, but a friend.” Sophomore Jeb Burke added, “She makes connections with each student.” Not only is she an art teacher, but she has also been an assistant soccer and golf coach and has assisted in bringing the first art show to Taft High, along with yearly trips to Via Arte with the art club members. She teaches intermediate art, advanced art, and cartoon drawing. She gives students a taste of many forms of art whether it’s charcoal sketches, sculpting, painting, and even paper mache.