From Wildcat to Patriot

Mrs. Van Horn has been teaching at Taft Union High School since the fall of 2010 and will be heading to Liberty High School next fall. She has taught AP Statistics, Math Analysis, Algebra 1, Pre-Algebra, and Geometry. She was not only an educator for the students of Taft High, but she also served as a coach for the girls’ tennis, track, and swimming teams during part of that time. When she was asked what she would miss the most about TUHS, she said, “I will miss the students and coworkers.” She will miss them not only for who they are, but for what they do to make her smile and laugh. She commented, “I always look forward to Mock Rock every year and the pretty awesome rallys.” Some things that Mrs. Van Horn did for Taft High that you might not know is that she would take her AP Statistics class on a field trips every year.

On a personal level, regarding leaving Taft High, she said, “It was an extremely difficult decision to make because of how great the staff and kids are,” and she, “…will miss the close-knit community.” She has had many memorable moments since working at Taft High. One memorable moment that she mentioned was that she took her AP Statistics class to a Dodger’s game and then watched the fireworks from the outfield. A comment that she shared was, “I got to see how excited and happy my students were to do that.” Even though Mrs. Van Horn has decided to leave TUHS, she will continue on at Liberty High School in Bakersfield as a math teacher. She describes the Taft High students as “great students” and also says, “They have shown me kindness and respect ever since I started working here.” When she was asked how she feels about the changes being made at Taft High, she stated, “It is hard to see the mismanagement of funds that has lead to layoffs and budget cuts.” Taft High was her first job out of college and she said, “I have learned a lot as a teacher here,” and also, “This was where I got the foundation of my teaching principles.” She will take them with her on her next endeavor. Mrs. Van Horn feels that Taft High is, “getting torn down,” and will hopefully, “…rebuild and get Taft High back to the state it used to be in.” Throughout her career, she has impacted many students and will surely continue to do so in the future.