With a wave of new faculty members joining our campus, Mr. Mike Christensen walks onto campus, but not for the first time. Mr. Christensen is the new integrated math II teacher on campus.
More than 10 years ago, Mr. Christensen had graduated with the class of 2011.
After high school, Christensen found his passion for math at Sierra College through the school’s math tutoring program. By helping his classmates with tutoring, Christiensen discovered that helping his peers with math was something he enjoyed. Christiansen experimented with other jobs such as a tech startup and wedding venue planning, however, he soon realized it was not the line of work meant for him.
“I didn’t enjoy the work, and I came home every day not very happy with what I was doing, and I kind of wanted to feel good about my job,” Christensen said. “The business world is not a very kind place,and I just didn’t like the feeling of getting one over on people.”
Prior to transitioning, Christensen spent the past two years at John Adams Academy. Christensen made the decision to come back to his former high school when the opportunity came.
“I knew that I wanted to work in a public school eventually,” Christensen said. “I had a good experience here when I was a student, and also it’s a part of the community that I live in.”
Christensen starts off his classes by writing down new information on the whiteboard while explaining new units to his students. The students then go through the trial and error process by trying a few sample problems on their own and with their groups.
If a student needs more help on the subject, Christensen clarifies the process in greater detail, catering his explanation to the students’ specific needs and current understanding.
Before hiring a new teacher, Mrs. Janice Stadler was consulted in the interview process and was surprised to find out that her former student would be a candidate for her new co-worker. During Christensen’s last year of high school, he took Stadler’s class, which at the time was math analysis.
“[Christensen has] been great,” Stadler said. “He’s jumping right in. He wants to be involved. He loves the fact that we do so much together, and he wants to be a part of that, which is wonderful.”
Stadler tells of how great it is to have a former student become a fellow co-worker alongside. According to Stadler, Christensen is very involved within the math community and helps out whenever he can, a very helpful co-worker overall.
Lia Sandoval, a student in Christensen’s eighth period class, offers her opinion of her thoughts towards Christensen and how it has changed over time.
“My first impression of Mr. C was that he was slightly intimidating and quiet, but as I’ve learned more about him and his teaching style he’s growing on me,” Sandoval said.
To put in the effort to make a good high school experience, Christensen memorized all of his students’ names for all three of his classes early on. On campus, Christensen can also recall some traditions that have stayed the same back when he was a high school student, such as the Maroon Fridays.
Christensen said, “I wanted to teach here and be an influence on [others]. I have a lot of helpful colleagues and the kids are very nice. It’s good to be back.”
