The language arts department added a new teacher: Mr. Josh Ansley.

Ansley is not new at our school, however. He was a long term substitute for Mrs. Emily Thomas from January to Spring Break during the third quarter as she was on maternity leave.

“When I came back for fourth quarter, some of the students were even disappointed because they had become so used to Mr. Ansley,” Thomas said.

Thomas said that while he substituted, he had kept her students well disciplined and organized, something she had worried about.

“I was worried that students would try to take advantage of a substitute, but they were really well focused,” Thomas said.

Although being successful last year, Ansley has not been alone in the process of adjusting to teaching full time.

“We always have a mentor for the new teachers. He has a mentor and we just make sure he knows about small details that go on here,” his mentor, Mrs. Amanda Bannister, said.

“Not only did he have a basic understanding of our procedures such as intervention stamping, and all the other nuances that come with being a Whitney teacher, being a long term substitute allowed him to be well acquainted with the other teachers of the English department,” Thomas said.

Because he is known in the English department, the teachers have supported him as much as they can, even giving him a birthday card and throwing a party since it was his birthday on the first day of school.

While Thomas and Bannister can both agree being a substitute helps Ansley be familiar with our rules, Bannister believes that being a full time teacher is still a huge step from being a substitute, long time or not. The biggest difference is planning and carrying out one’s own curriculum, as opposed to just doing what the plans clearly set out for a substitute.

Ansley said, “I’ve taught over at Granite Bay, Roseville High School and Antelope High school, and I would say the one difference is that students get along really well. That wasn’t always the case at some of the other schools, and people have a lot of integrity. There is a high level of excellence that continues to grow each year.”

by: BENJAMIN KIM & DANIEL SHARRAH