MRHS 20thAnniversary: Meet 3 of the 12 Inaugural Staff Members

by Anabella V.

2006 was the year of low-rise jeans, flip phones, a skyrocketing of emo/punk-rock music, and a worldwide obsession with Stephenie Meyer's "*Twilight*. As iconic as these pieces of Y2K

culture are, an even more prominent event was the birth of Mountain Range High School, 2026 marking its 20th anniversary. In comparison to two decades ago, 2026 has been the year of artificial intelligence, advanced technology, and a newfound obsession with audiobooks.

In a time of nonstop change, a reliable constant has been Mountain Range's 12 inaugural staff

members: William Adamsky, Hilary Wimmer, Josh Williams, Sage Rebuehr, Stacey Johnson,

John Marquez, Josh Qualls, Alisha Cody, Jim Mason, Colleen Dowling, Tracy Schreiber, and

Tiffany Hansen. MRHS's inaugural staff members have experienced 20 years at Mountain

Range, which means they have undergone (or, in other words, endured) years of culture,

knowledge, and growth.

Colleen Dowling, an art teacher at MRHS and the creator of the infamous and treasured "Chili

Cook-Off" event that takes place at MRHS, replied to a list of questions regarding the school's

anniversary and her personal experiences throughout her years of teaching: "I am thankful to be a part of this great school," when asked how reaching 20 years at MRHS makes her feel. "Be patient and always willing to adapt," are words of advice a present Dowling would give to the version of herself that had just started at MRHS. "It was exciting but exhausting. I remember feeling overwhelmed but also excited to see what my students could create." Dowling specifically remembers the introduction of TikTok and students recording themselves dancing: "It was cute but also annoying." Dowling has noticed that with the growing use of technology, students seem to be more keen to take art classes, as they are more of a hands-on activity in comparison to their other technology-heavy classes. With years of experience and many lessons, one takeaway Dowling has is: "I have learned that the students teach me as much as I teach them."

Hilary Wimmer, MRHS inaugural staff member, High School of Business teacher, and 2020

Teacher of the Year, shares her 20th-year anniversary insight: "Where did the time go?"

Wimmer states. A common misconception about teachers is that their careers and students do not affect the identities of educators. Wimmer rebuts this idea, explaining, "Students have

always shaped me. Technology and trends all change, but students are very similar." She

continues, speaking for students and what she has taken away from her gained perspectives,

"They want someone who cares, and they are eager to learn." As mentioned before, artificial

intelligence has made its mark in schools. Business classes have experienced the

implementation of AI especially, considering the business world itself has become reliant on this new technology. Wimmer has found that, as years pass, students need to learn how to succeed in a tech-heavy society, and her business classes will help them do so. With an impressive background, Wimmer started with only an education in business, not teaching: "I was pretty terrified. I made many mistakes my first year, but I realize now that teachers will always make mistakes. This is part of the teaching process."

And finally, Josh Qualls, a Mountain Range gym teacher who has had his fair share of credible

educator experience–-he reveals that, “My first year teaching was pretty overwhelming. I was

basically thrown to the dogs at Westlake Middle School and was told to make it work,” Qualls

gained his first 3 years of teaching experience at Westlake. He continues, “I was the head

football, wrestling, and track & field coach at that time.” Qualls was busy not only with coaching various sports, and only just starting as a new teacher, but also adapting to new, foreign experiences, languages included. “They wanted to create a position for me in the building. [The] Problem was, they only had a .5 FTE (full time employee) of Physical Education and Health available, so I was asked to teach a .5 of Foreign Languages (Spanish and French) to fill the FTE. I didn’t (and don’t) speak a lick of either of those languages and had no teaching endorsement for either, so it definitely made for an interesting first year for me and my students!” In retrospect, Qualls wishes he could tell a 20-year ago version of himself to not only save up early and prepare for a retired life, but to also, “Take some things off your plate, [and] don’t take work home with you at night if avoidable, it’ll be there in the morning. Enjoy time with family and friends because the next time you look in the mirror, it’ll be 2046!”

This first group of Mountain Range inaugural staff have been through thick and thin throughout their years of teaching, but have survived and pursued their careers impressively. Teaching isn’t an easy job, but MRHS staff prove through their work and determination that either way, it's worth it.