Story by Maxine Messineo
Staff Writer
Illustration by Maximo Benitez
Staff Photographer
South Pasadena High School has welcomed several new teachers this school year including Vanessa Suarez, Diana Olivarez, Laura Alduenda, and Jessica Zavala in several different departments and roles across the school.
Suarez, or Maestra Suarez, is the newest addition to the World Languages Department, teaching Spanish ½ as well as Spanish ¾. Suarez is from Baldwin Park in San Gabriel Valley, and went to CSU Los Angeles and Cal State Poly, Pomona for her teaching credentials.
Before coming to SPHS, Suarez worked at California School of the Arts as a teacher, and she also worked as a substitute teacher in the San Gabriel Valley Los Angeles area.
“I feel like everyone is really friendly [and] has welcomed me with open arms. I like that the students are really motivated [and] really care about their grades, and that motivates me too. Like if you’re trying, I’m going to keep trying too, right? So it’s a positive thing between both of us,” Suarez said.
Olivarez, who previously worked at South Pasadena Middle School as a counselor, is the newest academic counselor at SPHS. She went to both SPMS and SPHS. She was also a member of Tiger and ASB during her time at SPHS. She grew up in South Texas, later moved to South Pasadena, and graduated from SPHS in 1997.
Olivarez received her bachelor’s degree from the University of Southern California and her teaching credentials, master’s degree, and counseling credentials all from California State University in Los Angeles.
“I think the reason why I chose to come back to where I came to school was for the same reasons a lot of alumni come back. We had such a positive experience here and I wanted that experience, not only to give back to my community, but also for my own children, to come through the district. So it’s cool to see a full circle, how the school has progressed and changed, but also how there’s fundamentally the traditional roots, and how much people care about South Pas and the community, and I have a lot of tiger pride” Olivarez said.
Alduenda is the new attendance technician for SPHS. She has 10 years of experience in working at schools, starting in LAUSD for seven years. She worked in the front office at a high school and did everything the front office handled. After that, she was an office manager for an elementary school in Rancho Cucamonga for three years before coming to SPHS.
“I love helping the students. I started at the high school level, [and then] worked with elementary students. And now I’m back at high school. So I just love helping [students], seeing them graduate, [and] just making sure to get them to that finish line,” Alduenda said.
Zavala is the new assistant principal at SPHS who is in charge of students’ with last names from A through L. Zavala was born in Bronx, New York, and came to California when she was five. She grew up in Glendale, and has lived in Eagle Rock for the past 20 years.
She went to California State University and California State University, Northridge for her master’s degree. After graduation, she was the principal at Monterey Hills Elementary School after being assistant principal at the same school in South Pasadena for four years. Prior to that, she was a principal in another district.
As assistant principal, Zavala handles the students doing online courses, making sure that their courses are up and ready to go. She also handles discipline as well as meetings with counselors, teachers, parents, and students, to make sure that the students are getting the support that they need. She also helps staff whenever they need support.
Before her time working in the school district, she had three kids, and she had also gone down the business route before pursuing an education in teaching.
Zavala chose to work in education partly because she did not have the greatest experience in high school, and she needed a lot of support and guidance that she never received from her school.
“I had become a mother and a wife, and one of my friends said, ‘Why don’t you go into becoming a teacher’s assistant? Just to go part time and go back to school.’ … And I did, and within the first week of being a kindergarten instructional aid is when it clicked, where I said, this is where I want to be. This is where I want to pursue my career,” Zavala said.
SPHS has welcomed several new staff members this year who have either just begun their journey as educators, counselors or administrators, or have had years of prior experience. They are all excited to see what the school year will bring and are ready to help students learn, be on time, and excel during this school year.