People

Want to hear more about Briar Poletasio? Here is a spotlight on this hard-working Les Bois student.

Briar says that, out of all the Les Bois Blazer Bold attributes, she shows Dare to Achieve the most. She puts 100% into everything she does, and she can accomplish anything she sets her mind to. 

Her favorite part about Les Bois is the amazing staff we have. One of her favorite teachers here is Mr. Cortabitarte because he is always so kind and his class is so fun! He always has the best games for people to play, and he gives students fun projects. Her favorite part of his class was the extra time at the end; Briar and her friends got to talk to Mr. Cortabitarte. 

Briar plays multiple sports, including volleyball, lacrosse, and basketball. She played lacrosse from the ages of 7 to 9, and she is going to join the Timberline team this season. She has played basketball for most of her life, and she is now on the EYBL traveling team for Storm. She has played volleyball for Les Bois Jr. High, and she played competitively in her 8th-grade year, and she is now playing for Timberline High School. That's all about Briar Poletasio!

Transitioning into a new school isn’t usually a walk in the park for most people. Especially when it might even be your first day of seventh grade at this school brimming with hundreds of faces you don’t even recognize. That’s why getting to know your teachers can become a very significant part of your journey through junior high.

“I think it’s like getting better every day. You know tomorrow won’t be perfect and the day after won’t be either; it’s just kind of like trying to be better today than you were yesterday,” are the wise words of Mr. Coberly, one of the teachers at our school specializing in mathematics. 

Mr. Coberly teaches compacted 7/8, integrated two, and AP computer science properties. Most students know him as a laid-back, go with the flow kind of teacher, and after investigating a bit myself I can’t say I disagree. He’s 36 and originally claims a career in education was far from what he had planned on doing with his life, more so he had actually majored in business and ended up taking his education classes virtually. But expectantly, after a few years he came to realize that was an experience he truly loved. 

Some more fast facts about him is Mr. Coberly's a Gemini, his favorite color is olive green, spirit animal is a garden snake or snail but he loves elephants, he’s addicted to caffeine, and he loves to travel and play golf. Many students recognize him by his signature Red Bull, Monster, or Alani during class. In fact his students used to track his energy drink intake, but he only made it energy-drink-free for three months unfortunately.

He’s a very free flowing teacher from his notoriously messy desk to lenient work days and classroom shop. Most students know him to be very laid back but he claims that guiding students throughout junior high has never been a hard part of his job. He finds a balance between authority and leisure in his classroom that seems to accompany the needs of his students perfectly.

He’s a fan favorite, the glue holding our school together, head janitor Mr. Martinez! 

From sports to video games this man’s bubbly personality and variety of hobbies makes for quite the character! Let’s take a look behind the curtain and see who is really helping run this school.

Mr. Martinez tried his hand at junior college but overall decided it wasn’t for him. Ever since then he has joined the work force and loves it! He has worked at Les Bois for six years as Head Custodian, appreciating the environment and people here stating how wonderful the community is when interviewed.

Some of Mr. Martinez’s hobbies include fishing, playing video games with his kids, and overall just spending time with his family. He loves baseball and is a devoted Dodgers fan. Sounds to me he knows just how to have fun!

He has been married to a lovely lady named Heather for the past 19 years. Together they have two kids, Jackson, the oldest, and Mila the youngest. Jackson is enrolled in the University of Idaho and belongs to the marching band drumline, whereas Mila is a starting sophomore at timberline who is dedicated to softball. Their family owns two dogs, “Koko The Loco and Bacca like Chewbacca” and two cats, “Felix and Milky Way - AKA Ralph, TK -for Tiny Kitty”.

When asked what the most annoying thing students that he deals with he said not cleaning up after yourselves. “ How hard is it to put things into the trash can?!?!  Take pride in your appearance and your surroundings.” he jokingly adds. “Also, playing around in the restrooms. Gross...... “ 

We as a student body can make it easier for him by simply throwing away your apple once you are done. After learning a little more about our janitor I realized how much we take for granted. We are lucky to have such an amazing custodian so let’s return the favor!