Sharks Add Experienced New Faculty to the Tank

By: Carlos Camargo and Kingston Mills

October 7, 2024

A Unique take on Composition: 

   By: Carlos Camargo

   As she approaches an unopened cake box in the front of the room, icing in hand, Mrs. Hollie Villanueva begins icing the cake box. By doing this activity, she showcased to her Dual enrollment students that most English essays are like iced cake boxes.  

   Villanueva joined the English Department and teaches DE English composition teacher and creative writing, hailing from Woodbridge middle school, she brings a fresh perspective to students, dismantling the built-up curriculum expected by students. 

   “I think that we could talk a lot about why students have certain beliefs and attitudes about writing and language which I think is very important and where those come from, and they don't necessarily stem from the English classroom.” Mrs. V Said, “I certainly do not mean any sort of disrespect to any other English teacher in my methodologies for teaching.”  

   Mrs. V takes a unique approach to English instruction because of, her ability to visualize being in the student role by demonstrating her active listening and learning from her workshops.  

   “It is really, really important that educators always see themselves as students first because we were students long before we became teachers,” Mrs. V said. “One thing that is really important that students need to understand is, is the importance of being in peer and professional organizations.” 

   Mrs. V said she believes there should be two classes rather than one. 

   “English teachers are expected to do a lot in a very short amount of time,” she said. “I think we should have two classes, one for composition, another for literature.”  

   With her experience teaching at George Mason and North Virginia community college, Mrs. V prides herself in knowledge of her craft and deep-rooted passion. 

Lessons on Construction from Tech Teacher

   By: Kingston Mills

   Jarrod Haselbauer is a second-year teacher in the Technology Education department, instructing a brand-new class at the school, Construction Tech. This class adds to the already dense list of classes at Colgan. It revolves around learning the ins and outs of the construction industry, including safe, efficient methods of practice.   

   Haselbauer earned a bachelor’s in science and education from Oswego State University in New York. In addition, he minored in athletic coaching and business education.   

   "Oswego is one of the top ten tech ed programs and one of the oldest,” said Haselbauer.   

   Haselbauer brings years of teaching experience.

   “I was at Patriot when it opened in 2011,” Haselbauer said. “It was a bit weird, cause a lot of the building was the same. Before that I worked in North Carolina in Durham. Before that I worked at the Oswego High School while in college.”   

   He said that the difficulty of the class is dependent on student effort and ensuring they finish their assigned work.  

   “I get to play with tools every day,” Haselbauer said happily, discussing the most exciting part of his job.  

    In the classroom, there are risks that come with handling such powerful equipment. The risk of injury in construction is much higher than in other industries. In an article from ScienceDirect, The Utah Department of Health reported that 90 percent of CTE accidents involved equipment. Misuse of equipment accounted for 39 percent of those accidents.   

   “Biggest personal goal is safety,” said Haselbauer. “Making sure they have knowledge to use skills in real life. That way they can make home repairs in real life.”