Ms. Haley is not your typical biology teacher. She grew up in the Philippines with 12 siblings attending high school and the University of the Philippines.  She finished her degree in Biology and worked as a teacher for a very short time.  She changed her profession into the field of computers, working as a computer programmer and as a computer analyst for a bank and mining companies.  While working these different jobs, she continued her education towards her masters degree in Business and Computer Science.

And eventually, she came to the United States.

What started Ms. Haley’s interest in biology was her own high school biology teacher, who instilled “the amazement I had for biology.” Fueled by her interest, she soon found herself on a plane to California, following her ambitions. Upon reaching California, she attended San Jose State University working on a masters in counseling.

That was 30 years ago. Since then she has taught English language learners at De Anza College and biology at Evergreen Valley High School in San Jose. When asked why she wanted to teach at Los Banos High School she commented, “When I retired in San Jose, I was bored with sitting around and missed teaching. I eventually got bored and found that a job opening was available at this school, so I took it.”

Since teaching here, she has seen a change in the focus of students, coming from the techy Silicon Valley to an agriculture-based Central Valley. “I find myself referencing to agriculture so my students can make a connection, where I once referenced technology.”

Another area she faces in her classes is a language barrier. “Some of my students don’t know English, so I have to find a way to teach them.”

Although it can be challenging, Ms. Haley said it is fun at times as the students are not the only ones learning, but sometimes she finds herself learning new things from language to teaching techniques.