No one does besties like Mr. German Figueroa, Mr. Miguel Hernandez, Mr. Daniel Santos, and Mr. Miguel Tejeda.
Finding time to hang out with your buddies can be difficult, as teachers and as students. However, they always set aside time to joke and chat between classes, during lunch, at football games, and occasionally on weekends.
“Bro time is needed!” Mr. Hernandez said.
Mr. Hernandez mentioned that his favorite memory was a business trip, at a math conference. “We were able to represent Channel Islands, and we were able to have fun too!” he says.
Mr. Figueroa, Mr. Hernandez and Mr. Tejeda are all math teachers, while Mr. Santos is an English teacher.
Mr. Tejeda says that his favorite moment with his besties was the Valentine’s Day photo booth. Mr. Figueroa seconds, and adds, “All the times we hang out we’ve taken adorable pictures together.”
Their fun antics aren’t all they care about; they also motivate each other to improve their teaching.
“I try to find time when I can stay late after school. We discuss trends we see in our classrooms and how to become better, so it’s been actually pretty beneficial as a professional,” Mr. Santos says.
Mr. Tejeda, who also teaches AVID-12, and Mr. Santos, co-chair of the English Department, has been working at Channel Islands for 6 years. They had their first encounter at a CIHS faculty meeting.
Mr. Tejeda says, “I actually met him the very first day I stepped onto campus.”
A few years later, he discovered he had a new next-class neighbor: another math teacher named Mr. Figueroa, who has now been working at the Islands for 4 years. A year later, they met Mr. Hernandez during his work as a new teacher in the math department, who has now been working at the islands for 3 years.
And “the rest is history!” says Mr. Figueroa. When asked how they met, all their recalling of the story varied, but one thing is for sure, the four of them just clicked!
Mr. Tejeda says, “I think we all have very similar personalities, and I think that’s what gravitated each one of us to each other.”
Besides being coworkers, the four are all connected through their motivation and passion for helping students. Mr. Hernandez says, “ We love to help students, we’re here to help students. Although we might not have the same philosophies when it comes down to teaching, we have the same goal, which is to make students feel represented.”
They believe it’s important to keep a close circle of friends who can inspire and encourage each other. Mr. Figueroa says, “You definitely need positive friends that’ll bring you up, and not bring you down. They can be honest with you and be real with you, but you should want people that motivate you to be better.”
Mr. Tejeda advises to “keep your circle small, because that’s where you realize who your true friends are.”
Similarly, Mr. Hernandez’s advice is to understand that sometimes friendships don’t last and people are allowed to have different goals. He says, “A good friend will know when to let you be successful, but will always be there whenever you need them”.
Mr. Santos leaves a heartwarming message about best buddies, “Later in life, friendship is difficult because people go down different paths… The biggest thing with friendship is relying that they’ll always be there for you no matter what, but also that you trust them. I think trust is a huge factor… Understanding the good in people is what draws you back to it [friendship]”.
