Issue link: https://digital.copcomm.com/i/792936
Congratulations to La Habra High School's Mr. RAY LOPEZ for being voted one of Orange County's Top 25 Teachers Top 25 Teachers Ray Lopez is everything an excellent teacher should be. He is first and foremost an advocate for students. He has an almost magical rapport with them that encourages not only their trust, but their effort. Students want to work for "Ray-Lo" because he understands them. His classroom is energetic, filled with laughter, innovation, technology, and learning. He regularly engages his colleagues in conversations about individual kids and their specific needs. The list is as long as the number of students each year, not to mention the ones from prior years who come back for a smile, handshake and pat on the back. It is this focus on meeting students' diverse needs that drives Mr. Lopez's advocacy of National History Day. With his extensive background in pedagogy and social science, Ray quickly recognized History Day as an opportunity for students to develop in the critical areas of reading and research while at the same time, engaging them in an activity they would find meaningful. He introduced our staff to the NHD program, and went to all the trainings in order to bring us the most current information. He immediately jumped into judging and encouraged all of us to become involved. This year, with his encouragement, three staff members and a parent participated in judging at OCDE and are planning to do so at the state as well. With limited classroom time to focus on NHD, most of the actual work is done at home. At this time of year, Ray's classroom at lunch and after school is regularly teeming with students (often not even in his own classes) looking for tips and techniques, last minute adjustments and tweaks. He holds workshops for both staff and students, develops and shares lesson plans, and encourages everyone to dream big. With Ray's direction and support, in the six years of La Habra's participation in NHD, our students have competed every year at the state level, and twice gone on to national competition. In a recent NHD competition, 21 Heritage students have qualified for state in seven of the eight categories! Congratulations to La Habra High School's Mr. RAY LOPEZ for being voted one of Orange County's Top 25 Teachers