Who We Are

English for Speakers of Other Languages

Teachers & Staff

"My memories of high school are of having long straight hair. I always worried too much about my grades, too!" Mrs. Fox was also a member of the cheerleading squad, National Honor Society and the Keyettes Service Club. She had a crush on a football player but ended up dating the captain of the basketball team. She traveled to France with her French class for Spring Break as a 10th grader. Her favorite novels were Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger and A Day in the Life of Ivan Denesovitch by Solzhenytsyn. She most admires her mother because "she has lived her life to the fullest with cheerfulness, grace and humor...and she has never stopped learning. She makes 80 years old look beautiful!" About teaching and working with ESOL students, she remarks,"I love watching children learn language and I love being a part of that fascinating process."

Mrs. Fox is the ESOL Resource Teacher and she teaches ESOL 1 & 2. She is the cosponsor of the International Club.

"I was serious and hardworking," Ms. Wang describes herself as a high school student. She was most interested in English, social studies and music. Her favorite book is The Road Less Traveled by Scott Peck. She most admires Su Tung Po, a great poet and statesman. She loves ESOL because "...I enjoy teaching students from different cultures since the experience has enriched my life!"

Ms. Wang teaches ESOL 2, 4 and Basic Reading. She is the sponsor of the Asian Club.

Did you know that Mr. Textoris played basketball and was in the Ski Club when he was in high school? Also he says that as a student, he most looked forward to the weekends and graduation. His favorite authors are John Updike, Anthony Burgess and Jim Harrison. One person he really respects is Martin Luther King, Jr. because of his ability to make peaceful changes. About teaching ESOL, he tells us, "Everyday is different. Teachers can learn from the students."

Mr. Textoris teaches Modern World History and he is the sponsor of the Africa United Club.

Does it surprise you to know that Mr. Arce played soccer in high school? No, right. Also, his favorite novel is Robinson Crusoe. Maybe you didn't know that Mr. Arce is a musician too. His favorite music artists are Robert Johnson, Muddy Waters, and Silvio Rodriguez. He most admires his son. "My son Marcelo is a wonderful person,responsible, and has a great sense of humor." Mr. Arce loves to teach ESOL students because he learns things from them all the time.

Mr. Arce teaches METS English, US Culture: Past and Present.

"When I was in high school," Ms. Fuhrman recalls,"I hung out in the art room most of my free time. I won a Gold Key in the Scholastic Art Awards so that inspired me to draw and paint a lot." She also remembers working two summer jobs to buy her first car for $1500 when she was 16 years old. Her favorite writers are Naomi Shihab Nye, Sandra Cisneros, and her friend Alex Sanchez. "The people I admire most are my two grandmothers. I was named after one grandmother who lived to be 105. She only had a third grade education but she learned how to read and write well." The reason Ms. Fuhrman loves teaching ESOL students is because her students are so interesting and they are linguistically-skilled.

Ms. Fuhrman teaches ESOL 5, ESOL 1, and Language of Math. She also is a sponsor of the Gay Straight Alliance and the cosponsor of the International Club.

Ms. Paratore-Paraeducator for ESOL classes

Information Coming Soon!

Ms. Ciatto-Paraeducator for ESOL classes

Information Coming Soon!

Mr. Drown says that as a high school student, he was carefree and athletic. He played basketball and football. His favorite author is Ernest Hemingway. He most admires his father who was a college coach. Everyone admired him: the players, other coaches and parents. Mr. Drown enjoys working with ESOL students because they seem to really appreciate efforts made on their behalf.

Mr. Drown is a counselor.

"In high school, I had to work hard to get good grades. English was my favorite class because the teacher really challenged us to think," comments Mrs. Fitzpatick. She says that she enjoyed working on the Homecoming floats and she was a member of French Club. In literature, she says she adored the book My Antonia by Willa Cather. "I could really visualize what she wrote about. I read more of her books as well." The poetry of Emily Dickinson was also her favorite. About photography..."I admire Henri Cartier Bresson. His photographs today still speak reams to the viewer. His style was very expressive and I like how he saw the world and shared his vision with us." She says she enjoys teaching ESOL students because of their open minds and their motivation to do well. She especially loves that the ESOL students teach her things!

Mrs. Fitzpatrick teaches Photography and the Fundamentals of Art.

Can you imagine Mr. Harper as a high school student? He tells us that he was immature, a class clown and a "social butterfly" (meaning he was friends with everyone). He says he enjoyed history and photography. "I was a member of a minority achievement club. It's goal was to give minorities exposure to college and professional organizations." In high school, his favorite book was The Autobiography of Malcolm X by Alex Haley. In college, he favored The Miseducation of the Negro by Carter G. Woodson. "I most admire Christ because he was and is the perfect example of the man which I strive to be," explains Mr. Harper. He says that teaching ESOL makes him a better teacher because he improves his communication skills.

Mr. Harper teaches Social Studies.

Mr. Jurado recounts that he was reserved and quiet in high school. He enjoyed playing sports and participating in club activities like intramurals. "I was the only minority in the entire high school." He says his favorite authors were J.R.R.Tolkien, Edgar Allen Poe and Homer. The person he most admires though is his mother because as a single parent she raised him. She put him through college and she is his best friend. He likes working with ESOL students because they "are refreshing and eager to learn"!

Mr. Jurado is counselor for students with last names of Ll-O.

“I’ve always loved learning about different languages and cultures and I enjoy it when ESOL students come to the Media Center for projects. The various ways they use information show how different and alike we all are at the same time."

Perhaps we could have guessed that our new Principal Ms. Working was involved in lots of different clubs and activities when she was in high school. She was a cheerleader, served on the SGA, wrote for the student newspaper, was a member of the French and Latin Clubs, and was a member of chorus and the drama club. Wow! Her favorite classes were English, Latin, and Social Studies. She thought that she hated math in high school, but in college, she found out that she was really good at it. "I had simply been afraid of it in high school. I encourage everyone to take as much math as possible in high school." She loves to read science fiction. When she was in high school she loved Frank Herbert’s novel, Dune. She likes the novel, Ender’s Game by Orson Scott Card, because it is about teaching and learning. She really likes the poet Emily Dickinson too.

Ms. Working admires her grandmother, an immigrant from Italy, who only went to school to the sixth grade. When she was 12, her mother died and she went to work to help earn money. Later, she put herself and all of her children through high school and college. She became an elementary school principal. "I admire her because she didn't allow adversity to stop her from getting her education or having a happy life."

She loves working with ESOL students because they are so nice. She likes to learn about all their experiences before they came to the United States and Quince Orchard High School.

MORE TO COME!