Written by CATS Students for CATS Students
By Wendy G. “I think you learn a lot more by traveling than you do anywhere else,” said Mr. Benny Martinez, a 9th-grade English teacher. Mr. Martinez has traveled all over the United States and to El Salvador. What he likes about being able to travel is that “I get to explore brand-new places” and meet new people. He says that his most memorable trip is going to Yellowstone two years ago because it was a dream of his to go. He said, “I got to see a lot of things I never got to see
By Jennifer R. Skateboarding is a culture that allows people to learn a lot about themselves by encouraging freedom and risk taking. Leo, a sophomore at CATs, recalls one of his favorite memories as a skateboarder: feeling the wind against him as he rode down a ramp for the first time. “I was introduced to it (skateboarding) by my cousin. I’ve been skating for 10, 11 years now,” he said. Growing up, Leo was inspired by famous skateboarder, Tony Hawk, who he states is his ideal skating role model. Through these inspirations, he was able to
By Jimena R. Every journey comes to an end, and for Mr. Cody Jacobson this is true with his time as a math teacher at CATS. Throughout his many years here, he has helped a lot of students with their assignments and has shared his cool soundtrack music with them, too. Mr. Jacobson left mid-semester on parental leave due to his wife giving birth to a beautiful baby boy and he returned mid-April before officially leaving on May 12. Following his short leave, Mr. Jacobson shared that “My daily routine took a second to get back into, but
By Karen O. Everyone knows who Ms. Maria is the campus aide at CATS. What most people don’t know about Ms. Maria, however, is that she has an identical twin sister. Ms. Maria said, “We’re the oldest, but I’m older than her for 15 minutes and her name is Ana Maria.” She continued saying, “She has her personality, I have my personality, she’s more quiet and more conservative, I’m more a people person and we’re two different people.” Ms. Maria said they both like opposite things and they are different in their own ways. While they
By Adin F. Most people don’t know that Andrew R., a senior at CATS, has a knack for designing clothes. When walking through a mall one day, looking for clothes, Andrew felt rather unsatisfied with the selection every brand offered. None of them seemed to fit his unique style or the price tag was unreasonable. Then it occurred to him: “I can just make it myself, and I can make it better myself.” Andrew was then determined to do so. When asked how he learned to design his own clothes, he said “I was self taught.
By Heyli G. Ms. Xiomara Sanchez Mara, a science teacher and department chair for science, became a teacher “because I truly believe my purpose in life is to help change lives.” She feels like teaching is the best way to influence someone or help to guide them through their life. Ms. Sanchez said that she has been a teacher for 3 years, but she has been at this for 5 almost 6 years. She shared she was a teacher assistant (or TA) for 2 years, a semester as a substitute teacher, and another semester working
Meet junior Perla R. who loves to sing.
By Joshua C., Mateo J., and Eric M. Three CATS students show off their skin art. Name: Mario S. Grade: 12th grade Pronouns: He/Him About the tattoo: “I got my tattoo about 2 months ago. My tattoo is a bird with a cross and it represents my grandma that passed away.” Name: Ms. Xiomara Sanchez Title: Environmental Studies, AP Environmental Studies and Freshman Seminar Teacher Pronouns: She/Her About the tattoo: Her tattoo is a daisy flower. It is the flower of the month of April. It means it is a symbol of friendship between her and
By Nimrod R. and Angel T. Ms. Grace McCullough gave birth to baby Luna Eztli Maria on September 28. Ms. Grace, who is a history teacher and chair of the UTLA chapter at CATS, went on maternity leave at the end of September. Long-term substitute Ms. Angel has been covering for her since then. Anthony G., a senior, said that Ms. Grace’s temporary departure was met with “mixed emotions.” “For me, the short departure of Ms. Grace is a sad experience as she always puts one hundred [percent] of her energy into her work,” he said.
By Arely V. and Jazmine A. “Just show up, prove that you can be of use to the club….We’ll gladly show you the ropes and call you one of our members.” NATHAN R., CATS JUNIOR Jonathan A., an 11th grader at CATS, one day dreamt of appearing in a school film and decided to make it a reality. So he founded a film club at CATS. When Jonathan returned from quarantine, he recalled the dream and reflected on it and thought, “Cool. What if I could actually make that happen?” With prior expertise in the field,