California Continuation Education Association

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Sue Huff

Silverado High School, Fresno - District V
 

Sue Huff joined the staff of Silverado High School in 1977.  She served as a teacher/administrator for twenty-five years and was active in CCEA on a local, District and State level.  Sue was instrumental in developing Silverado’s rigorous adherence to a very strong English curriculum and fully implemented State Standards in her classes.  At all times, she provided an environment that was positive and student-centered and her curriculum plan and delivery were so organized that her students embraced the structure as specific steps to success. 

Throughout her years of service, Sue believed in the opportunities provided through CCEA and her WASC affiliations.  She particularly appreciated the collaborative relationship she had with other continuation schools in her area and eagerly shared the “Best Practices” she observed with Silverado High School staff and students. 

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Cathy Dahl-Kunkel

Lopez High School, Arroyo Grande - District VI
 

A very long time ago, in Wisconsin, my dad told me that whatever I decided to do with my life, work hard and do my best. I still live by this philosophy. I don't know any other way to be.

I have been blessed with many gifts in my life, the two greatest have been my family and my work. This year, I had a student enter the Writing Celebration. He won in the personal experience category by writing about a day that changed his life forever; I, too, have a day that changed my life forever. It was the day Long Beach State called me up and said that there was a job at something called a "Continuation School" in some place called Pismo Beach. I had no clue about either. That day changed everything. Lopez High School and its students have become my life.

For the past thirty-two years, I have had the most rewarding job in the world. How fortunate to have spent almost my entire teaching career at a continuation school. Some teachers and many others in local our communities have no clue as to how very wonderful that truly is. 

Of course we have challenges, and some difficult kids with equally difficult lives, that just comes with the territory. But every year, there's always those special kids that we all get, the ones that touch our hearts. The ones whose faces we'll never forget, the ones we hope we've helped. Helping them makes our job unique and incredibly important.

I have many people to thank for helping me learn to do my job better.

When I first came to Lopez, I joined a principal and staff who had set up the school and its philosophy. They taught me to work hard and to teach with heart. They also taught me that no matter what, always do what is best for the student.  These basics continue to guide my teaching.

CCEA has also helped me a great deal.  I can't tell you how many lessons, approaches, and materials I have gotten from the annual conference and incorporated into my classroom. From using tennis balls on the feet of my desks, to reading the books of Marilyn Reynolds - her books are by far the most popular in my reading classes - to using Hip Hop Poetry - thank you, Alan Sitomer, CCEA has had a terrific impact on my teaching.  The conversations between sessions with other teachers who deal with the same issues I deal with, never cease to amaze me and I would like to thank all of you.  

Teaching is an amazing, on-going process, and I am very proud to be a part of it.

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