Lisa Koppenjan is a well known name on campus as she is a key part of the English Department here at Dos Pueblos High School. Known for her eccentric attitude in class and providing a safe space on campus for numerous Dos Pueblos students, Koppenjan is a unique and well-loved teacher. She has been teaching at DP for 15 plus years, and each year she always finds a way to connect with her students.

Koppenjan teaches both English 10 and AP Literature at DP. Even from a young age she knew what it was that she wanted to pursue.

“I always knew I wanted to be a teacher, like I remember as a little kid sitting in class and being like, ‘I’m not going to do it that way when I’m a teacher, or, oh, I like that, I’m going to do it that way when I’m a teacher,” Koppenjan said.

Originally planning to teach at the college level as a professor, Koppenjan attended Humboldt State University and then UCSB. However, Koppenjan landed a job as a high school English teacher and believes it was where she was meant to be.

“I suspected I would enjoy high school as much as college and now looking back on it, I think I probably enjoy it more. I really like teaching high school, so I think that it was probably for the best that I ended up here. Like, life has a way of doing that. Landing you where you were meant to land in the first place.”

Additionally, Koppenjan feels as though she creates more meaningful connections with her high school students than she would’ve with the college students. Class time in H-31 is always a collaborative work space, where Ms. Koppenjan provides an inclusive environment.

“You get to have more interaction with them on a personal level. College students come in, and they’re more like an ID number to the professor.”

A continued tradition in Koppenjan’s class is her start-of-class warm ups, which contribute to her class’s sense of community. One of these warmups is the bird call warmup where her class can be heard mimicking silly bird calls from the infamous bird call book.

“Swapping stories, doing silly openers. That kind of thing is what makes it fun,” Koppenjan said.

Outside of school, Koppenjan enjoys a variety of ‘granny core’ activities for fun. Some of these include baking, gardening, pottery, reading, and watching K-dramas.

“Anything that you think an eighty year old grandmother would enjoy is what I enjoy right now. Anything that’s puttering around the house and yard is what I like to do,” Koppenjan said.

From a young age Koppenjan explored her creative side through baking, reading, and spending time in the great outdoors of Humboldt County where she grew up.

“It’s really important for me to have creative expression. I’m the kind of person that has to produce something. That’s why I like baking cakes or cookies. You’ve created something. Same with gardening. I’ve landscaped my whole backyard, so I’ve produced a backyard that’s beautiful,” Koppenjan said.

In addition, Koppenjan emphasized her love for reading and writing, especially as a child, among her several other creative outlets.

“It was always English. That’s my passion. I just love stories,” Koppenjan said.