Dos Pueblos High School Librarian Heather Magner is retiring after this school year. Magner has taught at DPHS for over 24 years and was a librarian for the past 10 years.
“The thing I [will] miss the most is the kids,” Magner said. “You guys are the fountain of youth a little for us old people.”
Before working at DPHS, Magner began her career teaching second grade in the Long Beach Unified School District.
“I thought they’d be tiny babies,” Magner said. “No, they didn’t miss a trick. They were amazing humans and just got everything right. You know, [they] could read the room, just on top of their games.”
After 12 years of teaching in Long Beach, Magner found herself teaching at Vista de las Cruces School in Gaviota. There, she taught seventh and eighth grade students. After a year, she was interviewed by the Santa Barbara Unified School District and received a call from the DPHS principal of the time, Dave Cash, who wanted to hire her.
Throughout Magner’s teaching career, she has taught grades second through twelfth, and she is now concluding her final year at DPHS as a librarian.
“I was just talking with Mr. Gleason when he was here for the art show,” Magner said. “We were feeling like, ‘Wow, this is gonna be sad.’ We thought we’d have this ‘Oh, I can’t wait’ excitement that I’m not feeling. I’m feeling more like this is going to be a big change.”
DPHS Art Teacher Kevin Gleason is retiring from teaching after this school year. He has been teaching for 26 years and is currently teaching a range of art classes, from Freehand Drawing to Advanced Placement Studio Art Drawing and International Baccalaureate Art.
“I’m retiring from teaching, but I’m too young to retire,” Gleason said. “I’m going to be a full time artist — I’m a landscape painter. I show [artwork] in town here and sell my paintings. I grew up in Tahoe, so I paint a lot in the Sierras, in the mountains, and here on the Central Coast.”
One of Gleason’s students, Kate Mebane (12), has taken his art classes since her freshman year.
“He’s just a great person and really wonderful to be around and wonderful to have a class with,” Mebane said. “He has this really infectious energy and love for art, which is really powerful.”
Gleason’s favorite part of his job is seeing students independently “developing their own style and technique” in his class.
“Sometimes, we’re doing almost the same assignment, like we’re drawing a still life or something,” Gleason said. “It’s just so fun for me to see how many different approaches there are and the personality of those students coming out in their work.”
Gleason said he holds the belief that “there is always another level” to art, and he is looking to apply this to his future.
”You only live once,” Gleason said. “Art’s very important to me, and so I really want to see what I’m capable of and see what happens if I put my full time and energy in to see what I can create.”
Now almost 50 years old, Gleason has been drawing and improving his artistic abilities for his whole life.
“I’ve loved to draw ever since I was little,” Gleason said. “I was just the kid that was always drawing in class, and my friends and I would, when it got too hot to play outside, we lay on the patio and draw.”
Gleason said he has possessed an interest in art for his whole life and often discovers the same passion in his students.
“Anybody can learn to draw or paint,” Gleason said. “If there’s anything people are born with, it’s the interest. The interest makes you spend time on it, and time is what makes you get good at it.
Gleason sells his art on his website. Additionally, he shows his art at Waterhouse Gallery and has occasional open studios as well as scheduled studio visits.
“It’s been a tough decision,” Gleason said. “It’s really bittersweet. I’m realizing how much I’m gonna miss it.”
