PeteTittl has spent 28 years as a teacher, with one year with Santa Barbara Business College and 27 with the Kern High School District. He taught for three years at South High and was one of the original staff that opened Liberty in 1999. He has been a yearbook adviser for 27 straight years, and has always taught 10 GATE English, as well as freshmen, seniors and literacy over the years. His retirement plans are in flux.
“I always felt privileged to teach at a school like Liberty with so many talented teachers around me and so many great students over the years dedicated to making our yearbooks special,” Mr. Tittl said
Linda Brown has been a teacher for 38 years, spending 23 years in the Kern High School District and 15 at the East Side Union School District in the Bay Area. Ms. Brown plans to travel and paint landscapes, work in her garden, and spend time with family.
“I love teaching and my students, but it’s time for me to do other things,” Ms. Brown said. She added, “I’m happy that Sarah Hanh, my former student and a Liberty alum, will be taking over. I know she will do well.”
Matthew Smith has spent 32 years teaching: 2.5 in Utah, 7.5 in New Zealand, and 22 in California with 15 years at Liberty. Mr. Smith is New Zealand-born and was raised in the native maori culture, even dancing at the Polynesian Culture Center in Hawaii. He was inspired to go to college from a high school job: working with his father and brothers in a sheep and beef slaughterhouse.
His plans for retirement include part time work outside of teaching, travel, a church mission with his wife Lucinda and “Lots of time with our 13 grandchildren, all in other states.”