She’s lived everywhere from Guatemala to Indonesia and was the star volleyball player, but now she has made GRHS her home, stripped off the knee-pads, and put on her teaching cap. Mrs. Kennett, the AP Spanish IV teacher, is today’s featured teacher.
Q: What do you like to do outside of school, as in things to do with family and hobbies?
A: “Let’s see… I’ve got two kids; Carmen is 8 and J.J. is 6, and my husband, and outside of school we like to do things together; we like to do things together as a family.”
Q: Can you tell me about your ethnic background? Was Spanish your first language?
A: “Spanish was my first language; I learned English when I was 7. My father is full-bred American, and my mother is Guatemalan. I was born in Guatemala, and we actually lived overseas my entire life.”
Q: Tell me more about your travels. Where have you lived?
A: “My dad was a U.S. diplomat, so when I was 7 we left Guatemala and moved to Washington D.C. for three and a half years. From Washington D.C. we moved to Cairo, Egypt for another three and a half years. From Cairo, Egypt we moved to Costa Rica for five years. From Costa Rica, we went to Indonesia and lived there for two years in Jakarta. I graduated high school from Jakarta International School and went to school at the University of Massachusetts for two years, and transferred down to Loyola in New Orleans, graduated from there, during which time my parents were living in Nicaragua and Honduras and Peru, and now they live in Guatemala.”
Q: Where has been your favorite place to live?
A: “They each have something so special, they really do, every single one is very special, so I couldn’t pick one because each one was a totally different part of my life, and I just wouldn’t be able to pick one.”
Q: What has been your favorite memory of high school?
A: “My favorite memory of high school was in Indonesia, probably my senior year of high school, was just having made it through four years and having had such a great four years. It just all culminated that year. You know, you work so hard to get to that final moment and just finally walking down the aisle and receiving a diploma.”
Q: So, I understand you were in volleyball. Tell me about your volleyball experiences.
A: “Oh, I loved volleyball! I played volleyball through middle school, high school, a little bit of college and was MVP for Southeast Asian-American Schools my senior year. My nickname on the court was ‘Butch’, yes ‘Butch’, because when you saw me in the hallways at school I was always prim and proper; my hair was in its place, make-up in its place. I always looked well groomed, but the minute I hit the court my hair was in a ponytail, the make-up was off, the knee-pads were on, and if the ball was going in the bleachers, that’s where I was going head first; I had no fear. So yeah, my nickname was ‘Butch.’”
Q: How did you decide that you wanted to be a Spanish teacher?
A: “I knew I wanted to teach. A Spanish teacher…I really love where my roots are, and Spanish opened so many doors for me and my career previous to being a teacher and I really wanted to share that and, you know, make students realize that learning a foreign language isn’t just about getting credit, but it can actually open doors for you that not having another language would open for you, and I just love teaching.”
Q: Is there a reason why you picked George Ranch opposed to any other school?
A: “Yes, because first of all, look at George Ranch. How can you not love looking at this school? And the opportunity to open a school, to be the first AP Spanish teacher was an opportunity that I didn’t know would come around again and you’ve got to seize those opportunities when you’re given them, so that’s why I picked it.”
She began as a volleyball champ and transformed into a Spanish IV wizard. Hopefully Mrs. Kennett is done living around the world and has made George Ranch her permanent home.