Getting a look in the inner (unit) circle: head of department Geddes
Ms. Geddes helping a student (Henry Miller / The Puma Prensa)
By Henry Miller, Staff Writers
Everyone reading this has taken a math class, whether they liked it or not. Math is a core element of the American education system, taking up roughly 25% of elementary school's learning time, and three to four years in high school. Geddes, our math department head, is a strong player in the math that happens behind the scenes. Geddes' skills, ranging from teaching algebra to running endless meetings, truly enrich our school's math program.
So what's so special about math here at Maria Carrillo? Our math department consists of only female teachers, with Geddes at the head. She stated that she is "lucky to be leading all of these women and working with them." As a lot of students have observed, the math teachers have a great team dynamic, and you can often catch math teachers Christensen, Yancey, and Geddes hanging out during lunch in their rooms. Here at Carrillo, we offer all three Integrated Math courses as well as Precalculus, AP Statistics, AP Pre-calculus, AP Calculus AB, Financial Math, Sports Statistics, as well as other classes stemming from the integrated courses such as SGI.
This year, Geddes has taken up Integrated Math 3 for the first time ever. Along with one period of that, she teaches four periods of Integrated Math 2, which is the average sophomore level math class. She recalled that her favorite class to teach is Math 2 because she "loves geometry".
She recollected that her inspiration to teach came from her two favorite teachers in high school who taught English and history. They majorly "influenced me to go into teaching." Students at Carrillo also recall that Geddes has inspired them. Nora Sitton, sophomore, described that Geddes "encourages me to work hard" and "motivates me to lead my table group."
Not only does Geddes teach, but she also has learned a lot from being head of the department. She expressed that she's learned "a lot about patience" in a teaching environment with kids at different levels of comfort and understanding. She has also learned how to "meet kids where they are on a day to day basis." Working with students has helped her gain knowledge on how to manage and help all different skill levels and strengths.
Speaking of strengths, she likes to brag about her hidden talent of fantasy sports where she wins in her "husband's leagues and multiple of my friends' leagues." Any of her students know that she also loves to post on TikTok, where she posts funny and relatable teaching content.
Freshman Sierra London expressed that Geddes "always brings a positive attitude into the classroom" and that her "sarcastic nature makes math more tolerable." Sophomore Maeve Hawkins stated that Geddes is "always very welcoming to me" and that "she makes math engaging." Sophomore Carter Myers, who is in her first ever Integrated Math 3 class observed that "she teaches the class at a steady pace and makes sure to answer questions fully."
Outside of the classroom, she is a very involved mother. Her preferred way to spend time out of class is to "hang out with my kids." Her favorite things to do with them are "walk to the park" and "build magnet tiles." She hopes to continue teaching until her son gets to high school, which will be another ten years.
Geddes hopes to "continue to grow my teaching abilities" throughout the next few years. Her main goal through teaching is to remain as department head and help our math program continue to advance. Reach out to her over email or visit her in E1 if you have any questions about math here at Carrillo.