Substitute teacher Helen Wagner waved goodbye to students as she completed her four-month task of teaching AP Chemistry on Nov. 18. After Chemistry Teacher and Science Department Chair Anie Robinson went on maternity leave at the beginning of the school year, Wagner stepped in to teach the class.
Wagner first started her career working as an analytical chemist evaluating artificial sweetener sucralose for Johnson & Johnson. Later, she accepted a job at Campbell Soup Co., where she managed and performed necessary tests in compliance with new regulations on nutritional facts.
As Wagner’s children got older and started attending junior high, she wanted to take a job that allowed her more flexibility.
“I had my kids and family and you don’t get a whole lot of time off when you work in that industry,” she said.
Since then, she earned her teaching credentials at California State University, Fullerton and has taught for 22 years. Over this extensive teaching career, Wagner said she has never been a part of a community like Sage Hill.
“The students here are amazing, dedicated, kind, and very welcoming. I feel like the environment here is almost like a community college, where they trust students to show up and engage with the class,” she said.
Wagner’s dedication and enthusiasm for teaching were evident in her lectures, where she always came prepared with extra resources and new ways to explain difficult topics.
“After I switched to AP Chemistry almost a month into the school year, I was extremely behind. However, Mrs. Wagner always stayed after school to answer my questions and gave me resources to help me catch up,” sophomore Linda Liu said.
Linda also mentioned a highlight of the class was when Wagner set up a self-carving pumpkin experiment. In front of festive students, Wagner set up reactions with calcium carbide inside a pumpkin to explode parts of its shell out.
While Wagner was sad to leave her students, she looked forward to trips with her husband planned. Next year, the couple plans on walking the Camino in Portugal, a 165-mile journey from Porto, Portugal to Santiago de Compostela, Spain. Afterward, they plan to spend a month in Scotland.
As Robinson steps back into the classroom and continues teaching, Sage Hill will miss Wagner’s cheerful personality and dedication to her students.
