For Jayleen Guajardo, her high school experience hasn’t been entirely typical. As a senior at her high school, she has faced a unique struggle: navigating four years with inconsistent access to full-time teachers. This challenge has shaped both her academic journey and her personal growth, leaving a lasting impact on how she views education.
“There was always that one teacher missing,” Guajardo recalls, sitting in the school library, her thoughts drifting back to her freshman year.
“In my first year, we didn’t have a human geography teacher. We had a substitute until Christmas break, and then another substitute who told us, ‘You’re not going to pass the AP exam because it’s too late in the year.’ It was frustrating,” Guajardo said.
The lack of continuity in her classes meant that Guajardo, along with her peers, struggled to keep up with the demanding AP curriculum. Substitute teachers, though friendly and approachable, didn’t always provide the level of instruction needed for the students to succeed.
“The substitutes were nice,” she says. “They were easy to talk to, but they didn’t teach fully. For example, in human geography, the replacement teacher would give us assignments but be very laid-back. He came in halfway through the year and didn’t seem worried about preparing us for the AP exam.”
This experience, Guajardo notes, wasn’t limited to her freshman year. Throughout high school, teacher shortages remained a constant challenge, with the lack of core subject instructors proving to be particularly difficult.
Missing AP teachers didn’t feel quite as significant as missing core subject teachers, but there was still a lingering feeling of being underprepared.
“We didn’t have a free period or anything, but the work we did felt disconnected. There was no pressure about a final exam, and we didn’t get all the information we needed,” she says.
As she enters her senior year, Guajardo has a renewed sense of hope, particularly with the arrival of a new principal. As senior class president, she’s had the opportunity to share ideas for upcoming events and was excited by the principal’s enthusiasm.
“I introduced myself to him, and he was excited about what we had to say,” Guajardo shares with a smile. “He even said, ‘The crazier, the better,’ which really resonated with me. It feels like this year might finally be different.”
Despite the hurdles, Guajardo remains optimistic. This final year, she says, is about making the most of what’s left, forging memories that will outlast the ups and downs of her high school career. Her resilience, built through years of inconsistent teaching staff, has shaped her into a stronger, more determined student leader.
“I just want to make this year special,” she says. “We’ve been through so much, but that doesn’t mean we can’t have a great senior year.”
As graduation approaches, Guajardo reflects not just on what she missed but also on what she gained: a sense of perseverance and an ability to adapt in the face of uncertainty. “It wasn’t easy, but it taught me a lot about being flexible and making the best out of every situation,” she says.
And for Guajardo, those lessons are just as valuable as any she might have learned in a classroom.
