A new school year means new teachers — and in the Social Science department, a new teacher makes her way into the Clark lifestyle: Mrs. Samantha Fang. This year she is taking over the role Mr. Davis had previously taught for the past 24 years. Fang will be continuing to follow Davis’s curriculum “Mr. Davis was here from the beginning; he left a really big impact on Clark,” said Junior Vahag Matevosian. Matevosian went on to say that he misses being able to walk by Mr. Davis’s classroom. “I felt like I could just go to him for advice even when I didn’t have his class; he was always there,” said Junior Mariam Kakobyan.

Mrs. Fang had previously taught at a Charter school in Los Angeles, but had also wanted to teach at Clark. “My heart has always been with GUSD,” she said. Mrs. Fang attended Hoover High School as a teenager and had a lifeguarding job at Glendale High school. Her experience at Clark has been warm and welcoming. “Kids I don’t even have in my class wave to me in the hallway,” she added. To be at a small school with a warm heart is what makes her time enjoyable here. 

Mrs. Fang was inspired by a history teacher from her highschool at Hoover.“I was the biggest history nerd. All the history teachers loved me,” she said. Fang feels that in order to understand the way the world works, you have to understand the context. “I hope I can engage kids into history that were not previously interested in it,” she said. She hopes she can at least have them understand why other kids like history. That’s her major objective for the year.

When she’s off the clock, Mrs. Fang has other hobbies she enjoys doing. Her current favorite game to play is Clash Royale. She also enjoys going out, thrifting, going to farmers markets, hiking, and general outdoor activities — all while keeping her toddler occupied. For Fang, having outside of school activities is crucial. “A tip for my class is to take advantage of the time I give to work on things in class,” she said. Mrs. Fangwants people to enjoy her class, not build her lessons around too much homework.

Mrs. Fang wants everyone to know that her class welcomes them with open arms. She considers her students’ interests when making every decision. Her goal is to make sure every student knows History is a worthwhile subject to learn.