Earlier this week I got the chance to interview our wonderful Santaluces photo technology teacher, Ms. Ardner. She teaches Photoshop and Premiere Pro, and she also runs the schools photography club. I asked her a few questions about her personal and work life so that we can get to learn more about her.
I started off by asking why she started teaching.
She says that she has always wanted to teach since she was young, originally aspiring to be an art teacher. She adds that in 7th-8th grade she had to create a biography for herself on an assignment and wrote about how she wanted to be an art teacher, showing just how far back her passion for teaching goes.
But this left me wondering, why is she the photo technology teacher now rather than an art teacher?
She says that throughout college she worked in photo labs selling cameras and such, and once she moved to Florida she worked at another photo lab since she had prior experience. She also did digital merchandising for Forever 21 which led to her working at the JC Penny Portrait Studio in the church division, working as a traveling photographer for churches across South Florida. She then got the role of a studio manager during her second year out of college. But whilst doing all of this, she started working as a substitute teacher and when the school started a visual arts academy, she was asked for an interview and became the photo technology teacher.
Next, I asked her if she ever wanted to do anything else besides teaching.
She said that even though she always wanted to be an art teacher, she majored in business in college for two years before getting accepted into her college art program.
Then I asked about her hobbies.
She says she likes to hang out with her dog Tiki and its best friend Meatball. She likes to go to the beach and paddle board and she loves to travel and take photos. She says that her favorite places to travel are Cuba, Portugal, Spain, Hawaii and California.
Finally, I closed off the interview with a fun question, “What inspires the way you dress?”
She tells me that “A classic, vintage, beachy style, ” inspires the way she dresses. She takes classic pieces and mixes in beachy elements. She also likes to find ideas on Pinterest. She adds that she also loves to thrift, and has thrifted ever since she was in high school!
