As past teachers and parents of students, the community concerns itself with the school’s outcome, especially after the huge shift in teaching staff.

Previous principal Carol Diaberl left the school due to a sudden desire for change and new experiences. Although she had chosen to move on, the goodbye was difficult for her to say.

“You don’t stay in one place without missing it. My experience was wonderful [at the school] and I really value my friendships I’ve made there. If I didn’t have an overwhelming sense of wanting change, I would have stayed for those friendships,” Diaberl said.

As one who has been through the leaving process, Diaberl can relate to the teachers that are saying farewell this year.

“When you’ve dedicated yourself to a place, you want to leave knowing you left it well,” Diaberl said.

Shawn Daley, former International Baccalaureate (IB) history and anthropology teacher, took a job as a college professor in 2010, mainly because it was 38 minutes from home. While this was satisfying for him, leaving the school meant saying goodbye to the many relationships he had made.

“I enjoyed teaching at Gresham. I used to call Mr. Winters my dad. In terms of family life, it was better to leave, but I miss the students [because of their] zany [personalities] and cranky moods. I miss hearing Mr. Lindblad’s voice down the hall. I miss seeing Mr. Winters at lunch and seeing Mrs. Levin and being across from Mrs. Childress’ room,” Daley said.

For Daley, the matter of teachers leaving should never feel like a burden on the students.

“Students should never feel bad that any particular teacher leaves, because there is still a great staff [here]. It is rare that any [teacher] would leave because of the students that we teach,” Daley said.

Anita Moss, a parent of two currently enrolled Gophers, views the teachers’ decision to leave as a fresh start.

“This could be an open career opportunity for newer or seasoned teachers to teach at the high school,” Moss said.

Overall, Moss embraces the school positively, even with the new change.

For Daley, these walls are a good foundation to start teaching, be in the middle of teaching or even end a teaching career.

“[The school] is a great place to work. Two of my students are taking jobs [here], showing how the market is changing from how it was a few years ago to what it used to be in 2004,” Daley said.
Although there are, according to Daley, great teachers leaving, the reputation of the school’s education system is still held high in the community’s eyes.