Ms. Cinthia “Gaby” Mares (Taylor) loves working at Armijo and finds that it is worth the commute. “I could be working somewhere closer, since I live in Sacramento, but I’m drawn to Armijo’s culture,” she said. “Students here are very special to me and I’ve met incredible people. The administrators at Armijo are also awesome. It feels like a big family.”

One of her favorite memories is when a student who had graduated came back to thank her. “That is something I will never forget and will treasure forever,” she said. Ms. Mares loves helping to shape the future for her students and build amazing relationships with them.

“I never saw myself becoming a teacher,” she said. “For the longest time I wanted to pursue a criminal justice career. I changed my mind in college and I am happy with the decision I made.”

When she was a student, Ms. Mares was “super close” with her English teachers, which loops back why she chose to become an English teacher and why she likes to bond with her students.

While there have been many experiences at Armijo that she has enjoyed, she really liked the Silent Disco that was hosted by Armijo in 2019. She had so much fun and she said that it was great to watch how the students enjoyed it, too.

Distance learning has been tough but Ms. Mares acknowledged that it will be getting better and she is looking forward to going back to the classroom after Spring Break. It may be a while before we see anything like the Silent Disco again, but she is looking forward to making more memories with her students and the other incredible people she’s met on campus.