As the seniors begin to encroach the end of their high school journey, they finish with their final required class of US Government and Economics. However, the seniors would receive unexpected news that their teacher, Susan Taja, wouldn’t be able to show up to guide the seniors for their final weeks of their high school journey due to a personal injury.
“I just wish her the very best and I hope she’s doing well,” Taja’s student, Kyle Henderson (12), said.
To help guide the class to the very final weeks of the 2025-2026 school year, well-known substitute teacher, Kristin Gomez, takes control of the classes as the long-term substitute teacher of Taja’s classes. Gomez has a long history of leadership in her classes and even more long-term substituting experience at many different grade levels and schools.
“I have been subbing a long time, [almost] close to 20 years. I’ve done several long term assignments in different classrooms from kindergarten through high school,” Gomez said.
Gomez is a passionate substitute teacher who first got into the profession to have flexibility for her family life, as her kids attend Ayala High School. After getting the opportunity to substitute at Ayala, the same high school she once attended, the alumni has enjoyed the company of not only the staff, but the students as well.
“Substitute teaching has allowed me to play a small part in students’ education. I love subbing at Ayala. The students and staff are great,” Gomez said. “I enjoy subbing at Ayala because it’s where I actually came to high school, and it’s not too far from home.”
Having subbed for Taja’s classroom before, she has been familiar with the landscape and environment of the place. On top of that, the most crucial part of the year has passed. With AP exam testing coming to their end, Gomez finally has the ability to sit back and witness the seniors have the chance to make their last memories in high school.
“I look forward to coming to these classes every day,” said Gomez. “It does seem like the seniors are a little excited to be done with their school year. They’re ready for graduation, but they’re continuing to work hard on their projects.”
This same joy that Gomez has is shared among the students, who also enjoy her presence in the classroom. Even though the sudden shift might have caught the class off guard, Gomez has done a phenomenal job in reforming the similar environment the students were in before.
“It’s been pretty chill, to be honest,” Henderson said. “Ms. Gomez has done a great job to kind of balance the classroom out, even though we’re all kind of knuckleheads.”
With a great bond between the students and the teacher, Gomez not only keeps the classroom under control, but she even providing help and care to students in the classroom. This kind of personality is above and beyond what most substitutes would normally do, reflecting Gomez’s devotion to substitute teaching.
“Personally, I know Ms. Gomez, so it’s just been way better for me,” Taja’s student Sophia Ordorica (12) said. “I think that her actually trying to be a good fill-in and not really just a sub. She acts more like a teacher and she’s here every single day. So I think she’s really helpful and she really knows what we’re doing.”
As Gomez perseveres till the very end of the senior’s days, she still plans to keep on substituting for classes who are in dire need of a temporary teacher, especially here at the original school she once attended.
