Hannah Bartlett joins South Salem High School as a brand new chemistry and biology teacher. This is Bartlett’s first year as a part-time educator, and she can be found teaching at school on Monday afternoons and all day Wednesdays and Fridays.
The Journey to Being an Educator
Bartlett was homeschooled until her freshman year at Siuslaw High School in Florence, Oregon. She attended George Fox University for her undergraduate degree and got a bachelor’s degree in biology there. She worked both in a research lab and in the medical field before attending Western Governors University, where she received a master’s degree in secondary education. Although Bartlett initially planned to be a travel nurse or a researcher, she pivoted her focus after receiving her undergraduate degree and decided that teaching was her true passion. With this decision, she graduated from Western Governors University and went on to get her teaching license and worked as a student teacher in Gaston, Oregon. Bartlett was then a substitute teacher for three years before teaching at South Salem High School this year.
Bartlett’s love of teaching began as a student in high school.
“When I was in high school, I found I really liked helping my friends prepare for their assignments and teaching them concepts that they didn’t understand in class,” said Bartlett.
She continued to tutor her friends throughout college as well.
“I always loved seeing them become confident in something that before they had thought would be too overwhelming or confusing for them.”
This Year So Far
There is no doubt Bartlett enjoys what she teaches. She chose to teach chemistry and biology because they are beneficial foundations to understanding the world around us. She enjoys teaching high schoolers because of their ability to understand more complex topics.
“Both biology and chemistry are so cool because they literally involve everything around us, and it’s easy to see the applications of both subjects to our everyday lives, even if people don’t decide to pursue these subjects in their future careers. I’ve always enjoyed figuring out how the world around us works, and it’s fun to see students start figuring that out too!”
After working as a substitute in the district, Bartlett became intrigued to work at South Salem High School recalling, “When I was here for an interview and met some of the staff, many of them told me how much they like this school compared to other schools where they had worked, so I was excited to take the job when it was offered!”
Even with less than a month into the school year, Bartlett already enjoys her time at South as a new teacher.
“I have really liked it so far! The students have been great, and the staff have been super helpful and supportive, which is great for a new teacher like me.”
As Bartlett continues to work at South, she has goals she would like to work toward. She not only wants to help build students’ confidence in science, but make sure it is a fun and interesting subject as well. Additionally, she wants to make sure every student is seen and welcomed within her classes.
Get to Know Ms. Bartlett
Outside of teaching, Bartlett has proven to be dedicated to her hobbies. She loves animals and owns a pet-sitting business alongside her partner. Bartlett also enjoys volleyball, and achieved 5th place with her women’s doubles partner out of 64 teams at the annual Seaside sand volleyball tournament. If there is a need to contact Bartlett about any questions or concerns, emailing her at bartlett_hannah@salkeiz.k12.or.us would be the best way to do so.
