An Interview With Some of Our New Middle School Teachers

Written By Peyton Bittle '30:

At Saint Edward's, there are many middle school teachers. For some, this is their first year, and others have been here for many years. Most students don’t think about what teachers like to do outside of school, but teachers have hobbies like we do. They were happy to share them with me. Here is what they had to say: 

Mrs. Rojas is a new middle school Spanish teacher this year. She teaches seventh-grade Spanish and told me, “I like to spend time with my family. I also like to travel, and I like to go on walks with my dog.” 

Mrs. Van Hest was a teacher from 1990 to 2005 and taught psychology, sociology and world cultures. Mrs. Van Hest stated, “I am an avid tennis player. I play at least three times a week and in the past, coached here at Saint Edward's. I have two Mini Goldendoodles that I take to the beach every morning at 6:00 a.m. I’m a big reader, and I love to write. I thoroughly enjoy teaching seventh-grade English, and I also teach sociology to the upper school students.”  

Mrs. Newman has been at Saint Edward's since 2017, joining the middle school faculty last year, and is the sixth and seventh-grade English teacher. She told me, “I love to go to concerts with my family, the beach, gardening and reading. My dog Gibson and I enjoy long walks around the neighborhood. My goal for the year is to learn pickleball.” 

Mr. Soltic is the seventh-grade history teacher who has also been at Saint Edward's since last year. He said, “I really love to travel. I have been to 16 countries and 5 continents just this year. I enjoy watching fútball (soccer in the U.S.) and refereeing it. I also like to camp with my family and edit videos.” 

All of our teachers enjoy spending time with their families and take pleasure in their hobbies. Mr. Soltic likes to watch fútbol, Mrs.Rojas likes to travel, Mrs. Van Hest enjoys playing tennis and Mrs. Newman loves going to concerts. Our seventh-grade teachers all like to have fun outside of their jobs just like how we all like to do outside of school!