John Fisher to teach 9th grade humanities

John Fisher attained a BA in Philosophy from UC Santa Cruz in 2001, and an MA in Composition and Reading from San Francisco State in 2005, for which he won the departmental distinction award.

John was passionately teaching writing to college students before joining the High Tech High faculty on the San Diego campus last fall. Immersed with his students at High Tech High, he is also currently finishing his secondary teaching credential in both English and History from the High Tech High Graduate School of Education. Watch video and learn more about this exciting new program here.

Project based learning is an exciting way to prepare students to excel in a college environment. Writing for real audiences in real contexts changes everything. Having your work on public display creates incentives to reflect and refine like no other context, and that helps to create not only beautiful student work, but beautiful teaching.

John brings his varied passions to his students, and enjoys learning from them as much as he enjoys teaching them. Under the larger scope of "the Humanities" John gets his students excited about the connections between past and present - the larger historical trends and what's happening around them today. In teaching the relevance of ancient philosophy to their daily lives, he encourages them to express those relationshiops as "sentence ninjas."

John looks forward to the magnificent four season opportunities for exploring the natural world of Southwest Colorado with his wife and co-teacher, Lori Fisher. Between studies and teaching, John has lived and studied in a Hindu ashram in India, worked on a reforestation project in Costa Rica, learned to scuba dive in Bali, and has been a tour manager for the band Dredg.

Read about Michael Ackerman, Head of School.

Lori Fisher - 9th Grade Humanities

Lori Fisher joined the High Tech High educational community in 2007 and currently teaches 10th grade humanities at High Tech High Media Arts. She will be teaching 9th grade humanities for Animas High School.

Lori earned a bachelors degree in Peace and Conflict Studies from the University of California, Berkeley, and a Masters in Education from Stanford University's STEP Program.

Berkeley and Stanford have given me an amazing education, a passion for politics and peace, and a deep belief in the global connections between individuals and societies. Contrary to popular predictions by naysayers, I had no problem at all finding a job with my obscure degree in Peace and Conflict Studies. I worked as a State Coalition Organizer (read grant writer and lobbyist) at YouthBuild USA before deciding to pursue graduate work in education as it became my passion.

Lori naturally brings a global perspective to the design of her humanities projects - including courses in Identity, Globalization and Politics - from study abroad in Chile and work in Thailand where she obtained her SCUBA certification as a dive master. She is leading San Diego 10^th graders to Thailand in March during their spring break.

Lori and her husband, John Fisher, who is also a High Tech High teacher, will both play an important role in Animas High’s emergence as a “high tech high” school.

I look forward to working with your new head of school, Michael Ackerman, bringing my expertise and experience with project design to a new context. In addition to my experience with a diverse array of students learning through project-based education, I also bring Animas High my experience mentoring teachers who may be new to this model. John and I are looking forward to moving to Durango!

Board hires Michael Ackerman as Head of School

After a national search for its first Head of School, the Animas High Board has selected Michael Ackerman of Prescott, Arizona, from an impressive field of candidates.

“Michael stood out for many reasons. For such a young man, Michael brings a remarkable breadth of experience in educational leadership and business acumen,” said Jim Judge, professor emeritus at Fort Lewis College. “We told him he’d have to hit the ground running and he’s doing exactly that. He is a ball of fire - exactly what’s needed in developing a school as ambitious and ‘out of the box’ as Animas High School will be.”

Michael’s “can do” approach has been forged in the trenches of both public and private education. After earning his Bachelor of Arts from Prescott College, Ackerman was pursuing graduate studies at the University of New Hampshire when he was recruited by the Conway New Hampshire School District to restructure an alternative high school program. Instead of revamping, Michael recommended the creation of an entirely new program which he designed and implemented - The Tributaries Alternative Education Program.

Michael next joined a small group of talented educators in the creation of a college prep boarding school adjacent to the White Mountains National Forest. Wearing the hats of administrator and curriculum designer, he developed a marketing and enrollment plan and oversaw the creation of the four season outdoor adventure program for The Oliverian School, designed for “Bright Students with Lots of Potential.”

Michael returned to Arizona’s sunshine when offered a chance to be Director of Programs at Learn Outdoors in Prescott specializing in experiential education. Quickly rising to be CEO of this entrepreneurial non-profit, Michael developed a business plan based on public and private business partnerships to ensure that schools are able to provide students with outdoor Project Based Learning programs they would otherwise forego because of staff limitations.

All of this adds up to Michael being a perfect fit for our school and our community. We know that he and his wife are a wonderful match for all that Durango has to offer. Michael relaxes by playing in a jazz band and looks forward to sharing his love of music with AHS students. His passion for snowboarding has taken him across North America’s mountains as a professional ski patroller, avalanche educator, sponsored backcountry rider and off-piste guide. His adventure writing and photography have appeared in publications nationwide.

To learn more about Animas High School's model, read Bill Gates speech to the National Governor's Association - “America’s High Schools are Obsolete”

Bill and Melinda Gates join Oprah on a visit to High Tech High, San Diego