My first teaching job in New Mexico

In August 1992, I switched careers and moved to New Mexico! It was quite a monumental year!

I had been in newspapering for three-plus years and with the economy hurting was having difficulty finding a job at a larger newspaper. A college friend of mine who lived in the Southwest convinced me to apply for a teaching job there, and I did. The school principal interviewed me by phone on a Thursday, offered me a job on Friday, and told me school started on Tuesday!

So I packed up everything and drove to my new home - Deming, New Mexico. It is very close to the Mexico border and in the desert. It was quite a culture shock!

I taught English and journalism there. The first here, I taught grades 9-12 at both the middle and the high school. The second year, I taught grades 8-9 at the middle school.

I am still friends today with many of the students I taught all those years ago!