Gallery • 1 Photos

Ninth and 11th grade English teacher, avid reader, creative writer. Hiker, frequent weightlifter, registered yoga teacher, gastronome. The list goes on, yet together, they conjoin to form the central identity of Lynbrook’s new English teacher Dena Zlotziver. 

Despite being credentialed in English and teaching English to Cupertino High School students in 2012, Zlotziver briefly left CHS to work as an activities director at Willow Glen High School, where she was in charge of all school activities. Though this role was enjoyable for her, she realized her true love for teaching English. Determined to teach English again, she joined FUHSD once again as a Middle College teacher teaching seniors Contemporary Literature for six years in De Anza College until the end of June 2024.

“It’s cool teaching a more diverse population of students from across the whole district,” Zlotziver said. “There are fewer students at Middle College. I had about 60 students, as opposed to having a full 5-period schedule with around 150 students.”  

Determined to work her way back into a traditional high school and having her own room within the school, Zlotziver returns to a FUHSD high school to teach freshmen and junior Vikings literature. She now works with Lynbrook’s team of English teachers, learning and adapting teaching techniques from them. With influence from her time teaching in Middle College, Zlotziver aimed to still recreate the collaborative environment she was used to, incorporating self-reflection activities and growth mindset into her curriculum. 

“I missed the buzz of a high school campus where there are events, extracurricular activities, spirit and more people around,” Zlotsiver said. “I missed being able to teach more than just one class. Teaching at Middle College and high schools comes with its own set of benefits, but I’ve been in Middle College for a while, and I felt ready for a change, so I’m really excited.”

From enjoying books of vastly different genres to learning pickleball and running races, Chemistry Honors and Chemistry teacher Anita Wu joins Lynbrook, where she hopes to bring scientific passion to her students and share the knowledge she accumulated throughout her career. 

Wu started out her career in education by working as an adjunct professor at Rutgers University’s pharmacy school, where she gained experience in mentoring college pharmacy students. However, she was also interested in teaching younger students who did not have much experience in the scientific world, and aimed to inspire their interests in science. Wu headed back to Teachers College at Columbia University for her Master of Science education. She loved the program and has strengthened her teaching career ever since. 

Her teaching career started in the suburbs of New Jersey, before moving to the west coast in 2007 where she became an AP Chemistry teacher for the Harker School summer camp. Afterward, she taught at Fremont High School for 13 years, before coming to Lynbrook. 

Wu took interest and decided to join as a chemistry teacher when given the opportunity for the 2024-25 school year. “There was a really good opportunity for me to join this year,” Wu said. “And I said, ‘Why not?’” 

“I’ve heard a lot of amazing things about the Lynbrook teaching staff and administration and the students actually like when I first started teaching out here in 2008,” Wu said. “I met an alumni chemistry teacher at Lynbrook and Roy Roland. I like the positivity that everyone I’ve talked to conveyed to me about how they really enjoy either going to that school as a student or being part of the Lynbrook teaching team.” 

Being an educator for more than two decades, Wu is confident that she can bring something new into the classroom. Her background in teaching pharmacy and healthcare, as well as working in a corporate environment and hospitals, gives her the ability to relate concepts to the real world. Wu strives to incorporate her experiences in the chemistry field and show the real-life applications of chemistry to her students. 

Wu’s goals for this year are to highlight persistence, growth mindset, collaboration and public speaking inside her classroom. Through the class, Wu aims to increase scientific literacy among her students as they view headlines in the news or media and teach them to self-evaluate if the text is truly credible. 

“Life is a marathon, not a sprint, and there may be ups and downs when you start taking the class,” Wu said.  “But in the end, we’ll all get there in the journey, and it’ll be well worth it. Keep moving forward, even if you’re taking baby steps and things get really tough.”

From teaching in her home country of Mexico to journeying across borders to teach in California, Hortencia Valezco holds many unique experiences that have led up to her role as Lynbrook’s new Spanish teacher. 

Valezco grew up in Veracruz, a Mexican state nestled along the Gulf of Mexico. There, she attended school for primary and secondary education. For university, Valezco decided to attend Autonomous University in the smaller state of Tlaxcala in pursuit of better educational opportunities and career prospects in teaching. 

Initially, Valezco considered two career options: medicine and teaching. Ultimately, she decided to become a teacher because of her passion for education and the numerous resources available for teachers in Mexico. 

“My teachers made learning fun and easy for me,” Valezco said. “They inspired me because of their teaching methods, patience, knowledge and everything else they did.”

One year before graduating from university, Valezco started teaching part-time at a middle school in Tlaxcala. Valezco then went on to teach English and Spanish literature at Mexican middle school for 18 years. In 2004, the California government sent out applications to Mexico for the Exchange Visitor Program for teachers, which gave job opportunities to foreign teachers to teach in California school districts. Taking interest in the program, Valezco applied and was selected. 

Since then, Valezco has been an active teacher in various Bay Area school districts. She started teaching Spanish at Eastside Union School District before moving to Campbell Union High School District. After working in CUHSD, she taught at Capuchino High School in San Mateo. However, due to the long commute to San Mateo, Valezco left the school in hopes of exploring more local teaching opportunities, leading her to Lynbrook. 

“When I started reading statistics on Lynbrook’s AP and foreign language programs, I was very impressed,” Valezco said. “And after I got to meet the people here, I was even more drawn to the school.” 

Valezco hopes to connect with her students and build a supportive classroom environment in her AP Spanish and Spanish 1 classes this year. By forming good relationships with her students, she hopes to see her students perform well and succeed. 

“I try to be aware of how my students are feeling,” Valezco said. “I try to be considerate and fair to my students regarding grades. I like to set routines in my classroom and talk about my expectations for them but also their expectations for me.”

In her free time, Valezco enjoys gardening, often spending two to three hours maintaining her garden every Saturday morning. She also loves going to the movies and reading Spanish and English literature. This year, she hopes to help her students grow, feel confident in their learning of Spanish and be able to indulge within Spanish film and culture.

“My intention is to contribute to the growth and progress of my students,” Valezco said. “I’m going to make sure that my students will actually learn. For my AP students, that means I want to prepare them so that they feel confident about taking the final AP test.”

With 18 years of teaching experience, specializing in special education, Gene Pak has dedicated his time and efforts into helping students succeed in adulthood. This year, after being motivated by his friend and Lynbrook staff member, Pak is excited to teach in the special education department.  

Originally, Pak obtained his Bachelor of Science in Criminal Justice. However, after noticing the need for teachers in the field of special education, he decided to pursue a teaching credential at San Jose State University in special education to focus on students with moderate to severe disabilities. 

“It’s difficult to find special education teachers and we often have shortages in the field,” Pak said. “I felt that working in special education would be a rewarding experience, and I’d be doing a lot of good in the community.”

In the past, Pak has taught in resource and special day classes, where he covered a myriad of subjects; from instructing language arts and humanities to math, he grappled with challenges while striving to make an impact through an individualized teaching approach.

“I’ve learned to allow my students to show me how to teach them by identifying their learning style,” Pak said. “If a student tells me, for example, that they work better outside, I tend to build off those strengths, interests and preferences to maximize their learning potential.”

Working in special education requires a distinct way of teaching that tends to each students’ needs. Since some of the students Pak works with are nonverbal, one of the main difficulties he’s encountered is communication. Over the years, he’s learned the value of patience, which enables him to understand what students are expressing. 

“Sometimes, when the students can’t communicate their wants or needs, they can get frustrated and we run into difficulties,” Pak said. 

At Lynbrook, Pak hopes to connect with each student and adapt his methods around their strengths to help them flourish in a stimulating environment. Since most of the students require personalized curriculum he aims to help them catch up to their grade level as much as possible. Further, by centering his lesson plans around vocational training and leisure skills, he emphasizes the importance of a strong work ethic. 

“While teaching, I try my best to keep things student-centered,” Pak said. “I like to figure out how the student learns best and present learning materials in different ways to give the student more options. For example, I use a lot of visuals, hands-on activities and activities that require movement.

While teaching, Pak looks forward to doing community-based instruction, an activity he believes is extremely valuable for his students. Through trips outside of the classroom, students are able to observe real world skills and careers and apply them in their own lives or for future jobs. 

“We’ll go to a vocational training site like a bowling alley, and that could be a job for them in the future,” Pak said. “I really see a lot of student growth during community-based instruction.”

This year, Lynbrook welcomes a new assistant football coach and PE teacher, Joseph Luo. After serving as a long-term substitute teacher at Lynbrook in the past year, Luo is excited to be starting his career as a full-time faculty member. 

Luo’s journey to Lynbrook began as a high school student at Cupertino High School. Finding inspiration in many of the teachers he had, he admired how they helped younger students find their path and display the best version of themselves. Motivated by their service, Luo  was determined to work in education so he could help teenagers as well.

“Teaching is the one of the only professions where you can change a 14- to 15-year-old for the better,” Luo said. “You can help mold their minds to be something better and open new doors and paths for them.”

After gaining a background in athletics and strength conditioning at San Jose State University, he started taking positions as a football coach at Cupertino. Once he found a position at Lynbrook as a temporary substitute teacher and assistant coach, he began helping out in the 2023-24 school year. The experience prepared him for an eventual transition to a full-time assistant football coach and PE teacher at Lynbrook.

Luo’s teaching style is deeply rooted in his experiences with his teachers and how they helped him. By learning from them, he gained skills of adaptability, making sure to adjust lesson plans or teaching methods by paying attention to the students in his class and connecting with them on a personal level.

“I still reach out to my old teachers to this day, “ Luo said. ”They have nothing but positive advice and have given me great insight into becoming a teacher. I really want to pass that advice and support to the students.”

In his PE classes, he expects students to have fun and show good sportsmanship. He also emphasizes the importance of responsibility in classes like Weight Training, where irresponsibility can lead to accidents. Luo also encourages students to be open with him, implementing an open-door policy in his office so that any students can walk in and ask about any questions or concerns whenever they feel inclined.

“I want them to be comfortable so they can reach out to me,” Luo said. “and I can reach out to them even after high school, because I’ll still really care. I wanted to be a teacher who doesn’t always care only about grades, which is still important, but also a mentor that cares for them, supporting them whenever they need, such as showing up to their sports events and cheering them on.”

Luo is excited to start his journey of mentoring his team and his students. He deeply appreciates the school’s focus on community and inclusivity, and is looking forward to connecting with more students and participating in school spirit.

“I believe that while being a coach, you have to make sure that you really connect with these students and these athletes,” said Luo. “I try to provide them with a role model — someone they may not expect at all times, but can count on to always be there for them.”

Gallery • 1 Photos

Having served as a student teacher for a year and a long-term substitute for a semester, Jessica Choi has learned unique insights that she is excited to bring to the classroom as one of Lynbrook’s new freshman English teachers. 

Choi’s roots are grounded in FUHSD. When Choi was a former student at Cupertino High School, Choi was actively involved in Mock Trial, aspiring to become a lawyer. Her dedication to literature and writing as an ardent reader only furthered her interest in the humanities. Throughout Choi’s education journey, her  supportive English teachers at school nurtured her love for literature, later inspiring her pursuit of an  education career as she enjoyed building social spaces and tutoring other students. 

“My 12th-grade English teacher left a pretty significant impact on me,” Choi said. “She was personable as a teacher, but she also cared about us — not just as students, but as people — which really impacted me.”

After graduating from Cupertino, Choi studied at De Anza College for two years before transferring to UCLA for a year. Subsequently, she obtained a Master of Arts in teaching English at San Jose State University. While studying at San Jose State, Choi assumed the role of a student teacher at Cupertino, coming full circle to her high school roots. She observed and practiced teaching literature classes for a year, where she learned the significance of connection and understanding in the classroom. 

“I’m a strong believer in the idea that there is a reason behind every action,” Choi said. “I realized the students that I interact with are not the ‘full them,’ and there may be much more going on under the surface.” 

Modeling after her high school teachers, Choi strives to personally connect with each student and offer her utmost support. In order to maximize learning and growth, she aspires to cultivate a safe environment in which students can express their unique voices; this way, students have free reign over what they take away from her class. Choi also embraces a pliable teaching style, tending to students’ wants and needs while keeping an open mind for feedback and change. For Choi, the experience students have in her classroom and the lingering impact of her lessons in the future is her paramount value. 

“I’m a warm demander,” Choi said. “I try to be personal and connect with the students. I try to be funny, but I also keep my expectations high and make sure students are able to meet it. I want to push them to grow.”

As Choi continues to acclimatize to the welcoming community of Lynbrook, she hopes to become more familiar with staff and students. 

 “I just want to get to know the people more on this campus, because everyone has been really nice,” Choi said. “I want to venture out more and support others — that’s what I’m looking forward to most.”