Mrs. Lopez- Jones
Interview by Nancy Flores
What is your name and what do you teach?
What do you do when you aren ' t teaching or grading?
Hi, my name is Iliana Lopez-Jones and I teach Language and ERWC.
How long have you been teaching and what have you taught at any other school?
I ' ve been teaching for 20 years and I ' ve taught Language Arts, ELD which is English Language Development for second language learners and I’ ve also taught the PUENTE program.
Have you taught at any other school?
Yes, I have. I am currently at Lee V Pollard High School, and I ' ve taught at Centennial High School, Auburndale Intermediate, Citrus Hills Intermediate, and then I ' ve worked for the district for 4 years.
Why do you think it ' s important to learn about Language Arts?
It ' s important to learn about Language Arts so that students can express their ideas clearly, they can communicate effectively and they are able to articulate their own voice and make their needs be heard, but only orally but also in writing.
How has your writing changed from when you were a new teacher?
At the beginning I focused more on the literature itself, having a lot of interaction with the literary piece and as the years have gone by I ' ve noticed that if it ' s not implied to the lives of student sometimes it doesn ' t have that much of an impact in their lives specifically of high school students. For high school i had to shape the curriculum so that students could interact with the community and seek out leadership roles and get involved within their community, look at colleges, and look at a wide variety of communicating effectively with the community colleges and bringing it back to school.
If you were not a teacher, what do you think you would be doing right now?
I would probably be a Social Worker, if not a counselor.
If I ' m not grading or teaching I ' m writing. I would love to write children ' s books.
If you could have lunch with anyone in history, who would it be and why?
Without a doubt, I would have lunch with Frida Kahlo. I totally admire Frida for her inventiveness and strength. She had Polio when she was little, at the age of 9 years old. I had two weeks of age when i had polio so I can relate to what she went through. I believe she was a strong woman while she was growing up in the 20 ' s. She decided to go to a mostly all male university and majored in Mathematics and Engineering and a lot of people don ' t know that about her, so I would love to meet her and have lunch with her.
What inspired you to be a teacher?
Having good role models. My language arts teacher Mrs. BiDianco who I still keep in touch with was an inspiring individual who promoted us to express our ideas, to think freely, and to create. Also Mr. Wright my Spanish teacher who incorporated philosophy in literature and the love for reading, and also my dad.
What is your favorite movie?
My favorite movie would have to be McFarland. The reason why I like McFarland is because it shows the tenacity of the farm workers, specifically the students who work in the fields. Their agility to run and their resiliency to overcome a lot of obstacles is just amazing and phenomenal.
What is your favorite book?
My favorite book is Rain of Golds by Victor Villasenor. I like how it is situated here in Corona, and also in Mexico and Santa Ana. I can relate to a lot of places that Mr. Villasenor mentions especially also coming from Guanajuato and mentioning his ancestor of Guanajuato. I myself was born in Guanajuato and strongly relate to his narrative.
14 | The Growler