Faces of the West County: Andrea Hagan

Andrea is one of scores of devoted teachers in our public schools who are putting everything they’ve got into their work with our kids. We should be forever grateful.

Andrea Hagan in downtown Sebastopol. (Photo by Steve Einstein)

Last month, in September, as students and teachers around the west county were heading back to school, I thought it would be a good idea to focus on one of the many remarkable teachers in the area. I knew that Andrea was one of them, but when we finally found time to sit down together, the timing wasn’t great for her: she had a rough case of COVID, she had to take her only kid to university up in Washington, and her cat died. It just wasn’t the right time to talk. Instead, you met my remarkable mother-in-law, who was stuck on a flight with me to Seattle.

Things have turned around by now for Andrea, and she was her usual enthusiastic and outgoing self when we sat at Retrograde to hear a bit of her story. I had no idea.

She texted me to make sure we both had the same time and place. One word, at the end of the short exchange, captured the essence of this energetic and ready-for-anything woman.

Andrea:“We’re getting together at Retrograde at 4 PM today, correct?”

Me: “Correctomundo!”

Andrea: “Yeehaw!”

Well, Yeehaw indeed. Here’s Andrea.

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Where and when were you born?

Harbor City, California, on the LA harbor. May 16th, 1969. I’m a mere 56.

Your family?

Dad was a Jesuit who left the order and became a philosophy professor at Cal State Dominguez Hills. He died four years ago at 96 after a long, beautiful life, and then a beautiful death. Mom is East German--escaped at age 17 with her parents. That’s a good story.

They took the train from East Germany to East Berlin. They told the authorities that my grandfather, who had Parkinson’s and shook quite a bit, had a medical appointment in a part of Berlin that Eastern Germans could go to. The East German officials used to handcuff passengers to the train, until it came back from West Berlin to East Berlin to keep the East Germans from jumping off. Because my grandfather shook so much, they decided to not handcuff him or my grandmother and mother. So they in fact, were able to jump off. They escaped with nothing!

Amazing. This would make a good movie.

Oh, how my mom and dad met should be a part of the movie. My parents met in Rome. My Dad’s mom was visiting her son, the Jesuit priest. She got sick and was hospitalized. One of her nurses was a real beauty - a young woman originally from East Germany, who ended up falling in love with her patient’s son! That nurse, my mom, lives with me to this day here in Sebastopol.

My grandmother died in San Francisco, a few months after that Rome hospitalization, never knowing that her son had left the order to marry her nurse. My father’s brother and one of his sisters made it clear that as someone who left the Jesuit order, he was persona non grata. Fortunately, another sister was the true Christian and shared her home with them.

Can’t wait to see the movie.

Kids?

Just one. Nolan,18, who just left for Western Washington University in Bellingham.

Husband?

We’re actually divorced. My life is a country music ballad. We’re still good friends. He’s a good guy, and we made an amazing kid.

You are always on the go and so energetic. You must exercise.

Not really. I just run on a treadmill every so often, but more for my brain than my body. I’ve always been high energy.

What did you want to be when you grew up?

I always knew I wanted to be a teacher, and career-wise, that’s all I’ve done. Twenty-five years. I took five years off to be with Nolan. That’s how and when the Renaissance Faire happened. I had the idea, and with Becky Garlock, we made it happen.

Where did you do all that teaching?

Fifteen years at Brookhaven and now ten at Twin Hills. Mostly 7th grade World History and Spanish. Now I also teach “health”. Basically Sex Ed.

How do you think COVID changed things?

Oh my god. Significantly. The anxiety level of kids is much higher now. It’s like they forgot how to be with each other during that time they were apart. They’re less cohesive. Now a big part of that is social media and the whole phone culture.

Let’s talk about charters. Go!

They make me so sad. No, don’t say that. Let’s just say that I’m conflicted. I understand that some kids need different environments for learning, but the charter thing has divided us as a community.

I’ve been in education so long that I’ve seen how a new federal policy has affected education over time. I’m talking about No Child Left Behind (instituted in 2002), which opened the gates to charter schools, parental choice, and public tax dollars being used for what used to be private school exclusivity.

As a result, our kids are more segregated now, and our community isn’t as unified as it once was.

But isn’t Twin Hills a charter school?

Yes. If you can’t beat ’em, join ’em. But I’ve got to say that Twin Hills did not change its curriculum or philosophy, or structure, after chartering. We remain a solid, high-quality, good old-fashioned public school. Chartering is how you get funding and potentially increased enrollment.

I remember when my kids were in middle school at Brookhaven, there were some families we knew who wanted a “more academic setting” for their kids, so sent them to Twin Hills.

Yup. That’s how the two schools were looked at. People thought that Twin Hills put academics before the kid, and Brookhaven put the kid before academics.

Was that so?

Maybe at the time. Not anymore. But at the same time, we’re quite “academic”.

What’s that mean?

We have high academic standards. We support kids when they have challenges at home or social issues at school, but we don’t lower the academic bar.

It’s so much harder to be a kid these days. The bullying we used to deal with at school is something kids today have to deal with at home now as well. It’s 24/7 now on social media.

My mother, who was raised in communist, post-World War Two deprivation, says she’s so grateful to have been raised then and not now. The stress and weight on kids’ shoulders these days is tremendous.

Andrea, I hate to ask this, but is there a plan for an active shooter or with ICE agents now here in the Bay Area, an ICE raid at Twin Hills?

(Andrea nods her head, and immediately gets a bit teary-eyed.) All I wanted to do was teach history. I’m now part of a search and rescue team. Although it’s hard for me, I’m very proud of how Twin Hills has done it. We have a solid plan and practice our drills with and without the kids.

And ICE?

Be polite, give them no information. Our kids have a right to privacy and safety. Any information they need is in the office. Public school campuses are closed. Nobody can just come in and ask about kids. Twin Hills is very proactive about keeping unknown people off campus.

Brookhaven has gotten a lot of attention recently, bad press actually, regarding bullying and racism. Isn’t it all over? And especially in middle schools. Is it at Twin Hills as well? How do you deal with it?

It’s absolutely all over. Middle schoolers can be horrible. The kids know it too.

I can’t speak to what’s happening there, but of course bullying is universal to the middle school years.

I read that it peaks during the middle school years.

No school can say they don’t have an issue.

We are blessed by an amazing counseling program that checks in with every student. We also have an app, “Stop It”, where kids can anonymously report anything that is hurtful or concerning to them. Twin Hills follows up on every report.

Speaking of kids these days, you just took one to college the other day. How was that? Any initial reports?

I think it’s going great for him. He’s trying all sorts of things out, … clubs, classes, sports.

On the other hand, I’d give myself only mixed reviews. I’ve never had my head and heart pulled in opposite directions like this. I’m so happy for him, but I miss him like nobody’s business.

I guess that’s the price of love.

You just got over COVID. How did you feel about the pressure to vaccinate, and the changes RFK is making now related to vaccines?

It’s ironic that vaccinations are now a victim of their own success. It’s absolute hubris to say that healthy eating is going to protect you from a virus! We have come so far because of science. I respect questioning science in a smart way, but when 90% of scientists come down on one side, I’m going with them and not with my uneducated gut. So, of course, RFK rubs me the wrong way. He’s rejecting science and has opinions not supported by the medical community. Telling pregnant women not to take Acetaminophen?!? A high fever can induce serious problems to a fetus. It can safely be controlled by Tylenol!

We endanger our children every day by putting them in cars but accept the risk. But when you don’t vaccinate your kid, you aren’t just endangering your child, but other people’s kids as well. What happened to our social contract???

You’ve got a lot to say about this.

Oh boy.

(We had to move to another spot outside as Retrograde was closing.)

You want to sit in the sun?

No, I’m not a sun person anymore. I had skin cancer.

Really?

Well, yes, but it was the good kind. They did a Mohs Procedure so well (pointing to the right side of the tip of her nose) that you can’t see a thing.

Hey, do you know about this 67 thing?

Oh my god, yes! It’s completely meaningless, except to anyone besides kids. Things like this come up every 3-5 years. My niece warned me this was coming. Then the very next day, there it was.

I said it totally in context—that is, I was referring to the numbers six and seven—and one of the kids just lost it, laughing uncontrollably. Then other kids started laughing, and I just waited it out. I know not to say anything and just wait it out.

So, what is it?!?

This will be hard for you to understand, but it means nothing, except that for kids, it makes them feel a part of something. It connects them to each other. It’s something that’s only theirs.

Intriguing.

The story about it on NPR was a great analysis.

Do you remember other such phenomena?

I do, but I generally try to forget them.

Okay, let’s get back on subject. Do you read a paper? Where else do you get your news from?

Yes. I get the Press Democrat, The Week, and The Funny Times, all in hard copies delivered to the house. I also get Cook’s Illustrated and Nutrition Action Network.

And your favorite kind of book or reading?

Agatha Christie is my go-to. I’m always reading a book, and every third one is an Agatha Christie. She just makes me happy.

What did you watch as a kid?

MASH and Star Trek.

At one point, and I’ll never forget this, my mom actually, literally, cut the cord to the TV with hedge clippers in the middle of the night. She’s still so proud of that moment, and I’m still so impressed by her.

Very impressive.

How did you spend No Kings Day?

I missed the first No Kings Day, but not this past one. I went to the Santa Rosa protest and was so overwhelmed by the huge display of democracy in action. My sister and I were both overwhelmed to tears by the river of people who came out for this.

But in the classroom, I will never express my political opinion or change my curriculum based on my political beliefs. But then I don’t have to, because I teach Medieval History, and it speaks for itself.

Church?

Nope. I wasn’t raised in a church. My dad always said we were Secular Humans. That was the Jesuit priest who left the church.

Favorite restaurant?

Easy. El Coronel. It’s just down the street, and I know the owner. I love it there.

Favorite charity?

Meals on Wheels.

You seem like a busy woman. How do you relax?

Cooking, reading, and gardening. I’m a serious homebody.

In your perfect world, who should be president?

Someone who didn’t want to be one and wasn’t previously political. Someone at least less than 65 and who had a track record of just being a good person, with non-political civic involvement.

Imagine that!

That’s all we can do. I will be teaching Cincinnatus (Lucius Quinctius Cincinnatus) this year. Look him up! Great guy.

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Forever the teacher, Andrea had to leave us with a little homework assignment! Okay, I’ll share my notes with you so you’ll have the answer. I looked him up on Wikipedia for you.

Cincinnatus was a historical figure who served as consul in 480 BC and as dictator in 458 BC and (possibly) in 439 BC. … The most famous story related to Cincinnatus occurs after his retirement from public service to a simple life of farming. As Roman forces struggled to defeat the Aequi, Cincinnatus was summoned from his plow to assume complete control over the state. After achieving a swift victory in sixteen days, Cincinnatus relinquished power and its privileges, returning to labor on his farm…Cincinnatus’ success and his immediate resignation of near-absolute authority at the end of the crisis (traditionally dated to 458 BC) has often been cited as a model of selfless leadership, civic virtue, and service to the greater good. The story has also been seen as an exemplar of agrarian virtues like humility, modesty, and hard work.

Humility, modesty, and hard work.

Wouldn’t that be nice.

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