Edmond Santa Fe first opened in Aug. 1993 as a high school only accommodating to ninth and tenth grade students.
Since then, Santa Fe has grown in numerous ways: size, popularity, community and closeness.
Joe Peeler is a coach and teacher that has been at Santa Fe for 21 years. He has experienced all of the versions of Santa Fe, from the school opening to a shutdown during covid; however, one thing stuck out to Peeler.
“The teachers kind of have a close knit family atmosphere,” Peeler said.
Former students returning
Santa Fe is shaped majorly by the teachers and staff. Many teachers rely on the experiences they had as a student.
Haley Crane is a world languages teacher that graduated from Santa Fe. This is her second year teaching, and her path began straight out of college when she decided to come back and pass her experience forward.
“Mrs. Ihrig, and Mrs. Garrett, Ms. Fitch, they were all like my teachers when I was here and so when I’m teaching, I do feel like I’m channeling them,” Crane said. “[I use] a lot of techniques and different things that they also use.”
Much like Peeler, Crane has seen Santa Fe go through its many stages. This kind of change and development is what made her gravitate towards Santa Fe as opposed to elsewhere.
“When it’s Double Wolf Dare Week and things like that, the whole school connects,” Crane said. “I feel like that’s a superpower that Santa Fe has that I haven’t seen at other places.”
Similarly, Santa Fe alum Kyle Hawkins decided to come back and teach here. His former teachers made a contribution to his return for many reasons.
“I enjoyed the idea of coming back and teaching with teachers that had taught me,” Hawkins said. “I mean, I liked the school, so I was just comfortable.”
Hawkins makes sure to include certain lessons that aren’t typically taught in school, since those are the kind of things that benefited him the most.
“I think the biggest thing is just letting them know that college is different than this,” Hawkins said.
The largest influence on a student’s ability to learn and retain information align with the teacher’s qualities and teaching ability.
Santa Fe will continue to grow in many ways white still maintaining its original qualities, largely through these former students.
