By Lauren Shin, Staff Writer
Mrs. Shagogue has been a part of the River Hill community as a Media Specialist since 2021. And now, she moves further on to become the new teacher for Spanish II Honors and Spanish III CC.
With the departure of Dra. Alvarado, a current Spanish teacher here at River Hill High School, Mrs. Shagogue was given the opportunity to fill this opening. Beginning the next school year, she will be working two full-time jobs as both a Media Specialist and a Spanish teacher at River Hill, in addition to her secret side job as a balloon twister.
She also mentions that she is in the process of getting a degree as a snake milker for her future endeavors, which requires her to spend most of her weekends interning at the Natural Toxin Research Center at UMD.
Mrs. Shagogue shares that “It has always been on my bucket list to be bilingual. I saw this opening and saw it as an opportunity to pursue my goal. Because I also teach Chinese, I think this could be a great way for me to further expand my expertise.”
“Mrs. Lidgard really supports teachers looking to take on challenges and take on leadership roles in the school, so she was really on board when I volunteered to take Dra. Alvarado’s place,” claims Mrs. Shagogue, “She was really encouraging and supportive and she and Dra. Alvarado have been helping me sort of navigate my way into this new course.”
With plenty of time to prepare and adjust to the unfamiliar waters, Mrs. Shagogue has been dedicating a chunk of her day to studying Spanish. “I might not be the most qualified but I’m extremely excited and very motivated; I’ve been practicing Duolingo on my daughter’s iPad and I even got a Rosetta Stone subscription so I can study,” she says.
Sra. Goodrich, a Spanish teacher and the ITL leader, expresses her excitement: “The language department is so excited to have Mrs. Shagogue joining us.”
Although nothing is finalized at the moment, Mrs. Shagogue gives insight on one of her larger projects: A two-week long trip to Spain. “Mrs. Chamness is planning a study abroad trip to Spain, so I’ve been talking to the school about potentially having my Spanish class go together during the school year. I think it’s going to be amazing and I’m really looking forward to doing that for all my Spanish classes,” she exclaims.
Mr. Ahr, who can be found working in the Media Center next to Mrs. Shagogue, shares the excitement. “I’m really excited for her. I know she’s been thinking of all these fun plans for her class and as you may have noticed she’s very good at displays in the Media Center so she wants to carry those artistic skills to her Spanish class too,” he says.
He continues, stating that “We have a lot of Spanish-speaking patrons that visit the Media Center and I often see her interacting with them in the Spanish language.”
The sudden change in roles has taken a toll in some aspects, though. Mr Ahr expresses his concerns: “I’m a little stressed if I’m being honest because the Media Center can be a busy place. She’ll still be there but while she’s teaching Spanish, I’m going to have to get used to not having her around all the time.”
Mrs. Shagogue acknowledges the fact that “It’s going to be challenging to fill Dra. Alvarado’s spot. She’s left her mark in the River Hill community and student body and I’m worried since I’ll be juggling multiple jobs.”
We wish both Mrs. Shagogue and Dra. Alvarado the best of luck in their new careers and hope that they are able to adjust smoothly into the next chapter of their lives.