Gallery • 9 Photos

Riley Pita

THE OLD COLLEGE TRY: New AP and advanced biology teacher Ishan Sahaory says he is excited for his first year teaching freshly out of college. Saharoy isn't new to McCallum, he actually student-taught at McCallum prior to joining the faculty. Still, his origins in teaching actually lie in his high school years. “The first time I ever thought about teaching was my junior year of high school," said Saharoy. “I taught during the summer and really enjoyed it, I definitely found more interest in it than other things.” Saharoy explained how his favorite aspect of teaching is being able to help his students process and understand the material. “I want to make sure I teach the course well and help as many students as I can,” said Saharoy. Saharoy found that teaching high schoolers was easier due to their maturity and how he can teach advanced material to hard working students. “I really like high schoolers because everyone is almost adults which is nice because I definitely don't have to baby the students," said Saharoy. “I also enjoy teaching advanced topics and subjects which I find is better than teaching in middle school.” Caption by Eva Sanchez.

This week is all about celebrating new beginnings at McCallum. As the school year begins, we are excited to welcome a new group of teachers who bring fresh energy, unique experiences, and a shared commitment to supporting our students at McCallum. From Life Skills to fine arts to core academics, these educators are ready to make an impact. 

Some are just beginning their teaching journeys, while others are joining us with years of experience and expertise, but each one adds something special to our campus community. They bring a passion for their subjects, share stories about what inspires them to teach, and have hopes for the connections they’ll build with students this year.

In this week’s edition, we’re shining the spotlight on these new faces of MAC, learning a bit about their backgrounds, their inspirations, and what excites them most about being part of our school. 

We are proud to present the New teachers of 2025 for this week’s Thursday Top 10. 

THE OLD COLLEGE TRY: New AP and advanced biology teacher Ishan Sahaory says he is excited for his first year teaching freshly out of college. Saharoy isn’t new to McCallum, he actually student-taught at McCallum prior to joining the faculty. Still, his origins in teaching actually lie in his high school years.

“The first time I ever thought about teaching was my junior year of high school,” said Saharoy. “I taught during the summer and really enjoyed it, I definitely found more interest in it than other things.”

Saharoy explained how his favorite aspect of teaching is being able to help his students process and understand the material.

“I want to make sure I teach the course well and help as many students as I can,” said Saharoy.

Saharoy found that teaching high schoolers was easier due to their maturity and how he can teach advanced material to hard working students.

“I really like high schoolers because everyone is almost adults which is nice because I definitely don’t have to baby the students,” said Saharoy. “I also enjoy teaching advanced topics and subjects which I find is better than teaching in middle school.”

Caption by Eva Sanchez. Photo by Riley Pita.

FROM PLAYGROUNDS TO PLAYWRIGHTS: In room 103, one can find a bustling classroom of students lively chatting and working. The new English teacher, Abigail Pfeiffer, said she feels quite at home here.

“I love the students here,” Pfeiffer said. “It’s been such a pleasure to teach them.”

This is Pfeiffer’s second year of teaching. Her previous teaching experience was for a fourth grade classroom. Some might say fourth grade to 10th is a huge jump, but Pfeifer has been facing it with great enthusiasm. She majored in English in college and finds that a high school setting gives her more room to explore her passion.

“There’s much more freedom when teaching high schoolers,” Pfeifer said. “I really get to put my skills to work.”

Pfeiffer was drawn to McCallum because of its commitment to Fine Arts and its welcoming community. So far, her experience at Mac has not let her down.

“It’s clear how passionate students are, and it’s very inspiring to see,” Pfeiffer said.

Ultimately, Pfeiffer’s hope for this year is for her students to feel accomplished and for her to feel as if she taught them something worthwhile.

Caption by Zanna Allen. Photo by Riley Pita.

NEW TEACHER, SAME TRADITIONS: After working in the Pflugerville school district for two years, Crystal Debreaux came to McCallum as the French teacher for levels one, two, three, and four or advanced placement. While Debreaux is not a native speaker of the French language, she has a lot of experience due to her high school and college background.

In high school, Debreaux felt inspired by her French teacher. When Debreaux moved onto college, she originally thought she would major in the science field. However, Debreaux eventually changed her major to French due to a challenging chemistry class at university.

“They told me that I probably wasn’t going to get into pharmacy school because of the C,” Debreaux said. “So I changed it to French and moved to Canada for an immersion program.”

According to Debreaux, the immersion program in Canada improved her French greatly. Afterwards, Debreaux started teaching French at Pflugerville despite an hour-long commute from Wimberley, where she lived at the time.

Debreaux faced a few challenges with relocating to a new school including remembering students and faculties names, along with the ongoing construction at McCallum.

“The biggest challenge is remembering everybody’s name, plus everything’s under construction so nobody is where they should be,” Debreaux said. “But everybody here has been super great.”

Despite Debreaux being new to the program, she does not plan to change anything about the program. Instead, Debreaux will continue on traditions that Charlotte Favrin, the former teacher, implemented such as penpals.

“I’m not looking to replace her, but I’m hoping that they can hear a little bit different accents and things like that,” Debreaux said.
Additionally, Debreaux would like to take upper-level, meaning level three and above, French students to different French-speaking countries.

“What I’m looking forward to is having some trips that we get to choose from and having y’all decide,” Debreaux said. “It’ll be 10-12 days and we’ll do a tour.”

According to Debreaux, the school she taught at previously had a different environment from McCallum. Debreaux is very excited about the school year and coming years to come at McCallum because of the positive environment.

“It’s night and day, and the way that y’all treat teachers here is amazing,” Debreaux said. “I wish everybody was like this…it would be amazing.”

Caption and Photo by Riley Pita.

STAYING IN MOTION: Most teachers have months in advance to prepare for their first teaching job. Eric Juarez had only two days. As the new AP Physics and Integrated Physics and Chemistry teacher, Juarez has no easy job. However, as the year continues, he is learning new things every day.

“The biggest challenge for me has been not knowing what to do,” Juarez said. “This is something I am totally new to and there were times when I felt completely unprepared. But I have learned to give myself grace because at the end of the day I am new to this and I am learning.”

Juarez has never taught a class before, but he has had plenty of substituting jobs. He used to substitute for yearbook and math at his previous school and enjoyed getting to deliver lesson plans. Although substituting and teaching are very different things, Juarez feels that the transition was natural.

“It’s different because now I’m responsible for their success and what my students are learning,” Juarez said. “I feel that weight, but it’s a weight I’m comfortable with.”

Not only is Juarez new to teaching, but he is going above and beyond with his lessons. He has fully started from scratch on lesson plans and has been making his own.

“You don’t really know until you’re thrown in there and you figure it out,” Juarez said. “There’s discomfort in not knowing what to do, but thankfully you just keep trying and you end up figuring it out, it’s the same with all new things”.

Although it’s been a bumpy road, Juarez is enjoying his time at McCallum and even has hopes to become a track coach here in the future. These first few weeks have proved to him and his students that trying something new is scary, but reaps great rewards.

Caption by Zanna Allen. Photo by Riley Pita.

BOOKS AND BONDING: Cat Kelley, the new sophomore English teacher, is excited to be back in the classroom after working in administration for the past 4 years. While Kelley is new to McCallum, she is not new to Austin, having worked for AISD for the past 7 years and having 12 years of experience in the school system.

“I am excited to really just connect with each of my students,” said Kelley. “They have already been helping me adjust to McCallum.”

Kelley expresses that through English she can better connect with each of her students compared to other subjects. While she leans towards math, she believes that English lets her interact with her students more.

“It’s interesting getting back to teaching after being out of the classroom for so long,” said Kelley. “[But] I’m looking forward to building that community, I want every student to feel welcome in my class.”

After working outside of the classroom the past few years, Kelley expresses a certain nervousness about starting teaching again. Still, all she really wants is for her students to feel welcome in her room. She is hoping to grow alongside her students this year, inside and outside of the classroom.

Caption and Photo by Riley Pita.

BACK IN BUSINESS: In room 127, tucked in the back of the classroom, you can find McCallum’s newest business information management teacher, Sondra Primeaux. After being a long-term sub for the BIM class last school year, Primeaux has been given a permanent position teaching the class. Primeaux has previously owned businesses and worked as a photographer and fashion designer, so she is no stranger to the business world. However, Primeaux has still faced many challenges as the school year starts.

“It’s been going great,” Primeaux said. “There’s a lot to learn and a lot to do, there are so many trainings that teachers have to take, a lot of them are virtual and you have to take them on your own time, so that combined with lesson planning and getting used to the new environment, it’s a lot, but it’s been fun.”

In the BIM class, Primeaux has been teaching students all the life skills they will need to navigate their future careers.
“We also learn a lot of systems to support that, like how to make a resume in Google Docs and how to make a spreadsheet to keep track of your studies,” Primeaux said. “We do presentations so students get used to speaking in front of people and learning how to conduct themselves in an interview or work environment.”

Primeaux originally received her teaching credentials when she was in her early 20s, but decided not to teach yet and went on to work in other fields before making her return.

“I’ve owned a couple of businesses the last 25 years,” Primeaux said. “I’ve been a photographer and fashion designer and educator, and a few years ago I started thinking about it again and decided I wanted to teach, so it’s a real full circle moment.”

Caption by Dani Di-Capua. Photo by Riley Pita.

STAR CROSSED: Sara Porsa comes to McCallum from the Houston Independent School District as a freshman English teacher and volleyball coach.

“I came to McCallum because there was a lot going on in HISD, and I went to school in San Marcos so I’m familiar with the Austin area,” said Porsa. “I’ve been wanting to move back here, so when the opportunity presented itself, I took it.”

Porsa played volleyball her whole life, and has always wanted to coach since she didn’t get the opportunity to play in college.

“When they asked if I was interested in a volleyball coaching position, it just kind of felt like the stars were aligning,” Porsa said.
In these first few weeks, Porsa has enjoyed her time on campus and felt the community is welcoming and including.

In these first few weeks, Porsa has enjoyed her time on campus and felt the community is welcoming and including. 

“I love McCallum, I feel like I’m surrounded by a very supportive staff, like the english department and the coaches here,” Porsa said. “And the students are great.”

Caption by Josie Linton. Photos by Riley Pita.

PATIENCE COMES FIRST: This year, Emily Lucas joins the McCallum community as a teacher of the Life Skills class. While she did not originally intend to step into this role, Lucas brought prior experience working with students in the special education program and is eager to begin this new journey. She described the opportunity as both unexpected and rewarding, she’s excited to learn alongside her students as much as she teaches them.

“My passion is to see these students grow, make sure they are cared for and included in high school,” said Lucas. “I am excited to help them overcome their challenges and achieve their goals.”

Lucas said the Life Skills program is about fostering independence, confidence and belonging. For her, teaching is a chance to celebrate small victories every day, whether that’s a student mastering a new task or simply feeling comfortable and welcome in the classroom.

“I hope to build strong connections with students and make sure they feel cared for in the room,” said Lucas.
“That philosophy has shaped the way she approaches her work, emphasizing patience, encouragement and the value of relationships.”

As the school year unfolds, Lucas is looking forward to becoming a familiar and supportive face on campus. She hopes her classroom will not only be a place of learning but also a safe and welcoming space where students feel seen and valued.

Caption by Isadora Truan. Photo by Riley Pita.

BIG APPLE TO THE LONE STAR STATE: New newspaper advisor Evan Solís teaches public school for the first time, and already feels at home at McCallum. Before moving to Texas, he taught digital photography at the Bronx Documentary Center in New York.

Originally applying for an English position, Solis was offered the journalism role after his background caught the attention of administrators.

“Absolutely, I would love that job,” Solís said. “I love McCallum; there’s a lot to like, I have great kids, I get to do my own thing, it’s been a very friendly school at the staff level, and the administrators have been very supportive.”

Caption by Delaney Lavelle. Photo by Sofia Saucedo.