Avoidance of eye contact. Sudden change of direction. Swift walking.  

The actions above describe the majority of student’s reactions when they see one of their teachers at the grocery store. At that moment they realize, teachers actually exist outside of the classroom. 

Let’s get real, the people who teach are only associated with their role in a classroom from a student perspective. Seeing them in casual clothing or especially a different work uniform is often an uncomfortable situation, but the majority of students don’t realize that the staff can preoccupy different jobs. 

Math teacher Mr. Troy Hildebrand enjoys landscaping and construction when he isn’t educating the youth. 

“I am a guy that gets bored really easy and would probably drive Mrs. Hildebrand crazy if I didn’t have [anything] to do,” Mr. Hildebrand said. “For the past 20 years, Mr. Heny and I have done some odd landscaping and construction jobs during summers. I also teach summer school whenever there is a need for a math teacher.” 

Other than being at the SLC, Mr. Hildebrand doesn’t see many students unlike ELL teacher Mrs. Eliza Limon. 

Mrs. Limon works at Mr. D’s year round. For her, seeing a student is exciting, but she thinks they sometimes feel uncomfortable while she checks out their items. 

“I like seeing the kids in the store,” Mrs. Limon said. “Sometimes they might buy something that I think is not good for them … so they are like, ‘uh-oh’.”

Special Ed Para Educator Mrs. Marla Barngrover goes to a different occupation on the weekends, and during the summer. 

Mrs. Barngrover works at the Heart Mountain Interpretive Center, a museum that tells the story about the Japanese confinement here during World War II. 

“It is probably strange for [the students] to see me somewhere besides school,” Mrs.Barngrover said. “[But] since they are high schoolers, I also see them at their jobs.”