There are many new teachers here at our school, one of whom is graphic design teacher Emily Christopher, who has already found Azle to be a lasting home.

Previously, she taught at North-West High School, but she said she wanted a job closer to home.

“I’ve always wanted to work here,” Christopher said. “I’ve wanted my kids to go to school here and all of that.”

She and her husband of 10 years, Brian, have lived in Azle for the last eight years.

“We like azle,” Christopher said. “We like the kind of the small town feel. We have three dogs, some chickens, and some acreage. And we just like the community.”

She became a teacher without even knowing it was what she wanted to do.

“I was a graphic designer in the industry and was working for different companies,” Christopher said. “And then my friend, who I graduated college with, started teaching in Garland, and they called me and I got hired without a teaching degree.”

She worked in Garland for a year while getting her teaching degree and fell in love with the job.

“The reason I wanted to start was because it just sort of happened,” Christopher said, “Then, I ended up starting to really like it because of being with students, and giving them my experience.”

She has many goals for this upcoming school year such as having all of her classes pass their certifications and getting the word out to more students for next year, and helping the principles of arts and digital media teachers build their program to develop a graphic design pathway.

Christopher would describe her classes as a fun environment.

“I’m strict in some ways,” she said. “Like, I make them do everything the perfect way, but you can see in the classroom that it’s fun and that we have a good time.”