Azle High School is welcoming numerous new teachers this year. Finding and staffing teachers has become difficult due to recent stresses from the pandemic, so The Sting wants to acknowledge how extremely grateful we are for every teacher that works here. Below are all the teachers who have started at Azle this year.

We interviewed a few teachers to see how their experience has been in a new town and district, along with their first impressions of Azle.

Biology teacher Meagan Strahan previously had worked in Fort Worth, Hector and Abilene ISDs and is starting this year off strong.

“I like it a lot here, the kids are great,” Strahan said. “I’m in this because I love kids.”

Laura Woody teaches intro to Culinary and Lifetime Nourishment and has come in from a bigger town, so coming to a one-high-school town has a different feel compared to where she came from.

“I really like that it feels like a small town, like a sense of belonging,” Woody said. “I like Azle a lot more than where I’m coming from, so I’ve been happy here, and it’s teaching high school and being with the students and seeing them in extracurriculars.”

Seth Bell teaches U.S. and World History and is also the boys wrestling coach. He came back to Azle from Madison County in Danielsville, Georgia as he attended Azle High School during his highschool years.

“My favorite part about teaching is really the relationships I have with the kids,” Bell said. “Building those [relationships] and cracking jokes.”

Not all teachers always planned to be teachers, but life can change a person’s plan and career choice.

“I wanted to be a veterinarian,” Strahan said. “I was a vet tech before I was a teacher.”

Overall, students can make a positive and lasting impact on their teachers through small interactions as students move forward in their education path.

“My favorite thing about teaching is seeing the students grow, so starting somewhere and getting out of their comfort zone,” Woody said. “I get to see students meeting new people and building connections with other students.”