DO U B L E
D U TY
From the good, to the bad, to the just plain awkward, here’s what it’s like to have a parent that doubles as a teacher. BY MISHA CANIN & JESSICA MOONJELY
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he relationship between a parent and child is unlike any other. First thing in the morning, the pair might eat their breakfast together before going their separate ways. Later in the evening, they recap the day over a family dinner. Now imagine if that relationship went beyond home life — seeing your mom or dad everyday, for example, when going to school or work. For some students and teachers at West High, this is the case. There are a number of students whose parents are West High staff members, and for many of them it creates a special bond, unique among most parent-child connections. For Asha Sandhu ’20 and her mother, Spanish teacher Jamie Sandhu, this connection is something they hold dear. The majority of the past eight years that Jamie has worked at West, one of her two children has attended the school. “I’m not going to know what to do when she goes go away [to college],” Jamie said. “It’s comforting for me [to know where she is], and I love my daughter so much. I think it’s really good for the students to see us interact. It makes them realize that ‘She’s more than just a Spanish teacher; she’s a mom too.’” From sharing a laugh together in between class periods and storing food in their parent’s classroom to getting passes to class (only in dire circumstances of
Jill Hofmockel Tom Ham ‘22
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PROFILE
NOV. 15, 2019
Jamie Sandu Asha Sandu ‘20
course), having a parent as a teacher definitely has its benefits. “Coming into high school it was really nice to have that fluid home and school life,” Asha said. “If I had a question about school, not even about a certain class but about high school in general and the norms, my mom could answer that.” Another advantage is the ability for these parents to give advice to their children on what learning resources and classes are available. Since they are constantly at West, these parents sometimes know of opportunities other parents wouldn’t be keyed into. To librarian Jill Hofmockel and her son Thomas Ham ’22, these words ring true. “I don’t think [Thomas] would’ve known about the Tech Support class if he weren’t my kid. He had an elective where he was Mr. Meade’s helper and learned how to fix broken chromebooks,” Hofmockel said. “It’s never a ton of kids, usually one or two kids per class period. I just thought it was totally up his alley.” When it comes to the downsides, a common one among teachers’ children is hearing negative comments about their parents. Teachers tend to be aware that students talk about them from time to time, but when your child is in the social ring, hearing comments about their own parents can add a whole