Cali retires after 39 years of teaching, counseling

Most students cannot wait to get out of school. Very few even consider coming back to teach. For many, four years of high school seem to be more than enough. However, guidance counselor Christy Cali is only now ending her career in education after 39 years of teaching and counseling.

“I’d like to try something different and still be healthy and energetic enough to do it,” Cali said. “I look forward to very simple things like reading the paper or taking a long hike on a day when the weather is perfect for hiking.”

She also mentioned how she was looking forward to opportunities that would come with retiring such as travelling and taking advantage of off-season prices or not worrying about getting up at 5.30 a.m. to drive to work.

“[I look forward to] getting involved in a project late into the evening and not having to worry about getting up at 5:30 in the morning, or sleeping in on a stormy winter day, or spending an entire afternoon reading a book,” Cali said.

She has been working at school for a total of 11 years, before which she taught at Mt. Pleasant and counseled at James Lick. Next year, she will be replaced by Lisa Kellert, who has worked at Wilcox High School.

Cali said that while she may come back to do some other projects with the school, she is done with guidance counseling. She said that she would miss the students the most.

“Counseling is all about the students. I like the fact that they are motivated and they have a good global awareness. They are also diversified and I just enjoy their challenges. They’ve been given the opportunity to expand on their talents,” Cali said.

She said the part she believes that she will miss the least is the labor-intensive job of letter writing in the fall for colleges.

Throughout her years at the school, Cali has also been involved in extracurricular activities. She was the California Scholarship Federation advisor for five to six years, worked for with the District Teachers Association, and was involved with Mock Trial for seProxy-Connection: keep-alive
Cache-Control: max-age=0

n years. For the last two years of mock trial, she said that she has been doing book-keeping instead of coaching.

As for her favorite memories from the years past, Cali finds events like Halloween and rallies to be at the top of her list. She also mentioned her love of the music program.

One of the biggest moments this year, she said, was the Mock Trial team getting into the Santa Clara County finals.

“That was a very high point,” she said. “One of the students I’ve had for four years, the other for three, and this year all the students came together as a team. After watching [students] grow I thought that was really special.”

Junior Michael Chang, who has Cali as a counselor, said that Cali became so much more than a counselor to him and others he knows.

“She’s one of those rare people who is driven by passion to go above and beyond in her job,” said Chang. “The school will lose one of its most dedicated and supportive leaders when Ms. Cali retires.”

Sophomore Elyse Berlinberg added that she was sad about Cali retiring.

“I really wish she could stay throughout my applying to colleges and all. I’m really sad that she’s retiring, but I hope she has a great time taking time off, traveling, and all that jazz,” said Berlinberg.

Looking further back, Cali laughed about when she first started teaching in 1972 at Mt. Pleasant High School, the technology was completely different from what current students are used to.

“Well, back then we didn’t have computers; we used a typewriter, and we used what was called a ditto machine [a machine similar to a copy machine]. Well, if you used it at the last minute, right before you ran into class, the fluid would still be wet. And the kids would get very excited, pass the papers around and sniff the fluid,” Cali said.

She expressed amazement at how different the times were and how they have changed. There was no Internet, record players were used, and all the teachers used chalk and blackboards as opposed to today’s whiteboards. The movies teachers showed students were on actual film.

“One time I was showing a film, and I didn’t realize the film had stopped, so it was all over the floor. I had to sit there and roll it back up with a pencil,” Cali said.

As for her parting words to the school, Cali said that they were similar to what she would say to departing seniors.

“You’re moving on to something new and no one can take the memories away,” Cali said. “Your lives are enriched, and I feel that my life has been very much enriched by being here. With that we can move on to a new adventure and a new experience and cherish what has happened over the last 11 years.”