LVUSD bids farewell to 33 staffers

Las Virgenes Unified School District celebrated the retirement of 33 employees in May, including several administrators and teachers who have been with the district for more than 30 years.

Dan Stepenosky, LVUSD superintendent of personnel, asked the retirees to share their favorite memories during a farewell event at the district office.

Doris Warner, a language arts/ social studies teacher and resource specialist at A.E. Wright Middle School in Calabasas, was with the district for 42 years. She wrote that Herb Salinger, the district superintendent at the time, had interviewed her for the job. "He greeted me very warmly and remembered my first name," she said of her first day on the job.

Karen Lough has worked in many schools since she joined the district in 1969. She taught second, third and fifth grades at White Oak Elementary in Westlake Village and fourth grade at Sumac Elementary School in Agoura Hills. She was part of the fourth/fifth-grade science team that taught at all the elementary schools, and she worked as a sixth- and seventh-grade teacher at A.E. Wright Middle School.

Lough remembered being thrilled to get a job with Las Virgenes after Los Angeles Unified School District refused to hire young teachers in the intercity, her first choice for employment. She said her "claim to fame" was when a major metropolitan newspaper ran an article about Lough and other science team teachers, and the headline read, "The Bag Ladies of Las Virgenes."

John Andersen joined Las Virgenes in 1973, working at both Agoura and Calabasas high schools, teaching automobile technology, a class that landed many students and the schools in the spotlight through regional, state and national competitions. Andersen also taught electronics and photography during his career.

Andersen had many humorous stories to share with his colleagues. He remembered when a student rode a horse to class and tied it to a fence outside. Another student brought in a hearse to rig with electrical wiring so it would move on its carriage through remote control.

"With the entire class observing this demonstration, a student dressed in a white sheet sprung out of the coffin and surprised everyone," Andersen wrote.

Steve Smith joined the district in 1970 as a teacher's aide at White Oak Elementary. By 1972, he was hired as an elementary school physical education specialist. He worked as a P.E. teacher at Lindero Canyon Middle School and was the varsity wrestling coach for 26 years at Agoura High School.

Smith's favorite memory was riding the bus with Alice C. Stelle, one of the district's founders. "She had so much pride in our district," he wrote. He also said that every first day of school was memorable because it provided a "fresh start."

In 2006, Smith was awarded Teacher of the Year by the Westlake Chamber of Commerce.

Carole Peterson joined Las Virgenes in 1972 as a science teacher at Lindero Canyon Middle School in Agoura Hills and never left.

"I found my niche there and have loved it ever since," she wrote.

Peterson remembers that during her first year on the job her sixth-grade daughter circulated a petition among students to prove that "(I was) an unfair science teacher because I would not let her have a dog."

Nan Cano, an English teacher at Agoura High School, also has many fond memories. She founded the Gay Straight Alliance at the school, and was an Academic Decathlon coach and the coach of the Opera team.

Cano also escorted students to Europe on eight occasions. "On one trip, we had to turn back due to plane problems," she said. "We sat up all night in Newark Airport, and I led them in yoga to stay awake. Handsome young Italians noticed us, became friends, and their family took us to dinner."

Stepenosky wished the best to all the retirees.