A teacher. A mentor. A sponsor. Students and teachers are scrambling to fill the holes that opened when a teacher of 21 years decided to leave EHS.
Former EHS English teacher and multi-club sponsor Cara Lane has chosen to let Henry David Thoreau explain the decision she made.
“I left the woods for as good a reason as I went there. Perhaps, it seemed to me that I had other lives to live and could not spare any more time for that one,” Thoreau said.
As an English teacher, it is only fitting that she uses a literature quote. She taught a junior American literature class as well as the debate and public speaking elective courses.
Nicole Pontious is taking over her debate and public speaking courses.
“I spent hours … going through all the resources Ms. Lane had left,” Ms. Pontious said. “I am still swimming in her resources…trying to figure out how to wrap my head around what she had crafted in 20 years.”
Students often looked to Ms. Lane for guidance as she had “a wealth of knowledge,” Mrs. Pontious said. Colleague Kirk Schlueter considers her to have “broad expansive knowledge.”
Both colleagues admire her passion for learning.
Mr. Schlueter’s biggest takeaway is Ms. Lane’s ability “to identify something in students that they already have a passion… and interest for and steer them and guide them in such a way that they grow” using that knowledge.
Ms. Lane sponsored many extra curriculars such as the Debate Club, Film Society, Ethics Bowl, Morning Announcements Crew and Poetry Out Loud.
“She was a great teacher, but also a great mentor,” Mr. Schlueter said.
The decision to leave EHS also left the students and staff still interested in these clubs to find a replacement sponsor.
Mr. Schlueter is taking over the Ethics Bowl, and fellow English teacher Beth Warner is taking over the Debate Club.
After handing off National English Honors Society to another teacher, Mrs. Warner “was in a position to take on a new challenge,” but this is not the case for all clubs.
The announcements crew and the film society club are still in need of a new sponsor.
English teacher Ashley Lewis is the teacher who moved into Ms. Lane’s former classroom this year.
“So many students stopped by to say hi and were heartbroken to realize she wasn’t here anymore,” Ms. Lewis said.
Fellow English teachers share the same thoughts that things will not be the same without Ms. Lane around. Many coworkers mentioned back-to-school gathering she used to host at her house.
“Anything she could do to help better our department, she would do,” Mrs. Pontious said. “She kept our department running behind the scenes.”
Ms. Lewis said she was the “social planner” for the English department.
“There was a feeling of a loss there,” Mr. Schlueter said. “I think that is genuine to say.”
Senior Caroline James was an active member in multiple clubs and classes of Ms. Lane’s. She had her as a teacher for every year of high school until this point.
James discussed the similarities she and Ms. Lane had.
“It was impossible not to click with her,” James said.
Senior Grace Weis had Ms. Lane as a teacher last year during her final year of teaching.
Weis said she “will miss [Ms. Lane’s] joyous energy.”
Ms. Lewis express similar sentiments: “She was such a presence here.”