Welcome to the New Millikan Teacher and Staff Features. This issue we are presenting to you Ryan Temple, the new 10th-12th grade COMPASS Counselor, and Matt Brown, our newly added Assistant Principal,
Article update as of Nov. 16th: With a heavy heart we inform you that on Saturday Nov. 11th, Mr. Ryan Temple unexpectedly passed away. Please keep family and friends in your thoughts and prayers as they navigate this difficult time. Students can pay respects in the counseling office, where a small memorial is set up.
First is Ryan Temple, the new 10th through 12th grade COMPASS Counselor.
Prior to joining the Ram family, Mr. Temple worked as a counselor for 20 years at Long Beach Polytechnic High School. His educational background includes a California State University of Long Beach (CSULB) Degree in Communications. He also has a graduate degree in Pupil Personnel Services and School Counseling from National University.
“I work closely with students in academic achievements, personal and social development, college preparation, and general support COMPASS students may need,” says Temple.
Mr. Temple hopes to learn about Millikan’s dynamic, not only on the administrative side but also on the one of students and teachers. He wishes to improve the school by providing a new perspective that would benefit the students at large.
“I appreciate Millikan’s school colors, it is a pleasant change from the green/gold I was accustomed to. The warm reception from both staff and students is appreciated as well,” says Temple. “I can’t forget the swamp cooler! My office at Poly was hot, so it’s the small things in life. I’m sure I will come to have a more in-depth appreciation of Millikan as time goes on.”
Mr. Temple wants to encourage all students to stop by his office and introduce themselves. He hopes to get to know as many students as possible and support them in any way he can.
Mr. Brown is one of three Assistant Principals here at Millikan. He works with Mr. Hayes and Mr. Ashley. Being an Assistant Principal is no easy job. Mr. Brown is the administrator for the SEGA pathway, the History Department, and the Physical Education Department.
“I work collaboratively with teachers, parents, and students to address concerns with curriculum and simultaneously provide any support they may need,” says Mr. Brown.
Aside from that Mr. Brown is also head of the Emergency Preparedness procedures, the attendance/tardies, and works closely with the student body and our writers here at the Millikan Corydon. He wishes to educate students on safety procedures while keeping teaching disruptions to a minimum.
Mr. Brown has a teaching credential in history from the University of California Irvine (UCI). He also has a Masters Degree in Educational Administration from California State University Long Beach (CSULB).
He has been part of the Long Beach Unified School District for 25 years. He started at Washington Middle School, and after three years he taught at Long Beach Polytechnic High School. He then became the Assistant Principal at Cabrillo for 10 years. After that, he returned to Poly for six years as an administrator.
His hope for Millikan is to make it a place where students have fun and provide them with activities that allow them to socialize.
“I want students to learn how to think, cell phones have created a barrier. I don’t want students to just memorize information and not know what to do with it. Education has to switch its gears to ‘how do we filter this information?’” says Brown. “My favorite thing about Millikan is that people want to be here, and it shows.”
Chiala Villanueva • Dec 5, 2023 at 1:55 pm
This well written article praises the work of 10th-12th grade COMPASS counselor Ryan Temple, and the newly added assistant principal, Matt Brown. The goals of Mr. Temple are shared, including his hopes to encourage and assist the student body, in order to improve the school environment. Mr. Brown, the newly added assistant principal shares his intended efforts to address issues with the school curriculum, while simultaneously helping students in need.
It is especially appreciated that this article sheds light on the devastating passing of Mr. Temple, with adding an article update on November 16, 2023, to inform readers to keep the thoughts of friends and family in mind during such a difficult time. The article also provides navigation to the memorial in which students can pay their respects in the counseling office. Apart from mourning this loss, Quezada includes Temple’s hard-earned accomplishments of being a counselor for another LBUSD high school, Long Beach Polytechnic High School, along with including his educational background from Cal State University of Long Beach. These accomplishments tie closely into the impact Mr. Temple made at this school. Furthermore, Quezada also mentions the work of Mr. Brown. As an assistant principal, it is clearly stated that Brown works as the head of attendance and tardies, while also working closely with the students running the Millikan Corydon. Brown’s wishes are also shared, where he hopes to inform students on safety procedures.
This article shares the important accomplishments and the impact of COMPASS counselor Mr. Temple, and assistant principal Mr. Brown. Through using precise language and direct quotations said directly from the featured teachers themselves, Quezada effectively informs readers of some of the hardworking staff members, here at Millikan High School.
Arianna Garcia • Nov 30, 2023 at 1:15 pm
On November 30, 2023, Tere Quezada wrote an article titled, “Teacher Features.” Last year, I started the series of Teacher Features because I felt it was important to spotlight the wonderful staff at Millikan. Tere is the new writer for these stories and has done an exemplary job with this article, properly giving us a variety of information both formal and fun. Quezada also did a great job at updating and addressing the very sensitive topic of Ryan Temple’s passing. She stayed respectful and concise, while still allowing readers to stay caught up with our school. Something I would add to the story to enhance it would be more information about what these wonderful staff members enjoyed doing outside of school so we can learn more about their personal life. The aricle taught me that both Mr. Temple and Mr. Brown had many similarities, having expeirenced education both at Poly and Millikan. I am glad to have learned more about them and look forward to reading more Teacher Features by Tere Quezada.
Melia Kukahiko • Nov 30, 2023 at 11:02 am
This piece is a very nice newsletter to publish to get to know more about our staff here at Millikan. These two staff members have been a part of this area of specialty for around 20 years which I find very interesting. I enjoyed reading what they had to say in the individual interviews and how they plan on contributing to not only the school, but how they anticipate making the school a welcoming environment for us students. I love how Mr. Temple has such a positive mindset on how he is adjusting to the new change of scenery here at Millikan as he worked at Poly for 20 years prior to Millikan. As for Mr. Brown, I like how he applauds those who seem like they want to be here as it shows that he is thrilled to be a contributing part of our community. Reading and learning more about these two makes me appreciate the work that they do for us as well as our school all around and I am looking forward to who will be in the spotlight next!!
Adrian Ramos • Nov 30, 2023 at 10:58 am
The layout of the article and how it orders its information to make comparisons to the two new staff members and how they are alike worked extremely well. They both had similar goals in mind, trying to provide new perspectives into the new environment they joined. I am glad for the update on the tragic passing of Mr. Ryan Temple as we collectively grieve his unbecoming passing and remember his efforts while he was here.
I wish, however, that more questions had been asked about the new staff members’ experiences in their prior environments and their opinions so comparisons could be made between what they had worked in and Millikan. This could have allowed a deeper dive into their specific goals for their new job as the descriptions they gave were slightly vague. But, the detailed information on their actual background and previous jobs had made me surprised on how long they had been working before coming to Millikan, especially Mr. Matt Brown with his twenty-five years working in the LBUSD. With his pattern of bouncing from one place to the next, I wonder why he started out as a teacher and then jumped up the ladder to becoming a vice principal and why he has yet to become a full-fledged principal.
The inclusion of so many quotes from the two new staff members made their first impression fantastic as they are portrayed as welcoming and kind individuals who simply want to better the school in any way they can. They want to get to know their new students and instantly start on trying to provide new perspectives into this community. Mr. Brown is even concerned about safe practices and the students’ curriculum while still attempting to keep classroom and school disruptions to the minimum. These traits and impressions make their addition to the Millikan community seem very beneficial.
Raquel Escamilla • Nov 30, 2023 at 9:35 am
I love how you decided to write about the new staff here at Millikan, this article has shown us how some staff think. I find it interesting how both staff members worked at Poly. I wonder if they had similar experiences working at Poly?I love how both teachers like being here at Millikan. I wonder how Mr. Temple felt like being here even though he had a small amount of time with us.
Even though Mr. Temple had such a small amount of time at this school I loved how he instantly said positive things about his switch from Poly to Millikan. I find it interesting that Mr. Brown worked at Poly but switched to Millikan and had different jobs at each school. I wonder if both of his jobs were hard to do? I would like to know more about how he felt about switching from the two schools and whether his experiences were different or similar.
I agree with what Mr. Brown said how cell phones have created a barrier to students’ learning. I hope with Mr. Brown’s mindset our school can prosper.
Lainey Chan • Nov 29, 2023 at 11:12 pm
This article greatly captures the ideas and perspectives of the new Millikan members, Ryan Temple and Matt Brown. Both who hope to positively contribute to the Millikan community. Unfortunately, Quezada updates that Mr. Temple has unexpectedly passed away. His contributions to Millikan and Poly will not be forgotten.
I admire Mr. Temple’s appreciation for the different work environments of Poly and Millikan High School. As Quezada writes how Mr. Temple is on the administrator’s, the teacher’s, and the student’s side. He hopes to benefit everyone in the community which is greatly appreciated.
I agree with Mr. Brown’s take on learning. He wants students to learn how to think, rather than just memorize. As a student myself, I too have memorized rather than learned before. Actually learning the information will benefit students long term while memorizing will only benefit the students in the moment.
Overall, this article was incredibly written and well informative.
Natalia Avina • Nov 29, 2023 at 9:06 am
I find it extremely interesting that both of the new staff members have former experience in different High Schools in Long Beach. Both have a long background of working at Poly High school. I wonder if they see more similarities or differences between our school and theirs? What specifically intrigued them about joining Millikan High School?
I agree with what the new Assistant Principal, Mr. Brown says about wanting students to learn how to think instead of memorizing information and not understanding its purpose or use. As a student who gets overwhelmed with lots of workload, I find myself using short-term memory to memorize information for a short period of time and later forgetting it. Ultimately defeating the purpose of learning it.
With the incredible amount of experience both Mr. Brown and Mr. Temple have gained over the years. I see Millikan greatly benefiting from their contributions.