Savannah Hoygaard
Backtalk Editor
Rather than going out to eat for dinners or to the movies, math teacher Kirstin Dirks and her husband save money to fuel their Disney mania with annual trips to Walt Disney World or Disneyland. They go to one of the Disney amusement destinations as frequently as they can. “We try to go at least once a year but our goal is about two or three,” Dirks said.
She adores both Disneyland and Disney World for their differences and divides her vacation time among the two places. Both destinations have similarities but also differences that make them unique and worth going to repeatedly.
“We love them both for different reasons, Disneyland is a quick, short weekend trip and Disney World is great for a week off of relaxation,” Dirks said.
Dirks’ favorite ride is Haunted Mansion at both parks. “I also really enjoy Indiana Jones at Disneyland. At Disney World my favorite is Flight of Passage in the Pandora section of Animal Kingdom and it is like a religious experience for me,” Dirks said.
When not vacationing at Disney, Dirks is found teaching her two other passions, math and chemistry. She came to SHS from Oregon Trail Academy and so far seems to be liking the adjustment.
“I love Sandy High School, it is really fun, there’s a lot of people which is different than my other school,” Dirks said
Although it is quite a transition from a K-12 charter school to a high school with hundreds of teenagers, she enjoys making new connections with peers and students. She is excited that she “gets to meet so many others and have fun with students’’ through her new position at SHS.
Coming to a bigger school with new people, goals and curriculums has made for an earnest but fascinating shift.
“OTA was a smaller school, we had things that we focused on, which is alright but this was a good transition move from me at that time. I was happy teaching over there, it was a nice way to get into teaching but I am very happy to be here now,” Dirks said.
One of the biggest differences with her switch from OTA is the classes that she gets to teach. She is content that she now gets to use her first degree which is in chemistry as well as still getting to teach math.
“It is great for me because I love both of those subjects, so it has been a great transition,” Dirks said.
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