This year North Atlanta welcomes 12 new teachers and four of them are history teachers. Teachers Bill Donovan, Arturo Meza, Michelle Luco and Jonathan Buys are excited to join the North Atlanta faculty and teach the school’s diverse student body.

Beginning a new job or starting the school year as a new student are always stressful. These four history teachers are beginning the new school year with new students and a new building to navigate. North Atlanta is much bigger than many other high schools as it has 11 floors and is certainly a big change for any newcomers in the building. “With any new job the first month or so is always a new adjustment. There is a learning curve and each week you learn something new,” said 12th grade IB history teacher William Donovan.

Donovan, now in his 21st year of teaching, came to North Atlanta from Marietta High School where he taught for 15 years. He said he’s always found his topic very rewarding to teach. “People think that history is a dead topic but it’s actually quite alive,” he said.

U.S. history teacher Jonathan Buys, now in his 7th year of teaching, came to North Atlanta from Meadow Creek High School. He made the change to North Atlanta because he needed a change things up a bit. “I just needed a change of pace, plus North Atlanta has a good reputation within the district,” he said.

Where his teaching topic is concerned, Buys said he enjoy teaching students how to relate the past to the present. “The lessons from social studies courses can be applied to understanding the past, present and future,” he said.  

World history teacher Arturo Meza came to North Atlanta from Creekside High School where he taught and coached football for the last 18 years. He’s the new defensive coordinator for the Warrior football team and the linebackers coach. Meza said his love for his sport is only surpassed for this love for this teaching topic. “I was told in college that in order to know where you are going you have to know where you came from,” he said. “That is why I think it is important to teach the youth history.”

Michelle Luco, a five-year teaching veteran, came to North Atlanta from Miami Northwestern High School in Miami, Fla. Here at North Atlanta, she teaches IB History of the Americas. She said she’s enjoyed her new school’s vibrant study body, not to mention the panoramic views that her eighth-floor classroom affords. Luco said, “I love the views,” she said. “The view at my old school was just a concrete wall so this is definitely a beautiful change.”

This year is sure to be great for all students in these new history teachers classes. The new teachers have adjusted well to the new building and are ready to teach the many students that will come through the doors of North Atlanta High School.