Feb, 12, 2024   

   
Lindbergh High School’s newest English teacher, Jessica Langhammer, strives to impact the world's future adults through her love of literature.

“There's so many people!” said Langhammer after she finished her first semester at LHS. “There are so many things always going on, and the students are respectful and funny.” 

Though she originally planned on going into journalism, after the attacks on Sept. 11, Langhammer decided to become an English teacher. She brings 18 years of teaching experience to her new role at LHS, where she now teaches English 3, and College Comp one and two.

“I wanted to go into journalism because I felt like there was a lot of injustice, and I wanted to help people,” she said. “Teaching literature just seemed like a natural segue, because of its ability to help students see worlds beyond their own and recognize how much of an impact just small little gestures can have.”

However, insight is not the only thing that the literature she chooses offers, but also expression. 

“I want to allow high school students who are getting ready to go out into the world the ability to communicate their own beliefs effectively, while still being respectful of others' opinions,” Langhammer said.

Her goal is for students to leave her classroom with a new outlook, that is respectful of others’ experiences, and she believes in the power of teenagers to create the positivity they hope to see.

“My goal is to help students recognize that just because they don't agree with someone else, it doesn't mean that person's perspective is invalid,” Langhammer said. “And that they're able to respect it still and recognize its validity even if they don't agree with it.”

By. Sebastian Rosas, LHS Communications Intern