New teachers in Lincoln City hope to make a difference

Tracy Lilly is one of the new teachers hired by the Lincoln County School District (LCSD) to be an instructor at Taft Middle/High School this year.

Lilly said she was inspired to be a teacher by her father, who taught for 39 years.

“He had this school project called Elwood,” she said. “A stuffed doll that his students would write letters from all over the world for Elwood to go visit.” The doll was sent all around the world to visit various places.

“My father used Elwood as a writing tool, as a classroom buddy, and the doll was very much real to the students,” she said. “Elwood became real and traveled the world. I grew up watching that and seeing his profound impact on the kids in the community, and my father was just adored. He was a father figure for thousands of kids. I took that to heart, and I wanted to do that.”

From than on, Lilly set a path to become an English teacher. She said she has learned a positive way to reach each individual student in the classroom.

“I take the time to get to know them,” she said. “I start off asking them in a survey about themselves so I can pick out elements to know them, to show that I care about them.”

Lilly comes from Dallas, Texas, with 10 years of experience in the classroom.

“I taught English to ninth and 10th graders,” she said. “This year I will be teaching eighth graders social studies at Taft Middle/High School. Luckily, my husband is a big history nerd, so I am hopeful he will help guide me.”

Lilly has family that lives in Lincoln County, and she had been looking for a chance to move to the area.

“This year, I did a really long vacation here with my two young sons,” she said. “When I returned home, I was sad, so luckily the Lincoln County School District had one position open for a teacher. I applied and was able to be hired.”

Adam Martinez has joined the LCSD as a sixth grade teacher in Lincoln City.

“My first year as a teacher was actually in Newport, after graduating college in Idaho,” he said. “I moved back to the Eastern Oregon-Idaho area and taught fourth grade for four years before continuing my studies at the University of Texas at Austin.”

After five years in Austin, Martinez was able to apply and be hired by the LCSD.

“Now I am here to teach the sixth grade,” he said. “I am really looking forward in how my studies can be used to inform in my classroom teaching concretely. One of the crucial elements about teaching is getting to know the students and really thinking about their cultural and the community that they come from — thinking about youth culture and what is that, and to be able to connect to that. I think that is essential.”