Student Teacher Feature: Emma Hughes

Emma Hughes is one of four student teachers at MBHS for the ‘25-26 school year, working primarily with Ms. Cherry, who teaches AP Language & Composition, AVID, and English 11. Hughes is currently enrolled in the teaching credential program at California Polytechnic University, San Luis Obispo, having previously received her bachelor’s degree in English with a concentration in creative writing and a master’s degree in English from the same institution. With a true drive to teach herself and others, Hughes has already impacted English classes, specifically seniors in these classes, in amazing ways. 

Hughes grew up in Petaluma, CA, and throughout high school was heavily involved in sports and journalism, as she was the team captain of both the softball and volleyball teams, and a copy editor for her school’s newspaper. Hughes had a hint of who she wanted to be from a young age; with her mom being a teacher, she always had her future cast right in front of her eyes. “I always idolize my mom; she is my hero,” said Hughes. So, when the time came for Hughes to apply to colleges, a lingering and familiar subject that had always interested her throughout high school emerged: teaching. “Having her as an example in a role model and seeing the impact she had on her students really made me want to pursue that career option,” said Hughes. From this spark and initial love of teaching, Hughes blossomed into so much more with studying English at Cal Poly SLO; with that, being able to teach classes to freshmen at Cal Poly SLO, and being a TA for a professor in English, Hughes continued down the path of her mother.   

While her mother was a major part of Hughes’ wanting to become a teacher, she recalls that her teachers in high school fostered her love of English as a subject. “They [Hughes’ teachers] really taught me everything they could, and I absorbed it, and it stuck with me, so I was like, I might potentially want to become an English teacher,” said Hughes. As Hughes grew over the next 4 years at Cal Poly SLO, her love for reading and writing grew with her. “I just really, really fell in love with reading and writing and being able to be creative and sit in a classroom of my peers and just talk about literature, and the books we love, and then be able to write and think critically about everything that we’re reading and discussing,” said Hughes. Laying the concrete of her newfound love of literature, Hughes is now on her journey of being able to do all the things she loves; whether that be teaching, writing, or reading, Hughes is prepped and ready to do it for however long she likes. 

Now, Hughes finds herself here at MBHS with real-life hands-on experience during her credential program. “I love working with Mrs. Cherry. She is like a star. She has all her plans for the year, and she is so open to letting me just jump right in and letting me run some of the classes, do some of the lessons,” said Hughes. As much love as Hughes had for Cherry, Cherry had for Hughes. “It’s just fun to see someone excited about teaching. You know, I’ve been teaching a long time, and I still love my job very much, but it’s always fun to bring someone else in and kind of feel that renewed excitement and passion for what they’re doing,” said Cherry.

With 80+ students in Cherry’s AP Language & Composition classes, Hughes has been a major asset to students when it comes to in-depth editing of their college personal statements. “I feel like I’m getting to know you guys on a really, you know, personal level, which is great,” said Hughes. Junior Natayla Martinez-Hernandez, who is in Cherry’s AVID 11 course, described a moment that Hughes truly emphasized a desire to get to know her students: “For my birthday, she made me a little card. And I feel like that was such a sweet gesture for her to do, because I’ve never had a student teacher do that for me before.” As students try to find their way through the trek that is college applications, or even just day-to-day school, it’s people like Hughes who make the journey lighter. 

Hughes has been taking days to teach the class by herself, which is something that student teachers usually don’t do till the second semester of the school year. “I think she came to running the class earlier because I just think that some people have an innate ability to just connect with students,” said Cherry. With Hughes also teaching courses at Cal Poly SLO in English and Communications, she has already gained an immense amount of knowledge on ways that can help her engage students when teaching. Just from watching Hughes stand in front of a class and teach, you can see the passion shine through her like a light. “She’s really comfortable in front of the class,” said Cherry, “I also feel really comfortable just having her take over.”

When Hughes isn’t found at either Cal Poly SLO or MBHS, you can find her with her nose in a book and her toes in the sand. “I mean, of course, I love reading. That’s my favorite pastime of all time,” said Hughes. There’s never a dull moment in a class with Hughes; she has this way of connecting with students in such drastic ways and truly showing her passion for teaching and her drive to help her students. Hughes is destined for a year of newfound experiences in teaching students and will continue to prove her greatness throughout the school year.