Alyssa Fuentes and Gabriel Gomez
tower news

Ten years ago, Angie Anaya would never have imagined that fashion would lead her to an education. Still, former Delta her college instructor and current Manteca her high fashion guru, she can’t imagine herself anywhere else.

Anaya teaches interior design and fashion merchandising at CTE, where students learn specifically about the design process.

“Once we understand the design process, we believe that there are many factors in trying to come up with a design that is not only beautiful, but also functional, and last but not least is sustainable design. We do a lot of that,” Anaya said in an interview. tower news.

Admittedly, Anaya’s career path wasn’t designed this way. . She graduated with a degree in fashion from Delta College.

“I never thought I would be a teacher,” she said. “I never wanted to go to school thinking, ‘I want to be a teacher.’ I always loved the fashion industry, so I always wanted to be a part of it.”

It wasn’t until a professor at Delta College asked Anaya for a teaching position that Anaya enjoyed a career in teaching. However, considerable persuasion was required. Professor Leslie Asfour was passionate about Anaya taking her college course. With her degree and knowledge, she believed Anaya would be a perfect fit.

she was right

“My first reaction was that I’m not a teacher!” said Anaya. “I don’t know how to do this.”

Anaya was hesitant to take the job, but a conversation with her mother changed her decision. his mother told her to just do it.

“I just tried it. When I was at Delta, I taught there for three years,” Anaya said. We also had product development, event production, like classes where we put on fashion shows, and product knowledge classes.… I really enjoyed teaching all ages, so we had students from 18 to their 80s. was very dynamic.”

Her career would go in a different direction.

Again, Anaya was encouraged by her colleague, Victoria Brun, to step out of her comfort zone and pursue a different teaching career.

“One of my responsibilities while teaching at Delta was reaching out to high schools in our area,” said Anaya. Teacher here, I knew her. We had a mutual friend, so I talked to her and encouraged her to send a fashion student to Delta. I’m going to quit and work at the ward office.I think you’re perfect for teaching at a high school.

Anaya quickly declined. She considered it a “step back.” But after some thought, she called her teacher back and Manteca jumped at the chance to teach at her Unified.

“I prefer teaching high school to Delta College,” she said. “…I feel like I’m making more of an impact on high school students here. It’s a little more dynamic, energetic, and challenging.”

She advises students, especially those facing opportunities to step outside their comfort zones. Her words come from a field of understanding.

“I always say we all live in this bubble. It’s really easy for us to live in this bubble, right? It’s like everything we know.” … When I got the job (at Delta College), it was like I was in my own bubble and had to think outside of it: “Okay, can I be your teacher?” I always tell my students that they are thinking beyond your common sense because it is so far beyond my common sense. ”