Starting during the 2024-2025 school year, Riverside Brookfield High School gained many new teachers, including a new automotive teacher, Benjamin May. 

This year, May will be teaching Automotive I, Advanced Automotive I, and Advanced Automotive II.  May’s last school was Homewood-Flossmoor High School in Flossmoor, IL. Automotive is a fairly new class to RB, but not to May. 

“My last high school was Homewood-Flossmoor High School,” May said. “I primarily taught automotive classes. I also taught Small Engines there as well, [such as] Welding 1, 2 and Advanced, Metal Machinery, Woodworking, and Pre-Engineering.”

For some teachers, teaching kids auto-technology seems like a challenge but not to May. May has had a lot of experience in the field of engineering and automotive. The proof comes from all the degrees he gained in college.

“My bachelor’s degree was industrial technology from Purdue University,” May said. “My first master’s degree is in industrial technology education at Illinois State University. My second master’s degree is from University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign in educational leadership and supervision, and I have three associate’s degrees in automotive from College of Lake County.”

During automotive classes, kids get to learn practical skills they can use outside of school. This can especially help when a conflict comes up during their day-to-day lives. These students would have more experience with these situations and know what to do. 

“I like to see where they can transition their English, math, and science [skills] into practical education where they can click in with their general knowledge as far as they understand why they’re learning or what they’ve learned in most classes,” May said.

Given the amount of knowledge around automotive skills May has, he decided to teach at high school level to see students’ growth.

“I feel like the growth potential of students is pretty big at the high school level, so I enjoy that,” May said.

Most people would think that teaching high schoolers how to fix cars sounds chaotic, but May tends to enjoy this process.

“I think it is [chaotic], but I enjoy it, so it’s not as much labor for me because I enjoy what I do, and I enjoy the learning I see from students when they finally get it,” May said. 

Finding fixable cars for automotive classes can be a hard process. May has been able to find creative ways to get students the first hand experience on working with cars.

“Sometimes we have teachers that bring their cars in,” May said. “I usually let kids bring in their own cars because they can see the benefits of their learning.” 

When RB has new teachers, students like to find out what they are like, especially when they teach an interesting class like auto-tech.

 “I enjoy problem solving,” May said. “That’s probably something kids don’t see in all of their classes, or at least not to the degree they see in automotive.”

This 2024-2025 school year, Riverside Brookfield High School has welcomed new staff member Daniel Rubio as an English teacher. In past years, Rubio was a student teacher, as well as a long-term substitute teacher at RB. He worked at Waubonsie Valley High School in Aurora, IL for two years before getting hired as a full-time teacher at RB last spring. 

Rubio covers many different English and language topics throughout the school year to improve students’ reading and writing skills.

“I think the big thing is to get students to feel more comfortable with just reading and writing,” Rubio said. “In general, I feel like a lot of times students come in and one of the things that they say they hate doing is writing—and I don’t blame them, it’s a hard thing to do—so if they could leave my classroom feeling a stronger writer, then I feel like I’ve done my job.”

Rubio, from Berwyn, IL, attended Morton West High School and did two years of community college before transferring to the University of Illinois Chicago (UIC). Upon graduating in 2020, Rubio began his student teaching at RB, including taking over for English teacher Kathleen Harsy during her maternity leave.

“He [Rubio] has already been part of the team,” Harsy said. “He did my maternity leave during the pandemic, so he’s already been a team member in our department during a really challenging time, and he rose to the occasion and did fantastic.”

Along with his passion for reading and writing as a student, Rubio had many great English teachers whose positivity inspired his career in teaching. 

“They [previous English teachers] definitely pushed me and motivated me to be the best version of myself academically and personally,” Rubio said. “It always takes that one adult to push you and motivate you to be the best version of yourself, and that just sticks with you.”

Rubio was interviewed last spring, along with a handful of other candidates. RB English teacher and Division Head for Humanities, Marc Helgeson, was involved in the interview. Helgeson, along with other interview conductors, were pleased with Rubio’s vision of English education. 

“When we were conducting our interviews, it was very obvious to myself and the other members of the interview team that Mr. Rubio is a great fit for RB,” Helgeson said. “He cares deeply about teaching the skills that are involved in an English classroom, but he also cares just as much about the students and who they are, and how he can assist them to become even better versions of themselves.” 

Rubio has felt at home at RB not only because of his familiarity with the school, but because of the positive environment provided by the students and staff. 

“Everybody has been super welcoming,” Rubio said. “Everyone’s happy to be here, and that makes me happy to be here as well.” 

Helgeson, along with other members of the English department, is excited to continue to get to know Rubio and watch him grow as a teacher as he adapts to the environment.

“I look forward to getting a better sense of what he continues to bring to our students here at RB,” Helgeson said. “In the end, our job is ultimately always servicing the needs of our students.”

It’s a new year at Riverside Brookfield High School, and this 2024-2025 school year, the administration has hired Lisa Voigts-Guzmán as their newest member of the student services team. Guzmán will be working with other fellow counselors in order to advise and support the RB community. 

Guzmán studied for many years at various universities in order to receive all the requirements needed to become a school counselor, including Aurora University and Northern Illinois University (NIU). She has dedicated much of her life to studying psychology and other social sciences. 

“I went to Aurora University for my bachelor’s degree in psychology,” Guzmán said. “Then, I got a minor in gender studies for really no reason at all. Then, I went to Northern Illinois University for my master’s degree in clinical mental health counseling. I also obtained a certificate in LGBT studies. I worked for a while, and then last year, in 2023, I returned to NIU. They have a program called the ‘school counselor institute.’ It’s for folks who already have their master’s degree and are already licensed as a clinical mental health counselor, but want to get the additional courses to become a school counselor. So, I went to an online school for about six months and then I did a full-time internship at Glenbard East High School in Lombard.”

Guzmán has made a career for herself through many years of experience as a mental health worker and counselor, including having worked at a non-profit organization called Trinity Services. However, Guzmán feels that her new employment at RB feels right this time. 

“I feel like there’s a significant difference with this job compared to my previous positions because it just feels like it fits, like I should be here,” Guzmán said. “I think with previous jobs, there was always this sort of question of ‘What’s next?’ and not being settled or content with what I was doing.”

Guzmán also described her process of being hired at RB, which had many staff and faculty involved such as RB principal Héctor Freytas, assistant principal for student services Beth Augustine, and school counselor Jim Franko. Guzmán stated that she was first interested in the job position due to its proximity, along with her doing some of her own personal research before her interview. 

“I live locally, so there’s always a convenience factor, I would say,” Guzmán said. “In preparing for my interviews, I was obviously reading about the school and searching things like crazy. Everything I came across—I just really liked what I saw.” 

In her first month at RB, Guzmán is already working hard and is committed to her over 300 designated students. While she has not had the chance to meet all students face-to-face yet, Guzmán has said that her approach this school year is to be intentional and meaningful in her one-on-one meetings with students, in hopes to establish trust and form meaningful connections. 

“I think primarily most students are focused on doing well academically,” Guzmán said. “I’ve been meeting with a lot of seniors who are really involved in what’s after high school, so that’s been really neat to have those conversations.”

For the 2024-2025 school year, Riverside Brookfield High School has welcomed multiple new staff members, including Stephanie Smith, the new head athletic trainer.

Smith’s new position includes assisting RB athletes to make sure they are readily prepared injury-wise and helping to ensure the prevention of future injuries. 

“Our job includes so much,” Smith said. “Our main responsibility is to ensure the safety of our student-athletes during all RBHS sponsored athletics. This can range from getting water ready for practices and games, [to] taping an athlete, [to] helping with rehab, [to the] evaluation of an injury. My favorite part of my job is being able to enjoy our student-athletes succeed at a game that they love.”

During high school, Smith was initially inspired to pursue athletic training when she broke her ankle and went to physical therapy. At her visit, she was enamored by what the physical therapy treatments did to help her recover.

“When I went to college, I started taking classes to be in the PT program, and while I was doing my observation hours, I realized that PT was not for me,” Smith said. “Luckily the school that I went to also had a master’s in athletic training program, so I was able to transition over to that. I wanted to treat patients that had the drive to want to get better and be back doing what they love.”

Smith’s career as an athletic trainer started at Tiffin University in Tiffin, OH, where she participated in her duties for a wide variety of sports. Over time, she decided to move closer to the Chicagoland area. 

“I got to travel to some very cool places with the teams,” Smith said. “I worked there for nine years. My sister and her wife started having kids, and I wanted to be closer to them. They live in Bloomington, IL, and my parents still live in Evanston where I grew up. I was looking for jobs closer to the Chicagoland area and ended up getting a job with Athletico Physical Therapy, working exclusively at Downers Grove South High School.”

Later, when she was done working at Downers Grove South High School, Smith decided to move to RB as the head athletic trainer.

“After working at Downers Grove South High School for five years, I found that there was an opening for both a head athletic trainer and assistant athletic trainer, and that both were new positions,” Smith said. “Working directly for the school, everyone takes a little more pride in the work that you do that usually goes unnoticed.”

Smith has several hobbies, most of which involve her preference for the outdoors, as well as enjoying spending time with her family.

“I like spending time outside in nature, going on hikes, [and] going to the Morton Arboretum for walks,” Smith said. “My sister and her wife now have three kids, and I love spending time with them, as well as all of my cousins and their kids, [which is] a big reason I moved back to the Chicagoland area.”

During the beginning of the 2024-2025 school year, Riverside Brookfield High School welcomed a new staff member, Steven Olson, who will be teaching within the Applied Arts department. 

Prior to becoming a staff member at RB, Olson taught within the Oak Park School District. He was involved in teaching electronics, design and modeling, and robotics. Currently, he is teaching the same class material as he was at his previous school. 

“I have been teaching for 11 years, and I have been teaching in middle school, so I was ready for a change,” Olson said. “I also know the area well, and I know that this school is great.”

Before Olson decided to pursue his career as being a teacher, he studied meteorology in college and acquired a degree in that field. Based on his interests and his past experience with working with kids, he decided to become a teacher.

“I wasn’t originally thinking that I would go into teaching,” Olson said. “I studied meteorology in college, so I have a degree in meteorology. Then the great recession hit, so I needed to get a job, and I just ended up getting one. Growing up, I would always do day camps, and I worked with kids all the time, so I was like, ‘Maybe teaching would be a great thing for me to do.’ That’s how I transitioned into it, and I have loved it ever since.” 

Although he is new to RB, Olson would like to open more opportunities for students. He wants to let students have a say in what they do in class and use their creative freedom to their advantage. He also wants to expand the Applied Arts program and let students explore different technologies and learn new skills. 

“I really want to expand this program,” Olson said. “We have great stuff here already, but I really want more stuff for students to be able to use. We have lasers and 3D printers, but I want more of that.”

By teaching students material within the Applied Arts course, he hopes that students can get dual credit and be inspired to keep a technology-related career in mind in the future. With the provided technology at the school, Olson also would like for students to know how to use certain technologies to their advantage. 

“Dual credit is important to a lot of students, and to me, so I want to make sure that I give the opportunity for students to get dual credit,” Olson said. “That’s what we’re working on right now.”

As a result of joining RB, Olson is eager to see how his students will grow and aspire to be in the future. Providing a space where students can learn and grow can help them achieve their goals and discover new career paths they could take.

“A lot of people in Applied Arts are really eager to see where this program goes and keep expanding for the students here,” Olson said. 

Starting off the 2024-2025 school year, Riverside Brookfield High School welcomes new staff member Jasmine Smith. At RB, she is working as one of the new athletic trainers and primarily works with the indoor athletes including volleyball, basketball, and cheerleading. Smith takes on the role of evaluating and caring for student athletes to get them back in shape for their sports. 

Smith’s love for helping others sparked towards the end of her high school years. However, her dream to work with others did not start with athletic training.

“I actually did not want to become an athletic trainer,” Smith said. “At first I wanted to be a physical therapist. When I graduated from college, I took a gap year and worked in a physical therapy clinic, and I liked it, but I felt like I did the same thing everyday. I saw the same people and injuries everyday, and in the clinic, there were a lot of older people, so I never got to see anyone younger or did sports, so after a while I didn’t like it. So then I just decided to apply to athletic trainer school.”

It was a six year long process to become an athletic trainer. Typically, at least four years of schooling to finish your undergraduate degree and then obtaining your master’s degree is required for athletic training. Smith shares her background of schooling and her journey through the healthcare profession. 

“For undergrad I went to Howard University, which is in Washington, D.C., for four years, and I just graduated from North Central College with my master’s for athletic training,” Smith said. “I just graduated in May, so we are going on four months now, very fresh.”

Smith’s love for kids stems from having younger siblings of her own that are in high school. It makes having a connection with students much easier, considering her relationship with her family. Smith describes why she decided to pick RB and her relationship with kids.

“Coming out of school, I knew I wanted to start in the high school setting,” Smith said. “One, because there aren’t a lot of athletic trainers in the high school setting, and two, because I do get along with kids very well. Also, in the high school setting you see a lot more different things because kids are always getting injured, and kids are still growing, so you still get to see growth plates. Just different things you would not see with college or adult patients.”

It is beneficial for Smith seeing different injuries with different students. However, there can be difficult situations to handle. 

“The hardest part, I would say, is realizing that it is okay not to know everything,” Smith said. “You do not have to have an answer or diagnosis right away. Some people’s injuries throw you for a loop. Kids can’t really explain and communicate what they actually feel, so trying to decipher their language to what it actually is tends to become difficult to navigate to what is going on.”

Smith recognized that the world of healthcare is a journey, as it throws many challenges at you. She shared the many positives that come with it. Nothing can stop her love for children and her passion to help others. To Smith, there are many best parts of being a trainer. 

“Being able to help and care for people who need it is very rewarding,” Smith said. “From watching athletes that got super injured, to seeing them get back to what they were doing before is super rewarding. It is stressful, and the hours are long, but at the end of the day, I love helping others.”

With the 2024-25 school year already underway, Riverside Brookfield High School has brought on several new staff members to bolster what is already a very strong cast of teachers. Among those new hires is English teacher Chloe Bruck. It is easy to see that RBHS is getting an enthusiastic, eager young teacher to headline the next generation of staff in the district. 

Bruck is an Illinois State University (ISU) graduate in her second year of teaching English. Just like with any other new teacher, it is important to understand why she chose to be where she is now so early on in their career. 

“I come from a long line of teachers,” Bruce said. “My mom and my grandma were both teachers, so it was something I was always around, and I was very familiar with how it all worked. Hearing them talk about their experiences in the classroom just made it seem appealing to me.”

It is easy to see why Bruck was brought into RB, as she has plenty of familial background in the broad subject of teaching. While this helped her understand the ins and outs of the job, it also helped her find a gleam of passion for it as well. 

“I think that the opportunity to work with high school students at such a pivotal point in their life, as this is a time where a lot of stuff is happening, is a cool time to be able to work with students,” Bruck said. “The subject of English has a lot of power to help students work through things and help them find out more about themselves in the world.”

Bruck’s specific passion for the subject of English came at a young age, helping her realize that she wished to continue to pursue English. Bruck encourages others to appreciate the subject just the same as she does. 

“Some of my fondest memories are going to the library with my mom and my brother, and we would always get a ton of books,” Bruck said. “I’ve always loved it because it can transport you to another world and help you see the other experiences that other people have in their lives, which helps me be a more empathic, understanding person.”

As a young teacher, it is never easy to jump aboard and instantly become acclimated to the workspace. For that to gradually happen, the right people and overall environment are vital to sustained success and motivation. Bruck feels that RB fits those narratives, allowing her to feel right at home. 

“I think that so far, my first impressions are that this is an awesome place to work,” Bruck said. “I’ve felt so supported by all the people in the English department and people outside. Everyone here is just so kind, which helps because teaching can be a challenging profession because some things don’t always go as planned, and you can have really rough days. I think that having good people around you is one of the most important things. I feel like the community and the positivity will make this a place that is awesome to work at and great for me to grow.”