Karena Soriano is the Alliance High School junior English teacher. Mrs Soriano has been teaching for over 24 years now. She stated, “ It makes me feel very old, I am currently teaching some of my previous student’s kids”. Mrs. Soriano’s first years of teaching were educating young violin students. She has taught string students for over 20 years. Mrs Soriano said, “I taught Speech, Debate, and Theatre at AHS way back in 2004 to 2006. It was in the spring of 2006 that I decided to stay at home with my kids while they were little. After that, she taught at Immanuel Evangelical Lutheran School for seven years. She taught the second, third, fifth, sixth, seventh, and eighth grades in all subjects.
Mrs Soriano has always loved performing arts, she loves acting/ drama and music. Mrs. Soriano stated, “Since I was little I always wanted to be an actress.” She thought that teaching was a great way to further the knowledge she’s been given, as well as to continue in the areas of interest that she loves. When I asked Mrs. Soriano why she was teaching junior English. She stated, “I knew there was a need, and I love working with students, so I wanted to make sure that the juniors had someone here for them,” . Mrs. Soriano knew it would be difficult filling the shoes of the beloved teacher, Mrs. Smith, but the students need English, and she is here to help as best as she can! Mrs. Soriano hopes that her students “get” that the written word can be impactful, and enjoyable. Most importantly, I hope they feel heard and cared for. Mrs Soriano said, “I truly love my students, worry about them, and want the very best for them! I feel that if students can enjoy reading, their lives will only be enriched.” She also mentioned that if they know that a teacher cares for them, that can make a big difference in someone’s day and life!
During school, Mrs. Soriano is a part of three school events. She is assisting the One Act play this fall, directing the musical this spring, and she is one of the Freshman class sponsors this year. Mrs. Soriano is looking forward to the performances! She stated, “Working with the drama kids has been really fun.” What she looks forward to the most, though, is when she sees the spark of excitement or interest in her student’s faces. She mentioned, “ When we get to an exciting part in our books, or someone understands a concept that they have been struggling with, I just love that. Teachers live for those moments!” In Mrs Soriano’s free time, outside of school, her favorite thing to do is spend time with her family. She stated, “ We love to be outdoors and do things like hike with our dogs, go kayaking, biking, etc. We also love watching movies and playing games together.” Her family is a very close-knit family. They love spending time together and love to laugh and make memories!
I am very glad that AHS has a teacher like Mrs Soriano! I hope that she has fun directing the fall One Act and the spring musical. Mrs. Soriano had a lot to teach and I hope that everyone who has her learns at least one thing from anything she teaches! Let’s hope that she has a good year at Alliance High!
