Mr. Tashjy is a second year history teacher here at South Lakes. He teaches World History 2 to the freshmen and HOA to the juniors. Beloved by students, he is well known for his enjoyable teaching style.

“I love the way he teaches. He keeps us very engaged. He helps us learn the content in practical ways. He lets us have phone breaks and lets us listen to music, which takes a lot of stress away from the class. I always look forward to going to his class and learning,” says Maeve Marthinsen.

“Mr. Tashjy’s class is fun and always happy, like it’s always a class I look forward to,” continues Kiara Joseff.

We were able to sit down with him to discuss his experiences and goals as a teacher.

Q: What was your first job?

A:  He used to work as a customer service representative for a big company, describing it as, “ the most boring thing I’ve ever done.”

Q: Why did you choose to become a history teacher?

A:  He has always wanted to become a teacher, but was unsure which subject he would teach. 

He has always enjoyed history, so he decided to become a history teacher to combine both interests.

Q: What advice would you give to your High School self?

A:  He would want his younger self to try more things, explore and travel more. He described his past self as “a bit jaded” and he wishes he explored more opportunities, specifically the things he ended up doing later in life.

Q: What is your life goal?

A:  To spread happiness to those around him and to be happy.

Q: What is your favorite place you have visited and where would you like to go next?

A:  His favorite place he has visited is Florence, Italy. He described it as his “home-away-from-home” and “his favorite place in the whole world,”as that is where he studied abroad and even lived there after college. He would like to visit Tokyo, Japan next, as there isn’t a better place according to him.

Q: Do you have a special talent?

A: Cooking because he “can chop vegetables really fast.”

Q: What is your favorite dish to cook?

A:  Bolognese, which is a classic Italian pasta dish with a meat-based sauce. He says everyone has a different way to make it, but he finds it very therapeutic. 

Q: What’s something you can’t live without?

A:  His spotify account, and describes his music taste as very diverse, as he listens to everything besides country music, because “he’s not a cowboy”.

Q: What’s your favorite fast food?

A:  Chipotle as casual fast food, but he loves McDonalds fries.

Q: Is it called football or soccer?

A:  He says it’s football, but because of American football, it’s confusing in America, so soccer makes sense depending on who you are around.

Q: What is your advice to students?

A:  It’s okay to not have money right after college, because you will have your whole life to work for it. Also because you don’t have good grades, does not mean that it’s the end of the world. There are many different ways to accomplish your goals.