By: Vicky Liu ‘20
On the last day before winter break, I had an intriguing talk with Ms. Foote, an upper school Spanish and 11th grade homeroom teacher who joined FCS at the start of this semester. I was thrilled to hear about her fascinating journeys all over the world, the stories of her varied job experiences, and the hobbies which occupy her time outside of school. She spends much of her time at FCS in room 34 on the third floor of main building, where she teaches Spanish II and Spanish IV. So far, Ms. Foote has enjoyed her teaching here, and guarantees “once you teach in FCS, public school teaching can’t compare.”
When Ms. Foote arrived at Friends’ Central, she didn’t just leave behind her previous job. She left behind her entire home in Colorado! The sole reason for her brave move? The opportunity to teach at FCS. Ms. Foote has known about our school for years from her sister’s three sons, as they are all alumni. They’ve told Ms. Foote many fond stories, and by listening to them, she fell in love with the school. Therefore, when she was asked to teach here, she immediately seized the opportunity, and relocated to her current abode in Haverford. Teaching on City Avenue is truly a “dream come true” for the former Coloradan.
The places to which Ms. Foote has ventured span across the Western Hemisphere. By looking at the square-shaped flag hanging on the wall beside her desk, you know she grew up in Argentina. In North, South, and Central America, she has visited Mexico, Perú, Chile, Guatemala, and Salvador. She has also traveled a lot in Europe in countries such as Italy, Sweden, England, Spain, and Germany. Plus, she resided in Paris with her sister for a while. Most of these adventures were for the sake of business. Ms. Foote used to be a marketer which required her to travel often. Some highlights of her marketing career include serving companies such as Coca Cola and Disney.
Following her years working as a marketer and her time studying at Brown University, where she earned a B.A. in economics, Ms. Foote re-entered the classroom, this time as a teacher. Though Ms. Foote loved being a marketer, she wanted to switch careers because marketing didn’t allow her to demonstrate her “love for kids of all ages.” She shares about her prior teaching experiences: “For the last several years, I worked with kids with a variety of learning disabilities for 18 hours a week in addition to my job. I used to be an art teacher as well.” Ms. Foote’s love for children has already radiated into our community. For example, Connor Liu ‘20, a student of her Spanish II class, recalls the time he was sitting alone in the Rextaurant. Ms. Foote saw him and walked towards him to ask if he was okay. Connor felt wonderful being a beneficiary of Ms. Foote’s kind and caring nature.
Ms. Foote believes lively and exuberant teaching fosters more connections among students and allows them to better advocate for themselves. She delights in conducting interactive classes. After class, she values the time during which she assists students by engaging in one-on-one conversations.
In addition to teaching, Ms. Foote has a variety of interesting hobbies. She enjoys working out, hiking, skiing, biking, painting, hanging out with friends for coffee and meals (she loves Argentina milanesas and any good steak), and watching movies. When Ms. Foote speaks about skiing, she mentions her previous dwelling in Colorado. The weather there is chilly which is ideal for skiing, and her house was surrounded by mountains. Additionally, Ms. Foote enjoys designing websites with her husband, Kevin, a graduate of MIT. In addition to Kevin, her family consists of her 17-year-old son, Max, who will be graduating from Friends’ Central in June, her 13-year-old daughter, Sofia, who’s an eighth grader at FCS, and her dog, Georgia.
Below, Mrs. Foote sits at her desk (Photo by JB ‘20)
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