Cam High’s new French and yearbook teacher, Ms. Roberta Castro, is one of the new additions to Cam High’s staff in the 2018-2019 school year.

Castro was born in Redondo Beach, California and lived there for three years. She later moved to Baywood Park, located in San Luis Obispo County and graduated from Morro Bay High School. After high school, Castro went directly to college to major in Clothing and Textile Design at Cal State Northridge.

Castro is not a native speaker of French, and she first started learning the language in high school. “I loved the language and fell in love with everything that had to do with France,” said Castro.

After college, Castro lived in France for five years before moving to Sacramento, California. “When I came back from France, I decided to figure out what I could do with the language and that is how I decided to become a teacher.” Castro earned her French degree and teaching credentials at Cal State Sacramento.

This summer, Castro moved to Port Hueneme because she wanted a change from teaching yearbook and French at West Campus High School for 11 years. Her fiancé owns a property in Port Hueneme, and they would frequently visit the Camarillo area, which led to the decision to move here. When Castro heard about the job opening at Cam High, she did not hesitate to apply.

For the past two years, Cam High’s foreign language department has received a new French teacher every school year, but that did not deter Castro from taking the position. “It did not affect my decision to take this job because I know that I enjoy teaching French and I am passionate about the subject.” Since Castro also has experience with teaching yearbook, she is adviser of the yearbook class as well.

Castro has high hopes for her students despite the change in teachers. “A goal I have for my students is to prepare them to the point where if they ever do travel to France, they would feel comfortable enough to speak the language and converse with a native French speaker.”