As we all know, the wonderful Ms. Bradley will be retiring at the end of the school year after an astounding 39 years at La Jolla Country Day. Ms. Bradley has done a lot for this school and has taught thousands of successful students, all while creating an extremely positive classroom environment. With her retirement, the Palette has decided to interview her as we reflect on her many years and her many accomplishments here at Country Day. 

When asked what her favorite things about teaching high school students was, Ms. Bradley replied, “It’s different everyday, and I love the energy in the classroom. Also, I enjoy when a student has an epiphany, and I appreciate the lessons I learn from the students as well.” which just goes to show how dedicated she is to her students and the work she puts in to have such a good environment for them as well. Ms. Bradley is a wonderful teacher who always tries to bring the best out of her students, and she knows that “High school students have very busy lives, so there are all kinds of outside activities that compete with focus in the classroom and time outside of it,” but this does not stop her from trying to get each individual student the help they need to continue their journey through English and throughout their high school career. Teaching high school students is no easy task, and Ms. Bradley is amazing at being able to deal with the day-to-day challenges that are faced. With teaching so many thousands of students, Ms. Bradley’s classes have ranged throughout the year, but her favorite to teach during her time at Country Day was “Murder and Mayhem”. When asked what her best accomplishment was, Ms. Bradley replied: “I have taught thousands of students, and I hope many of them go out into the world successfully able to navigate and contribute to it.” Her advice to upcoming teachers and students in English was: “For teachers, I would say be well-prepared, keep a healthy sense of humor and maintain high standards. I would encourage those interested to pursue their passion. Every type of profession has a need for people who communicate articulately and write well.” Ms. Bradley is most excited for spending more time with her dogs, playing tennis, and traveling upon retirement.

We wanted to say thank you to Ms. Bradley for everything that she has done for Country Day and the thousands of students she has taught at our school. We thank her for her advice to new teachers and aspiring English students, and for talking about her experience here at Country Day. Finally, we wanted to wish her an amazing retirement!