Anyone in the sophomore Media Arts Program (MAP) can always find teacher Alex Hemmerich helping  a student, pointing at the computer screen and patiently explaining how to use the tools in media softwares.

“Whenever someone needs help, Mr. Hemmerich is always there, and he really makes sure that everybody feels comfortable in his classroom,” said sophomore Madison Stuart.

Hemmerich is the school’s new Media Arts 1 and Digital Photography teacher. He started his teaching career soon after graduating from California College of the Arts, where he majored photography in. His first teaching job started five years ago at Oakland School for the Arts, where he taught  video, design and photography for a year, and then later taught art classes at Acalanes High School located in Lafayette, Calif.

“I ended up getting into photography and other media arts because I thought it was cool creating art digitally but also taking things that exist in the world, and manipulating them through ways that give them new context,” Hemmerich said.

As part of the sophomore MAP teacher team, Hemmerich has enjoyed collaborating with History teacher Mike Davey and English teacher Suzanne Herzman to create “flush-through curriculum” for their students.

“You get to experiment a little more with such a curriculum and you get to integrate everything,” Hemmerich said. “It makes a lot of sense to have English, History and Art all coming together.”