SMHS teacher leads colleagues, students on travel abroad programs

Taylor Hardy leads students in her classroom, teachers in her department and students on summer travel.

As the chair of the social studies department, Hardy is a bridge between teachers and school administrators.

“My goal as the chair is to make sure that my teachers are happy, healthy, and heard. Teaching can be stressful, and I don’t want my colleagues to feel overwhelmed by the daily demands of teaching,” Hardy said.

To reach her leadership goal, Hardy facilitates monthly meetings with teachers in the department. She listens to teachers’ concerns and then advocates on their behalf to the principal. “I make sure that teachers have what they need to succeed in the classroom with their students,” she said.

“If we have any concerns, then she actually listens and writes them down, which is awesome,” according to Ali Hall, a first-year teacher in the department. “If you have questions about any school or district initiative, you can ask her, and she will ask your questions during the school leadership meetings. When she receives an answer, she either emails or texts you. She’s definitely on top of it when it comes to her role as the department chair. She’s such a positive and supportive leader.”

Hardy tries to give teachers a teaching schedule they want by collaborating with Adriana López Casiano, the instructional coach in the department, and drafts the master teaching schedule for the upcoming academic year. They ask teachers to complete a preference sheet indicating the courses they want to teach. Teachers teach eight of the nine class periods. Hardy said, “The teachers in our department teach multiple subjects, and we try to create a schedule so that teachers do not have more than two different courses to prepare and teach.”

This year, Hardy gave herself a third preparation. “Before the school year started, we needed another government course,” she said. “Rather than giving another teacher a third preparation, I took it myself. Teaching government has been fun. It has been a gift.”

As chair, Hardy pays close attention to the be- ginning teachers in the department. When they ask her for advice, she offers it. Hall values Hardy for her leadership and pedagogical expertise. “She’s a seasoned professional with in-depth knowledge of teaching.” Hall said. “Recently, I was having a classroom management problem with a student in one of my classes, so I asked Ms. Hardy for help. She listened to my situation and then recommended several practical steps that I could take. I tried them, and they worked.”

SMHS has set a goal of integrating reading, writing, and speaking in every lesson. To help the social studies department reach this literacy goal, Hardy partnered with López Casiano and developed an interdisciplinary project that connected social studies and English language arts. The project requires students to read excerpts from popular books, write analyses of the themes in the passages, and discuss their ideas with classmates. The project has been so successful that schools in San Antonio and Round Rock have asked Hardy and López Casiano to conduct professional development for their teachers.

In addition to leading teachers in the department, Hardy organizes summer travel abroad programs for students. Hardy likes history because of the stories about different people in different places and at different times. “I love people telling me stories. I love having very knowledgeable people take me places and share the history of the places, along with their insights.” When she was a beginning teacher, a mentor introduced her to the idea of traveling with students. Now, to cultivate a love of history in her own students, Hardy plans summer travel abroad experiences.

Hardy first traveled with students in 2008 when she taught social studies in another district. “I will never forget traveling with students to President Obama’s inauguration. We got on the subway at 3 o’clock in the morning and stood packed like sardines on the National Mall waiting for the ceremony to begin. It was so cold. We all huddled together to stay warm. It was so gratifying for me as a teacher to see everything from the students’ perspectives and sense their excitement about that special day and that special city.”

Hardy took SMCISD students in 2022 to Italy and Greece where they visited Rome, Capri, Pompeii, Delphi, and Athens. The next year her students visited Tokyo, Kyoto, Osaka, and Hiroshima. Three SMHS teachers have planned trips for 2025 -- Hardy to Portugal; Graciela Garcia to Costa Rica; and Adriana López Casiano to Japan.

Hardy uses the commercial company EF Tours. “It’s all organized by them, with my input. When we arrive in the country, we’re met at the airport by a tour director who stays with us throughout the tour,” Hardy said. The tour director coordinates the logistics related to lodging, travel, meals, and experiences in each city. The tour director speaks the country’s language and knows the history of the various sites. For specific excursions in some cities, EF Tours hires local experts to conduct the tours.

Students reported that traveling helps them to better understand world history. SMHS senior Fatima Davila traveled to Italy and Greece. “Visiting Pompeii was mind-blowing because I learned about the history of a different part of the world that I don’t experience in San Marcos. Although we read about Pompeii in books and learn about it in school, it was really interesting experiencing it firsthand.”

Klaire Hurtado, a SMHS graduate and now a college senior, also traveled to Italy and Greece. “I remember visiting Athens and learning about Greek mythology. The history of Greece is so ancient and different. It was something that I never could have imagined. I’m grateful that Ms. Hardy was there to help me connect what I had studied in class with what I had experienced on the tour. Because of her, I was able to take a deeper dive into world history.”

In addition to learning the history of a country, students experience the culture. “For the first couple of days, the students were in culture shock. They were so quiet, but they were absorbing everything,” according to López Casiano, who traveled as a chaperone on the Greece-Italy trip. “Ms. Hardy and I kept encouraging them to learn some phrases in Italian such as good morning, please, and thank you. The students were reluctant at first, but as time passed, they began interacting more with the locals. I remember when the students came running to us and were so excited when the locals smiled and praised them for trying to speak Italian.”

Hardy and López Casiano encouraged the students to become more adventuresome in tasting Italian cuisine. Students were surprised that there were no burgers but with time and nudging, they tasted local meat entrées that included rabbit and rooster. “We encouraged them to take full advantage of the experience and immerse themselves in it,” López Casiano said. “They eventually got out of their little shells and started trying new things.”

Perhaps the greatest learning occurs when students mature and their thinking changes about themselves and others, Hardy pointed out. “By traveling, students learn so much about who they are and how to deal with unfamiliar situations on their own. I tell the students that I’m not their mom. Students learn a completely different set of skills while traveling.”

In the classroom and abroad, people appreciate Taylor Hardy and her leadership as her students and colleagues can attest. “She radiates kindness and gives students opportunities to learn,” according to student Fatima Davila.

“She advocates for our teachers and students,” López Casiano said. “She truly cares about the kids and the San Marcos community where she lives. She does what she does because she wants to give back to this community.”

Student Klaire Hurtado agreed. “She is an amazingly intelligent teacher who freely shares what she knows about history.”

Nathan Bond is an education professor at Texas State University. Elizabeth Hudson is a retired educator and journalist in Central Texas.