STAFF & FACULTY DIRECTORY PROFILE
Jon Ray Guevarra
Job Title:
Social Studies Teacher
Department:
Social Studies
Email:
Phone: (510) 577-9100
ext.
279
Started at O'Dowd:
2024
Degrees:
BA Asian American Studies, San Francisco State University, 2020
MA Teaching - Urban Education & Social Justice, University of San Francisco, 2023
Originally from:
Occupied Ramaytush Ohlone Land; Excelsior District, San Francisco, California
Why I Teach:
I teach because I had amazing HS teachers and University professors. They opened my eyes to the power that students have while in school despite how they may feel as well as the influence that teachers have on their students. I teach because I want to give my students a similar experience to what I had; feeling loved, supported, and that they can achieve whatever they set their minds to.
Most powerful teaching technique:
I believe that my most powerful teaching technique are two things: 1) my approach and implementation of Ethnic Studies concepts and frameworks in my history class and 2) my centering on student wellness. These two techniques allow me to provide a history class that centers counter narrative stories of Black, Indigenous, People of Color while simultaneously allowing my students to be at the center of my pedagogy.
Why are the subjects you teach important?:
Reviewing history with a critical eye allows us to understand how we got to where we are now in terms of legislative policy, the way certain communities navigate the world, and why the modern world is the way it is. History is more than must learning about dates and events, it's about understanding the nuances of why those events happened and how they influence the world we live in now regardless of how long ago those events happened.
Favorite quotes:
"Critical leadership is [rooted] in community." - Dr. Arlene Daus-Magbual
"Humans are storied beings; you belong to history before history belongs to you." - Dr. Roderick Daus-Magbual
"In memory of the ancestors!" - Dr. Dawn Mabalon
"It is easier to build strong children than to repair broken [adults]." - Frederick Douglass"
Favorite trivia:
Fun Fact: The first Filipinos to have touched down in what is now the modern day United States landed at what is now known as Morro Bay California on October 18, 1587. They were enslaved people under the rule of Spain sailing there as part of the Manila Acapulco Galleon Trade on galleons (big ships) that the Spanish forced them to build. This is the first recorded instance of Asians appearing in the United States!
Recommended visual media:
Recommended reads:
Pedagogy of the Oppressed by Paulo Freire
March Series by John Lewis, Andrew Aydin, & Nate Powell
The Percy Jackson & Heroes of Olympus Series by Rick Riordan
Hobbies or outside interests:
Playing Video Games
Watching my friends on Twitch
Trying new food
Hiking
Experiencing National Parks
Traveling
Hanging out with my friends