Having helped thousands counselor concludes career.
After 34 years in education, Senior class Counselor Michael Moore is retiring from PRHS. Moore has been a PRHS counselor for 24 years, and counselingf thousands of bearcats over decades.
“I couldn’t have chosen a better career for 34 years,” Moore said.
Moore was hired in 1994 after a phone call to PRHS, after just getting his counseling credential. All he was trying to do was get a job at San Luis Coastal Union School District as an English teacher and varsity basketball coach.
“[I called] my former administrator from Southern California [Linda Jansen] who was then the principal of [PRHS]… to ask for a letter of recommendation or a phone call on my behalf…we had this very disjointed conversation, she thought I was asking questions about something that I wasn’t…she asked what the job was and I said it was an English teacher position at San Luis High and she said, ‘I thought you were applying for the counseling position here,’ and I said ‘is there a counseling position available? I would love to interview for that’.. If it weren’t for that call, I would be in Southern California today,” Moore said.
Moore started his career as a history and English teacher in Southern California for ten years, where he also coached swim, basketball, and tennis.
“I always enjoyed my athletes coming in to talk to me at lunch and after school..they felt comfortable talking to me about things they wouldn’t be able to talk to their parents about, they felt I was a safe adult…that kind of experience [inspired me] to get my counseling credential,” Moore said.
But Moore and his wife wanted to bring their family back to the Central Coast, so Moore began to look for jobs in the area, where he found the job he’s had for the past 24 years.
“Since I went to Cal Poly, I’ve loved the central coast, my wife and I lived at the coast for a couple of years but we relocated for that teaching job, and we always thought, ‘if there’s a way to come back, we would love to do it’,” Moore said.
Moore did not go to college right out of high school, and he worked in the grocery industry.
“My parents didn’t go to college, college wasn’t part of the conservation at the dinner table, it was ‘get a job,’ which was what I did.”
“I was stocking shelves and helping the teamsters offload their products…I didn’t really see a future in it, so I decide that I’d start taking community college classes…I fell in love with biology and English, which were subjects I didn’t necessarily enjoy in high school, but found a new love for…I decided I wanted to try and find a career in English..usually in English you’re going to be a writer or teach it, and [teaching was] the path I took.”
Moore said that he’s loved the community at PRHS.
“What’s been most memorable for me is that the community has been fabulous…this school has some amazing teachers and programs.”
When asked about parting advice, Moore told students to be able to recognize and respond to change.
“My advice tends to come in sailing references, since sailing has been good for my mind, good for my body…this comes from a quote from William Arthur Ward…a pessimist complains a lot. A sailboat is a very dynamic place potentially, but complaining without any action will result in no progress. An optimist really hopes the wind will change, being optimistic is good but you aren’t making any progress. But it’s the realist with an optimistic outlook [who] is the one that adjusts the sails. It’s knowing ‘I need to do something to the environment’…I would encourage the students of Paso Robles High School to affect change in their own lives and in the lives of their peers,” Moore said.
Mr. Moore will be missed at PRHS.
