Long-time English teacher and new graduation coach, Renee McKinney is a well respected and loved teacher, and almost every student in the school has had a class of hers one time or another. McKinney and her husband have taught at YC for more than 20 years. So, naturally, she has some stories to tell.
McKinney was born and raised in Oregon. She grew up around the outskirts of Tigard and went to school there until graduating from high school. She worked hard to graduate from college in December of 1990.
Although she has been a teacher for 31 years, she has only ever taught here, at YC. McKinney started off as a substitute teacher, but after a year she was hired to work as a teacher in Carlton, back when the school was K-8. She worked as a Special ED teacher for seven years before switching over to the high school.
McKinney has thoroughly enjoyed her time teaching at this high school. She has taught a variety of subjects, such as yearbook, photography, creative writing, speech, and all four levels of English.
She decided on creative writing as her favorite subject to teach because there was a lot less pressure to write professionally.
“I loved watching kids who weren’t normally good students flourish with writing the fun things they wanted to write,” McKinney says.
McKinney and her husband decided that the first job they got out of college was going to be the job they both got. While Mrs. McKinney was working for Carlton, Mr. McKinney was working for ESD.
Once his wife began working at the high school, Mr. McKinney decided to coach there as well. It just so happened that after some time, there was a teaching position open. And as we can all conclude, Mr. McKinney stepped in for it.
The pair is looking forward to traveling at the end of this year. Inside the country, McKinney has a grandson in Tennessee that they love to visit.
“…Mr. McKinney has been to more [states] than I have, I’ve been to 36,” McKinney explains.
Their dream is to travel to Europe, including England, Ireland, and Scotland specifically. Once she retires, she wants to visit all 50 states.
Although there have been some rumors floating around about McKinney’s alleged retirement, she assures that they are not true.
“The soonest it will be is the end of next school year,” McKinney says.
And though she has dealt with some irritation and disrespect from students, she still tries her hardest to work her very best.
