Colton High “Fact of the Day” – Feb. 9

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Steve MacKey (name misspelled in the 1983 yearbook), left his position as drama instructor after only 15 months. He was the fifth drama teacher over 6 years.

Colton High School opened in 1895. It is one of the oldest high schools in the Inland Empire. In this daily feature, we celebrate Colton High’s rich history.

Over the span of 6 years, from 1977-1983, the CHS fine arts department lost five drama teachers. On November 18, 1983, the Pepper Bough reported that drama teacher Steve MacKey, who had only been with the school for fifteen months, resigned after getting a new job in the private sector as a trainee instructor for MacDonald-Douglas.

MacKey said the decision to leave CHS was a hard one for him, mostly because of his students. “I feel there is more of a rapport between teacher and student. I’m a lot closer to the students this year. That’s why it was difficult for me to do this.” Students who had MacKey as a teacher shared they would miss him, not as a teacher, but as a friend.