SUAREZ: And then when they come back four years later, and then they’ve got a mustache or something, and there’s someone they look like they’re 10 years older. You’re like, oh my god. Whenever they leave, you always think of them as a high schooler. And then they come back and they’re adults. You know, I’ve had golfers come back. We won the city championship yesterday, which was awesome, given how much adversity all the kids went through. And then there were old players from a couple of years ago who came back to root for the team this year. So I had a couple of people text me from four or five years ago. So Jacob knows that he can always reach out to me for anything. And just because he’s graduating in a few weeks doesn’t mean that I’m not going to still be here if he needs anything. 

HANNAH BOWYER-RIVETTE: Suarez has a gift for keeping his classes fun while still ensuring that important topics are understood. He uses engaging activities and simulators to help students understand topics and apply them to real-life situations. His approach keeps students interested while preparing them for life after high school.

SUAREZ: The way I look at it is, if I’m not having fun with what I’m doing, they’re not having fun probably either. So, especially because I teach government and economics right now. 

SUAREZ: As far as activities go, we’ll play a stock market game, and usually, I’ll run a collective bargaining simulation. And so I cover the material I am required to by the state and that they need. And then the other things we can have fun. I know Jacob’s turned in his budget project, too, and that’s a pretty comprehensive, 33-page project that they do. And it gives them an insight into what’s coming and their money, and part of it will lead to people realizing, Oh my god, life is expensive, and they never want to leave home. But they get to make choices and do things and have to be responsible.

HANNAH BOWYER-RIVETTE: Expanding on the innovation Suarez brings to the classroom, Jacob shares more about his favorite activity, the stock market simulation. He explains how these immersive activities help him gain an understanding of the topics and encourage him to dive deeper into his learning.

JACOB LEATHERMAN: So I would say the most important one for me was the stock market simulation. So I struggle sometimes with comprehending the full topic. So the simulation that Mr. Suarez brought to our class was that you could buy and sell stock, but then you also got ranked against other people in the class. And that competitive setting made me want to do a little bit better. So I actually went on YouTube and looked up how to be better at trading. 

HANNAH BOWYER-RIVETTE: Suarez’s impact has also been seen by Jacob’s parent, Jeannette. In talking with Jeannette, she highlights the meaningful support he provides. Not just academically and athletically, but personally as well.

JEANNETTE LEATHERMAN: It’s a combination of all of it. I know that Jacob respects Coach Suarez so much. He wants to impress him. He wants to earn his respect, too. So that’s definitely one thing. He’ll come home and tell us about the class, or he’ll tell us about the game, the matches that they played. 

JEANNETTE LEATHERMAN: So it’s something that he really wants to impress and wants to earn the respect, and will do whatever it takes to do.

HANNAH BOWYER-RIVETTE: As both a teacher and coach, Suarez finds that many parallel lessons can be attributed to both athletics and academics. Suarez emphasizes that if you put in the work, you are more likely to see growth. Whether it’s in the classroom or on the golf course, he witnesses similarities in the way students create opportunities for themselves.

SUAREZ: I think that, in sports as in academics and in life, the more you put into it, the more opportunities you’re going to create. If you’re a golfer and you’re working on your chipping and your putting and your driving and your irons and you’re spending time at the range, you’re going to become a better player. If you’re a student and you’re doing reading, you’re watching videos, doing whatever that’s related to the subject matter, you’re going to become a better student. And so a lot of this just becomes the harder you work, the more opportunities you’re going to create for yourself. And my class is very straightforward in how you get your grade, and it kind of takes all the bias out of everything. You could be the class clown or the valedictorian. Here’s what your grade’s made up of. Everything’s got a right or wrong answer. Everything’s got a formula.

HANNAH BOWYER-RIVETTE: In January 2025, the Palisades Fire brought devastation to California, destroying homes and parts of Palisades Charter High School. In moments of tragedy, finding community and connection is more important than ever. In our conversation with Suarez, he shares how he banded his golf teams together to help students navigate the aftermath and surround them with support. He expresses how sports play a powerful role in bringing people together and providing a sense of normalcy for students during uncertain times.

SUAREZ: The fire was so tragic, and so many people lost their houses. I’ve been at the school for 31 years. I was a graduate of the school as well. And so it was hard across the board. For me, it was easy to say, hey, I’ve got it, while I might have it tough, and I had to get evacuated as well, it becomes, other people have got it a lot harder than I do. And I know even without any kind of catastrophe like this, that sports help bring people together. There are so many parallel lessons in life that you can take from sports. And whether it was sports or a drama class or anything like that, or any kind of team, it just gave people a sense of normalcy. And so for me, my first goal was to get them out there as quickly as possible. Reunite them with everybody they can share their common stories with each other about losing their houses. A bunch of guys on the golf team had lost their houses, and a bunch of girls on my girls’ golf team lost their houses as well. And so it’s just, hey, let’s try and get back to normal and something that you can enjoy and take your mind off of. Okay, this is what I’ve lost. It’s kind of, this is what I’ve still got. The people, you know, my friends and my teammates. Everyone banded together and said, “Hey, we’re here.”

SUAREZ: And even worried about your parents gets tough too, is how they are taking it, versus how am I taking it. And I’m glad for golf, because there are students who are saying, “You know what, I don’t know if I can stay at school. I don’t know if I want to be on Zoom, but all of my teammates are here.” And then it became the I’ve got someone I can turn to, and we’re here, and we’re going to stand by each other and make things better. And I was an hour and a half away, and so we’re on Zoom, and every time we had a practice or a practice round or a match, I’m driving an hour and a half both ways to get to it. So I knew that that was important. And for me, there’s no question I’d put in the time. This team for me is something I really enjoy, and so I want to make sure that their experience is top-notch as well. So for me, it was an easy sacrifice to make. And sports as a whole, but even in this situation, it was a saving grace for a lot of them.

HANNAH BOWYER-RIVETTE: Reflecting on the impact of the fires, Jacob shares more about how Suarez supported him and continues to support him through this time. He helped Jacob regain some sense of normalcy and provided an outlet to cope with stress and uncertainty. During our conversation, Suarez also expanded on how the community came together to help the students regain this sense of normalcy.

JACOB LEATHERMAN: I would say, I mean, I played golf for 12 years, so it just kind of became a backup if anything went wrong. If I had a rough day, I could go to the driving range and relax and de-stress. So then, after that happened and golf was kind of taken away, I had to find new ways.

SUAREZ: It’s kind of the shirt off my back or the clubs out of my bag. That’s a no-brainer for me for them to get out there. We had some great connections with people who helped us out as well. And a friend of mine, Shaun Fagan, did a fitting for Jacob and was able to get him new clubs through some money that he had raised. And that’s great, it really has everyone coming together. Which is looking forward, the lessons that everyone can learn, that, hey, I can do a little bit more to help everyone else, and if everyone does a little bit more to help everyone, we’re all going to be better off.

HANNAH BOWYER-RIVETTE: Building on the support Suarez provided during and after the fires, Jeannette shares how once Suarez reached out, it changed everything for her. Having support outside of family was invaluable, in knowing that someone else was looking out for Jacob.

JEANNETTE LEATHERMAN: It just changed everything. Because the first couple of days are like your world’s spinning. And you’re trying to provide, from a hotel room or whatever you can do. But then, when Coach reached out, it was like a center, like something to hold on to. Because someone else is taking an interest in your kid, they didn’t have to do that. It meant the world. It kind of put everything, like, okay, we’re gonna deal with this. And the most important thing was for Jacob to just be a kid. Seeing his parents having to deal with circumstances that were beyond our control. And then, like Coach said, putting him in touch with Shaun Fagan, who donated his time to get Jacob some clubs, get donations to get him a new set. Coach, like you said, driving an hour and a half to be with the kids. Or seriously, just even from the first text. 

HANNAH BOWYER-RIVETTE: When the school shut down during the fires, all learning moved to Zoom for the first few months. In April, students were able to return to in-person learning when the school reopened in a former Sears location. As students returned to in-person learning, Suarez found that even with challenges along the way, it brought a new sense of recovery and rebuilding for the community.

SUAREZ: Well, I think that, this may sound weird, but gripes go up. So if I’m griping about the internet not working, or there’s no windows in my classroom, or anything like that. Then that makes them feel like, “Oh, wait a second, I’ve got 10 more things I can complain about.” Being on Zoom was super difficult, even though we went through COVID, and everyone was on Zoom. But in our situation, it was like, well, we’re the only ones who are in this, not the only ones, obviously, with, in Altadena, the fires out there too, so. But the rest of the world during COVID was all on Zoom, so it was kind of normal. Here, it’s just us. We’re back in that scenario. So when we got back in person, it was more, let’s make the most of it, and everyone can see each other again. And there were challenges as far as materials and the internet, and things like that.

SUAREZ: So, regardless of the space that we’re in, there’s still learning what can be done. And it gets a little bit tougher to maybe keep people on task. And everyone’s got an excuse here and there, and they’re believable and understandable. So there’s a certain leniency more of where we’re at now to make sure that everyone, as long as they’re learning what they’re supposed to be learning, they’re going to end up getting the grade that they should be getting. So that was our challenges, but I think that we’ve done a good job to move forward from it.

HANNAH BOWYER-RIVETTE: Reflecting on Jacob’s journey through high school, Jeannette expands on the growth she’s seen in him and the impact of Suarez’s teaching. From learning about cultivating a passion to balancing stress, Suarez has left an impact on Jacob that he will carry with him throughout his future.

JEANNETTE LEATHERMAN: We have a ton of teachers throughout our lifetime. There’s a handful that you’re going to remember throughout your life, and I think Coach Suarez is one of those people. He’s going to he’s always going to leave a mark on Jacob, and he’s always going to be remembered, and hopefully you guys will keep in touch. But I think Jacob has definitely learned, when you have a career, you put your whole heart into it, just like Coach does. He goes above and beyond for the kids. Stress balance, your whole family life, with your career, and on top of that, doing more stuff. And then, Jacob will have the opportunity to pay it forward. 

HANNAH BOWYER-RIVETTE: Thank you so much for listening and joining us today to learn more about Dave Suarez, our June Honoree and recipient of the Honored National Teaching Award. To read more about his story, you can visit our website at honored.org or click the link in the episode description. If you have a teacher who you want to recognize and nominate for our teaching award, you can head to honored.org/nominate to recognize a teacher today. Thanks again for listening, and make sure to tune in during the summer to hear some incredible special guest episodes. We’ll be back with our Honoree episodes in September, when you’ll hear the incredible story of our September Honoree.