After the announcement of Vice Principal Tahnia Campbell’s retirement, the administration had to find a replacement. One person came to mind in particular.
Theater Teacher Melanie Zapper is moving to an administrative role after 23 years of teaching. “I feel like this is where my path has brought me,” she said, “I’m ready to be in a leadership position.”
Zapper’s story starts all the way down in Los Angeles, where she attended Occidental College, a small liberal arts school. She majored in Psychology, with a minor in theater. In LA, she worked in the film and theater industries before moving to Humboldt.
She spent an additional year at Humboldt State University to get a teaching credential in mathematics and theater.
“I started teaching at Six Rivers Charter High School the year that we opened it,” Zapper said. “I was one of two teachers on faculty there, … the other being Ms. FitzMaurice.”
Zapper and English Teacher Therese FitzMaurice, along with founding Principal Chris Hartley, created the school as a charter option within the district to accommodate students who would otherwise leave the district.
Nine years after the start of Six Rivers, Zapper began working at Arcata High, teaching AAI Theater Studies. In her time teaching at Arcata High, she has also taught Drama 1, Video and Audio Production, and Dance.
Six Rivers Teacher Meghan Froloff has worked closely with Zapper since she began teaching there in 2011.
“She’s always coming from the perspective of ‘how do we make this right for everybody?’” Froloff said. “How do we make it right for the student, how do we make it right for the teacher, how do we make it right for the school? And she always tries to do things really well.”
One of the things she does best is the spring musical. Zapper has directed the musical since 2016. Every year, Arcata and Six Rivers students dedicate themselves to putting on an incredible performance, only possible with Zapper’s help.
Senior Fionn Conroy has been involved in the musical all four years she’s been at AHS.
“She really cares about everything she does,” Conroy said. “She puts in so much effort into the show itself, and [she makes] sure her students are learning as much as they can.”
Zapper aims to make sure Arcata High is a space where all students can feel welcome and are able to grow and learn. “I’m ready to … create sustainable changes that are more systemic instead of just in my classroom,” she said.
Zapper’s contributions as a teacher are coming to an end, but her contributions to the school as a whole are just beginning.
“It’s sad to see AAI losing such an incredible teacher,” Conroy said. “But [I’m] happy for her to have the new opportunity.”
