{"id":240099,"date":"2026-03-28T00:57:11","date_gmt":"2026-03-28T00:57:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/240099\/"},"modified":"2026-03-28T00:57:11","modified_gmt":"2026-03-28T00:57:11","slug":"female-bhs-educators-redefine-leadership-across-all-fields","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/240099\/","title":{"rendered":"Female BHS educators redefine leadership across all fields"},"content":{"rendered":"

As conversations around gender representation continue to evolve, women across different fields are reshaping what leadership, expertise, and mentorship look like. At Berkeley High School, women in male-dominated, balanced, and female-dominated fields alike are not only navigating expectations, but actively reorganizing them, expanding opportunities and leadership for future generations.\u00a0<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

Robotics teacher Elizabeth Buehler\n <\/p>\n

For robotics teacher Elizabeth Buehler, her path into a traditionally male-dominated field began long before she entered the classroom. \u201cI got into engineering first. So in high school, I started a robotics team,\u201d Buehler said.<\/p>\n

Now, in her classroom, she focuses on breaking down the confidence gap she often sees in students. \u201cMale students tend to go in very confident \u2026 and I was like, \u2018oh, I\u2019ve never done any of that, will I be okay?\u2019\u201d Buehler said. That doubt led to an important realization: \u201cI can do everything they\u2019re doing.\u201d Today, she works to instill that same mindset in her students.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Her impact is already visible in BHS\u2019 robotics program, where girl representation is strong. \u201cWe have a robotics team \u2026 that is at least half women this year,\u201d Buehler said.\u00a0<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

Carpentry teacher Klea Bajala\n <\/p>\n

In another traditionally male-dominated space, carpentry teacher Klea Bajala has experienced moments where her authority was challenged. When she first began teaching, she stepped in after another teacher left mid-year. \u201cStudents were banging on the table saying they were \u2018team\u2019 the previous teacher,\u201d Bajala said. Despite resistance, she stayed focused on establishing expectations, particularly around safety.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Beyond student interactions, Bajala notes that pressure to prove herself extends into professional spaces. \u201cEven with other teachers\u2026 if I make a decision on a build, people will wonder, \u2018Is that going to hold up?\u2019\u201d Bajala said.\u00a0<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

Principal assistant Monica Latour\n <\/p>\n

Even in fields that are not necessarily male-dominated, there are often still steps that need to be taken towards complete gender equality. Other women educators at BHS are making important strides in that direction. Principal assistant Monica Latour demonstrates how leadership and confidence can shape school environments, and hopefully move towards positive change.<\/p>\n

\u00a0As a principal assistant, Latour plays a main role in managing the school\u2019s daily operations, a position that relies heavily on organization, communication and decisiveness. \u201cI have a wealth of knowledge and great connections\u2026 so I\u2019m very effective at what I do,\u201d Latour said.\u00a0<\/p>\n

As a newer administrator at BHS, Latour remembers a specific instance in which her expertise was challenged. \u201cSome people like to think, \u2018I\u2019ve been here 35 years, so I know,\u2019 not realizing that things change and evolve.\u201d Despite this, she stood firm in her experience.\u00a0<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

Dance and PE teacher Linda Carr\n <\/p>\n

In contrast, Linda Carr\u2019s experience in a female-dominated field, dance, demonstrates how much gender dynamics can differ in different situations.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019re in a culture where men mostly don\u2019t see dance as being for them, so I end up with mostly female classes,\u201d Carr said. \u201cI think that translates to girl power in my classes, because it\u2019s mostly girls there.\u201d<\/p>\n

The experiences of female educators at BHS show that gender does not limit ability, leadership or success. Whether in male-dominated fields or more female-dominated ones, these women are challenging expectations and creating more inclusive environments.\u00a0 \u00a0<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"As conversations around gender representation continue to evolve, women across different fields are reshaping what leadership, expertise, and…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":240100,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[34],"tags":[143,145,144],"class_list":["post-240099","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-oakland","tag-oakland","tag-oakland-headlines","tag-oakland-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/240099","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=240099"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/240099\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/240100"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=240099"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=240099"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=240099"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}