Mahtab Lak

This year, Mahtab Lak joined the Lick-Wilmerding High School community as a math teacher. She teaches Precalculus Honors and Algebra Two. Lak really loves math. “Even when I was very young, like when I was in high school, I always loved to help my classmates. I would always teach them, help them with stuff like homework,” she said.

Before LWHS, Lak was a Teaching Assistant (TA) for almost six years while completing her Ph.D. in New Hampshire. “It’s very rewarding to be a learner, I love being a student. Learning everything, going after problems, it’s just so beautiful.” This was also where she discovered her love for teaching. “I would lecture sometimes, especially in the summer, and it just felt natural to me.” 

From there, she moved to San Francisco and began classroom teaching. That was when she formally moved from being a student to being a teacher.

“The change from New Hampshire to San Francisco was challenging and very different. In a good way too. Culturally I like that San Francisco cares more about diversity and inclusion and I really admire that. The amount of training and awareness I have here is incomparable with what I learned in the past,” she said.

Before her move to San Francisco from New Hampshire, Lak lived in Tehran, Iran. “Moving from Iran was one of the hardest things ever. The learning system was different, the language was different and I had to teach! I was grading papers like crazy, had to learn the language and was separated from my family. I didn’t even know how to greet people — how to say hello,” she said. 

Now, Lak has lived in the states for eight years. She feels she can call America and San Francisco her home. She said, “I’m Iranian and Iran is my home. However, I also think here is my home by now too.”

Lak finds community through dancing. “I love dancing. “Today I’m happy; I have dance class later. Now, I’m learning house dancing — I think those movements are irresistible,” she said. 

As a teacher, Lak’s dream is to inspire her students. 

She said, “my dream is to have a meaningful purpose in the classroom. When I had a good teacher, it changed my life.”  She wants her students to know that they can trust her, and come to her with questions about math. “I also hope they know I can be fun!” she said.

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Kiana Sezawar Keshavarz

Kiana Sezawar Keshavarz is a Senior and one of this years head editors. Outside of Journalism, Kiana enjoys making jewelry.

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