Phillip Lyons and Diane Ichikawa
English teacher Diane Ichikawa and social studies teacher Phillip Lyons have both taught at Gunn for almost two decades, with a friendship stretching just as long. Their commonalities have brought them together, and what they value about their friendship keeps it going strong.
The year she was hired, Ichikawa said around 30 new staff members were brought on. The next year, another 30 were hired, Lyons included. 鈥淢ost of us were of the same age, so many of us bonded very quickly.鈥 Ichikawa said. 鈥淎bout half of the current teaching staff were hired within those first two years of my career, and my friendships with those people are pretty tight.鈥
Lyons attributes the camaraderie between the two in part to the layouts of the classrooms at the time. 鈥淲hen I first got here, the English department and social studies department were in the same building, and we shared offices, so everybody knew each other pretty well,鈥 he said. 鈥淏ack then, we were all pretty young, so we would socialize on the weekends鈥攑eople would sometimes go out to get dinner or to bars.鈥
As time has passed, weekend get-togethers have taken more planning. 鈥淭hings have definitely changed a lot鈥攑eople get older and get married and have kids, like myself.鈥 Lyons said. The departments of social studies and English have since been separated, with the English department moving to the N-building and social studies to the F- and C-buildings. 鈥淚 try to make a point to leave my classroom and walk around the school to visit their classrooms and say 鈥榟i,鈥欌 Lyons said.
Ichikawa and Lyons both grew up in the Bay Area and share a mutual friend group. The two teachers are also UCLA alumni and enjoy catching up on updates from their alma mater, such as the college鈥檚 qualification for the NCAA Sweet 16 during March Madness. 鈥淪adly, UCLA lost by three points last night,鈥 Ichikawa said.
The two also share similar personality traits. 鈥淗e鈥檚 kind of a quieter person, an introvert, and I am too, so I think some of the times when we don鈥檛 talk in big groups, people tend to think: 鈥榦h well they鈥檙e snobby,鈥 and I think maybe he and I had the same reputation,鈥 she said.
Over his years in the district, Lyons has witnessed numerous changes, including in administration. 鈥淓veryone comes in with a new vision for what they want changed,鈥 he said. The continuity of Lyons and Ichikawa鈥檚 friendship is something he鈥檚 especially appreciative of, given both teachers鈥 long history with the school. 鈥淚t鈥檚 nice to know people who have an institutional memory of this place: the way it used to be and of how it鈥檚 changed over time,鈥 he said.
Lyons also admires Ichikawa鈥檚 professional approach and her intelligence, while Ichikawa appreciates the deep conversations that she can share with him, characterizing Lyons as a fount of knowledge. She also thinks he is warmer than most may think. 鈥淗e鈥檚 also a really loving father, and it鈥檚 fun to see him with his kids,鈥 she said. 鈥淗e鈥檚 funny and can really make you laugh. He鈥檚 also a decent dancer when it comes to 鈥80s music. If you throw on some OMD (Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark), he might start busting some moves. He gets a reputation for being really harsh鈥攁fter all, his last name is Lyons鈥攂ut I think he鈥檚 way more of a kitten than people realize.鈥
Lyons and Ichikawa continue to set aside time to spend with each other, maintaining their friendship through hikes in their free time or just spending time together when available. 鈥淲e do set aside time to go out to lunch together, if we ever have common preps,鈥 Ichikawa said. Both teachers look forward to their friendship in the future, especially after retirement. 鈥淚t can only get better as we get older and have more time in our lives,鈥 Ichikawa said.