DID YOU KNOW?
Tacoma’s story spans more than two centuries from the time Captain George Vancouver anchored off Tacoma’s north shore in 1792.
In 1870, Tacoma’s natural deep-water port became an attraction that the Northern Pacific Railroad couldn’t pass up, when it made Tacoma a stop on its transcontinental line.
Old Tacoma and New Tacoma merged in 1884 and incorporated as Tacoma. By 1890, the population reached 36,000 people.
Tacoma is home to the Port of Tacoma, the seventh-largest container port in the United States, and it is within 20 miles of the Seattle-Tacoma International Airport and 36 miles of the city of Seattle.
Jaime O'Dell,
Upper School French
Jaime O’Dell teaches French in the Upper School. “I love the moments at Charles Wright when it all feels like clockwork,” says O’Dell. “When the kids are at ease and chirping hellos in the halls, and when I look out at the faces in my classroom and realize how smart they are, how much we accomplish, and how fortunate we are to be here together.”
“The resources we have at Charles Wright make a huge difference in the quality of education,” says O’Dell. “I have the opportunity to travel abroad with students, to bring French students to them, and to hear them share stories from their travels. At other schools, France was a dream or an image on a map; for many of our students, it’s a real- life experience.”
O’Dell completed her undergraduate and graduate education at the University of Florida. She joined the faculty of Charles Wright in 2006. In addition to teaching, she coaches cross-country runners. O’Dell hopes her students learn from her “to venture beyond the surface of things and to analyze critically.”
She volunteers at the Tacoma Art Museum and the Humane Society. She enjoys running, traveling, photography, film studies, and indie music. She loves to buy books, although she used to enjoy reading much more before she went to graduate school. U2 has been her favorite band for over 20 years. O’Dell has spent summers in Quebec province and in France, and ran half-marathons in Key West and at Disney World. “If there is one thing that makes me happier than anything else, it's dancing,” she says.
Visit her home page
“The resources we have at Charles Wright make a huge difference in the quality of education,” says O’Dell. “I have the opportunity to travel abroad with students, to bring French students to them, and to hear them share stories from their travels. At other schools, France was a dream or an image on a map; for many of our students, it’s a real- life experience.”
O’Dell completed her undergraduate and graduate education at the University of Florida. She joined the faculty of Charles Wright in 2006. In addition to teaching, she coaches cross-country runners. O’Dell hopes her students learn from her “to venture beyond the surface of things and to analyze critically.”
She volunteers at the Tacoma Art Museum and the Humane Society. She enjoys running, traveling, photography, film studies, and indie music. She loves to buy books, although she used to enjoy reading much more before she went to graduate school. U2 has been her favorite band for over 20 years. O’Dell has spent summers in Quebec province and in France, and ran half-marathons in Key West and at Disney World. “If there is one thing that makes me happier than anything else, it's dancing,” she says.
Visit her home page
