Carol Rodriguez, Sahuaro’s assistant principal, has always been surrounded by kids.  She grew up with nine siblings (and boasts that she is close to them all) and went on to have three sons of her own.  Now, with 7 grandkids, one might think that she’d be slowing down, but not Mrs. Rodriguez. Instead, she drives clear across town every day. Mrs. Rodriguez lives about 20 miles away from Sahuaro near Cholla High School – a 45-minute drive. However, she says she doesn’t mind it because she enjoys her job so much.  “The people here make it easy for me to stay here, and the principal is easy to work for.”  In truth, her reason for putting in so many hours has to do with heartbreak.

Originally from Deming, New Mexico, Mrs. Rodriguez moved to Tucson, Arizona about 25 years ago for her husband’s work. A dedicated middle school teacher, she began her teaching career in Tucson at Townsend Middle School, but with her sons still at home, the commute was too far away from her house, so she switched over to Pistor Middle School, only a 10-minute daily commute, where she taught for the next 21 years. While she has very fond memories of working with middle schoolers, she made the change to admin and high school three years ago.  When students have discipline issues, she is the one who talks to them and figures out exactly what happened. She also helps the counselors with the choice sheets when students pick the classes they want to be in the next year. Mrs. Rodriguez has a great relationship with the staff. When she first got to Sahuaro, Ms. Suess taught her the ropes about high school and everything she would need to know. Mrs Rodriguez said, “I keep myself  busy at school and I leave school late because, unfortunately, my husband unexpectedly passed away 5 years ago and I don’t want to go home sometimes.” However, she has a family who loves her, and she surrounds herself with the things that make her happy, helping her keep her head up. Recently, she discovered she loves to go on cruises.

Her first cruise was supposed to be to Cabo San Lucas and Ensenada Mexico. As luck would have it, there was a hurricane at the tip of Cabo, so Carnival Cruise Lines rerouted the ship to San Diego and Catalina Island, California, and Ensenada, Mexico. Even though her plans changed, she’s learned not to sweat the small stuff and still made the most of it, having a wonderful time. On May 4, she will go to Cabo San Lucas, Mazatlan, and Puerto Vallarta on her cruise through Mexico. And if you still don’t believe that Mrs. Rodriguez is cruising through life, then believe that as soon as school gets out for summer, she is sailing away again.  On May 26, she booked Cozumel, Belize, and Costa Maya, Mexico. She is extremely excited to go parasailing in Cozumel and cave tubing in Belize. She’s even already all set for New Year’s Eve.  On December 27, off Mrs. Rodriguez goes again with booked cruises to Key West, Freeport, Half Moon Cay, and Nassau. Looking ahead to October of 2025, she’s be exploring 6 of the 7 Hawaiian islands – Kahului, Maui, Honolulu, Oahu, Kauai, and Hilo. Mrs. Rodriguez is also planning a 60^th birthday cruise in September of 2024 to go back to the Mexican Riviera again, and a retirement trip – a trans-Pacific 22-day cruise to Hawaii and Tahiti.

Clearly, after she went on her first cruise, Mrs. Rodriguez was hooked.  After putting in years of hard work and long hours, both driving and staying here at school, being on the ship is just so calming for her – whether it is listening to the ocean, the smell of the salt water, or the breeze on her face. She loves to sit on the balcony enjoying coffee and just relaxing.  Stopping at all the ports always involves beaches, which is her favorite part because she enjoys frolicking on the sand.

For someone who spends a portion of her day disciplining students, Mrs. Rodriguez has now found a balance between working hard and playing hard.  She is grateful for these life-changing experiences and plans to stay at Sahuaro for many more years to come.