HOMH: Mr. Gommel opens up on what it was like to be an athletic trainer before his teaching days

Mr. Gommel shares how he came to teach healthcare at MHHS.

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Photo by Noemi Damian-Vasquez

Mr. Gommel continuing to express his quirky side with his students.

“I was the athletic trainer who opened the school [Mission Hills High School] in 2004. As an athletic trainer it’s a super fun job. It’s just in the state of California [so] it’s unregulated because of different lobbies and stuff like that. So there is no license or anything so it makes it hard to practice the job in the state because we’re not recognized as a healthcare professional. That was one reason why I stepped into the classroom…it just doesn’t pay well and it’s horrible hours too, like you can work at noon and leave at 8 p.m. And as you know if you’re raising little children, they’re in bed by eight so that was not a good situation for my two oldest children. However, since becoming a teacher in 2011, my newest set of two children did get to see their dad at dinner time and that was great…I do have the opportunity to do sub jobs. For example this fall Carlsbad, the athletic trainer there, has already asked me if I will sub for her one football game, JV and Varsity, while she is out of town and so I’m looking forward to that, you know being back on the field with the athletes, high energy, just a lot of fun. I love taking care of kids and stuff like that and being around sports.”