Ann Powell-Cordon ’67

I was very involved in service groups. When I graduated I was honored women of the year during our banquet.

I attended all football games, dances, and folk songs. We traveled to all ball games with the band. During my sophomore year, I participated in the pro-bowl at the Coliseum along with Disney during the half-time show.

I commuted to school with my brother so we had to go and come back at the same time. We also didn’t have a student union at the time so I would say the cafeteria and the band room were considered my hang out spots.

My favorite professor was Dr. Rodan, she was a German Professor. She was very, very compassionate, she listened to me. I commuted so I didn’t get to close to the professors.

It was a big school; I think we had 24,000 when I was there. It really helped me budget my time especially after I graduated I traveled to Germany. Since I lived at home during my undergraduate year and I really didn’t have that independency, my mom would wash and cook for me, but when I got on my own the whole college experience helped me prepare for my first year of teaching and student teaching. It gave me a good quality foundation to start that, I was ready! I had that persistence that I was going to succeed I wasn’t going to fail, there was no failure in my brain. My parents were both teachers, I had support from home and the university that gave me the academic background.

I graduated in ’67, that summer I went to Goethe University in Munich. I met students from all over the world scholars that were from the United States and other countries. I traveled to up to West Berlin, it really opened my eyes to the world. I think everyone should have the opportunity to travel the world, to go someplace other than the United States. To have to survive and exchange ideas, I mean I met people from all over the world. In fact, there were people at this party who were Communist, which took place during the Vietnam conflict. It was a wonderful experience and growing up time for me.

I then came back to Cal State and did my first year of observation, then I student taught at Westminster high school. I was then hired onto Anaheim Union High School District. I must say, the university had a wonderful placement office. The placement office made it available to students to be interviewed from different districts, it was outstanding! Consequently, I taught 41 years at Anaheim Union High School District. I was 30 years at one Junior high and then I taught at a college preparatory school, Oxford academy in Cypress. I was one of the founding teachers there, there were thirteen of us. There were kids from different socioeconomic groups. Everyone was involved there was a wonderful PTSA, and the principal was extraordinary. Of course, all the teachers were superb all in their own field.

My husband is retired, from LA unified. We travel to Europe and all of France. We do a lot of biking and river cruises. I’ve been to Berlin, Germany, we went to Russia last year which was unbelievably wonderful. This next year we’re doing to do some traveling to Eastern Canada where they do speak French.

Then I have a mother who is 96, so I visit her two times a week, she’s in a long term caring facility. I am President of the Guild at the Children's Museum at La Habra. We support the museum, our particular gifts of 20,000 a year to the Changing exhibit which is the Ice Age.