For the Reporter

The Auburn School District Board of Directors recognizes Ron Cughan, teacher at Auburn High School, for his outstanding service at 7 tonight in the board room at the James P. Fugate Administration Building.

Cughan has worked at Auburn High since 1985. His first year in the new building will be his last – he is retiring after 30 years at the end of the school year.

In his classroom, where he teaches aerospace assembly/machining and engineering design architecture, students learn hands-on skills that can lead to high-paying jobs right out of high school.

“Mr. Cughan is a superb teacher,” said para-educator Sunshine Merritt. “He is very patient and knows so much about his field.”

Cughan does know a lot about his field. He attended Seattle University, planning to study engineering but the program was too much math and not enough hands-on for his liking. He ended up with a major in anthropology, a minor in geology and no job prospects. He started at a Tacoma company as a machinist soon after that.

After 10 years in the private sector, he went back to school and received his industrial arts teaching certification from Central Washington University. He taught one year in the Tacoma School District and has been at Auburn High for the balance of his career.

Cughan is active with the Career and Technology Education advisory committee and the AHS robotics program. He believes high school students should experience a wide variety of courses, not just CTE or college prep.