Whether it’s ladybugs, Pez dispensers, inspirational quotes, Coke bottles or just a knack for decorating, teachers and administrators at Lewis Mills have a plethora of ways to fill up the empty space in their office and classrooms. Right when Dr. Katherine Blore, the associate principal at Lewis Mills High School, walked into her new office last summer, she knew exactly what she wanted to do with it. Blore always had a passion for designing and decorating, and wanted to make her office a little more exciting and fill up the blank walls.

“I knew I wanted some green to brighten the room,” Blore says as she pointed out the four plants hanging out in her office. Blore continues, “I also saw that the wall was pretty bare and definitely needed something colorful.”

When asked about where she found her office decorations, she says, “Almost all of it is from Target because they have the best things, especially for house decor.”

Her aesthetically pleasing office is filled with gold, geometric shapes, Polaroids and pictures of her family, and one of her favorites, geodes. Upon entering Blore’s office, your eyes settle on her organized desk that is topped with some of her favorite decorations, her pictures and geodes. Then, glancing around the room, focus switches over to the gold, unique, geometric shapes that line the top of her cabinet. Her entire room is organized perfectly, and she knows exactly where everything is.

Decorations in a classroom or office can explain a lot about the owner of that room. Many faculty take this opportunity to sprinkle their own personality into the room and fill it with things that make them happy. These decorations can open the door to getting to know the faculty here at Mills a little better.

Ladybugs are a staple piece of Diane Bennet’s Global classroom. She says “I don’t remember why I like ladybugs so much,” (they could represent luck), but she continues, “When people knew I liked ladybugs, students and teachers just kept bringing me ladybug things.” Bennett also says that she doesn’t like empty space, so she adds plants and decorations so the room is not dull and boring.

One of her favorite activities are puzzles, and when she finishes them, she’ll hang them up in her room, along with student work and seasonal pictures, or decorations eliciting more excitement from her students and making herself happier while sitting in the room.

Plants are another popular theme among faculties’ rooms; Barbara Angelicola-Manzolli, a business teacher at Mills, uses her plants and bulletin boards to make her classroom look more like an office so her students get a sense of the atmosphere in a real business office. One of the main themes in her classroom are student gifts that Angelicola-Manzolli received over the years, from pictures to remembrance pieces.

Along with her large array of succulents and hanging plants lining the windows and the decorations pinned on the bulletin boards, perched atop her windows and shelves are a unique collection of Coca-Cola bottles: “students bring me coke bottles from around the world,” she says.

Her room displays her main goal of making her room very inviting and “the kind of place where kids want to be.” She achieved this goal by filling her room with pictures, collections, plants, inspirational quotes, and items that were given to her by students in past years.

Of course, it would be remiss to forget about principal Christopher Rau’s well-known collection of Pez dispensers. Rau says, “I like to collect things.” This could not be any more apparent with his vast display of characterized Pez dispensers ranging from Harry Potter themed to the U.S. Presidents.

Along with Rau’s dispensers, pictures of roller coasters he and his family have been on and adventures with outdoor activities and hiking decorate the walls. This little bit of information can tell the students interesting facts about their faculty.

Although all of these teachers and administrators have different jobs and different subjects they teach, they still decorate their room with things they enjoy and make their room a little more exciting and interesting for both them and their students.