Photo courtesy Laura Brager

Math teacher Laura Brager and PE teacher Lauren Fakler pose together on the sidelines of a field hockey game in the fall. The two have formed a close bond over the past three years both in the school and out on the turf.

Within the WJ community, there are around 300 members on our staff, more than half of whom are teachers. All the departments work together to make for a functional system of education and learning. Along the way, by working so closely knit with one another, friendships are formed between these teachers. Spending so much time with anyone makes for a close relationship but some take it to the next level and refer to themselves as besties.

Although there are numerous teacher friendships found throughout the building, Honors Statistics teachers, Staci Gallun and Anne Warren, may just be best friends for life. They are currently the only two Honors Stat teachers and knew one another long before they even began their jobs at Walter Johnson.

“Warren and I met teaching at Richard Montgomery [high school] in the fall of 2019,” Gallun said.

The two have been inseparable ever since as Gallun transferred to WJ in the fall of 2021 and Warren followed her footsteps just two years later, joining the WJ math department this past fall.

“Ms. Warren was a first-year teacher when we first met and I was starting my 8th year – naturally I thought she was crazy for getting into this profession,” Gallun said.

Although Gallun has been in the teaching field for a few more years than Warren, the two clicked immediately as they enjoy working together in planning lessons for their classes. The two lean on each other in the classroom to make teaching one subject easier for both of them.

“She’s very nice, she helped me as a new teacher and we have a lot in common. It’s nice to have someone to go to whenever there is a situation and you’re not sure where to go with it so that you guys can work together to solve the problem,” Warren said.

Their friendship ventures further than the classroom as the two take part in Teen tours as well as training during the summer in places such as Montreal and take little trips as well to locations like Puerto Rico. The pair also have numerous mutual friendships, which they hang with primarily on Fridays after a long school week.

“I love that she goes with the flow and puts up with my crazy ideas and pickiness with formatting and font. I’m super happy she came over to WJ this year and even happier we get to teach a class together,” Gallun said.

This is a beautiful friendship, and the teacher friendships don’t stop here. Math teacher Laura Brager and PE teacher Lauren Fakler have a close-knit relationship. They have been friends for about two years now after meeting at a teacher happy hour at the local Not Your Average Joe’s. Their friendship really took off when Brager became the varsity field hockey coach and was encouraged to recruit Fakler as the JV coach.

“My first impression of [Brager] was damn this girl is cool to be around. Having her here is nice because it is always good to talk to someone who knows the environment. She’s just Brager, she’s the best,” Fakler said.

Alongside them being besties in work, they are also neighbors. Outside of school, they both live in Bethesda so they go on walks and workout with one another. They often will go out with each other and try new foods in the area. While some friendships take awhile to form, these two instantly clicked and have been inseparable since.

“I like that work isn’t just work. When I come in early or at the end of the day I will go to her office and just vent. We can talk about not school things and weekend plans. It is nice to have someone to go to happy hours with and basketball games as well,” Brager said.

While being able to talk about work and student drama, they have a close relationship to bounce off one another in a professional manner in the workspace. Their friendship exceeds the classroom into the outside world and the field where they worked alongside one another as coaches for the field hockey team. Their shared passion for the sport and athletics brought them close to one another.

“The only thing that is [a disadvantage] is if either of us decided to leave for any reason. That would make me so sad and her being here would make that decision 10 times harder. I don’t know what I would do without her here,” Brager said.

These beautiful friendships may have started at WJ but have gone beyond the walls of the building and in the community. Many don’t give much thought into teacher friendships but in reality, they boost morale and help for a fun and spirited learning community.