Castilleja’s beloved computer science teacher, Ann Greyson, known for her contagious enthusiasm for Java coding and unwavering support for her students, announced her retirement.

The Castilleja community will deeply miss her warm presence within the classroom, but her impact on generations of Casti coders will continue to inspire students long after she leaves the Circle.

Greyson’s journey into computer science wasn’t linear. With no coding experience before college, Greyson never had a particularly strong passion for computer science during her adolescence. In fact, she didn’t have the resources to develop one, except for a household computer that she rarely approached.

“My brothers and dad played with it, but I wouldn’t go near it,” Greyson laughed, “I just wasn’t interested.”

It wasn’t until college that her story took a turn. Through persistent encouragement by her father, Greyson finally gave in and decided to enroll in a Pascal programming course. What began as a hesitant experiment soon became a critical turning point in her life. To her surprise, the course ignited a spark that would fuel her lifetime of love for computer science. This newfound curiosity inspired her to take a leap of faith, jumping at the opportunity to spend her future exploring a subject she was fascinated by.

“I was tired of not understanding the conversations around my dinner table about technology and feeling intimidated by the subject,” Greyson explained. “Becoming a computer science major allowed me to carry my end of the conversation.”

Greyson later majored in the subject at UC Berkeley, reshaping the early uncertainty of her teenage years into passionate expertise.

Path to Castilleja:

With a degree in hand, Greyson began her career as a software engineer and later a technical writer. After taking some time off to take care of her children, she started volunteering in their classrooms. There, something clicked. After obtaining her credentials, Greyson’s career in teaching took off as a middle school math teacher. However, after working for a couple years, she realized that something was missing.

“It was unsatisfying, and I began looking for a different job,” Greyson said.

Recalling her jogs near her home in Palo Alto, Greyson remembered passing by the Castilleja campus and feeling drawn to it. The carved green door surrounded by greenery, the warm stone walls, all caught her eye and stuck in her mind. Curious, Greyson pulled up Castilleja’s website and discovered, to her surprise, a job opening for a computer science teacher.

“From the job description, it seemed like it was a perfect fit for me,” Greyson recalled. “For somebody who’s interested in getting more diversity in computer science and wanted to teach it, there was an instant connection.”

Greyson’s first steps on the Circle began a new chapter: a chapter filled with learning, frustration, and laughter, forever imprinted within Castilleja’s story.

Impact on the Circle:

Throughout her time at Casti, Greyson has had a profound impact on her students and mentees and has helped them discover their self-confidence not just in debugging Java code, but in approaching challenges with perseverance.

“She has faith in us even if we’re not that experienced,” said Lara Seth ’28, “ It expands what we think is possible for us.”

Her students admire her dedication to helping them improve and boost their attitudes toward computer science, even providing them with things such as the “coding duck” to make debugging a more enjoyable process. As students vent out their frustrations to the yellow plastic ducky on their desk, they learn to solve problems independently—usually not without a bit of exasperated laughter.

Caitlyn Lee ’28 commented on Greyson’s effective teaching methods: “Though coding is usually portrayed as difficult, she makes it super accessible to beginners.”

The path ahead:

Despite this wonderful journey, this chapter of Greyson’s life will draw to a close as the 2024-2025 school year comes to an end. However, retirement introduces a whole new world of exciting opportunities. With her newfound free time, Greyson hopes to become a more balanced person and focus her attention toward other activities now that she won’t be constantly preoccupied.

“I like to run, and I don’t get to run enough when I’m teaching…I just don’t have the will to do it,” she said.

Ms. Greyson hopes to pursue a multitude of interests, including running, crafts, traveling, music, gardening, cooking and reading. This chapter, like the ones before, is sure to be filled with the same curiosity, creativity and enthusiasm that Castilleja has come to know so well.

Final thank you:

From putting up with the countless silly drawings on her whiteboard, to thoughtful, time-consuming meetings with students, Ms. Greyson has demonstrated her undiminishable support, enthusiasm and patience.

As she steps away from the Circle and the classroom, the Castilleja community reflects with appreciation. With gratitude, we celebrate the lasting impact she has made: one that will continue to shape how her students code, create and believe in themselves for years to come.