Gene Kendall is one of the new physical education teachers at SCHS. He enjoys finding ways to stay active, spending time with his family and traveling around the world. 

Kendall was inspired to teach at a young age by his father who taught high school P.E. He admired those teachers and developed an early interest in teaching. 

“We always hung out with the P.E. teachers, who I thought were super cool and had a really great job,” Kendall said. “That made me interested in being a P.E. teacher as a young person. That was my driving force all along.”

Before teaching at SCHS, Kendall coached water polo at Ohlone College in addition to multiple high schools. Water polo has been a major part of Kendall’s life as he played it for several years before joining his high school’s team. In his junior year at Irvington High School, Kendall’s team won their league championship, and he was named MVP. 

“My favorite thing to do in the world was play water polo,” Kendall said. “Winning that championship and getting recognized that way was probably my favorite high school memory.” 

Kendall still enjoys the sport but now focuses on coaching teams instead of playing.

Outside of school, Kendall has many hobbies. His favorite hobby is playing video games. He found his interest in them at a young age and grew up enjoying Nintendo games, such as “Super Mario Brothers.” 

“Every young kid back when I grew up wanted the brand new Nintendo,” Kendall said. “(I) grew up with it, so it’s part of who I am.”

Another hobby of Kendall’s is traveling. He especially enjoys visiting Europe, and Rome is his favorite destination. On his travels, he enjoys learning about history and appreciates the abundance of historical significance Rome has to offer. 

“The amount of history that’s there and different things you can see,” Kendall said. “You can literally walk out your door and start walking and come across things that are super historically significant.” 

This year, Kendall is looking forward to teaching high school students. He appreciates the SCHS community and is excited to experience Santa Clara traditions.

“I’m happy to be here at Santa Clara,” Kendall said. “My dad graduated from Santa Clara High School way back in the 1970s, so it’s kind of cool coming back to Santa Clara and participating in Santa Clara traditions.”

At SCHS, Kendall hopes to be an approachable teacher who creates a welcoming environment in his class. 

“I know I can be tall and sometimes I can be intimidating, but I’m actually pretty easy going and approachable,” Kendall said.