Allana is the middle school ELA teacher, 7th grade homeroom teacher, and Mock Trial Coach.
After graduating from The Colorado College with a degree in sociology, she has spent most of her adult life in service to, or working with, young people
Right out of college, she began working for Demver’s Children’s Hospital, helping parents navigate insurance issues. She moved to the Mayor’s Office of Employment and Training. The agency received federal funds to provide job training and education to low-income or at-risk youth, ages 14 - 21. Allana oversaw these programs.
After moving to Pasadena to attend the American Academy of Dramatic Arts (AADA), she taught theatre to kids at Compton’s Progressive Art Academy; she was also a volunteer tutor in programs at the Boys and Girls Club of Hollywood and School on Wheels, serving the unhoused and shelter communities.
Allana was a substitute teacher in the Pasadena and Glendale Unified School Districts. It was a full-circle moment when she was hired as the AADA’s Registrar. She occasionally got to sub for some of the acting classes.
That job led to an opportunity to work at Buzzy’s Recording, a long-time, prominent Hollywood voiceover studio. At the same time, she was a member of the Knightsbridge Theatre. There, she had the opportunity to write, direct, stage manage and produce work, for and with young people, including students from Immaculate Heart and Loyola High Schools, and Loyola Marymount University. If that wasn’t enough, she was performing summer theatre with the Culver City Public Theatre: free, classic stories and original works for young and old.
When Knightsbridge shuttered its doors, Allana’s next adventure was Shakespeare in the Park with Eastside Theatre Works. She was part of the inaugural company, presenting Shakespeare in the park in the summer, and Christmas shows in the winter. It was exciting to bring this brand of live theatre to East Los Angeles.
While working at Buzzy’s, Allana was the project manager for Peanuts, a 500 episode series on Boomerang; they were short videos of the original comic strip. For ten months, she organized and scheduled sessions with eleven talented children, ages 7 – 14. It was working with these young artists that reminded her how much she missed working with students on a daily basis.
She returned to substitute teaching, working at private, charter, and religious schools all across the San Fernando Valley. Separately, through close friends, she was referred to St. Francis Xavier as a sub. She was elated to receive the call about applying for a full-time position at SFX. It is her greatest privilege to shape and guide these young people.