When she started at UPrep, Spanish teacher and Class of 2026 Dean Ciara McGrath didn’t plan to stay long.
“Initially I thought I would only be here for a couple of years and then I would go abroad,” McGrath said. “I would go teach, go back either to Europe, or travel.”
Now, 13 years later, she leaves for Madrid with a legacy of supporting student growth, leadership in the Spanish language department, and a belief that who you are when you enter high school doesn’t define who you must remain.
After moving to Seattle in 2002 and finishing her doctorate at the University of Washington in 2013, McGrath sought a stable job somewhere in Seattle. After finding UPrep, she felt embraced by the community and decided to continue as a teacher in Seattle.
“I just ended up loving the school and loving the teachers, my colleagues, the teachers and the students that I had,” McGrath said. “I just loved Seattle, so I wanted to stay here longer.”
At first, McGrath did not have an advisory role, but after becoming an advisor, she came to enjoy the added responsibility. In 2018, she also chose to pursue a position as grade dean.
“I really enjoyed the advising role. It was brand new to me and it was something that I was feeling like I wanted to explore more and was an opportunity to get to know students outside of the classroom,” McGrath said. “I wanted to get to know more students beyond the Spanish department, so being a dean really gave me a better perspective of how students change from ninth grade to 12th grade.”
After seeing students change and transform through high school for more than a decade, McGrath felt that she was due for a change, too.
“My family are back in Ireland and in Spain,” McGrath said. “After the pandemic, I was just thinking that I’ve been spending a lot of time over here and all my family is back there.”
McGrath, born in Canada to Irish parents, moved to Spain when she was four years old. Her family remains connected to Spain, with her sister and father currently living there.
“I’ve always had one of my parents living there,”
McGrath said.
Although McGrath seeks to be closer to family, she does plan to continue teaching when she moves back to Spain.
“So I’ve been applying to international schools and American schools abroad,” McGrath said. “So, I will at least start subbing.”
As she packs up her life in Washington, she reflects on her time at UPrep.
“This is making me emotional because it’s just the reality that there’s two months left, so I’m like, it’s wrapping up,” McGrath said. “It’s coming up close, and I’m excited about it.”
McGrath’s time at UPrep has impacted countless students and staff. Spanish teacher Elena Tello Portoles has worked at UPrep for almost 21 years and has watched McGrath grow professionally.
“Ciara and I had an instant connection because we both grew up in Spain,” Tello Portoles said. “It’s been wonderful to first have that personal connection with her and seeing her become a fabulous Spanish teacher, how she has grown in her teaching throughout the years, and also in the leadership role she took when she became a dean eight years ago.”
Tello Portoles noted that McGrath has grown in leadership and during her time at UPrep.
“At the beginning, she was not as good and as confident in her relationship with students,” Tello Porteles said. “And throughout the years, that has changed completely. Now students se
ek her out because she gives great advice.”
A member of McGrath’s advisory, senior Huda Hassan, notes that despite her advisor’s busy schedule, McGrath is always ready to check in on her.
“My favorite moments with Ciara are the random ones, where we don’t plan to talk but have a conversation anyway,” Hassan said. “Instead of brief ‘hellos’ that others have in passing, Ciara makes a genuine effort to stop everything and create a comfortable space where I can talk about anything.”
Not only did Hassan describe McGrath as thoughtful and kind, but wanted to highlight a lesson that she’s learned from her.
“One of the most important things that Ciara taught me is self-advocacy,” Hassan said. “I think she makes a point to teach all her students to speak up, and that their voice matters.”
Another one of McGrath’s advisees, senior Tobin Schubert, also mentioned a life lesson that McGrath has taught him.
“As my advisor, she’s definitely helped me as a person with maturing and understanding time and place,” Schubert said. “I’m definitely much more of a class clown type of personality, but she’s helped me focus that into, you know, a time when it’s inappropriate and times when it’s fine.”
McGrath has enjoyed watching how her students progress socially and academically throughout high school. 
“Just seeing how they mature, how they grow, how they rise up to challenges or [how] they bounce back from setbacks, it really made me much more empathetic for younger students,” McGrath said.
As she prepares to leave, McGrath shared a final piece of advice with the senior class.
“I hope that they will be a little bit kinder to themselves as far as what standards or expectations they place on them,” McGrath said. “It is okay to not be perfect and recognize that vulnerability.”
