The salon at AGHS is run by students in the cosmetology CTE pathway. Students can get hands-on experience working with clients from the community.
The salon is open from 4:00-7:30 p.m. on Mondays and Wednesdays, and 7:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. on Tuesdays and Thursdays.The salon offers a wide variety of services at lower rates than typical salons.
The goal is for students to gain experience in the field and explore what their future in the industry can look like. Students are guided by Kyla Holthaus, a new teacher at AGHS, as well as Marissa Whitney.
Though this is Holthaus’s first year teaching, she is no stranger to Arroyo Grande. She graduated from AGHS and then got her AA at Allan Hancock College and her cosmetology license from Institute of Beauty Culture (IBC) in Santa Maria. She then became a stylist.
Last year she worked in the AGHS records office as a “Sub-coordinator,” to ensure every class that needed a substitute teacher was covered. Along with this, she processed community service submissions from students and sent out transcripts as needed.
“I just wanted something a little bit more steady, so that’s why I went to be a secretary,” Holthaus said.
As a secretary, Holthaus also covered different staff members’ lunches. She spent time in the health office and in other positions.
“That’s how I know a lot of people and how I know a lot of everything,” Holthaus said.
It was through her work in the records office that she heard about the job opening in the cosmetology department. She never expected to get the job, but was excited when she realized that she had.
Holthaus had always considered teaching cosmetology as a backup, but knew that she never wanted to teach adults. She has enjoyed teaching and getting to know her students this year.
“I think it’s fun [to teach them], because this is what they actually want to do,” Holthaus said.
Holthaus teaches two different cosmetology courses throughout the day: Introductory and Advanced. Her students find her to be helpful and
kind when instructing and assisting them in the salon.
“She focuses on getting us the information, but also making a good friendship and bond with us so that we feel more comfortable talking to her about everything. It’s a more enjoyable process,” Sadie Pierce (‘26) said.
