For many people, being a part of their community is important to them. For Rancho Cucamonga High School history teacher Mr. Aaron Bishop, pride and inclusion in his community hold a very sentimental value to him. It all started in 1990 during Bishop’s senior year at Alta Loma High School.
After being admitted into the University of California, Santa Barbara, Bishop decided to major in social studies. Bishop, directly out of college, did not know for sure what he wanted to do yet as a career, but had an underlying passion for history.
The Fantom
The “Fantom” began in 1936 when the UCSB’s female population, inspired by Douglas Fairbanks’s performance in the 1927 film “The Gaucho,” led a vote to change the mascot from the original Roadrunners to the Gauchos.
Up until the 1980s, the mascot was known under the name “Gaucho Joe” and was known for running around in jeans and a yellow Batman t-shirt.
Bishop, who had a passion for sports, sought to play for the UCSB basketball team during his freshman year of college. Although Bishop failed to make the team after trying out multiple times, he sought to get on the court one way or another, which ultimately led him to adopt the mascot persona.
“UCSB was great. I met a great group of friends, who I am still friends with today,” Bishop said. “I tried out for the basketball team twice and didn’t make it, and I needed to find a way to get on the court or be involved, so I became the ‘Fantom of the Dome.’”
According to Bishop, he dubbed the unofficial mascot of UCSB, and he gave himself the moniker “Fantom of the Dome.”
By the mid-1990s, the Fantom and his Gaucho crowd became nationally notorious for trolling the referees and chucking tortillas onto the court, which resulted in the referees calling multiple technical fouls.
The tortilla-chucking practices peaked in February of 1997 when the Gauchos played the University of Pacific, which was televised nationally on ESPN. The tortilla-wielding fans threw enough tortillas to eventually get the head coach ejected from the game.
“It was a great ride and it was a lot of fun,” Bishop said. “Getting in front of a crowd and getting them rocking is always fun, but when you have a packed house, playing a rival school, and need some little kick in the shorts, for me to go out there and determine what music to play, or what activity the crowd is going is awesome, and when they respond and the team responds; it’s a great feeling.”
When the Gauchos basketball team qualified for the National College and Athletic Association (NCAA) tournament in 2001, the Fantom was ranked in a top 10 list of best mascots in college sports, deeming him one of the most popular mascots in college.
After graduating from UCSB in 1994, Bishop kept his role of the Fantom, which he eventually stopped during his time as a full-time teacher.
How it started
Before the Fantom, Bishop lived a simple life. Bishop moved to Rancho Cucamonga in 1977 and attended Alta Loma High School. After graduating from UCSB, he returned to Rancho and taught at ALHS.
“Community is everything to me, and I’m lucky that me and my family moved here in 1977,” Bishop said. “The superintendent brought me over to Rancho, which was probably the greatest move in my career.”
Bishop’s energetic, rowdy character continued as he began his career as a high school teacher and basketball coach here at Rancho Cucamonga High School.
“I love doing our student section, let’s go Rancho Rooters, and all kids are accepted, doesn’t matter how tall or how small, if you’re wearing purple here, you’re involved,” Bishop said.
Before his position as a history teacher at RCHS, Bishop passed his test to become a substitute teacher and ultimately became a long-term sub. Bishop started off teaching special education, which greatly motivated him.
“Starting in special education motivated me to make subject matters easier for the students,” Bishop said. “I love teaching and I love that I enjoy breaking down difficult subject matters for kids who maybe have a tough time learning or that are resisting learning, and you try to make it personable to them and to see students achieve greatness in your class is the best thing to see.”
Bishop’s passion for history runs deep within his family’s history and military experiences.
“I have a passion for history because of my family’s involvement with the military,” Bishop said. “I love our history and what a great way to help kids who need it and yet share the greatest story ever, American history.”
Not only is he known as an uplifting, high-spirited teacher throughout the campus, but his attention to teaching in the classroom by caring for his students and providing them with a proper education is admirable.
“The way I am on campus is because I have confidence in the students, and the students trust me and they know that I trust them,” Bishop said. “So that allows me to be who I am, and in return, students can be who they are, and in return, we can have a good campus life.”
Rancho Remembers
Along with his outstanding collaboration with his school’s spirit and community, he also is the host of a popular event held here at RCHS: Rancho Remembers.
“We have a lot of community involvement, not just at Rancho but with our program Rancho Remembers, and we can’t be that successful without the help of our community,” Bishop said.
Starting nearly twenty years ago, Rancho Remembers is a program that honors the men and women of our community who served and continue to serve the United States Military. By introducing the Veterans to younger generations, their stories can be told for students to experience and carry on the inspiring stories told.
Mr. Robert Sanchez, Assistant Principal of RCHS, expressed his appreciation for Rancho Remembers.
“It is a way of us acknowledging the sacrifices made on a daily basis in order for us to enjoy the freedoms that so many people take for granted and the freedoms that are not allotted in most of the world,” Sanchez said. “My first year teaching here at RCHS, I taught in Mr. Bishop’s classroom during 2nd period. We both knew we had to come up with a way to preserve their stories. So, we started recruiting veterans, we went to American Legion Posts, we visited Veterans of Foreign Wars Posts.”
This year, Rancho Remembers was held on April 25, 2024, and more than 600 students had the opportunity to speak with Veterans.
“Mr. Bishop has made a lasting impact through teaching, coaching, Rancho Remembers, and more. His impact is immeasurable. We are very lucky to have Mr. Bishop at RCHS,” Sanchez said.
From UCSB to ALHS and now to RCHS, Bishop is the epitome of the Rancho pride