The end of the 2017-2018 school year is around the corner, and with it, several teachers are moving on to different endeavors or retiring. Whether these are close or far, Saint Stephen’s Upper School will be less four great teachers.

Mr. Sopher, Mr. Peterson, Mrs. Klein, and Mrs. O’Neil are essential parts of the SSES experience, and all are headed off to new horizons, so The Gauntlet decided to reflect with them on their time here, as well as on where they’re headed.

Mr. Sopher, a math and science teacher and well-loved coach, is an entrenched member of the Saint Stephen’s academic and athletic community. It has been an honor to have had him work with our community, and it is with sadness that we are seeing him off at the end of this year.

Mr. Sopher is headed to Chicago to be with his girlfriend and family. He plans to teach somewhere near the city.  

For Mr. Sopher, every day was an adventure at Saint Stephen’s.  He said that no matter, “whether running with our track and cross-country teams, coaching the girls soccer teams, teaching math and science to the wonderful students, I have enjoyed each day on this campus. Arguably my most memorable SSES moment would be the 2016 state cross-country overnight in Tallahassee. Seeing both boys and girls teams earn the opportunity to compete at that level in the same year was extraordinary.”

Mrs. Klein, the Academic Dean of the Upper School, is the member of the faculty that is always there to help us with our classes and social issues.

Next year, Mrs. Ivin, the Intermediate School director, is retiring, and Mrs. Klein has been promoted to be the new Intermediate School Director. Mrs. Klein mentioned that she will still be teaching her A.P. Biology class in the high school and commuting between the two buildings on a daily basis.

On top of all these departures, we will also be without an English teacher, and one well respected at that. Mr. Peterson has been working at Saint Stephen’s for a few years now, and has decided that it’s his time to move on. As of next year, he will be working at Blair Academy, an elite high school in Blairstown, NJ.

Mr. Peterson said he is  leaving “because [he] has friends and family in the area.” His favorite part of Saint Stephen’s is being able to work among “such great colleagues,” and his best experience at Saint Stephen’s is, “the experience I’ve accumulated over the years learning from my students and fellow teachers.”

Last but not least, Mrs. O’Neil, the head of the Math Department, is retiring as well. Mrs. O’Neil, having worked for 14 years at Saint Stephen’s, now plans to travel the world, spend time with her family, relax on different beaches, read, and volunteer around the community.

Mrs. O’Neil’s best experience at Saint Stephen’s was “being honored by students in 2010-2011, when the yearbook class dedicated the book to Mrs. Bolotin and myself.”

On top of that, her favorite part about Saint Stephen’s is being able to interact with the students and their families, administrators, and the teachers, whom she considers to be some of the finest around.

Her final words to the students were, “I will truly miss SSES, as it has been such a fulfilling part of my life.”

Alas, things change, and our community is strong enough to move on and maintain high standards.  Next year, we will have new faces, fresh voices, and a new perspective in the form of new teachers and staff.