PROFILES IN EDUCATION

Candace Braun

Name: William A. Stoltzfus III

School: Princeton Day School

Years Teaching: 23

Subjects Taught: American History, Ethics, Greco-Roman History, Bible

Grades Taught: 9 through 12

Education: Attended high school at Deerfield Academy in Deerfield, Mass., B.A. in Economics from the University of California -Santa Barbara

Most Memorable Book: My Name is Asher Lev, by Chaim Potok

Admired person: "My younger brother, Philip, for his willingness to undertake and complete tasks that he did not necessarily enjoy doing. I learned how to do that from him." Bill Stoltzfus has never taught anywhere except Princeton Day School, but he's not complaining. "This is the only teaching job I've ever had, but as far as I'm concerned, it's the best job in the world," he said.

Born in Kuwait, Mr. Stoltzfus travelled to and lived in many places before settling at his job in Princeton. Having a father who worked in the U.S. Foreign Service for 28 years, Mr. Stoltzfus has seen and lived in Saudi Arabia, Yemen and Ethiopia. He has also had the opportunity to travel to Aden, Egypt, Kenya, Lebanon, Syria, Qatar, Dubai, Abu Dhabi, Bahrain, as well as several countries in Europe.

"I was a foreign service brat," he said with a laugh.

The father of a 15-year-old daughter, Amelia, Mr. Stoltzfus started teaching at PDS in 1981. Four years later he married his wife, Alison, and settled in Hopewell, where he has lived ever since. However, according to the PDS teacher, his family has always been connected to Princeton in some way.

"My grandmother lived in Princeton, so whenever my family was overseas, we used Princeton as our permanent address," he said. Mr. Stoltzfus' father ended his career overseas after serving as Ambassador to Kuwait from 1972 to 1976, and soon after also settled in Princeton.

Now, during his free time, the Upper School teacher likes to go hiking with his father. Their favorite place to hike is the Appalachian Trail, where they've gone together for the last nine years.

Becoming a Teacher

Teaching wasn't always what Mr. Stoltzfus had in mind for his career, but he had a feeling it would become part of his life eventually. "I think it's in my blood," he said. His mother started and ran her own school in Taiz, Yemen, in the late 1950s, while his father was the president of a college in Lebanon. After coming to Princeton, his parents both taught at PDS for 12 years. In addition, his aunt, Winifred Vogt, taught at the private school during the 1960s and early 70s.

Even Mr. Stoltzfus' wife, a senior associate at Ford Farewell Mills and Gatsch Architects, was once a teacher at Princeton Day School.

"I was pre-ordained to teach," he said.

However, when the high school teacher first acquired a bachelor of arts degree in economics, he was on a different career path. After graduation, he obtained a job at William Sword and Company on Chambers Street, where he worked for a few years in investment banking. "After that, life took me in a different direction," he said.

School Involvement

Bill Stoltzfus has been very involved in PDS over the years. He coached for 30 seasons, primarily girls' and boys' tennis at all levels, as well as soccer, basketball and softball.

He also currently assists with community service and serves as faculty advisor for various clubs, including the Chess Club, Religion Club, Vegan's Club, and the Lord of the Rings Club. The most recent club that Mr. Stoltzfus has taken on is the Moadon Club, which discusses current events relating to the U.S. and the Middle East.

In addition, Mr. Stoltzfus is a faculty advisor for the Anglo-Indian-American Bend It Like Vikram Colross Lawn Croquet and Cricket Club. He said that Alex Curtis, admissions director at PDS, will be teaching the group how to play cricket, and their first exhibition game is scheduled to take place this May.

The Upper School teacher prides himself on his teaching methods, and how they have evolved over the years. "I teach somewhat differently than my colleagues," he said. "I don't put grades on papers. I don't give objective tests. I emphasize reading, thinking, discussing and writing."

Rather than average out students' grades at the end of the term, Mr. Stoltzfus bases overall performance on a self-evaluation he has his students fill out.

However, according to the history teacher, some of his teaching methods have almost gotten him fired. Mr. Stoltzfus recalled a time during the early 1980s when he had his class involved in a Math Bee and one of his students almost had his eye poked out. He said the student got the math problem wrong, so he was required by the rules of the game to get down on the floor and do 15 push-ups. A fellow student bent down to count for him, unaware that he had a pencil in his hand, and the sharpened end went into the other student's eye.

"I just had this vision that I was the reason this kid got his eye poked out," said the PDS teacher. However, the pen missed the student's eye and went into his eyelid.| "Certainly if I had been principal, I would have [fired me] on the spot," he said.

Students Today

However, Mr. Stoltzfus kept his job, and has now been at Princeton Day School for 23 years. The history teacher said that he has noticed changes in his students over the years, particularly how advanced the present generation is with technology. "I think for all of us the world is a busier place. Kids are more technologically proficient," he said.

Mr. Stoltzfus said that specifically, girls appear to have advanced the most in their interest in technology. "The stereotype a generation ago was that guys were more into computers and mathematical things," he said.

The teacher said that while he has to compete with the fast-paced world of technology in his classroom, he also incorporates it into his teaching methods, such as having students email their assignments to him.

As Bill Stoltzfus begins another new year at PDS, he reverts back to book learning by giving students a quote from Bruno Bettelheim, child psychiatrist: "If we hope to live not just from moment to moment, but in true consciousness of our existence, then our greatest need and most difficult achievement is to find meaning in our lives."

If you would like to nominate a teacher to be profiled in this column, please contact Candace Braun.