THE GLOBAL CITIZEN - Wilbraham & Monson Academy

Francis Michael Casey
English Teacher, Director of Studies 1972-1973
Head of School 1973-1988
Mike Casey had a long career in education beginning in
1942, when at the age of 16, and in his junior year of
high school, he was admitted to Notre Dame University in
South Bend, Indiana, in a program for advanced high school
students. In 1944, when he turned 18, and at the height of
World War II, he enlisted in the U.S. Navy. He enrolled in
Officer Candidate School and then, because of his aptitude
for foreign languages, he was sent to Japanese language
school in Stillwater, Oklahoma, to prepare to be a translator
in the expected U.S. invasion of Japan.
Following the end of the war, he enrolled in Williams
College, from which he received a bachelor’s degree. He
received his master’s degree from the University of North
Carolina at Chapel Hill. Mike was the recipient of one of the
first Fulbright Scholarships awarded in 1947. He traveled
to London, England, to study stage directing at the Old Vic
Theatre, and later became the assistant to the theatre’s director,
Tyrone Guthrie. He carried his love of the theatre and his
flair for the dramatic into the classroom as a teacher.
Returning to the U.S. in the early 1950s, Mike taught in the
Great Books program at Notre Dame. He was an instructor
in English at Williams College, Bennington College, the
Solebury School, and the Dalton School in Manhattan, where
he was also the dean of the middle school.
In 1972, Mike accepted positions as a teacher of English
and the director of studies here at Wilbraham & Monson
Academy. A year later, he was appointed headmaster, a position
he held for the next 15 years. While he was known as a
tireless advocate for his school, his strongest attribute was his
ability to connect to people, both adults and students.
Above all Mike was truly a man of letters and art. Even
while attending to his duties as headmaster, Mike continued
to teach, and his students were often taken by the scope of
his knowledge. He was instrumental in having 24 Academy
buildings named to the National Register of Historic Places.
NECROLOGY
John Colleton ’35M
John R. Barrett ’35W
Roger W. Newberry ’37M
W. David Keith ’40W
Dr. Robert H. Bessom ’41W
John Norton ’41W
Donald E. Peck, VMD ’43W
Herman D. Kendrick ’45W
Warren E. Hill ’46W
James E. O’Brien ’47M
Barry D. Smith ’47M
Howard F. Fairweather ’48M
Peter Gage ’48M
John G. “Jack” Hoyt ’48M
James Holland ’49W
Edward Mentzer ’49W
James Coligan ’50W
Frank C. Morgan '56W
Passages
Lyman C. Harrington ’53M
George H. Davison ’67W
Dennis Ferry ’76
Francis Michael Casey
Headmaster 1973-1988
Raoul E. “Red” Boucher
Maintenance
THE ACADEMY WORLD · FALL 2006 · WMA 29
Mike Casey with some of his favorite people at the Springfi eld reception in
2004: Sandra Schoppe, Marian DeMayo, Sue Craven, and Barbara Moran.
His love of the arts and support of those programs at the
Academy led the Zalkan family to create the Francis Michael
Casey Fund for the Fine & Performing Arts in memory of
Barbara Zalkan and in Mike’s honor. This fund has provided
the wherewithal to bring a variety of performers to the school
to educate and entertain the community.
I taught under Mike during the 1970s and eventually left to
teach at The Hotchkiss School and two universities. Recently,
after learning that he was ill and in hospital, I made it a point
to call Mike and to let him know just what many thought of
him and his life of service; for service it was, and good service
at that.
John Perry, English department 1975-1980
Of the four classmates to whom I spoke, every one of them
remembered him with fondness and a deep, abiding respect.
His gift for language, both human and the silent language
of the stern glance, was absolutely remarkable. A sharp look
over his reading glasses could instantly snap a crew of scruffy
youngsters into stern attention.
Dr. Brett Zalkan ’83
Margaret S. Downey
Trustee 1975 – 1990
Most of the obituaries we receive
come through our clipping service.
If you know of a friend or classmate
who has passed away, please notify
the Alumni Office. As space allows,
we publish remembrances at the
families' request.