Fall 2008 Spring 2008 - Manlius Pebble Hill School

The Latin Teacher LegacySince the 1940s, the Latin faculty has had impressively little turn over: Robert Smutny(1946-1949), Torrence Rugh (1949-1970), Jim Lawrence (1968-2006), and Will O’Malley(1997-today). These Latin scholars have left quite an impression on our alumni.Jed Waterbury ’56A remembersCommander Rugh as a dearfriend and teacher and recallsthat General Barkeraffectionately addressed Rughas “sailor.” Harold Schwarz’62HQ knew Commander Rughas his soccer coach, whorecruited him to play goalie forJim Lawrence the team for five years.Peter Mires ’71 recalls a storythat personifies Mr. Lawrence’s kind nature and his desire toshare knowledge: “Mr. Lawrence was kind enough to loanme a book after his Latin III course had sparked my interestin the ancient city of Troy. The book was Carl Blegen’s ‘Troyand the Trojans.’ The year was 1970. I kept that book for 27years. When I finally returned it by mail, I got the nicestletter in reply. Nothing was said of the book that I had keptfor more than a quarter century.”Today’s Latin students continue to be inspired. WillO’Malley has been teaching Latin at MPH since 1997 andhas succeeded Jim Lawrence as chair of the World LanguageDepartment.Born and raised in Cleveland, Ohio, O’Malley beganstudying Latin and Greek in high school. He continued hisstudy of the classics at the University of Scranton and laterat Kent State. O’Malley began looking for teaching posit ionsin Syracuse, to be close to his then fiancée Deb. As luckwould have it, there was an opening for a Latin/Greekteacher at MPH for the 1997-1998 school year. During hisfirst MPH visit, O’Malley felt “something special about theSchool.” Hired right out of graduate school, O’Malleylooked to Jim Lawrence and Don Ridall for guidance.Eleven years later, the two continue to be great mentors toO’Malley, who says, “Withteaching, everyday is anadventure.”Throughout O’Malley’s time atMPH, he has taught Latin,Greek, English as a SecondLanguage (ESL), mythologyand literature, and EighthGrade History (ancientcivilizations). Currently, heWill O’Malleyteaches six different levels of Latinbeginning in the Seventh Grade and O’Malley enjoys wit ness -ing the progress his students make throughout the years.Former students might be surprised to know that Latin didnot come very easily to O’Malley. It wasn’t until his senioryear in high school that he grew more confident in Latinand his passion for the language and literature grew steadilyfrom there. The decision to study classics in college wasgreatly influenced by the positive influence of O’Malley’shigh school teachers, a fact which he reminds himself ofdaily. It inspires him to make and foster positiverelationships with students, as learning follows from there.While Latin can be a tough sell for some, MPH studentswho start with O’Malley usually take Latin all the way tograduation. Students find Latin has many practical benefits,including the language’s ability to build the skills necessaryfor speaking, reading, writing, and thinking – not bad for a“dead” language! O’Malley believes that learning Latinsharpens the mind and teaches students to be observant,accurate, analytic, and logical in their studies. In the upperlevels, O’Malley’s students study a true humanity – alanguage, literature, and a civilization from which theylearn much about who we are today. Latin at MPH is aliveand well.6 MPH REFLECTIONS 2008