Mr. Paul Jackson
As the year draws to a close, language teacher Mr. Paul Jackson plans on moving to the South to continue teaching and undertake a director role, as well as be closer to his father’s family. During his two years at Choate, Mr. Jackson has taught both Chinese and Italian. Additionally, he has coached the badminton and volleyball teams and been an adviser to the Animation Club. Alex South ’20 said of Mr. Jackson, “He is a fun, knowledgeable person, and interacting with him is a highlight of my day.” When asked about how his experience at Choate has affected him, Mr. Jackson replied, “Being at Choate has increasingly shown me the need for open-hearted friendship and understanding and to cultivate a joy of learning for learning’s sake.”
Owen Collins ’19
Mr. Mustafa Abdul-Rahim
Mr. Mustafa Abdul-Rahim was introduced to Choate while a track coach at Exeter. After visiting campus at a meet, he applied to work here. During his single year at Choate, Mr. Abdul-Rahim has coached basketball and track and field. He teaches Fundamentals of Precalculus and advises freshman boys in Memorial House. Mr. Abdul-Rahim said, “All aspects of my duty here have been rewarding – teaching, coaching, and advising.” He also explained the meaningful connections he has established with faculty and staff; he looks forward to maintaining them after his departure. After leaving Choate, Mr. Abdul-Rahim will work in education at MIT in Boston to be closer to his family.
Samantha Stevenson ’19
Ms. Leigh Dingwall
Ms. Leigh Dingwall was a Choate graduate of the class of ’84. After teaching history at NMH, she returned to her alma mater as a teacher. Ms. Dingwall has taught AP US History and European History and was responsible for developing Choate’s Women’s Studies program. She has also coached various extracurriculars, including Thirds Tennis and fitness. In addition, Ms. Dingwall has served as an advisor in Library, Squire, Bungalow, Pierce, and Archbold. She said, “I’ve never seen the caliber of kids that we have here, and not just in terms of intelligence. Choate students are unique. Every day students would say thank you at the end of class. That strikes me as the most amazing thing!” After 19 years of dedication to the school, Ms. Dingwall is returning to her home state of North Carolina.
Samantha Stevenson ’19
Mr. Jake Dellorco
Mr. Jake Dellorco has been teaching and coaching at Choate for three years. After graduating from Tufts University in ’09, he taught math at Blair Academy in New Jersey. He was introduced to Choate via a placement agency called Carney Sandoe. Mr. Dellorco has been an adviser in Woodhouse, taught AP Calculus and Data Science, and coached both Varsity Football and Baseball. Varsity football player Michael Monios ’19 said, “Mr. Dellorco is easily one of my favorite coaches here. He encourages us to push ourselves to the limit.” Mr. Dellorco said he has been “impressed by the professionalism of all the teachers” and has enjoyed fostering strong relationships with the students, prefects, and football coaching staff. Mr. Dellorco has accepted a job as a Dean of Students at The Canterbury School in New Milford, Connecticut.
Samantha Stevenson ’19
Ms. Adriane Krul
Ms. Adriane Krul joined the Choate faculty after graduating Bowdoin College. Through her college years, she pursued gender studies, women’s studies, and math. Choate’s core values of scholarship, equity, and holistic learning motivated her to come work on campus. Presently, she is not only a math teacher but also an adviser in Nichols and a coach of field hockey and softball. She said, “The best experience has been working with such passionate, talented, and driven students and colleagues.”After leaving Choate, Ms. Krul will be attending graduate school in the fall at Smith College to study exercise science. She will also be an assistant coach for Smith’s softball team and hopes to one day coach at the collegiate level.
Isabelle So ’20
Ms. Judi Williams
Ms. Judi Williams started her education career 11 years ago as a U.S. History teacher at the Frank Sinatra School of the Arts. She also served as a History Department Chair at a New York boarding school before coming to Choate. While here, she has taught U.S. History, A.P. Government, and Global Issues. She advised in West Wing, started RISE – an affinity group for students who identify as women of color – with two other teachers, oversaw Carib club and Mock Trial, and been an Adviser to Students of Color and member of the Diversity Education Committee. She has also coached JV Girls’ Lacrosse. Ms. Williams said, “I’m committed to diversity and inclusion work. I have focused on that during my time here.” For next year, Ms. Williams will be accepting the position of Director of Equity, Inclusion, and Community Relations at Shadyside Academy in Pittsburgh.
Anjali Mangla ’20
Ms. Sofia Pontes
Ms. Sofia Pontes is an English teacher, currently teaching Contemporary World Fiction, Comparative Literature, and two sections of the sophomore year-long course EN200. She is an adjunct adviser in Bernhard, though she lives in a faculty house. Before coming to Choate, she taught at Phillips Academy as a Teaching Fellow for one year. Next year she will be moving to New York City and will be working on the SAT College Board, looking at the reading section. She will miss the Choate life, and will miss teaching during her hiatus at the College Board in New York City. Pontes said, “One of the things I love about teaching here is that the students have strong passions and actually act on them.”
Anjali Mangla ’20
Mr. Nick Molnar
At the end of this school year, Mr. Nick Molnar will depart the Choate community to begin a one-year program in independent-school leadership at Columbia University’s Teachers College. Before beginning his teaching career, Mr. Molnar attended Hotchkiss and studied math and economics at the University of Pennsylvania. He then went into banking. However, after a few years, he took a year-long job in China teaching and writing curricula. Shortly after returning, Mr. Molnar began working at Choate. Of his accomplishments during his time here, he is most proud of the courses he helped design, such as the Strategic Decision-Making class and the Journalism course. Over the next year, in addition to broadening his understanding of how education works, Mr. Molnar looks forward to carving out time to be creative. He said, “I want a break from being strapped for time when it comes to thinking creatively and deeply.”
Sarah Gurevitch ’19
Ms. Maddy Jacobs
Ms. Maddy Jacobs has known that she wanted to work in the admissions world since college, where she worked as a Senior Admissions Fellow in the admissions office. Ms. Jacobs said, “I really loved my college experience. It influenced me very positively in many different ways, and as a result, I wanted to work in schools.” After graduating college, Ms. Jacobs got her admissions job at Choate and has been working here for two years. Ms. Jacobs has been the Girls’ Varsity Soccer coach, an adviser in Bernhard House, and helped run Gold Key. Through her time working at Choate as an admissions officer, Ms. Jacobs has realized “that you can have a connection with anyone no matter who they are or where they come, and that there is a way to connect with someone no matter what.”
Sarah Gurevitch ’19
Mr. Charlie Hopkins
While at Choate, Mr. Hopkins has a taught a variety of history classes, lived and advised in Spencer House, and been the team coach to the MUN team. Before coming to Choate, Mr. Hopkins worked at King’s Academy, a boarding school in Jordan. Looking for a school closer to home, Mr. Hopkins said he was, “bowled over by the variety of programs that Choate offered — an interesting variety of classes and top-notch extracurriculars that had a lot of energy behind them.” Next year, Mr. Hopkins will be moving to New York City to teach at Friends Seminary, a K-12 day school in the Quaker tradition. In his time here, Mr. Hopkins said, “I’ve been so impressed with the passion and energy that Choate students bring to so much that they do.”
Grayce Gibbs ’18
Mr. Will Nowak
Mr. Will Nowak, an economics and math teacher, currently living at the KEC, is leaving Choate after seven years. He has taught AP Macro Economics, Environmental Economics, Data Science, Pre-calculus, Algebra 2, AB Calculus, and Research Methods, among others. While at Choate, he has been the adviser to the Choate Korean Friends Association and a coach of squash, hockey, and cross-country. Mr. Nowak attended Choate Rosemary Hall as a high school student and, after graduating college in 2010, came back to teach for a summer program and then interviewed for one of the openings in the math department. After having taught Data Science and Statistics, Mr. Nowak plans to apply his knowledge to the world outside of Choate. He said, “I will not be teaching next year. I will potentially be getting a job using quantitative methods in the corporate or nonprofit section.”
Lauren Dorsey ’18
