Hackley Names Four New Chairholders
Sarah Coble, Seth Karpinski, Dan Lipin, and Tony Maisonet have been appointed to endowed chairs starting with the 2020-2021 school year. Sarah Coble will be the new holder of the Parents' Chair. Seth Karpinski has been chosen for the Head of School Chair and Dan Lipin for the McLean Chair in Mathematics and Science. Tony Maisonet has been named to the M.H. Davidson Chair in History.
These four teachers were selected from among the many outstanding faculty members who were nominated for chairs by their faculty peers Their nominations evidence the high regard they hold for their colleagues, and their appreciation for the ideals of each chair.
Below are snapshots of what colleagues wrote in support of the new chairholders...
Sarah Coble
Sarah Coble
- “…I see firsthand the artful capacities that she helps her students to discover in themselves. The studio floor of Raymond, full as it is with sounds including, but not limited to hammering, spray-painting, and kiln-firing, is the proving ground for our students as they work with Sarah on skills they didn't know they could possess, and find in themselves a love for art they didn't know they had all along.”
- “Walking into her studio during a class, one must be impressed by the atmosphere Sarah creates. I love the controlled excitement I always feel from the students whenever I visit. The level of level of creativity is always high. … Sarah is a Hackley treasure. She has sacrificed part of her career as an artist – and she is a fine one! – to teach. But Sarah doesn’t just teach - she inspires!”
- “Sarah is also an excellent teacher in more subtle, warmer, more omnipresent ways. As she encounters colleagues and students, and probably without realizing the extent to which she is doing it, she asks them about their goings-on, their recent intellectual and emotional life, and their general well-being. This kind of regard for others constitutes another, deeper type of teaching: she models absolutely the sort of lifelong learning -- which manifests as interest in and appreciation of others -- that Hackley holds high.”
Seth Karpinski
- “…Seth has constantly worked to not only improve the quality of his teaching, but to enhance the courses he teaches. From leading the change in the 9th Grade Physics program by introducing the Rocket project, to his constant refinement of the AP Physics program. … He does all this while coaching three sports, and working with other committees.”
- “Seth designed the freshman boat building competition in order to help bond and unify the members of each freshman class, established the custom of senior book giving before graduation each year, and started Hackley’s annual Class Day Run— an activity which builds community and fellowship as students, teachers, and administrators run together before school on Class Day each spring. Over the past two years, Seth has also been integral in planning and coordinating Hackley’s Ex-Day activities.”
- “The [Middle School] kids feel like they belong before they even get to the high school. He is known for taking the quirky kids and giving them a place to belong. Seth gives his heart to Hackley and thus is one of the most fitting candidates for this chair.”
- “I really believe that he embodies what it is to be a teacher at Hackley. … His dedication to helping everyone around him, student or colleague, is truly inspiring.”
Dan Lipin
- “Dan Lipin brings tireless enthusiasm to everything that he does at Hackley. His students love him because his classes are fun. Dan’s unstated motto seems to be, “if the students and I aren’t having fun while we learn, then I’m doing it wrong.” Let me be clear, Dan’s students aren’t just having fun, they are also learning. A lot.”
- “Dan created the robotics program at Hackley, spending countless hours with the kids on the LEGO competition. Moreover, when Dan realized that it wasn’t necessarily the best forum for our students to experience what they should: a sense of team-work and accomplishment and the ability to design and code; he decided to create his own, sumo-bot competition. The local sumo bot league exists thanks solely to Dan, and it gives the students a wonderful chance to learn the power of learning, failing, and trying again in a safe environment. Dan has also done a great job using upper school students as mentors for his robotics programs, thus creating cross-divisional opportunities.”
- “As the faculty advisor for MS community council, Dan is always finding ways to support students in creating a strong and friendly community. His activities are always fun, from the chopped event to glow in the dark capture the flag. He spends many of his precious free periods outside during recess organizing flag football and other hive competitions. I have personally seen the late nights he puts in to make all of the above a reality. I think he is one of Hackley's best faculty examples of giving unreserved effort.”
Tony Maisonet
- “I’m mainly nominating him on the basis of what my students say about him. Tony is clearly a teacher they have a lot of affection for, but he is also someone who clearly challenged them quite a bit. They talk about his tests, his research assignments, and other aspects of his class with a mixture of humor and awe. When I talk with Tony, I am always struck by how he is so open to asking me questions and learning from me, despite the fact I’m a few years junior to him.”
- “He combines his high expectations of students with unwavering support. This combination leads to high achievement from students.”
- “…as writing is an important component in the subject, Tony also focuses on teaching his students how to express those same connections on paper in their writing. Tony’s students learn how to write cohesively and confidently about history, and to generate their own personally insightful interpretations of material. And they do all this while having fun at the same time!”
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