Getting to know Science Instructor and alumna Elizabeth Timmons ’04, who is entering her ninth year of teaching at Fenwick.
Ms. Timmons spends a big chunk of her summer down in the Friars’ pool, coordinating swimming lessons for the Oak Park community.
What is your educational background?
I have a B.S. in Environmental Science with minors in Spanish and Anthropology from Santa Clara University. I also have a MAT degree in Chemistry from Dominican University.
What did you do prior to becoming a teacher at Fenwick?
I completed several outdoor education internships that included working at a National Wildlife Refuge in CA, an outdoor education center in Northern Michigan (through the winter!) and the Max McGraw Wildlife Foundation in Dundee, IL. I also subbed in the elementary schools in Forest Park and River Forest while I was getting my Master’s and teaching credentials.
What are you currently reading for enjoyment?
Sadly, it has been a while since I have read anything other than parenting articles online, but my goal is to finish Merchants of Doubt: How a Handful of Scientists Obscured the Truth on Issues from Tobacco Smoke to Global Warming this summer. We will see how that goes with a one-year-old running around!
What interests do you pursue outside of the classroom?
I like to spend time with my family and be outside as much as possible. I love to go to the Morton Arboretum or the zoo, especially with my one-year-old. I love to swim and play water polo, even though I know I’m not very fast these days.
To what teams and/or clubs did you belong as a student?
I was a member of the Varsity Swimming and Water Polo teams. I was also a member of NHS.
Which clubs/sports/activities do you run at Fenwick?
I am the moderator of the Environmental Club and I have been involved in the all of the Aquatics programs in various ways over the years.
What quality/characteristic marks a Fenwick student?
The quality that most stands out to me in our Fenwick students is their resourcefulness. Our students here are very ambitious and constantly looking to successfully meet objectives and expectations. They will find extra resources when they need them and are willing to put in the hard work required to excel in the classroom.
Fenwick students also look out for each other. The Fenwick Community is a place that is always welcoming, regardless of how long ago you were a student. The Fenwick Community is strong, and I have always felt that we pull together to celebrate the triumphs and work through the trials. The statement, “Once a Friar, Always a Friar” is definitely true.
Fenwick Graduation: 2018 Hometown: La Grange, IL Grade School: St. John’s Lutheran Current School: The University of Wisconsin-Madison Current Major: Animal Science (Pre-Vet)
Summer Internship: I do not have a formal internship through the university this summer, but I work as a groom for a few Argentine polo pros. I gain experience through working with the horses as well as by assisting the vet when the horses need treatment. I am also involved in a biomedical research lab at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. This lab work will extend through my entire undergraduate schooling.
Career aspirations: I aspire to go to go to vet school.
Fenwick achievements/activities: I was a member of the National Honors Society, Tri-M Honors Society, Friar Mentors, was an Illinois State Scholar, a Eucharistic minister and was on the State Team for WYSE. I also ran track for three years and was in choir for four years.
Fenwick teacher who had the most influence on you:Mr. Kleinhans had the most influence on me. I learned a great deal in his physics class, but most of all I learned from his example as a role model, teacher, mentor and WYSE coach. Some of my favorite class memories are from his “feel good Fridays” where he connected life experience to prayer and the importance of being a genuine person while working hard and enjoying life.
Fenwick class that had the most influence on you: AP Biology with Mr. Wnek was one of my many favorite classes. Mr. Wnek is a fantastic teacher, and what I learned set me up for success in college biology and other lab work.
Fenwick experience you would like to live again: I would relive the whole experience. From classes, sports and clubs, to friends, I had a great experience at Fenwick. I am extremely grateful for the community and for the way it set me up for success in college and in the future. I am thankful for the relationships I formed with teachers and the way that impacted my growth as a student and as a person.
Fenwick student Jack Kornowske (Oak Park) is headed to Germany for his sophomore year.
Fenwick parents Diane Ellsworth and Pete Kornowske have four children, including twin boys Eric and Jack, who will be sophomores this coming school year. (Older sibling Will is a senior Friar.) Of the twins, “Jack is the more independent one,” their mother says. She is about to find out just how self-sufficient her 15-year-old son is, as he embarks in mid-August on an 11-month study opportunity near Berlin, Germany, as part of the Rotary Club of Oak Park – River Forest’s Youth Exchange Program. The cultural experience will feature several host families, not just one.
“We host two [Rotary] students per year,” explains Mrs. Ellsworth, who hails from nearby Norridge and became familiar with the program from a friend who is a Rotarian host. “My friend once ran a school in France and had great experiences hosting,” adds Diane. Ellsworth-Kornowske’s Oak Park house was the U.S. home of a junior student from Brazil attending Oak Park-River Forest High School this past spring. Last fall they hosted a student from Italy who was a guest at St. Patrick High School in Chicago. The family also has hosted other foreign-exchange students, from France and Japan, in the past.
As for Jack spending almost a year away from home in Germany, his mother admits to being a little “freaked out” by the prospect of her young, teenage son traveling, by himself, across the Atlantic Ocean to Europe. “I was preparing for my oldest to go to college,” she explains. And now, this! Kornowske is one of eight students sponsored by the Rotary district to study abroad for the 2019-20 school year. Rotary International handles the logistics; each participating family is responsible for their child’s airfare and travel insurance.
Visiting an English-speaking country is not an option for students participating the Rotary Youth Exchange Program, Jack notes. “I was asked to rank my top 12 countries,” he recalls. At first he thought he was heading to Lithuania, number 7 on his list. However, in May, Outbound Coordinator Sue DeBolt (Rotary District 6450) and Youth Exchange Officer Lesley Gottlinger notified the family that his destination had changed to Germany. Soon, passport in hand, he will be on his way to board an airplane at O’Hare’s International Terminal.
Sprechen Sie Deutsche? Young Kornowske does not speak fluent German, so to get ready for his 4,400-mile journey he has been working with a language tutor this summer. “Rotary helps with the language skills — they expect Jack to be fluent after three months,” his mom reports. He will attend a language camp his first week in Germany. And he won’t be allowed to text or FaceTime his family in Oak Park; at least not at first. As part of the Rotary program’s deeply immersive strategy, Jack cannot communicate with his parents or siblings at all for those first 90 days, which makes his mother even more anxious.
Renaissance Man: Clevelander, Golden Apple winner and Fenwick Theology/Film Teacher for the past 12 years, Mr. Paulett also is a writer, musician and theater aficionado.
Mr. Paulett enjoying his vacation in Paris, France, this summer.
What is your educational background?
JP: My undergraduate degree was in Linguistics and Classical Languages from Georgetown University. I have a Master’s degree in Theology from Felician University and an MFA in Creative Writing from Antioch University. During my Golden Apple Sabbatical, I began a doctoral program in religious studies at Northwestern University.
What did you do prior to becoming a teacher at Fenwick?
JP: I taught for 10 years while I was in my twenties — at Lake Catholic High School in Cleveland and then at Kent State University, where I was doing doctoral work in theater and film. I then left teaching for family reasons and went into business. I had planned to work in business for two years but it turned into 25 years. I had always planned to return to teaching. When my daughter was through college, I had my opportunity and joined Fenwick.
What are you currently reading for enjoyment?
JP: I always have several books going at the same time. Right now, I am reading David Brooks’ new book The Second Mountain: The Quest for a Moral Life. I am also reading a history of the Second World War in the Aleutian Islands. Rounding that out is Wasn’t That a Time? — the story of the folk singing group The Weavers.
What interests do you pursue outside of the classroom?
JP: I am a theater fanatic. In most weeks, I attend two or three performances. I love opera and subscribe to the Lyric Opera. I also subscribe to the Chicago Symphony, the Music of the Baroque and three theater companies. I fill in the other nights with smaller theaters and films at the Gene Siskel Center. I am a writer (I have four books published) and am active writing almost every day. I have a new book in progress that I hope to finish by fall. I play music (guitar, banjo, mandolin) and usually pick up an instrument for a few minutes every day.
To what teams and/or clubs did you belong as a student?
JP: When I was in high school [at St. Ignatius in Cleveland], I was a member of the Debate Team and was fortunate to have some success. I was also in the theater. I acted in several plays and, during my senior year, wrote and directed a play. I sang in the choir and played in a rock band. I was a dreadful athlete and got cut from every sport I attempted. I wrote for the school newspaper and, for a while, published an underground newspaper. The teachers caught me running this off on the mimeograph machine and the paper was ended.
Which clubs/sports/activities do you run at Fenwick?
JP: I have moderated a variety of groups at Fenwick. I was the chess coach and the moderator of Touchstone [the student literary magazine] for several years. I directed the spring musical and was music director for Banua. I have been the moderator of the Photography Club for the last few years. Next year, I will guide the new Film Club.
What quality/characteristic marks a Fenwick student?
JP: Fenwick students generally have a seriousness of purpose that sets them apart. I teach Moral Theology. In that class, we study philosophers such as Kant, Bentham and John Stuart Mill. Most students will not encounter these thinkers until junior year of college. Fenwick students deal with this advanced content with thoughtfulness and diligence.
When did you decide to become a teacher, and why did you choose this field?
JP: I was deeply affected by several teachers in high school, probably none more than my speech teacher Mr. William Murphy. He was an intense, rigorous and sometimes difficult man who drove, excited, demanded and inspired his students. I suppose that my desire to become a teacher started with a hope to be like Murph. I have been very blessed in my life, and I think I have an obligation to give back. Teaching has been the best way I have found to return what I have been given.
In
a post-Father’s Day reflection, a Fenwick senior remembers his late father –
and thanks his big brother.
Fenwick soon-to-be senior Patrick Feldmeier wrote this essay for the Illinois Fatherhood Initiative. Patrick was honored, along with his older brother, Danny (Class of 2018), on June 6 at the Union League Club in Chicago.
By Patrick Feldmeier ’20
“One,
two, three: Hi Daddy, we love you and we miss you.”
(Mom always adds, ‘You’re in my heart, Sweetie.’)
Patrick (left) and Danny Feldmeier with their Dad, Bob, before his untimely death seven years ago.
These are the words my family says after grace every time we sit down for dinner. And simultaneously look at the open seat at the head of the table. Our hearts yearn for the man that God called up to Heaven seven years ago: Dad. It sends a shiver up my spine saying the word out loud, yet his presence still resonates in my family.
Every once in a while, his cologne can be smelled from his closet. His faded blue Ralph Lauren hat still hangs on the wall in my mom’s bedroom. His 1996 Jeep Grand Cherokee may have finally been towed, but his K-Swiss “dad shoes” rest untouched in our mudroom. To say that Bob Feldmeier is a role model to me is an absolute understatement. Words will never express how much I miss him; how much I need him in my life; or how much I love him. Through my actions, I attempt to be like him every day.
Their father’s faded cap and “dad shoes” still can be found in the Feldmeier’s Western Springs home.
As a partner at Schiff Hardin, long hours seemed to swallow his work-week. Yet, somehow, someway, he always had time to play catch or take us to watch a White Sox game. After little-league games, my dad would take my brother and me out to “men’s dinners,” where he would teach us lessons such as, “It’s ok to admit it is cold, but it is not manly to complain about the cold.” He was also an avid Notre Dame alumnus and taught us the essence of hard work. The impression he left on me is what is most important. Through watching the way he treated my mom, my siblings and me, and kept God as a focal point in his life, I truly learned what it meant to be a father. His etiquette, manners and gentlemanliness are values I strive to model because I want my children to look up at me the way I look up to my Dad.
My father’s ultimate goal was for his family to live a
life like his, which includes strong family bonds and an excellent, Catholic
education. He continued to set an example of how to be a father and how to find
strength through tragedy by protecting us until the very end.
Dad’s
Gift of Peace
Robert Feldmeier (1965-2012)
When he was first diagnosed with melanoma, he told my
mother, “Do not tell the kids about my disease. I want to give them the gift of
peace.” He truly was the perfect role model for a dad. It was more important to
him to keep us happy and successful in life than for us to crumble under fear.
His ultimate goal was for his family to live a life like his. Instead of
succumbing to anger after his death, I honored his memory by achieving goals and
setting the bar high for myself. I aspire to attend the University of Notre
Dame, like him, and to provide for my family the same way that he did. His
spirit lives on in my heart every day, and every day I thank God for one of the
greatest gifts He has ever given me: my Dad. Perhaps the greatest lesson I
learned from my Dad was that a man is not solely defined by his career and
accomplishments, but by his display of love to his family. Perhaps that was why
he was able to stay strong during his last days, because he truly had reached
his ultimate goal of success in life: to love and be loved by his family.
A
Fenwick alumna’s post-Mother’s Day reflection on how being a good neighbor
means loving your neighbor as yourself.
By Quiwana Reed Bell ’96
The author’s mother, Jacqueline Reed, founded the Westside Health Authority in 1990.
I was born the snowy winter of 1979 in Maywood, Illinois, to Jacqueline and Ronald Reed. My father, Ronnie, was born and raised a tough bi-racial kid from the west side of Chicago, near Pulaski and Roosevelt. My father never knew his mother.
My mother, Jackie, was born and raised in 1950 Natchez, Mississippi — a famous plantation town near the ports where slave-produced cotton and sugar cane was once exported. She is the oldest of seven children and grew up on family-owned land that also included homes for her grandparents (both paternal and maternal), aunts, uncles, cousins and neighbors, who were like family. Her father, Oliver, was a handyman and janitor with a stuttering problem and a heart of gold; and her mother, Josephine, was a stern yet dignified seamstress who also worked for more than 20 years at the pecan factory. Her family of nine lived in a two-bedroom/one-bathroom house. They went to church on Sundays. They socialized and cared for each other. They didn’t have much but never felt poor. They were a community. And they were happy.
Natchez, Mississippi, is about 850 miles south of Chicago.
My mother left Mississippi after high school, after
having a child out of wedlock with a man who was unwilling to marry. She came
to Chicago in the summer of 1969 to visit her Aunt Mavis, her dad’s older
sister. She lived on 13th and Pulaski in a brick two-flat building
on the west side of Chicago. Aunt Mavis had 10 children of her own with her entrepreneur
husband Ed, who ran an auto mechanic shop. Although they owned the entire
building, they lived in only one of the units which had two bedrooms, one
bathroom and a back sun porch. Ten kids, two parents and now visiting cousin
Jackie from Mississippi all in one unit. The block was lively. People sat on
their stoops in the evenings for entertainment. The kids would play loudly up
and down the streets. Neighbors knew
each other; supported each other; fought and gossiped about each other. It was
a family. A community. And they were happy.
During her summer-time visit, Jackie met Ronnie, who
was a friend of her cousin Roger. They quickly fell in love and married only
three months after meeting on February 14, 1970. Jackie never returned to Mississippi to live.
In Mississippi still was her infant son, Derek. He had stayed with her family while
she traveled to Chicago. This was not a big deal. The family was seen as a
unit. Jackie’s son Derek was not her property, but a member of a larger family
unit where everyone contributes, supports and belongs.
Sharing
brings happiness
This was a sentiment taught to my mother very early on in her childhood. She was born in segregated Mississippi where black people were still forced to live separately. This separation, however, was not all bad. Black communities had viable businesses — bakeries, dentist offices and insurance companies. It was a community where people looked out for one another. I would often hear stories of how if one person on the block killed a cow, then everyone on the block would have meat. Similarly, during my summers that I spent in Natchez, MS, I would often hear my grandmother say, “Go run this pot of greens that I picked and cooked over to Ms. ‘So and So’s house.” It was natural to share. It was natural to help others. It brought happiness. My mom never felt poor. She didn’t have a lot of fear and anxiety. Her family lived in peace. Even amid all the stuff going on in the world — they were shielded in “their community.”
A riverboat lights up the Mighty Mississippi near Vidalia, Louisiana, and Natchez, Mississippi.
Black folks have always had to be communal with each
other in America in order to survive:
We had to help each other as we were packed
like cargo at the bottom of slave ships.
We had to help each other as we sang songs
together in the long days in the hot cotton fields in Mississippi.
We had to help each other as we navigated
our way through lynching and rape and beatings.
We had to support each other in demonstrations
and boycotts fighting for equal rights.
We had to support each other through
redlining/housing and employment discrimination.
Today we still have to support each other through families being ripped apart as a result of mass incarceration, disinvestment of neighborhood schools and economic opportunity, and the resulting crime that plagues our communities.
Science Teacher Tom Draski retired earlier in June. The biology fanatic, tennis coach and longtime Catholic Leaguer has spent the last 21 years of his career in education at Fenwick.
What is your educational background?
TD: I have a bachelor of science degree in biological sciences [from Southern Illinois University] and a master of science degree in biology [from Chicago State University].
What did you do prior to becoming a teacher at Fenwick?
TD: I have always been a teacher and coach. I began my teaching/coaching career at St. Laurence H.S. where I taught biology and human anatomy/physiology. I started as the frosh/soph boys’ tennis coach and six years later became the varsity boys’ tennis coach. I came to Fenwick in 1998 where I have taught amazing students in biology and human anatomy/physiology. I have had the pleasure to coach both the boys and girls’ frosh/soph tennis teams. I was the Varsity Scholastic Bowl coach at Fenwick from 1999 to 2011. I have coordinated the Fenwick Quetico trip and the Fenwick Willis Tower stair walk fundraiser.
What are you currently reading for enjoyment?
TD: I tend to do more reading in the summer. The books I have read in the last few summers that I have enjoyed have been The Devil in the White City, The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks, The Shack, Mrs. Magrady’s book Lines and The Alchemist.
What interests do you pursue outside of the classroom?
TD: I love to do things outside. I enjoy gardening, camping, visiting state and national parks, and playing tennis. I also enjoy the creativity of cooking. I never use recipes.
To what teams and/or clubs did you belong as a student?
TD: As a student at De La Salle, I was involved in intramurals, the camera club, student government and, naturally, the Science Club.
Which clubs/sports/activities do you run at Fenwick?
TD: I have for 21 years, and still, coach the girls and boys’ frosh/soph tennis teams. Each year they provide excitement and great satisfaction. I have been able to bring the Quetico trip experience to Fenwick. Over the years I have taken hundreds of Friars to experience true nature.
What quality/characteristic marks a Fenwick student?
TD: I have been so impressed with Fenwick students. They strive for excellence in the class and in athletic competition. Students learn the great traditions of Fenwick. I have enjoyed my time with Fenwick students who are friendly, teachable and receptive to change.
When did you decide to become a teacher, and why did you choose this field?
TD: Interestingly, a freshman in one of my classes asked that question a few months ago. My reply was that I thought teaching would be fun. There was no follow up question to my answer. Later, I relayed this story to Mr. Groom. He asked me the right follow up question. “Has it been fun?” My answer was a big “YES.” I have always enjoyed the stimulation of teaching in the class, in the labs, and on the tennis courts. I still do. When students and athletes can see you have a love and passion for what you do they respond with the effort they need for success. If you love what you do, you will never have to work a day in your life. Teaching and coaching have been magic.
What personal strengths do you find especially helpful in your teaching?
TD: I love to get excited for every topic I teach and coach and show passion in my teaching. Every class, every year, has been a chance to teach and coach a new story, to an inquisitive audience. Some days have been diamonds, some days have been stones. I strive to be fair, and teach for success.
What is your favorite class to teach?
TD: Definitely biology! It is what our lives are about. I want my students to understand they are citizens and stewards of our planet. We can control our health and affect the health of others around us. I hope my students understand that we are not alone on our planet, but together we make up a beautiful tapestry of life.
What is the greatest success you have had in teaching?
TD: When my students have experienced success when I encouraged them to think. I ask many questions in class as I teach. The answers to those questions are not as important as having my students think about possible answers. My students should not be afraid of a wrong answer, as they should know they can learn with a right or wrong answer. I encourage my students to reach conclusions on their own, then they can experience success on their own. I love and appreciate the personal notes I have gotten from students and athletes over the years. Whenever I read them, they inspire me and remind me of my humanity.
Retired for more than 10 years now, Dr. B looks back with fondness at the three decades he spent at Fenwick.
Dr. Bostock and his wife in Sorrento, Italy.
DHow many years were you at Fenwick (and when)?
I was at Fenwick from 1979 until 2008: 29 years. When I arrived at the hallowed halls I thought I’d dropped into heaven (compared to the previous two years of my teaching life).
What was your role / what classes did you teach?
I was assigned to teach freshman English in ’79. Mr Duane Langenderfer (‘Derf’) and I shared the freshman English between us: four classes each in Room 1 with about 30 students in each class. The emphasis was on grammar, writing and English literature.
Much to my disappointment, the Head of the English Department assigned me to teach two sophomore and two senior classes the following year. I was disappointed because I’d had such a wonderful year I figured my ‘heaven’ would continue with freshmen. (Ah, man proposes and God disposes!)
From then until my retirement I was ‘stuck’ with two soph and two senior classes; those two latter eventually becoming two AP sections of English. However, for several years after Fr. Landmesser’s retirement I was Head of Department, so I can blame only myself for my schedule.
Were you involved with any extra-curricular activities? (If so, which ones?)
Meanwhile I was engaged in a variety of extra-curricular activities, the most bizarre of which was when I was asked to run the computer club for a year (in those days computers were few and far between; there were no computer labs in the school, and the so-called ‘club’ had one old Apple C and an old mainframe kind of machine that no one knew how to use. As for the moderator of the club, he/I was totally computer illiterate anyhow.) I think that was in 1985-86.
In ’79-’80 I was the moderator of the Debate Team, another area where I was ‘somewhat’ competent.
Fortunately, Dan O’Brien, Master i/c Athletics and Sports, invited me to start a soccer program in ’81. And my extra-curricular career took off! Much to the chagrin of the head of cross-country, [as] almost all his runners opted to play soccer. So Fenwick had a varsity soccer team; we didn’t belong to the Catholic League, so all our games were ‘friendlies.’ We tied one game and lost all the others. But we had fun. In year two a volleyball coach was assigned to help me with the program, and we joined the League. I think we won one game and tied another, so we made huge progress.
Then Fr. Bernacki allowed me to give up extra-curriculars so I could write a dissertation for my PhD (Fordham University had informed me that I had to write a diss or ‘get lost.’ So I wrote.) Thereafter (’82 thru 2008) I became a jack of all trades: back to frosh soccer for a while, several years moderating the year book, several the student newspaper, and finally girls’ frosh soccer. To say I had a blast would be an understatement. The many girls and boys with whom I was lucky enough to come in contact graced my life in ways that they will never know. But I thank God and Fenwick for the privilege of having been with them and known them.
For a couple of years in the early ’80’s I organized the Easter UK literary jaunt, staying in London, Bath and Banbury. A good time was had by all. And I hope we appreciated the historical and literary sights and sites.
How do you describe the Fenwick Community to other people?
Talking with others, including former students, Friars I meet who were at Fenwick years before I arrived, I always mention the ‘aura’ of the place. It’s the feeling that the Dominican Order, the teachers, the students and the parents have created over the years. It’s not simply one element. It’s an awareness that all at Fenwick have: we may not be able to pin it down in words, but it’s a kind of excellence of spirit — intellectual, athletic and spiritual.
What do you miss (most) about Fenwick?
I miss learning; MY learning. I learned much from my students. A small example: one day we were reading Hamlet in class, the students taking the actors’ parts. A female student reading the part of Gertrude emphasized a line of her speech in a way that shed a completely new light on Gertrude’s character. It was an insight I had not witnessed in any of the famous dramatizations I’d ever seen (not even in the play directed by Derek Jacobi and starring Kenneth Branagh in the title role that I saw in Manchester; Jacobi was in the audience four seats to my left). I forget the name of the student, I forget the line, but I have never forgotten the experience.
I also miss reading English literature. In 10 years of retirement I find that I’ve taken to reading a lot of science and mathematics: The Calculus Diaries, Fermat’s Last Theorem, Six Easy Pieces, In Search of Schrodinger’s Cat, The Fly in the Cathedral, The Emperor’s New Mind, etc. I’ve just gone where my interests have taken me, and I suppose after 49 years of reading ‘literature’ my mind needed a break from poetry and fiction. But I do miss Keats, and Chaucer, and Bill.
Funniest Fenwick moment?
I was coaching the frosh girls’ soccer team at the Priory. The field was sodden, it was raining and I attempted to show the players how to chip the ball. Only wearing smooth sneakers, I took a quick run at the ball and landed flat on my back in the mud. Girls rushed forward to ask ‘Are you okay, coach?’ Of course I was okay. But later going over the incident in my mind, I thought, ‘If that had been the frosh boys’ soccer team, they’d have stood there giggling at me.’
Fondest Fenwick moment?
At the final Commencement in 2008 when Dr. Quaid announced my retirement, the whole senior graduating class rose to their feet applauding. Sitting among them, I was shocked, amazed, surprised, flabbergasted, not to say embarrassed. But it was a fine feeling to be honored thus.
Do you have any words of wisdom for current students?
Carpe diem, quam minimum credula postero = “Be the best you can be;” all the rest is fruh.
Any wise words or advice for the present faculty, staff or administration?
Far be it from me to preach, but … teaching is the process of opening minds, not (force) feeding them.
And Fenwick is a Christian institution, so follow Christ’s rules: Love God and love your neighbo(u)r. Period. Shibboleths from the Old Testament should have no part in a Christian community.
What are you doing now? How do you spend your time?
Fenwick instructors have honed developing minds of highly intelligent people over thecourse of 90 school years. From physics and politics to English and French, some of those students
took their passions for learning to the next level by pursuing research,
education and scholarship at some of the world’s most prestigious private and
public universities.
Holder Hall at Princeton University, Princeton, NJ, where two Fenwick alumni teach.
At
Princeton, the Ivy League research school with New Jersey roots dating back to
1746, two Fenwick alumni-turned-professors can be found teaching on campus: Thomas Duffy ’78 (geophysics) and John Mulvey ’64 (operations
research/financial engineering). In Boston, Professor William Mayer ’74 has been a political-science guru at Northeastern
University (established in 1898) for the past 28 years. After Fenwick, Mayer
attended Harvard University in Cambridge, Massachusetts, from which he also earned
a Ph.D. (in 1989). “I don’t like to move,” he dead-pans, “plus my wife loves
the New England area.”
On the West Coast, one of Prof. Duffy’s
classmates, Larry Cahill ’78, is a
neuroscientist and professor in the Department of Neurobiology and Behavior at
the University of California at Irvine. And in the Midwest, Robert Lysak ’72 is professor of
physics and astronomy at the University of Minnesota in Minneapolis – Saint
Paul.
Additionally, two members of the Class of 1961 were college professors and are now retired: Terrence Doody (English Literature) at Rice University in Houston and Thomas Kavanagh (French), most recently at Yale University in Connecticut. Another Professor Emeritus isJohn Wendt ’69, who taught Ethics and Business Law at the University of St. Thomas (Minnesota) for 30 years. (Read more about them.) Spread out geographically across the United States, Fenwick is the common denominator for these seven Ph.D.’s and college professors. Read on for a glimpse at their impressive works.
A
Computing Love Affair
John Mulvey in 1964.
John Mulvey is a professor within
Princeton’s Operations Research and Financial Engineering (ORFE) Department,
which he founded. He also is a founding member of the interdisciplinary Bendheim
Center for Finance as well as the Statistics and Machine Learning Center at the
university. Mulvey is captivated by the ongoing revolution in information and machine-learning.
The ORFE Department focuses on the foundations of data science, probabilistic
modeling and optimal decision-making under uncertainty. “Our world is a very
uncertain place,” he stresses.
The work Mulvey does has applications
throughout the service sector, including in communications, economics/finance,
energy/the environment, health-care management, physical and biological
sciences, and transportation. In the past, he has worked with
aerospace/defense-technology firm TRW (now part of Northrop Grumman) to help
solve military problems, including developing strategic models for the Joint
Chiefs of Staff (U.S. Department of Defense).
“Today we work with major firms, including
some of the largest investors in the world, which are interested in integrating
their risk,” Mulvey explains. For example, “hedge funds and private-equity
firms need to manage their portfolios over time to protect themselves. When the
crash occurred in 2008, people thought
they were diversified. The banking and finance world refers to systemic risk as
contagion,” which is the spread of market changes or disturbances from one
regional market to others.
Mulvey also analyzes data for supply-chain
management, which he calls a “transformative industry. Production and distribution
models were separate before,” he points out, “but we’ve brought it all together
now. Amazon has built its whole system based on this commerce model.”
Prof. Mulvey at Princeton.
Machines running algorithms and computer
optimization became passions for him at a relatively young age. At Fenwick, Mr.
Edward Ludwig helped mathematics to make sense for young John. “He was an
amazing math teacher,” Mulvey says of Ludwig. “His class was fantastic. I didn’t
necessarily want to be an engineer but felt I could go into a technical area.
“In the 1960s we were at the cusp of computing, and the University of Illinois had one of the world’s most powerful supercomputers at the time,” recalls Mulvey, who grew up on the West Side of Chicago and attended the old St. Catherine of Siena Parish. “That’s why I wanted to go there, and I fell in love with computing.”
The ILLIAC IV supercomputer is what drew Mulvey to the University of Illinois in the mid-1960s.
He next ventured west to study business
administration at the University of Southern California (USC) and the
University of California (Cal), then earned a second master’s degree in management
science in ’72 from the University of California at Los Angeles (UCLA). Three years
later Mulvey completed his Ph.D. at UCLA’s Graduate School of Management. His dissertation
topic, “Special Structures in Large Scale Network Models and Associated Applications,”
won the 1976 American Institute of Decision Sciences Doctoral Dissertation Competition.
Mulvey taught for three years at the Harvard
Business School and, 41 years ago, came to Princeton “to have an impact at a
smaller school,” he says. (Princeton has some 5,200 under-grads.) “I came here
to grow the basic, general engineering program for undergraduates.” The 72-year-old
thoroughly enjoys his work: “If you had a job like mine, you wouldn’t want to
retire.”
Like
Fenwick, the storied downtown restaurant has stood the test of time for nine
decades — and for three family generations.
By Patrick Feldmeier ’20
Alfredo Capitanini opened the Italian Village on Monroe Street in the Loop in 1927.
The impact that the late Franklin Delano Capitanini, Class of 1950, left on Chicago cannot be justly put into words. Instead, his impact resonates in his family, friends, Fenwick High School and the famed Italian Village Restaurant(s). Born in America in 1932 and named after U.S. President Franklin D. Roosevelt, Frank lived a life founded on strong family ties and treated everyone who dined at the Italian Village as if they were old friends. Today, the Italian Village serves as a reminder of the kindness that Mr. Capitanini spread for 85 years.
Located at 71 W. Monroe Street in Chicago’s “Loop” for
almost 92 years, the Italian Village was opened by Frank’s father, Alfredo, in
September 1927 – two years before Fenwick opened its doors. Frank and his kid brother,
Ray (Fenwick ’53), grew up knowing
that the restaurant someday would be theirs to manage. Frank’s early years
working there included responsibilities such as food preparation for the chefs
and waiting tables, according to his close friend, Fenwick classmate and
President EmeritusFather Richard LaPata, O.P. ’50. Learning
how to talk to adults and serve their requests at an early age benefitted Frank
greatly in the years to come. Frank’s son and fellow Friar alumnus, Al Capitanini ’81, says that the “best
internship is waiting tables because you learn about customer service and how
to handle people.”
Franklin’s 1950 yearbook portrait from Fenwick.
Frank continued his work at the Italian Village when he attended Fenwick, where he participated in football, basketball and track. Unfortunately, his athletic career was cut short due to an injury. Al remembers hearing how his father had to divert all of his attention to education after the injury because Frank’s parents highly valued education. Frank’s father, an Italian immigrant, wanted him to have a strong caring for education due to his own limited schooling opportunities in Italy. When Frank was not hitting the books, he left his friends drooling in the school cafeteria because of the sandwiches he brought daily from the Italian Village. The aroma of Italian lunch meats and cheeses made their palates jealous.
Frank and Fr. LaPata both went on to Notre Dame, but their paths did not cross much at the university: one entered the seminary while the other (Frank) was in the ROTC program. It was not until Father LaPata became president of Fenwick in 1998 that he developed a friendship with Frank, eating at the Capitanini home around once a month.
A
Culinary Institution
Once out of college, Frank immediately went back to
work at the Italian Village. In the 1950s and ’60s, opera drew huge crowds in
big cities like Chicago, so the Capitaninis became well acquainted with some
the world’s most famous opera singers. When asked about the relationship
between it and the Italian Village, the Lyric Opera Company kindly stated,
“American singers and Italian singers of the 1950s and 1960s dined at the
Italian Village.” However, opera stars were not the only celebrities to
frequent the restaurant. The walls of the Italian Village are lined with
autographed pictures from well-known celebrities and sports figures, including
Frank Sinatra, Lou Holtz, Mike Ditka, Florence Henderson, Ryne Sandberg and Jon
Bon Jovi.
The Village, the upstairs restaurant, features dimmed lights that hang low and walls painted to mimic a scenic view in Italy.
The Italian Village has maintained its reputation of
great service and hospitality because of Frank’s leadership and family values:
“Hundreds [of restaurants] closed, but the Italian Village stayed strong due to
its hospitality, charm and kindness,” praises Father LaPata. With an
old-fashioned aura and breathtaking architecture, the Village has stood the
test of time by adhering to its roots; something that many restaurants in
Chicago have failed to do. Upon entering one of the three restaurants in the
Italian Village, patrons are engulfed in a one-of-a-kind atmosphere. The
Village, the upstairs restaurant, features dimmed lights that hang low and
walls painted to mimic a scenic view in Italy. No windows are present, and it
truly feels as if you are dining in Italy.
Frank greeted everyone with that smile!
Later in Frank’s life, he began to teach his kids how
to manage the family restaurant. Fortunately, his four children, Lisa, Gina, Frank II ’78 and Al, had hands-on
involvement for years. Al vividly remembers growing up at the Village: waiting
tables and making food just like Frank did years ago. “We ate more than we
actually learned,” he admits. Gina still works in the family business.
When the kids were a bit older, Frank would take them
to the restaurant for breakfast, then walk with them to catch a Bears game. Al
describes his father as an “old-school type, hardworking, honest to a fault,
always there, and would help anyone in an emergency.” Frank served as a great
mentor to Al and his other children, and they work hard to emulate their dad.
His philanthropic contributions to Fenwick are greatly appreciated as well.
Visiting
the Village
I had the pleasure of having lunch with Al this spring
at the Italian Village. We talked about the history of the restaurants and
Frank’s long-lasting impact on them. When the topic of Frank’s years in high
school arose, Al was quick to mention that Fenwick was essential in molding
Frank into the man he wanted to be. Frank may have had a career already set
through the Italian Village, however, his success and achievements in life
required the lessons learned from Fenwick to come to fruition. Through the
stories Al shared about Frank’s life at Fenwick as well as his own, I was truly
able to understand that Fenwick is great at preparing its students for life
ahead.
Frank passed away one year ago at age 85. His funeral was held at his grade school, St. Vincent Ferrer in River Forest, and Father LaPata touchingly led the Mass. His presence will be missed, yet his spirit will live on in the lives of those around him. Frank Capitanini will forever be a Friar, and his impact on his family, the Italian Village and Fenwick High School will last for generations to come.
Coming soon: The Frank Capitanini Classroom at Fenwick
World Languages students in Fenwick’s “Italian Room” (Room 14), which is being renamed in honor of late alumnus/restaurateur Frank Capitanini ’50.
In addition to their generous classroom-naming donation, the Capitanini family also has created an endowed scholarship in their father’s memory. The fund will provide tuition assistance for a Fenwick student in need.
The students of Italian Teacher Ms. Shawna Hennessey (left) recently sent a “Grazie mille” video to the Capitanini family.
Patrick Feldmeier is a finishing up his junior year at Fenwick High School, where he is an Honor Roll/National Honor Society student and president of the Class of 2020. Pat also plays on the Friars’ football and rugby teams. He lives in Western Springs, IL (St. John of the Cross) and is hoping for acceptance this coming fall into the University of Notre Dame, where his Evans Scholar brother, Danny ’18, will be a sophomore.
