Goodbye, Ms. Smith

1. What is it like working at Masterman? What was your favorite part?

“Well… I love math, I spent most of my career here teaching… I think that for me, it’s more about a couple things. I want the kids to feel challenged, I want them to enjoy it, to realize that you can work really hard but also have some fun. That’s what I always try to bring to my classroom. The foundation of mathematics… you want them to develop some linear thinking skills, persevere, take in information, and try to put things together and apply that to something maybe more abstract or difficult… I love that aspect of it. And I don’t think you need a lot of bells and whistles.”

“This is different this year because we’re on Zoom and it’s so artificial, but I’ve been here for fifteen years and I’ve been in classrooms with kids that bring a lot of intellectual energy and firepower to the room and we all feed off of that kind of synergy. It invigorates me and hopefully they feel invigorated themselves sometimes… So for me it’s not just about teaching, it's more about… sitting back and enjoying what kids can do they take a challenge on. When they’re motivated to figure things out, I get to watch it.”

“Sorry that my last classes have had me on Zoom, I don’t think it is ideal for me; I don’t think they got the best of me this year. And for that, it’s a little bittersweet to be leaving as a Zoom instructor, but that’s just the way it is.”

2. What is your favorite math topic to teach? Why?

“I don’t know… I love teaching Calculus. I love the fact that it's this remarkable technology and that it’s so pervasive and I think even kids that are like ‘eh’ about math, when they tap into this widespread power of calculus and how accessible it is… they can see an applicability… I know my students don’t like precalc but I do… I like trigonometry, I like teaching about series, geometric series, you converge on a sum, I think that’s remarkable…”

3. Anything about the clubs you oversee that you enjoyed?

“I love my clubs of course, I’m partial to them. I enjoy doing the math club. I started [it] when I got here and I’m super hopeful that someones going to pick it up and keep it going. Robotics was another thing… I was sad that we had to fold, but we did for numerous reasons… I [also] just got involved overseeing the Masterman Queens. I love that Marisa, a wonderful student in 8th grade, started this to bring chess to female students and how well that turned out… So it’s been fun not just teaching, but getting involved in different organizations and watching what kids can do when they enjoy doing something…”

“We had a great memory this year [in math club about] the Mega Moody challenge, which is this modeling challenge… Every year, we usually have 2 teams, some years we had one, and Masterman always did great. I mean this is really a difficult competition, it’s national, it’s hard, but the kids love it—they always come back to do it. Every year we’ve won an honorable mention distinction, $1000, which is remarkable, because there’s anywhere from 500 to 2000 teams. So getting that means you’re among the top 30-50 teams. We were always there, and the kids were like, how do we break into that top 6? This year… the modeling team did it: they finished top 6 and they had a remarkable run, and all the money they get goes to college so it’s a great scholarship opportunity. I was really thrilled to see their hard work…”

4. What is something that you are most looking forward to after retirement? Are you traveling anywhere?

“Yeah, I’m looking forward to resuming those delayed travel plans that I had. I was planning on going to New Zealand… Didn’t get that chance, so I’m hoping to put that back on the radar and then now that I’ll be retired I can actually go when it’s their summer… I’m a hiker, so I'm hoping to do some more hiking… yeah, I’ve got a ton of books on my shelf that I’d love to read! And then I have some plans for volunteer work that involve education and another organization… so I’m looking forward to putting in some more time there.”

5. Can you describe your most memorable moment at Masterman?

“I don’t have a most memorable moment… but I can say that what’s memorable for me are all the students that I’ve gotten to know through classes or clubs, [and] many of my colleagues have been terrific…”

“... I’ve had so many students who have had a big impact on me. And I don’t mean just math, [though] some kids have taught me remarkable math. Like… today I got a lesson from one of my sophomores in a combination problem we were looking at. Those things are always memorable for me.”

“I’ve had many memorable students I had the greatest admiration for, who worked so hard and persevered and they didn’t even like math, and yet, they trusted me to work with them… It’s easy to do well when something’s easy… but it's really a mark of character when you’re all in on something you don’t particularly like, or you don’t find easy.”

Well, Ms. Smith, as it turns out, many students and teachers admired you, too, for your teaching. Though some students have felt stressed due to your notoriously rigid standards and high expectations, while others embraced the challenge, everyone I spoke with—students and teachers alike—agreed that your willingness to give students the help they need, no matter how much or how little, no matter how early or how late, was exceptional:

“I sat in on her class a couple of times, but I know that her availability, her willingness to work with kids outside the classroom is motivating for other teachers. It gives them incentive to do the same. So a lot of the time I feel like I have a lot of work to do, I see her staying and working with Robotics or her reading with kids in the morning and that definitely motivates me…” - Mr. Neale, Masterman High School English Teacher

“It definitely says a lot about her that she’s always open to talk after school, like even if she’s in a rush or something she’ll always find a way to talk to you, even if she doesn’t talk to you in that exact moment.” - Kera McCarthy (11-3)

“Oh—rigor I think is one of her biggest accomplishments. She’s very no nonsense. She really, really cares about kids a whole lot, but doesn’t really take excuses. If you don’t do well, work harder, come for help… I’ve heard her say so many times, I’m here in the morning for tutoring, I’m here after school for tutoring, I’m available at lunch for tutoring. You don’t get it, come and see me, but don’t just say you don’t understand without coming to see me and getting extra help.” - Mr. Gilligan, Masterman History Teacher

“Even though her class was really stressful, overall, I felt like she actually cared about us. It was the nice feeling of a teacher who was actually there and if we wanted to talk to her, she was willing to.” - Megan Chan (11-1)

Students and teachers also appreciated your faith in the capabilities of your students and how it inspired or helped them in future classes:

“She is one of the teachers who continue to insist that since we teach gifted kids, we should challenge them. It’s not helpful to just roll over and give everyone A’s and let school be easy. If kids are smart, it’s imperative that we stretch them. And she really leads that, so it’s gonna be harder to have people be advocating for diligent classwork without her around.” - Mr. Neale, Masterman High School English Teacher

“I would say her class was a little stressful and there was a lot to do for homework almost every night, but if you did that, you were well prepared for later classes or really knowledgeable on the topics because she made you practice, and that was necessary…” - Megan Chan (11-1)

When asked their favorite moment from your classes, students recalled:

“Just talking to Ms. Smith as a person—she’s just a lot of fun to talk to… I learned a lot about her just talking to her after class…” - Grace Chang (11-1)

“Ms. Smith took her job really seriously and we never wasted time in class—but a few times a year… Ms. Smith would host these amazing (and infamous) class potluck parties. She would make these legendary chocolate chip cookies, and everyone in the class would bring the other stuff… Students from other grades would hear about the party and come get a plate—especially students who’d had her before and knew how good they were! I remember her telling us to bring a stick to school the next morning before school, and the next day she’d have us roast marshmallows and make s’mores. Those times were SO fun and brought our class together.” - Lucy Duckworth (12-1)

“Ms. Smith’s parties were definitely a highlight. Both in math club and in class she would always go all out, like the Thanksgiving party in Precalc or buying tons of Chinese food to celebrate the end of the year in math club. She was always very generous with her celebrations and I always looked forward to the events she planned.” - Mikaela Finlay (11-1)

“I think my favorite memory is her giving us those little candles to make s’more in class. Even though she’s strict, she still let us have a bit of fun, so that’s nice” - Hayden Gold (11-1)

“The precalc class this year missed out on her s’mores!... Another thing that I really liked [was that] before tests, she would give us a problem and we’d have to work as a group. I loved those, they were amazing and so fun… I liked that she wants us to work in groups.” - Annetta Yuwono (11-4)

“The Kenneth Wang incident. When she sent his *** to the hallways” - Max Chen (11-1)

“My favorite moment in her class would probably be the day we grouped up into teams and answered math questions and Shaq-related questions. It totally embodied the spirit of her class- which was to work hard and play hard.” - Ethan Soloway (12-4)

What is something that you’ll always remember from Ms. Smith’s class or about Ms. Smith?

“Shaq, the 6-foot Shaq poster that you see every single day when you walk into her classroom.” - Jocelyn Chiu (11-1)

“Laborious!” - Kera McCarthy (11-3)

“Her outfit … Can we keep that for Spirit Week? … I [also] love her dog, because we’d see Louie pop in during math club while we were preparing for the competition.” - Annetta Yuwono (11-4)

“I think what I'll remember most is Ms. Smith's dedication to teaching. Whether you loved her or hated her, you must admit that she put her all into teaching, whether that meant providing students with external resources, putting students in line who were too boastful (like myself, sometimes), and having some time off/time to bond when we needed it.” - Ethan Soloway (12-4)

“The thing that struck me about Ms. Smith’s class is that everything we learned last year, we used this year. We spent a long time on trig identities and limits and other topics that didn’t seem related, but they all turned out to be helpful for calculus and this year has really made me appreciate her emphasis on mastering every part of precalc.” - Mikaela Finlay (11-1)

“She talked about retirement and how to plan ahead for that, even [though we were only] high schoolers… but when she was giving the lesson, I feel like it was actually so informative, I learned so much more in that one lesson than—years of my life.” - Megan Chan (11-1)

“She and I have always gotten along because I was a math person going through school. I really thought I’d end up majoring in math and I decided to teach English instead, but she’s also a voracious reader. … We could have conversations about both of our subject areas, so it’s an exchange of ideas when we start talking… She just always talked about what she reads, and most of the books that I’ve taught, she’s read, so I’ve had conversations with her about the tough stuff that I teach, like Crime and Punishment and Beloved and 100 Years of Solitude. And she, like Ms. Smith always does, she’s got strong opinions about all of that, so it’s kinda fun to talk to her about those books.” - Mr. Neale, Masterman High School English Teacher

“Maybe this sounds cliché, but far more than any other class, Ms. Smith taught me that we could succeed if we put in the work. I never considered myself a “math person,” but Ms. Smith's attitude was that every student was capable of doing well in her class. She believed that so much that it sort of rubbed off on me, too—we all worked really hard in her classes and I truly learned that I could succeed if I put in the work, even if I’m not a “math person”—whatever that means. I’ve carried that with me through all my challenging classes since then and I’m really grateful she gave me that confidence.” - Lucy Duckworth (12-1)

“For something I’ll always remember it’s probably her saying that you’re not always gonna get an A, and that’s ok. Really cheesy writing it out, but she emphasized that a couple times, and I [know] it’s important that just because you didn’t get a perfect score, doesn’t mean you didn’t work hard” - Hayden Gold (11-1)

“Sophomore year for the international potluck… I think I was on the first floor and I was with Ms. Smith. I do remember she gave me $2.50 for the bus ride home because it was after the transpasses stopped working… she originally tried to get the school to find a transpass or token for me, and since she couldn’t find one, she just gave me her own money. I didn’t use the money so the next day I went to give her money back. She told me to keep it and pay it forward. About two months later, I was able to give that $2.50 to someone else who didn’t have money for the bus.” - Grace Chang (11-1)

“Something I’ll always remember other than the Kenneth incident is when she let us make s’mores. That jawn was tuff” - Max Chen (11-1)

Any comments about Ms. Smith’s Shaq poster?

“Well, Allen Iverson’s better.” - Mr. Gilligan, Masterman History Teacher

Is there anything else that you would like to say to Ms. Smith?

“I hate to see her go, I really do. I would’ve loved to finish my career in another 10, 15 years with Ms. Smith. She’s one of my favorite people here at Masterman, she has been for quite some time. She’s one of the people I go and talk to when I’m working through things and I’m really gonna miss her… I have utmost respect for Ms. Smith… I don’t know if students feel this way [but] I like to think that I am not too dissimilar from her in my approach to teaching. I like the idea that if you’re going to succeed in life you’ve got to work really hard and things don’t always come easy… I’ve always liked the way that Ms. Smith approached that and I think I share that… Her absence is going to be noticeable, I think.” - Mr. Gilligan, Masterman History Teacher

“I think not enough people appreciate her but there are people who do, like us, and obviously, enjoy your retirement and we’re all gonna miss you, because she’s one of those teachers that make Masterman what it is, so without her, we’re gonna be really, really different. I hope she knows that she’s made this ginormous impact on this school, and she’ll be unforgettable.” - Annetta Yuwono (11-4)

“Her shoes will be hard to fill.” - Bonnie Schwartz (11-4)

“... Thanks for continuing to put effort into teaching, no matter the class or setting. The work she puts into teaching pays off.” - Hayden Gold (11-)

“I would add that she had a reputation for being super tough but she dedicated so much time to her class with tutoring in the morning and things like that. Even though she had a hard class, she was super knowledgeable and passionate about the math she taught. I think that was one of the things that made her such a strong teacher, even if she was known for having a really difficult class.” - Mikaela Finlay (11-1)

“I think one of my biggest regrets is not getting to know her better… I really, really liked her character, and her emphasis on things in general aren’t spectator sports. She herself embodied that, she had a really strong face and character in this school and without her, it’s gonna be so different.” - Jocelyn Chiu (11-1)

“I would say how much she appreciated here at Masterman, because a lot of students don’t see her as the good teacher because they don’t do as well in her class, but as she says, if you get a B, you’re doing well in her class, and I feel like she should be appreciated more and all of us do appreciate her.” - Megan Chan (11-1)

“She’s one of those teachers who’s at the core of what the school is, and when she leaves, Masterman is just not going to be the same. Thank you for teaching me resilience, Ms. Smith; it's been laborious✌.” - Kera McCarthy (11-3)

“I’m going to miss Ms Smith! Taking her class taught me a lot about myself and I’m grateful for that. She‘ll always be one of those teachers we’ll remember long after high school and I don’t think Masterman will be the same place without her.” - Lucy Duckworth (12-1)

“I would say to Miss Smith ‘gone but not forgotten’” - Max Chen (11-1)

“Masterman will miss you dearly and the Math department won't be the same without you. Especially thank you from me for being an amazing math club coach, teacher, and even friend.” - Ethan Soloway (12-4)

“Ms. Smith’s leaving Masterman is really the end of an era: in a lot of ways she’s really from a different generation of teachers. She loves her students dearly—but is also maybe the last left at Masterman who grades on a normal distribution. She’s always willing to share her opinion on something, whether it’s our school’s curriculum or national politics or how much work you need to show on a math test (as much as possible!); she has long been a voice of reason at [this] school... I’ve been really lucky to have had her for both 10th grade precalc and as my math club sponsor in 11th and 12th. In 13 years of public school, Ms. Smith is the only math teacher I’ve ever had to finish the whole textbook. The math department (and the entire Masterman community) will miss Ms. Smith dearly, and I wish her absolutely the best in her retirement.” - Owen Moss (12-3)

And as for the students of Ms. Smith, here is the message that she leaves with you:

“I know I’m known to be very tough, I’m aware of my reputation. But I hope what goes along with ‘tough’ is fair; equitable. I don’t mind being called tough… I think what I’d like to say to my students is this: that the greatest compliment that I can pay to my students, is to expose them to high standards and rigor. I think that’s the best way that I can show them that I believe in their capabilities, that I know they can meet them, and if I care at all about them developing self esteem, the ability to withstand disappointment and frustration… then I did my job. I think, really, the biggest compliment I can pay a student is to offer them an opportunity to have to work hard to reach high standards, that all the kids I teach have plans to enter careers that require that they be highly skilled. It is my job to make sure they can do that and I think I can only do my job if I push them.”

“I hope they felt that way, if they didn’t then I’m sorry, that’s what I intended. So if students are like, ‘no, I didn’t feel like I benefited from the rigor or how hard you pushed us,’ then I’m sorry. And I hoped that they had fun, notwithstanding this year on Zoom. I think that’s what mattered to me—that, in my classes, we had a lot of laughs. And I remember Noah Bradley once said, ‘Ms. Smith, you know, we work really hard, but we’re having a lot of laughs,’ and I thought, yeah, exactly… we should be able to laugh and still work hard… Humor is essential and you should laugh out loud and find humor in a lot of stuff and not be afraid to enjoy that… Don’t be so serious that you forget to laugh, that’s not a good thing.”

“Students can visit me and find me always at katesam327@aol.com- still aol strong! I also have gmail address katesam327@gmail.com just in case.”

Thank you Ms. Smith, for all that you have contributed to the Masterman community—on behalf of students and staff, we will miss you!