After graduating from Tech in 1963 in architecture, I started college at the University of Oklahoma as an architecture major, and after one semester, transferred to Pratt Institute as a construction technology major. After hearing every instructor in both schools say, “Get out of the field, there are no jobs,” I changed my major to physical education and went to LIU, competing on the gymnastics team.
I did my student teaching at Tech under John Jackson and Dick Korn, and taught health and physical education at Tech for the 1968-69 school year, also coaching the gymnastics team. We won the county championship. As the Tech position was a one-year leave replacement, I moved on to Bryant High School in Queens, where I coached gymnastics, wrestling, and J.V. football for four years, earning a master’s degree in safety education from Brooklyn College. As a successful high school gymnastics coach, I became the head men’s coach at the University of Texas for one year, then moved into education administration at Freeport High School (N.Y.) after UT for two years.
The majority of my career was spent in the Half Hollow Hills Central School District on Long Island, where I spent 25 years as district director of health and physical education. I also served as district athletic director and summer junior-senior high school principal for a few years.
Outside of working for “Hills,” I was a nationally certified gymnastics official, judging two national championships. I have published 20 articles in gymnastics and professional journals and made 15 presentations to professional groups. I was also an adjunct professor of educational administration in the graduate school of the College of New Rochelle.
During those years, I earned a Doctor of Education degree in gifted education from Columbia University.
In June, my wife, Jill, and I celebrated 55 years of marriage. We have two sons — one is a hospital administrator, and the other is an attorney. They both have two sons.
As a retiree living in Florida, I run into many fellow Tech grads. In our talks we all agree that our education at Tech was better than the education provided by any of the colleges that we later attended.