By Siddarth Tumu ’18, Staff Writer 

As summers come and go, students visit all types of fun, interesting, and exotic places. Students’ travels are the topic of conversation during the first weeks of school. But nobody asks the question of what teachers do over their summers. Contrary to popular belief, teachers do not live in the classroom. They visit interesting places and have a good time just like students. Here are a few small glimpses into the untold tale of teachers’ incredible summers.

Mr. Bitler, one of Newark Academy’s physics teachers, spent time this summer with his children and hunting in the Adirondacks with his friends. Mr. Bitler’s family went to their home in Lake Champlain to relax and do some sailing. He was also able to spend time with his oldest son, playing a lot of tennis. Mr. Bitler was kept busy touring colleges with his daughter, who is a senior at Villa Walsh Academy. This summer was a special one for Mr. Bitler, as he became a grandfather. When asked about how he might use his summer experiences to enhance his role as a Newark Academy teacher and advisor, Mr. Bitler said that he noticed many examples of physics in play when he went hunting and when he played tennis, which he plans to use in the classroom. In addition, being an advisor for the senior class, Mr. Bitler feels more prepared to help his advisees with the college process due to the experience he had with his daughter.

Profe Romay, a language teacher, recently published his second novel, so he held a couple of readings over the summer to promote his book. Additionally, he attended family camp. During his week there, he swam 1.3 miles every day, in open water in the mid-to-low-sixties. “The cold never bothered me anyway,” Profe emphasized. Profe was introduced to this camp back in 2001 when he was visiting with friends. At first, he thought that people were insane to be swimming in the cold temperature. About six years ago, Profe started swimming long distance and now he views it as a personal challenge to be able to

swim for 30-40 minutes in the cold water. “It’s a challenge, not to the body but to the will,” he explained. Profe is also eager to use his experiences in the classroom setting. His book involves a passion for language, largely fueled by his own teaching beliefs, which he hopes to incorporate in his classes. Furthermore, Profe hopes to impart the resilience he learned at family camp to his students.

Upper School Principal, Dr. DiBianca, had a productive summer as well. Apart from spending most of his time at Newark Academy, drawing out everybody’s schedules, Dr. D attended the Aspen Ideas Festival. He really enjoyed the conference while secretly looking for candidates to speak as part of the Global Speaker Series. Dr. D also embarked on a research project to find out if his wife’s ancestor was a Native Indian. To this end, he went to Canada and to an Indian reservation. Finally, Dr. D went on a family vacation to Cape May. Dr. D did a lot of reading this summer—about 20 books—to help with his IB Philosophy class.

It’s not every summer that one becomes a grandfather, publishes a book, or embarks on a research project about family heritage. The experiences that Newark Academy teachers have during their summers truly change them not only as people but also as teachers and advisors. Teachers do not spend their summers in the classroom but instead explore and have a good time, just as we students do.