MOVING UP, IN, AND ON
CATHEDRAL SCHOOL FACULTY AND STAFF ON THE MOVE
R&G: Whom do you consider your CSB best friend? RK: Now that’s a hard question to answer. There have been many treasured colleagues and parents at CSB over the years, but I guess I must put my friend and neighbor Betty Peskin at the top of the list. We did a lot of teaming up for both teaching and mischief during our time at CSB, and since we are Noe Valley neighbors, we continue to enjoy each other’s company regularly. She lives up the hill from me, but I point out to her that I was there first. As I think of other close CSB friends, I realize you would have to put out an additional Red&Gold issue just to list them, so I’d better not start. R&G: What was your favorite lunch menu item? RK: Chef Judge knows that I am a “soup regular.” He doesn’t even ask me what I would like any more—he just fills a soup bowl when he sees me and hands it over. My other favorite lunch menu item has been anything that doesn’t have red sauce, because it seems there is always red sauce when I have lunch duty and it ends up on me somewhere, almost as if it was planned that way. R&G: What was your favorite CSB activity or event? RK: At the top of my list is teaching reading. I love sharing a good novel with enthusiastic students. I also like teaching writing; playing the organ in the Cathedral and doing chapel music on Monday and Wednesday; directing the faculty and parent Christmas choirs; hearing the band; watching and partici- pating in the drama productions; hearing the Cathedral Choir of Men and Boys sing; and the list goes on. In particular, I loved having the classroom directly across Veasey Court from Choir House. I hear the boys rehearsing all day, and occasionally they open the windows
R&G: What did you like best about working at CSB?
and try to catch my attention with their singing—which works every time. I will miss hearing those voices every day. R&G: What is next? RK: Here’s my list so far. It keeps growing. 1. Spend more quality time with my husband, Mark Lieu, who will not be retiring for a few more years (this may imply that it will be my duty to cook breakfast on weekdays). 2. Read, read, read. 3. Take music and cooking classes. 4. Go to Evensong without that weekly CSB faculty meeting beforehand. 5. Avoid wearing a tie as much as possible. 6. Play the organ, harpsichord, and piano just for myself. 7. Go to as many symphony, choral, and chamber music concerts as I can find. 8. Write for an educational publisher or website. 9. Swim laps when the pool isn’t crowded. 10. Listen to all the CDs I have collected over the years, starting with J.S. Bach. 11. Take long walks and hikes. 12. Do volunteer work (contact me with good ideas for this). 13. Travel without the crowds! Portugal is slated for our fall trip. 14. Tutor or teach reading at the community college level. 15. Perhaps take another church music job if the spirit moves me. 16. The possibilities are endless. R&G: May we call you with any problems that might arise due to your departure? RK: What could possibly go wrong? Problems at CSB? I just can’t imagine that.
RK: This is an easy one to answer: It’s the boys and my colleagues. To paraphrase Garrison Keillor, it’s obvious that at CSB “all the boys are above average and good looking,” just like at Lake Woebegone. Furthermore, my colleagues have been outstanding—focused, professional, caring, committed, funny, intense (in a good way), and supportive. But I can’t limit my scope with that. I also love the Cathedral and being atop Nob Hill, where so many exciting and important things seem to happen. My dad was a banker on Montgomery Street and also had a branch in the Fairmont Hotel. I even had summer jobs working on Nob Hill during my high school years. So my retirement from CSB means that after more than 60 years, there won’t be a “Kerman” working on Nob Hill. The school community is wonderful and far-reaching. I love the strong connec- tion to the parents, grandparents, and alums that make up our community. And of course, playing the magnifi- cent organ in the Cathedral has been a great privilege and a very special part of my work at CSB. That organ is really a national treasure, not just a San Francisco treasure. R&G: Who made the biggest impact on you? RK: Once again, I must point to our boys for my answer. I have learned so much from my students here at CSB. They have taught me the importance that the creative process and self-expression hold in the learning process. They have taught me that my job as a teacher has been to pay attention to their needs and interests, to avoid work for work’s sake, and instead to go deeper and aim for the most meaningful teacher/student part- nerships we can manage.
Q&A WITH MR. KERMAN After 29 years, our beloved Rob Kerman has retired.
Red&Gold: Where did you go to college? Rob Kerman: My undergraduate work was at Concordia University in River Forest, Illinois. I did my graduate study at San Francisco State University while I was teaching second grade at CSB. R&G: How many years did you work at CSB? RK: It’s hard to believe that I’ve been at CSB for 29 years. I’m ending my time in the same CSB classroom where I started, the room where I have spent most of my years at CSB aside from my time as technology coordinator. All in all, I’m retiring after 45 years teaching kindergarten, first grade, second grade, third grade, and K-8 tech. Way back in 1972, in my first year as a teacher, I had a first-grader named “Lawrence Chan” and this year I have his son “Kian” in my third grade. Kian’s
not worked in an all-boys school before. Suddenly all of these second graders arrived saying, “My mom said you would help me tie my necktie.” I got up to speed on that skill quickly by necessity. I remember being very tired by the time 2:45 p.m. rolled around! R&G: What was your last day like? RK: Mixed emotions. We always look forward to summer break and seeing everyone move up to the next grade. There is a lot to celebrate in a job well done and I look forward to the chance to try new things myself. But this is a start to a new life in which I won’t see the boys, CSB, and the Cathedral every weekday. However, leaving is an opportunity to focus on the next part of my life.
grandmother was my first room parent. How’s that for coming ’round full circle? R&G: What roles did you have at CSB? RK: I was hired by Harry McKay, the then Headmaster, as a second grade teacher, which I did for seven or eight years. Then Malcolm Manson, our subse- quent Headmaster, asked me to become tech coordinator, which I did for 13 years. Although I enjoyed working in tech, I missed being in a homeroom classroom. R&G: What was your first day like? RK: Well, I’ve really had three “first days” if you count my various jobs at CSB. But as I try to remember the very first “first day” at CSB, I remember being very excited and honored to have been hired because CSB had (and has) such a great reputation in San Francisco. My first class here had a lot of energy and I had
78 | CATHEDRAL SCHOOL FOR BOYS
FALL 2017 • RED & GOLD | 79
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