For us students, friends are there to help you relax and hear your frustration when your second period teacher assigns three hours of homework. But what about teachers? Where do they turn to complain when that kid in their second period won’t turn in any assignments? Well, other teachers of course. 

Math teacher Miim Kwak said she often gets together with other math teachers outside of school to decompress, where no work talk is allowed. In their math squad, Suzanna Hosking, Eva O’Keefe, Catherine Ruback and retired teacher Tracy Seek go to wineries, dinners and spend time hanging out outside of school. “We did a cookie and wine pairing one time so that was fun,” Kwak said. 

Outside of the math department, Kwak said she values her interdepartmental friendships even though they are harder to form because teachers interact most with those in their same department. Kwak has formed a good friendship with English teacher Catherine Boswell and media specialist Tammie Burk. “It’s hard to venture out to other departments because I’m in this section and I just hang out in this section [but] I like to get to know people,”  Kwak said. 

Boswell also said she values her interdepartmental friendships, because they are not people she would normally get to know. “I think that having really good friends where you work is important to have people who understand what you do and understand you so I have several friends at school, throughout different departments,” Boswell said. 

Boswell has also enjoyed being part of her teacher friends’ lives outside of school, like going to Spanish teacher Meredith Lange and English teacher Melissa Kaplan’s weddings. “It’s nice being a part of [my friend’s lives] outside of school, whether it be weddings or births or things like that,” Boswell said. 

Close friendships are not limited to female teachers though. Science teacher David Bitler said he is close friends with administrator Nick Hitchens. The duo became friends when they took classes together to become an administrator. “We spent a lot of time together just chatting about life and our experiences as teachers and also outside of school, we both have children around the same age,” Bitler said.

Bitler said he talks to Hitchens a lot about teaching and the impact of their work on students. “I think professional friendships are a little bit different because a lot of our friendships revolve around what’s going on here in the building,” Bitler said. 

Bitler remembers one time he, Hitchens and English teacher Zach Lowe performed at Coffee House together as one of his best memories with his teacher friends. “We sang a song together and that was a lot of fun. I enjoyed that,” Bitler said.