New Pastures for Mr. Lam

One familiar face leaving Gilman at the end of this year is history teacher Mr. Lam. Mr. Lam began at Gilman two years ago, when he first began the Penn Fellowship Program. This program allows young teachers to gain experience at independent schools around the nation while pursuing a Master’s degree at the University of Pennsylvania. The program is rigorous, meeting several times a year for intensive workshops. While at the Exeter Summer program, an enrichment program in New Hampshire, Mr. Lam had heard about the opportunity. He was then approached by the Head of Upper School, Mr. Ledyard, about the program. As Mr. Lam researched and learned more about Gilman, he decided to apply for the fellowship at Gilman. 

At Gilman, Mr. Lam sponsored numerous activities and extracurriculars while still managing U.S. History and World Cultures classes. From being a chaperone for Model U.N. and Ethics Bowl to coaching football across all levels, Gilman’s Bible Study, and Senior Retreat, Mr. Lam embedded himself in the community. During his time here, Mr. Lam described forming strong relationships with other faculty members at Gilman, and particularly, attributes many of the teaching lessons he learned to his mentor, Matt Baum. Mr. Lam says he would like to thank Mr. Baum “for being a gracious and receptive mentor, which was really pivotal in his young career.” 

However, teaching at Gilman is only part of Mr. Lam’s role as a Penn fellow. On top of managing his courses, the Penn fellows come together in a group of immersive cohort of 30 young teachers nationally to see what other schools are doing and vice versa. Essentially, being a Penn Fellow is a very demanding position, but Mr. Lam describes that the friendships made between colleagues will last beyond graduation. 

In the fall, Mr. Lam will begin his role teaching Upper School History at St John’s School, an independent school in Houston, Texas. As Mr. Lam was deciding where to go next in his teaching career; his family and friends in the area were an important part of deciding where to go next in his teaching career. St. John’s rigor and service to the community were also important factors to Mr. Lam. Their mission statement also shows that St. John’s “offers talented, motivated, and energetic students a genuine challenge for academic accomplishment and for development of a sense of self-worth and of personal responsibility,” similar to Gilman’s values. 

Among the many things that he will miss about Gilman, Mr. Lam highlights the teachers and students. Faculty like Ms. Knapp and Mr. Zealand, directors of the Penn Program, were always supportive of him and the other Penn Fellows. At the end of the day, Mr Lam describes that he will “miss the ethic of care amongst faculty and students, in the hall, lunch, classroom, everyone cares for each other.”