Bishop Seabury Academy

6 arnie Knudson challenges students, prepares them to succeed Department Spotlight: Math Brendan Mark '02: Bishop Seabury's First Graduate A s the first Bishop Seabury Academy graduate—and only student in his class, Brendan Mark '02 is extremely proud of the school. "I think this is the school that we all hoped for and envisioned Seabury becoming." Brendan and his family chose private schooling over public because they felt Seabury was more of a community than a school. Brendan remembers the headmaster saying that Bishop Seabury will be a safe place, where you can learn and be yourself. "The school followed through on that promise." Four years of challenging classes, quality teachers, and extracurricular participation provided a multitude of special memories for Brendan. Seabury was a new school in an old building, which meant "having a milk crate for a locker, water that kind of smelled funny, and flooding of the new classrooms every time it rained." But more importantly, lunches were family style and students and teachers formed a tight-knit fellowship. "Just about every teacher and staff member had a positive impact on my time at Seabury," Brendan says. "I was really lucky to have great teachers." He believes Mr. Knudson is the only reason he passed math classes. "I'm terrible at math; I just don't get it. But he was a tremendous help." Dr. Johnson was an amazing resource "not only for French class but also whenever I needed any sort of advice." And Betsy Alford is "so caring. She treats every student as if they are her own child." "Even teachers I never had for class still had an impact: Dr. Schawang, Mr. Patterson, Mrs. McNaughton; I could go on and on. That's what makes this school so great in my opinion. The quality of teachers sets it apart." Brendan says he was well prepared for college and felt that his first semester at Drake University "was more like an extension of what I learned in high school." He graduated with a degree in broadcast journalism and worked at television stations in Charleston, S.C., Dallas, and Nashville. He now works at FOX 4 News in Kansas City, producing the 6 p.m. news Monday through Friday. Becoming more involved with Seabury as an alumnus is important to Brendan. "I think the overall experience at Bishop Seabury is something that you can't find at other schools. It was four years of high school, but much more than that. It made me a better student, a better thinker, and a stronger person." He recently had the opportunity to speak at a morning meeting, and he is excited to be a new alumni board member. Although work keeps him busy, Brendan enjoys spending time with family and traveling. He can be reached at brendanmmark@gmail.com. I think this is the school that we all hoped for and envisioned Seabury becoming. A s a founding faculty member of Bishop Seabury Academy, Arnie Knudson has been an integral part of the Math Department, helping it grow from one teacher in 1997 to four full-time teachers today. Arnie was teaching for Duke University's Talent Identification Program in Lawrence when he heard about the opening of the academy. He was hired as the department chair and teacher. He says Dr. Ray Wilbur, an inductee in the Kansas Teachers Hall of Fame, volunteered to teach a couple of classes the first few years. As the school grew, so did the need for more math teachers. Arnie praises his fellow teachers, Nancy Landi, Orlando Ventura, and James Larocca, for their strong knowledge and experience. Seabury provides a rigorous, college-preparatory curriculum and a sequence "that puts almost every student through a year of calculus," says Arnie. The department consists of sixth- grade math, pre-algebra, algebra 1, algebra 2, geometry, pre- calculus, calculus 1, calculus 2, and statistics. "We try to accommodate every level and challenge them. Roughly half of all math students will be able to take the calculus advanced placement exam." A few students score well enough on the AMC 10 and AMC 12 math competitions to advance to the American Invitational Mathematics Examination. Seabury alumni have told Arnie that they are very well prepared for their college math courses. And they have shown their appreciation for their learning experience. Arnie was honored to win the Samuel F. Hulbert Outstanding Teacher Award from Rose-Hulman Institute for Technology; he was nominated by a former student. Arnie enjoys teaching at Seabury because of the freedom to teach as he sees fit. "We have outstanding students, and my colleagues are wonderful." The teachers truly care about the students and are committed to helping them master fundamental and advanced skills. "Arnie Knudson has devoted 20 years of his life to Seabury and we should all be grateful for that. He was a wonderful colleague and chairman of the math department and is still a friend." – Ray Wilbur

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