THE DERRYFIELD SCHOOL
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Faculty
Cornelius Raiford t is difficult to leave Cornelius Raiford’s middle school classroom without a smile on your face. In less than two years at Derryfield, he has become a beloved member of the com‐ munity. Is it because of his dedicated involvement with teams, activities, and committees or the number of classes he teaches? While these are all factors, it is clear that the honest enthusiasm he has for his subject, his students, and the Derryfield community has made the greatest impact on the School. He loves walking on campus every morning, and it shows. Cornelius’s passion for independent schools began early on in his own education. He attended middle school in the Pittsburgh public schools before gaining an opportunity through A Better Chance (ABC) to attend Mill‐ brook School, a boarding school in upstate New York. It was his experi‐ ence there that inspired him to spend his career working both in and with independent schools. After graduating from Millbrook, Cornelius received a B.A. in English from the University of Pittsburgh and a master’s in history from Carnegie Mellon University. Cornelius’s first teaching job was at Choate Rosemary Hall, where a sup‐
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portive network of mentors guided him on the path to become a great teacher. Throughout his career, Cornelius has benefited from the wisdom of his peers, and he gained a profound respect for the responsibility of being a teacher early on. While he had regrets about leaving Choate and the classroom, moving on to work in the admission offices at Dartmouth College and then Williams College helped Cornelius to gain insight on working with youngsters of all ages. After several years in college admissions, he moved back to indepen‐ dent schools to work as a college counselor because he wanted to help students present themselves more effectively to colleges. He worked as the Director of College Counseling at both Kiski School in Pennsylvania and the Hun School in New Jersey. Cornelius has a profound respect for Derryfield and believes that the School is poised to be a national example of the fact that a traditional day school can be on the cutting edge of learning styles. He says, “Derryfield is willing to take risks while preparing for and embracing the future.” He loves work‐ ing in a day school because youngsters are able to able to develop their own
Cornelius Raiford engages students in his class.
identity without being overly influ‐ enced by the established culture of a school. Cornelius is especially excited to be back in the classroom, teaching middle school students for the first time ever. His goal is to teach students to enjoy learning, and he loves the challenge of proving himself to his students. His approach, however, is simple: “People respond to love, and a little kindness goes a long way.” Head of Middle School Mark Blaisdell can vouch for Cornelius’s success: “Mr. Raiford’s impact has been huge. His intense pas‐ sion for his subject is matched only by how deeply he cares about his students and their learning.” – Annie Branch
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