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JOHN MILEWSKI “The hardest part about being a teacher [at the Prep] is the treadmill – you’re running all day setting up labs and preparing for class,” says long-time science teacher John Milewski. “It never lets up, but it keeps me trim,” he adds with a smile. If you think the Prep’s relentless schedule discourages or weighs down Milewski, think again. Having recently been recognized at the annual Honors Convocation for his 41 years of service, he joins a special group of teachers who have been instructing Prep students since 1970 or before. He says it is the students that keep him coming back year after year. “There are no students in the world like Prep students, and they are the reason I have been here for as long as I have,” Milewski says. Born and raised in Philadelphia, Milewski is a graduate of North Catholic High School and LaSalle University. He then journeyed over 5,000 miles away from home to the University of Hawaii, where he received his Masters degree in Marine Biology, which, he says, is the area of science he feels the most passion. “I love the ocean,” he says, “it is nature at its best, the birthplace of life.” It is at the University of Hawaii where he fell in love with teaching, as well, instructing a General Science Lab for freshmen students during his graduate studies at the university. Upon graduation from UH, Milewski joined the Peace Corps, opting to teach multiple subjects on the small island of Tonga, where he served for two years. After his time in the Peace Corps, Milewski was hired at the Prep, beginning his tenure here at the same time as English teacher Jim O’Brien ’62 and Rev. J. Vincent Taggart, S.J., the beloved history teacher and Prep ambassador, who passed away in 1996. Throughout his Prep career, Milewski has remained true to his education, enlightening freshmen and sophomores to the wonders of Biology. Additionally, in 1975, he taught the first section of Marine Ecology, which has since evolved and today is a popular component of the Biology Elective course for juniors and seniors. For 25 years, Milewski also dedicated his time to instruction of Advanced Placement (AP) Biology, but has recently passed on those duties to Brian Martin ’95. John Milewski’s dedication to and love for St. Joe’s Prep and its students is rivaled by few, and his inspired science lessons stretch across four decades of young men. With so many years of experience under his belt, Milewski says with conviction, “I wouldn’t want to teach anywhere else.” The Prep and its students sure are grateful for that. – Charles Schrier ’06
FALL 2010
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