“I hope I can push my students to be the best version of themselves, but most importantly, it’s the relationship building. I don’t think I’d be as successful at anything I did if the kids didn’t care about me and I didn’t care about them.”
Mr. Kane, a Latin teacher here, and previously a student at St. Benedict’s, made the transition from the elementary school he was attending at the time to Saint Benedict’s middle school because it stood out to him, he claims. He even credits Benedict for teaching him lessons he still uses to this day. “I think I’ve become a decent team player…and I’ve learned to care about the effects of my actions on other people, and those were all things I learned here.” Despite having the opportunity to attend another school, Mr. Kane stayed at Benedict’s. Years later, after experiencing the core values Benedict instills in its students firsthand, he decided to become the teacher he had always wanted to be, and thought, “What better way to do that than to teach at Benedict’s?”
Mr. Kane chooses to put nothing but his best foot forward when it comes to pushing students to their full potential. Throughout his years affiliated with Benedict’s, he has become a role model for countless students. Mr. Kane relishes the opportunity to educate students on a language with such an intricate background. He enjoys building up an already-established Latin program, into a significantly better one. Through his work, he continuously enlightens his students on the foundational language of Latin.
His inspiration to teach Latin is deeply rooted in his love for the language itself. Though he’d thought he would steer clear of it after his schooling was finished, he developed a strong extrinsic motivation for understanding Latin and ended up taking it in college. Mr. Kane reflected on his journey in developing his passion for Latin. “But when you get good at it, you start to read cool things and you start to solve problems, and I really like that part of it…And at some point, after I started teaching it, I realized I really didn’t wanna teach anything else.” Mr. Kane has also been deeply influenced by other figures in his life, more specifically his old Latin teacher, Mr. Barocas. Barocas’s strict, but nurturing approaches shaped Mr. Kane’s teaching style, contributing to the success he’s had as a teacher. Mr. Kane strives to hold his students to the highest standards and encourage those who are capable of more.
Mr. Kane embodies the characteristics of a devoted teacher in his work every day. His determination to give his students the education they deserve and his ability to motivate them is evident. Ultimately, Mr. Kane prepares students by strengthening their grammatical skills, all while providing them with a safe and nurturing environment. His work does not go unnoticed and is deeply appreciated within the SBP community.
