“When I got the call from Cory Zeller to offer me the job, I was on an airplane, about to take off,” new Upper School English teacher Jeff Berger-White said. “It was not something that I had to think about. I accepted the position immediately.” After 33 years at Deerfield High School, Berger-White is making the switch to Parker’s English department. During his inaugural year at Parker, he will be teaching two sections of freshmen, one section of sophomores, and one senior elective each semester.
“I grew up on Commonwealth Avenue, just a stone’s throw from Parker,” Berger-White said. “I attended Lincoln Elementary, and though I coveted Parker, I never got the chance to apply.” Throughout his high school career at Glenbrook North High School, Berger-White was a student athlete—: captaining the swim team and playing baseball. However, he “wasn’t much of a student,” but had “two tremendous teachers” in his senior year who inspired him to become a teacher. Berger-White went on to attend Boston University for both his Bachelor’s degree as well as his Master’s.
While Berger-White worked at Deerfield High School for over thirty years, that wasn’t the only institute he taught at. “I attended a workshop at Bard College’s Institute for Writing and Thinking, which radically changed my teaching—and my life—over the years,” Berger-White said. “I’ve been on the faculty there ever since, and I regularly lead workshops for other teachers.”Additionally, in 2007, Berger-White was selected as a Golden Apple Teacher of Distinction, and in 2019, Berger-White received the Distinguished Secondary Teaching Award from Northwestern University.
“In terms of qualities, I think excellent teachers challenge students, are passionate and knowledgeable about their discipline, see their students as complex human beings, and have compassion and care for their students’ well-being,” Berger-White said.
The hiring process at Parker includes “the hiring committee, including department members, the Director of Studies, and Division Heads,” Head of Upper School Cory Zeller said. The faculty end of the hiring process includes resume reviews, phone screening candidates, calling candidates for the next round, and, ultimately, hosting finalists in person.
“They asked tough, probing questions––I knew I was in the presence of smart, passionate teachers,” Berger-White said. “It was also my first interview in 33 years, so I felt a bit like a fish out of water. There were back-to-back challenges, including a demo lesson.”
Furthermore, candidates are interviewed by the Student Interview and Recommendation Board (SIRB). “I thought he was impressive,” junior and SIRB member Angela Vlaovic said. “SIRB looks deeply into how well the teacher would fit into the Parker community, and how their values match up with Parker’s core values.”
Berger-White was drawn to Parker because of its progressive education philosophy. “If we’re not educating students to be good humans and thoughtful citizens, then what are we doing?” Berger-White said. Aside from Parker’s “embryonic democracy” philosophy, other aspects of the school stuck out to Berger-White. “Two springs ago, I observed classes at Parker, and I was really struck by two things: the high level of teaching––I saw Matt Laufer and Stacey Gibson––and the small class size,” Berger-White said. “At Deerfield High School, there’s a push for teachers to teach the same texts and do the same assignments. Parker seems to value teacher creativity and autonomy.”
Berger-White believes that literature is a way to see different ideas and perspectives fully. “English appeals to me because it’s really the study of what it means to be human,” Berger-White said. Berger-White has taught numerous English courses at Deerfield High School, one of them being AP Literature. As for his upcoming courses at Parker, Berger-White is not going to share his required readings, but he thinks that it was helpful for him to come up with a framework and consider how a set of books might illuminate the title of the course.
In his free time, Berger-White loves to run, though he couldn’t this summer due to an injury. “I’m also a really good cook,” Berger-White said. One fun fact about Berger-White is that he was an extra in “Ferris Bueller’s Day Off”.
Berger-White finds that in the beginning of his career, he sponsored too many activities, and in the middle of his career, he tried to persuade administrators to cultivate change in the classroom.
“In the last half of my career, I’ve focused my energies on my classroom and on my students,” Berger-White said. “That’s exactly what I want to continue at Parker.”
