At the end of each school year, the WIS community braces itself for the departure of teachers who will not return in the fall. This year, the community must say goodbye to one of its long beloved faculty members: Upper School and eighth grade Math Teacher Colin Buck. 

After over three decades at WIS, Buck’s retirement brings a mix of joy for his next chapter and gratitude for his decades of dedication and inspiration. 

After earning a doctorate in structure function and corks from Durham University, Buck became interested in quantum mechanics and particle physics due to the influence of an inspiring teacher, a role he later assumed for his own students. Later on, Buck was dissuaded by the competitive progression of university research and chose to pursue a career in teaching instead.

While being a math teacher, Buck was also a coach for the majority of his tenure at WIS. For about 20 years, he coached the Girls Varsity Soccer team.

“It was a lot of fun… everyone chipped in and it didn’t really matter if you were new to the game,” he said. “We were good… we won about 16 banners.”

Throughout his career, Buck observed drastic changes in the school. He witnessed numerous alterations in the WIS administration. 

“It is much more streamlined,” he said. “The administration was more laid back, but in recent years it’s become more professional and documentative.” 

Buck has seen significant changes in WIS’ facilities. For example, he recalls the times when the P.E. department resided on the bottom floor of the Mansion.

“I appreciate the improvement in the facilities enormously,” Buck said. “It helps the sports unbelievably.” 

In regards to evolution in academic behavior, Buck notes students have become more grade-oriented over the years.  

“[Grades] seem more important than they used to be,” Buck said. “It was always important for the 11th and 12th [graders], of course, but now people are talking about their grades, discussing their grades even in eighth grade. That’s a new change.”

One of Buck’s most memorable moments at WIS happened in 1993. In his third year at WIS, Buck’s students asked him what he was doing for the weekend, to which he replied he was getting married at the local church. 

“I said it was at the church up the road, and to my astonishment, a bunch of kids turned up, about 40 or 50,” he said. “It was incredible.”

While students have notably impacted Buck, the role he has played in students’ education is just as significant. Class of 2023 Alumna Ariana Campo remembers the impact Buck had on her life. 

“Mr. Buck is an amazing teacher,” Campo said. “He inspired me to step outside of my comfort zone and challenge myself in a subject I didn’t think I would enjoy.”

This impact on students has been demonstrated throughout his tenure at WIS. Hung in Buck’s room is a plaque received by a student in the Class of 2001 who earned recognition from the U.S. Presidential Scholars Program, an award honoring the nation’s most distinguished graduating high school seniors. When receiving his award, the student nominated Buck for the Teacher Recognition Award in 2001, handed out by President George W. Bush. 

Although high-achieving students, such as the winner of the Scholars Program, have made an impression on Buck, talent has little to do with who he remembers.

“There’s other students who have had just as much impact even though they were not brilliant at math,” he said. “You don’t just remember the best students, you remember the students who have kept going.”

While awards are empirical evidence of Buck’s influence, much of his guidance is not as obvious. Senior Elektra Gea-Sereti gratefully remembers the role Buck played in her education. 

“[Buck] wants to ensure his students have a complete grasp on mathematics,” Gea-Sereti said. “It’s never about grades or IB assignments, it’s about understanding the math and breaking it down so it’s manageable for everyone.” 

Now moving on to his next chapter in his life, Buck will miss the purpose and motivation teaching gave him. 

“I’m [going to] find it hard to have a meaning,” Buck said. “Teaching is life… for the last 34 years the meaning has been pretty obvious: you’ve got to try and teach mathematics, and you’ve got to make students love it.”

By Olivia Mandelbaum Raz