As a student body, most of us know Zeskind Hall as the base of operations for important administrators, like Dr. Julie Sherrill, and the place that students need to head to if they need a late slip for class. It is the entrance to the high school; we walk by it every day, and we walk through that long corridor with a roof that never seems to keep students dry from rain.
But the story of Zeskind Hall isn’t its use or construction date but instead the story behind the first part of its name: Zeskind.
Zeskind Hall is dedicated to the late Howard Zeskind, one of the founding members of The Gregory School. Zeskind was an assistant principal and history teacher at our school but sadly passed away in 1997 at the age of 51.
Not many of the current students here today could actually answer your question, “Who is Howard Zeskind?” if you asked them. We may not remember him, but people who have been apart of our community long before the school was even renamed as “The Gregory School” remember him.
Many students may not know this, but Madame Clashman was actually hired by Howard Zeskind, who was quintessential in scouting and hiring teachers to be a part of what was then a new school called St. Gregory. Madame Clashman remembered him to be “pleasant, fun, and supportive” while also having “a good sense of humor.” She fondly remembered him making jokes in the teacher’s lounge and that his top priority in life was his children who graduated from St. Gregory in 2005 and 2009.
New students at The Gregory School may not be aware that Dr. Adams is in fact an alumni of this school. Upper schoolers (and specifically upperclassmen) know her as a social studies teacher. Dr. Adams fondly remembers Zeskind, especially because he was one of her history teachers.
Dr. Adams took an independent study during her time as a student at St. Gregory and remembers that Zeskind was her teacher for an honors history class, her favorite class. She remembers that both her and Zeskind worked a lot with faculty at the University of Arizona and fondly remembers a seminar that he delivered when she was a student.
Dr. Adams said that Zeskind was “very open about parts of his life” such as when he told her a near death experience that gave him a broader perspective of life. While Dr. Adams was in college, she said she often visited Zeskind here on campus.
Howard Zeskind passed away suddenly on June 15th, 1997. It was Father’s Day, a fact that Madame Clashman remembers even after over twenty years. Dr. Adams attended his funeral and remembered that there were “thousands of people there, I couldn’t even get into the chapel.”
Written by Kieran Lee (staff reporter)