As the year comes to a close, Choate will say farewell to eleven of its faculty members. These teachers, coaches, and advisers are: Ms. Blakaj, Ms. Beste, Mr. Burns, Ms. Jewett, Mr. Potter, Ms. Nichols, Mr. Nutting, Ms. Hoppenbrouwers, Mr. Danahy, Mr. Walsh, and Mr. Youker.

Ms. Blakaj, Ms. Nichols, Mr. Danahy, and Mr. Walsh all came to Choate in 2004. Ms. Blakaj has taught science and is going to medical school next year. Ms. Nichols, a member of the English Department, will attend graduate school in California. Mr. Danahy, a chemistry teacher, is taking a college lecturing position at his former school. Mr. Walsh, of college counseling, is leaving for another job in St. Johnsbury Vermont.

Mr. Burns and Ms. Hoppenbrouwers came to Choate more than 30 years ago and are retiring at the end of the year. Mr. Burns arrived in 1974 and left June 2005. He taught history and founded the swimming program. He returned this year in the winter to coach. Ms. Hoppenbrouwers started teaching German in 1976 and switched to French when the program was cut from the curriculum.

Mrs. Jewett, a French teacher who began teaching at Choate in 2000, will spend two years in Japan, where her husband, Mr. Mark Benson, has been transferred.

Mr. Potter, Choate’s technical theater director, arrived in 2001. Mr. Nutting began teaching English here in 2002 and plans to study at UConn Law School.

Mr. Youker, physics teacher and unicyclist, came here in 1992 and will leave to teach at a public high school and possibly work as an illustrator.

Ms. Beste, Latin teacher and head of the Language Department, began teaching at Choate in 1983. She coached intramural fitness, swimming, aerobics, and weight training. She lived in Spencer and was also an adviser in Mem. Next year she will be the head of the upper school at Greenwich Academy. It is a K-12, all girls school and part of her job will be coordinating the curriculum with that of Brunswick Academy, the nearby boys school.

Ms. Beste is nostalgic about leaving Choate, but is excited to live in Greenwich and, therefore, closer to New York. “It’s sometimes hard to even come to the realization that I’ll be packing up and leaving after all this time, but I think it was a really important professional opportunity,” said Ms. Beste.

She said that her favorite aspect of Choate is the students and that the worst part is the location. Ms. Beste also expressed her compassion for the students and faculty with whom she has worked for the past 23 years and thanked the very supportive administration. She is sorry about leaving Choate, but is looking forward to being more involved in student life at her new school.

“Choate has been a place, and I hope all of the faculty feel this way, where you can learn so many different things,” she explained. “I’ve been able to grow so much from being here. A person can become a great teacher at a school like this. You don’t realize how much you appreciate a place until you start thinking about leaving it. It’s a great school, I hope everyone enjoys it.”