Welcome to Episode 113 of The Darlington Podcast!
In this episode, Director of Alumni Relations Vicki Vincent chats with esteemed former faculty members Rick Buice, Nancy Ivester and Jack Summerbell. Together, they share memories of their time at Darlington, including their mentors, the lessons they learned as educators and their advice for young teachers.
Vicki Vincent first joined the Advancement Office in 1995. Since then, she has held a variety of different roles including class agent officer and director of alumni relations. She is responsible for the development and management of alumni programs for Darlington, including the Alumni Council, the Class Agent Program and special events like Alumni Weekend.
Rick Buice taught at Darlington School for 40 years, starting in 1969 as a 20-year-old, fresh out of college at the University of Chattanooga (now UTC). He was hired as a chemistry and physics teacher, and eventually moving to technology, where he served as the technology coordinator. After retiring from teaching, he traveled with the Advancement Office for five years, connecting with alumni across the country.
Nancy Ivester started working at Darlington as a middle school English teacher after moving to Rome and enrolling her oldest son at the school. Though she did not intend on teaching again until after finishing her master's degree at Berry College, Ivester was recruited by Jim Van Es after they met at her son's football practice. She went on to teach for 25 years before retiring.
Jack Summerbell started working at Darlington School as a history teacher in the fall of 1959, fresh out of earning his undergraduate degreee at Northwestern University. While he only intended to spend one year at Darlington before moving on to pursue his doctorate degree, Summerbell went on to stay for 40 years. The school went on to name one of the boys' residential houses, Summerbell House, after him.
Every member of the Darlington Community has countless Darlington connections, especially in the work world. By supporting each other's careers and life goals, we are better connecting our students, alumni, parents, parents of alumni, and grandparents.
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The Darlington Podcast is a collaboration between the communication and advancement teams, and is hosted by various members of the school community. Episodes are released each Thursday morning and available on most podcast platforms (search for The Darlington Podcast in your podcast player). Once new episodes are posted, you'll also be able to find them at www.darlingtonschool.org/podcast. Please subscribe wherever you listen to podcasts so that you'll get the latest episode each week!
The Darlington Podcast intro music was written and performed by Elliot Luitwieler ('22) and Kathryn Davidson ('22). Shelley Daniel, theatre director, lends her voice, and editing and production is handled by Maddie Chastain, content manager.
If you have ideas for future episodes or have any questions about The Darlington Podcast, please email communications@darlingtonschool.org.
