Faculty Profile
Elaine Apthorp, English Department
Carol Smith Miller (P ’03, ’05)

Elaine Apthorp’s colleagues at San Jose State University, thought she was "crazy" to give up a tenured position to teach at Milton. But, she says, she knew teaching here would make her happy.

Elaine has deep connections to Milton Academy. The Milton headmaster for whom the Apthorp chapel is named is her grandfather’s uncle. Her grandfather, father and uncle attended Milton, and her grandmother taught here. After growing up in southern California, she followed her ancestors to Milton. Her time at Milton was a high point in her academic life. Prior to coming to Milton, she attended a large urban high school, where she says, she "disappeared" and mentions the words "weird" and "nerd." Motivation at that school came in the form of Dodger tickets promised for every "A". As she talks about having come to Milton, and having found a home among the intellectual, diverse and interesting students here, she smiles.

Ms. Apthorp teaches sophomore English and American Literature. She also teaches U.S. History and Philosophy. Teaching high school students, she says, is much harder than teaching college students and adults. Adults have their own motivations and know why they are in class. It’s up to Elaine to give her current students a reason to be there. Her enthusiasm for teaching is evident, especially when she talks about her Class V students. She enjoys the openness, spirit and dynamic qualities of students this age. The students love to argue and to debate (often quite loudly), and they let her know when they don’t enjoy a particular book. One year, her Class V students read Jane Eyre, which Elaine admits can be a tough sell. After reading the book, they saw three film adaptations. In the process her students develop a greater appreciation of the book, becoming highly critical of the various film presentations and the license taken by the screenwriters and directors. Class II students, she says, are taught in much the same way as college students. They are more patient with the material and have learned to appreciate more widely. They also have many more distractions and competing concerns: college, grades, love lives, etc.

What does an English teacher read in her free time? Ms. Apthorp is currently reading All on Fire: William Lloyd Garrison and the Abolition of Slavery. A book she recommends to everyone, Wherever You Go There You Are, by Jon Kabat-Zinn, is about meditation and spirituality, things she believes are helpful when you teach teens. She also likes detective fiction, especially Elizabeth George, Nevada Barr and Raymond Chandler. Short stories are favorites; they fit perfectly within the small blocks of time she has available to read.

One wonders how she finds any time to read with her many responsibilities and interests. In addition to teaching, Ms. Apthorp coaches 4th volleyball and 1st softball. She is passionate about softball, having played in adult leagues when she lived in California. She has published fiction and literary criticism, is working on a novel, and has done some screenwriting consulting. A play she authored has been produced in San Jose, California. The characters are members of a softball team, and all the action takes place in the bathroom after the team loses a tournament! A musician and songwriter as well, Elaine recorded an album in the mid-80’s. She plays guitar, banjo and blues harp. Elaine likes folk and country music and is "disciplining" herself to like hip-hop (no doubt, with the help of her young charges).
Ms. Apthorp lives in Goodwin House, next to the video room and just below the piano, with 32 adolescent boys who "keep her sane".

 

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Faculty

Elaine S. Apthorp (1999)
English
A.B., Williams College
M.A., Ph.D., University of California at Berkeley

Lisa Baker (2001)
English
B.A., M.A., Middlebury College
M.F.A., University of Massachusetts

Jessica Bond (2002)
English
A.B., Harvard University
M.A., Middlebury College

Tarim Chung (2001)
English
B.S., Cornell University
M.A., Bread Loaf School of English
M.A., M. Litt., Middlebury College

Nicole Colson (2006)
English
B.A., Williams College
M.Ed., Harvard University

James F. Connolly (1983)
English
B.S., Northeastern University
M.Ed., Bridgewater State

Douglas C. Fricke (1987)
English
B.A., Colgate University
Ph.D., Pennsylvania State University

Maria F. Gerrity (1998)
English
A.B., Vassar College
M.Ed., The Shady Hill School and Lesley College

Mark GwinnLandry (2004)
English
B.A., Bates College
M.A., University of New Hampshire

Janet Levine (1986)
English
B.A., University of Witwatersrand
B.A., University of South Africa

Walter S. McCloskey (1971)
English
A.B., Ph.D., Harvard University

Malinda Polk (2011)
English
B.A., Connecticut College
M.A., University of Massachusetts, Boston
M.F.A., University of Iowa

Caroline Sabin (2007)
English
A.B., Harvard University

Rebecca Schorin (2002)
English
B.A., University of Pittsburgh
M.S., Northwestern University

David M. Smith (1981)
English
A.B., Harvard University
M.A., University of Wisconsin

John Charles Smith (1974)
English
B.A., University of North Carolina
M.A., Ph.D., Harvard University

H. Michaela Steimle (1982)
English
B.A., Emmanuel College
Massachusetts General Hospital Language Clinic

Carlotta D. Zilliax (1992)
English
B.S., Wheelock College
M.A., Harvard University