Delbarton is happy to announce the second round of Alumni Teaching Fellows. Last year, Delbarton kicked off this Fellowship program with Roggi Chuquimarca '17, Andrew Gannon '17, and Jordan Hubbard '17. This year, Delbarton welcomes back Hunter Waldis ’17, Patrick Cummings ’18 and Mark Forbes ’18 as they embark on their Teaching Fellowship journey.

The post-grad Teaching Fellow term is from August to May, and the Program gives applicants considering a career in education an opportunity to experience life in a school environment, as well as serve as a gap year for alumni embarking on a post-graduate degree program or career. A maximum of three Teaching Fellows are selected annually.

Joining in his brother Chandler Waldis’ ’13 footsteps, Hunter Waldis came to Delbarton and quickly got involved. From volunteering through Delbarton’s many different mission and ministry opportunities to repping the Green Wave on the baseball diamond, Waldis made the most of his time here. After Delbarton, he made his way to Seton Hall University where he was able to continue his love for baseball and grow academically. Waldis returns to Delbarton to teach Computer Science alongside Dr. Jonathan Cote after getting his degree in Graphic Design at Seton Hall. “Shadowing Dr. Cote has helped me learn more about being a mentor,” he said. If he’s not in the classroom, Waldis is out pitching for the Trenton Thunder as he continues to pursue his passion for baseball and to push himself to be a mentor on and off campus. When giving advice to his students, Waldis said “resilience is key. Embrace failure, there is no learning if you don’t fail!”

Patrick Cummings graduated from the University of Notre Dame where he took his love for sports and got involved in their sports nutrition department while pursuing his interest in math in the classroom. Cummings left Notre Dame with a degree in Business Analytics. Returning to Delbarton, Cummings teaches freshman Geometry and assists with AP Macro Economics as he shadows Tom Brady. If he’s not in the math department or the Ryan Crane ’95 Business Center, you can find Cummings out on the football and lacrosse field as he is a coach for both sports this year. “Being able to coach was a huge incentive that compelled me to come back,” explained Cummings. “I’ve always enjoyed math as a student so teaching it feels natural. I think being back here, you can give back to the school and pursue your own interests.”

During his time here as a student, Mark Forbes was a very dedicated soccer player. After Delbarton, Forbes continued chasing his passion for soccer at Villanova University. “Playing soccer at Villanova gave me a better idea of how to be an athlete and how to coach,” said Forbes as he looks forward to continuing coaching Middle School soccer this fall. While he was at Villanova, he studied Communications with a focus on Public Relations and Advertising. Now that he’s back at Delbarton, Forbes is eager to get to see Delbarton from a new perspective as he spends his time getting a taste of the School's curriculum filling in for different teachers, subbing for a variety of classes and assisting the Marketing & Communications in its work covering Delbarton people and stories. Forbes has felt right at home as he has looked to former Alumni Teaching Fellows Hubbard and Chuquimarca for guidance. “They did this last year and have helped guide us in this role so far!"

Each of our new Alumni Teaching Fellows has his own set of tasks and responsibilities as he navigates his new role here. From creating lesson plans to being mentors inside and outside of the classroom, these Fellows have found this new evolution from student to teacher to be fulfilling in the best way possible.

The three Fellows unanimously feel the support from Fr. Michael Tidd and the rest of the staff and students as they venture further into the school year ahead. “Coming back to a familiar place with familiar faces makes the transition easier,” said Cummings. “The weirdest thing is going from being called Pat to now being called Mr. Cummings!”

All three fellows look forward to how the year will unfold and getting more involved on campus. “I want to guide students to make the right decisions,” expressed Waldis as he recalled a famous Brother Paul saying: at Delbarton, it is very easy to make the right decision. Waldis looks to guide students to learn how to make those right decisions.

Delbarton’s Alumni Teaching Fellows also are responsible for managing the Delbarton Alumni Mentor Program, an after-school program open to all students that offers time management, organizational, and test preparation skills. The Alumni Teaching Fellows also assist in an extracurricular activity or sport and shadow a faculty member during the academic year as they bring their own skill sets, passion, and expertise to the school.

In November, members of the Class of 2019 are encouraged to apply for this unique opportunity to return to their alma mater during the 2023-2024 school year to assist a Delbarton teacher and mentor Delbarton students. Again, the post-grad Teaching Fellow term is from August to May. To our Class of 2019 alumni who are appraoching college graduation this spring and are interested in the Alumni Teaching Fellow opportunity, please contact Assistant Headmaster for Academic Affairs Josh Hartle here.