While Upper School teachers have a reputation for presenting new material to their pupils in an effective manner, students may not know as much about their teachers as they thought.

When most Harker students see English teacher Charles Shuttleworth strolling down Main Hall, they think of him as stern, with bursts of humor in his teachings. What they have yet to learn is that he biked across the country six times, and rode around 50,000 miles during his travels.

“When I was living in New York, I spent twelve years without a car,” Shuttleworth said.

He relied mainly on bicycle, rollerblading, and walking to make his way around the city.

Shuttleworth also explained that he is a “big enthusiast of the theatre,” as that was another activity he enjoyed in New York immensely.

Although math and physics teacher Anuradah Aiyer may often seem omnipotent, she disclosed the fact that she was not in an Honors math class until her high school senior year.

She eventually taught at Hong Kong International School, where she faced more challenges.

“Space was always a problem,” Dr. Aiyer said, “The same space would be used for classroom and lab work. Everything would be smaller and more compact.”

Dr. Aiyer also elaborated that the Hong Kong International School was “very transient,” whereas some Harker students may even attend Harker from Kindergarten until their graduating year of high school. Despite the changes in her career, Dr. Aiyer already made an impact on students during her first year at Harker.

Chinese teacher Shaun Jahshan, known for her excellence in teaching a difficult foreign language, disclosed the fact that she was “a ski racer on the ski team in high school.”

“I grew up in a ski resort,” Jahshan said.

Another exciting event for her in high school was participating as an exchange student in Sweden.

English teacher Thomas Wicklund, a “Lord of the Rings” enthusiast, revealed that he has “donated [his] hair four times to charity.”

Aside from helping a good cause, “I would love to play guitar again,” Wicklund said.

“My friends and I had a band together for ten years.”

Unlike the other teachers above, math teacher Jane Keller, who has taught at Harker since 2007, said, “I don’t know anything that my students don’t know about me.”

Sure students spend hours a week in class, but it’s often surprising how much more there is to every teacher than that 50-minute class period.