Erik Wade
Exeter students know history instructor Erik Wade as the teacher and coach who never fails to smile. However, Exeter students do not know that Wade is also a bowling enthusiast who first thought he would work in the music industry. He currently teaches United States history and Ancient Roman history, coaches club basketball and serves as the dorm head of Peabody Hall. This spring, he will be the director of the Washington Intern Program, where he will lead seniors as they travel to Washington, D.C. to learn about the inner workings of the US government.Wade has many interests, which have spurred him to become involved in various aspects of Exeter life. His myriad hobbies include cooking, volunteering, bowling and training to become a basketball official. He also went to Comic-Con in San Diego, an experience that pushed him “to work harder on my writing projects, which span many genres.” Dr. Wade also enjoys coaching Exeter sports. He used to coach girls JV basketball, and he cheers that it is “one of the best teams on this campus!” He retired after two years of coaching and is now coaching club basketball.As head of Peabody Hall, Wade has expressed his love for the dorm but also noted the challenges that come with living there, particularly the disconnect between his work and his personal life. “The work-life balance that all of us need is oddly sacrificed at boarding schools. I struggle with this all the time because I enjoy the relationships I have on campus and in my dorm and also long for freedom to find an outside community,” he said.
“The work-life balance that all of us need is oddly sacrificed at boarding schools.”
Wade began his college career with no plan to become a history teacher. “I kind of fell into teaching history,” he recalled. As an undergraduate at the University of Southern Florida, he studied chemistry and calculus. He was also enrolled in the university’s pre-veterinary program. But then, he realized that he wanted to work with people, not numbers, and teaching seemed to fit. “I knew I needed to make a change,” he said, “I loved working as a vet tech, but I didn’t care for science and math as much as I cared for my patients.” After switching to a history major, Wade started taking sociology and anthropology classes. Later in college, Wade obtained a summer internship in New York City at Arista Records which had Usher, Outkast and Whitney Houston under their label at various points. After this internship, he worked for a radio station in Tampa, Florida, and planned to get a job in the music business. However, in order to enter the industry, he was required to have a degree related to business, which led him to take a course on American Studies. “American Studies allowed me to explore my interest in popular culture, cultural theory, critical race theory, masculinity and social history,” said Wade. “It satiated my need for the music industry.” It was then that Wade realized that history appealed to him as much as music did. In fact, he enjoyed the “American studies” aspect of history so much that he decided to pursue history further.Wade’s favorite aspect of teaching history is the opportunity to show students that “there's something personally at stake in learning history.” In order to offer the most fulfilling experience in the classroom, he strives to be engaged in every class. “Each day, I seek to share my expertise and interests, and hope it’s infectious in some way.” Wade said that something he loves about teaching is seeing his past students coming back to campus to visit him. “It’s always cool hearing from students at universities who found my classes speak to their new classes and future careers,” added Wade.