Retiring Faculty Member: Mr. Greene

Mathematics instructor Tony Greene retired at the end of this year,  following 25 years of service to the Academy as a beloved teacher and coach.

“He [will] be remembered [as] a very caring and giving teacher who was always willing to go the extra mile for students, just like he did for his tennis players, squash players and his dorm students,” mathematics department chair Eric Bergofsky said.

Prior to Exeter, Greene spent his teaching career at various public schools in Massachusetts. Then in 1989, when a spot for a teaching position opened at Exeter, he took the leap and applied. 

“He was in mid-career, so it was a big decision for him to whether or not stay in the public schools he had been teaching at, or enter the independent school world,” Bergofsky said.

Greene’s advent was fortuitous for the Academy.  

After his arrival, Greene immediately became a revered instructor, helping students develop their interest in mathematics and hone their skills in problem solving. Whether it was in the classroom offering hints and insights to students on the board, or outside of classrooms helping those who needed the extra help, students and faculty noted his caring nature and wisdom.

Senior Nikhil Raman said that Greene’s empathy in classrooms and ability to guide students without completely revealing the answers to problems helped him and his classmates grow as mathematicians. 

“Mr. Greene had an unbelievable amount of patience with us at the Harkness table. He let us figure things out as much as would on our own, and he had no issue with us if we made mistakes,” Raman said.

Greene’s colleagues noted his patience as well. 

Fellow mathematics instructor Philip Mallinson said that, as an instructor, Greene was “patient and willing to spend time outside of class to help his students.” Bergofsky also added and emphasized that Greene’s devotion to his students was a valuable asset for both the students and the department.

“He’s always been great to allow his students to work on their problem and solve them without indulging them with his help, but just with the right amount of hints and guidance, empowering them to have a sense of independence on the board,” Bergofsky said. “He’s also been very well known for how much he’s willing to give extra help outside of class with any of our material.”

Senior Lloyd Feng said that Greene’s ability to patiently and thoroughly aid students to understand the material helped him and his classmates throughout each class. “I was always grateful for the clarity with which he explained concepts and more difficult math problems,” he said.

Upper Philip Chang added that all students, including him, appreciated Greene’s dedication and help to those who were lost or confused about the material. “After struggling with one of the concepts he had brought up in class, Mr. Greene had made sure to spend extra time with me so that I could properly understand and learn the material,” he said.

Along with the time he spent with students in and out of classrooms, Greene was equally devoted to his athletes on the tennis and squash courts. 

He served as the head coach for Exeter’s boy’s varsity tennis and squash teams and motivated students throughout his Exeter career.

Raman, a co-captain of the boy’s varsity tennis and squash team, said that under Greene’s guidance victory was not hard to achieve for the team. “Coach Greene's strength was the amount of ambition with which he came into each match,” he said. “There was no match, no matter how good the opponent was, that we could not win.”

Raman added that Greene’s dedication to the players was inevitable to recognize when on the court. “Some of my best memories with Coach Greene are on the tennis court, but just small memories, doing drills with him. It was beautiful seeing him still able to come out on court and do some of the doubles drills with us,” Raman said. “My saddest memory, of course, is the day on which he told us, the captains, that he was retiring.”

Chang agreed and added that everyday in practice, his care for his players was evident and apparent. “He took a genuine interest in each one of his varsity tennis players, offering us key pieces of advice during matches and practice,” he said.

Similar to the athletes, Greene explained that memories of past and current tennis players competing in the court, and victory over their opponents are what characterize his time in Exeter special and successful. He shared one of his earliest moments of coaching tennis, when the team defeated Andover at an end-of-the-season game.

“My captain, Rob Katz, was on the court. He was in a battle. It came down to a tiebreaker in the third set between the two of them. We were cheering on our side and Andover’s team was cheering on their side. Then Rob ended the match with a 9-7, and we beat Andover 4-3. Moments like that are what make my time coaching tennis precious,” Greene said.

After Greene’s retirement, Bergofsky said that both students and faculty from every corner of the campus, from the hallways of the Academy building to the tennis courts, would miss him. He emphasized that Greene’s service to the Academy will always be cherished and evoked.

“I can only hope that he can be remembered for what he is, which is a very caring and giving teacher who was always willing to go the extra mile for students, just like he did for his tennis players, squash players and his dorm students,” Bergofsky said. 

He continued, “He did whatever it took to make the students successful. He wanted his students to feel good about them, be successful at what their doing and come away being confident in the end. And I’m sure students will remember him as a master teacher, caring coach and a good guy.”