Mr. Brian Anthony only began teaching at Boyertown Area Senior High for the 2019-2020 school year, being hired as a social studies teacher.

Mr. Anthony, unlike a lot of teachers, never imagined himself in front of the whiteboard in the first place.

“I hated school,” he said.

He attended Holy Name in Reading, but he never cared much about it; when he graduated in 1989, he didn’t even envision going to college. His plans for after high school included a myriad of trades, “but definitely not a teacher.”

His parents had a different plan for him.

“My parents forced me to [go to college],” he said, and after a year, he decided to drop out.

His parents pinned a rent on him while he stayed at home. When laboring didn’t earn enough money, he decided to give college a second chance.

His parents managed to get him admitted into Penn State late, and he chose to live on-campus. One of the downsides of registering late was that most classes had no space for additional students, so he had to scrounge for his courses.

“I had to take Ancient Greek as a language,” Mr. Anthony said. “Who takes Ancient Greek in college?”

Though he wasn’t studious and very unsure of the future, it was actually his Ancient Greek professor, Dr. Goldfarb, that encouraged him to take education seriously. Dr. Goldfarb was the push he needed to trudge through college and graduate with a major in Comparative Literature.

“Comparative Literature requires understanding of a lot of different world cultures – Arabic, Ancient Greek, German – lots of history,” he explained.

For years Mr. Anthony taught English at Northwestern Lehigh.

“Working somewhere where people know you is nice, because students will know ‘Is he a cool teacher or a mean teacher?’ or ‘Is he a nice guy that gets harder as the year goes on?’, et cetera,” he said.

When it came to transferring, Mr. Anthony only actually applied to BASH. He saw the teachers and felt a connection with them that made him know “this was the right choice.”

At BASH, he’s currently a Modern World History teacher for Sophomores.

“I enjoy teaching tenth graders because it’s really the peak for pure learning, before all the worrying of SATs and college,” he said.

In addition to teaching, Mr. Anthony also has three children and a bearded dragon named Draco. One of his children has even gotten him into heavy metal bands from the ’80s and ’90s that he hated at the time they were big. He is also an avid traveler, having seven years of teaching experience in the Middle East, where he returns nearly yearly.

Mr. Anthony reflected on being a new teacher, sharing that there are difficulties in connecting to the students. His goal as a teacher is to imbue students with a curiosity and passion for education that his professor, Dr. Goldfarb, gifted him with.