A Best Teacher

A teacher who impacted many in several generations.

When trying to identify sources of good influences on one’s life, the role of the teachers one encounters quickly comes to mind. This is true for me as well as all of us.

From the day I graduated high school I knew that Mr. Howard Bach was the most impactful teacher that I had experienced to that point, and I would also maintain that view today.

“Howie” Bach came to teach at my school, Franklin High School, in 1967. He had recently graduated from college and came up north from the Atlantic City area.

Mr. Bach had a rough and tumble manner of expressing himself. He had a gruff way of speaking and would blurt out in a loud way the thoughts that would come to his mind. Bach portrayed his outward appearance with the persona of a football leader, walking along like a tough guy, and alertly looking side to side as if defending himself from some would be tackler. He seemed to be making his presence in the hallway known in a similar way that you could see a heavy rain squall coming from miles away. He was built big and solid as a hefty lineman and swayed in his walk with a swagger. You knew you wouldn’t want to mess with him.  

Contrary to this appearance though, Mr. Bach was a very friendly man. Just saying “hi” to him would bring a bright spark to thode eyes behind his heavy glasses and a smile would pop out on his face. He would give an energetic hello that was usually followed by a perky wisecrack. This man was definitely good-natured through and through. While the football players would gather round him when traversing the hallway or lunchroom, Mr. Bach would kindly greet any and all students the same way. He knew your name and stated it when greeting, making you feel valued and respected.

Mr. Bach taught physics to us. He made the classes interesting. Despite the stiff heavy rigor of wavelengths and optics, centrifugal forces, heat transfer and energy and entropy we enjoyed the class and his expression of hard subjects. He carried the class along on the experience of science. Mr. Bach gained the respect of the smart kids from my class, as he was always able to answer the questions they might pose whether it be about tensors and vectors or the fine points of magnetism or quantum theory.

Mr. Bach was also an integral part of the football team. He was a coach, and eventually head coach. All the players loved his coaching ability and leadership style. Memorable times included his buoyant personality at the pre-game bonfire pep rally during those days of old. I know I wasn’t the only one from Franklin High School who would say, if asked, that he was my favorite teacher.

Later in life, for about 15 years I had acted as the alumni rep of Columbia University in NYC for interviewing prospective students from North Jersey. From time to time I would have seniors from Newton High School come to be interviewed. This is where Mr. Bach headed when Franklin High closed, . I’d ask them to come prepared with a resume and where they’d like to see themselves in 5 and 10 years. During the interview I would ask “who was your favorite teacher?” Those students from Newton High School would say, without fail “Mr. Bach.” At first I was amazed but then realized that this man made a great difference to students spanning many years and several places. I also got a laugh when I would say, during the late November time when students would come for Early Decision reasons, “so, did you like how a centroid of a baseball bat can be found by sliding your fingers in from both ends?” The students would be stunned and astonished and say “we just covered that, and in Mr. Bach’s class!” And we’d recognize the routinization of good teaching by the favorite teacher of both of us in the interview.

Howie exhibited all the factors that are said to make up a good teacher: he knew his subject matter and expressed it with confidence and authority, he commanded the attention of the kids, he was very personable with each student, he was truthful and honest and consistent. He would add some humor to the dry and onerous subject matter. He would go the extra mile for someone in need. Knowing him was enjoyable. He remembered the kids from his class even decades later, and by name. He was a person who made life better for everyone he met.

Around the year 2007 I was a professor at Stevens Institute of Technology in Hoboken. A student there was from Newton and was in Mr. Bach’s last class before he retired. I asked the student the question and he replied “my favorite teacher was Mr. Bach.”