The Wykehamist The Wykehamist Cloister Time 2017 | Page 13

Vale PJL
Arriving from St Catherine's, Oxford, with a
BSc in Biological Sciences, PJL quickly found
a niche as a brilliant biologist with an
unquestionable desire to better the knowledge
of Wykehamists. She could often be found late
in Science School pouring over textbooks to
add to the content of her lessons, spending an
exorbitant effort to add even the smallest of
anecdotes. Good humoured, and always
willing to help even the most settled of
Biology dons, she was an inspirational breath
of fresh air in the department. Few failed to
notice her drive and motivation, so typical of
rowers, put to great effect coaching the first
two years at Boat Club and leading groups
attempting their Silver Duke of Edinburgh’s
Award. Popular within our community, she
will be missed as she leaves to read for an
MSc at Imperial College, London.
Vale AAK
Anna Kashlach was once described by a pupil
after a school trip as one of the nicest and
calmest people he had ever met. And her
patience has certainly been appreciated by all
the boys studying French at Pre-U level, where
she has gently encouraged them to chat away
about a huge variety of topics ranging from
French politics to advances in technology. She
has strived to make their spoken French more
sophisticated and to become more opinionated
about things that matter. She has also been a
welcome addition to the tutoring team in
Chawker’s, where the boys have much
appreciated her ability to help them with both
their French and their Russian as oral
examinations have approached. Anna has been
a friendly, cheerful and reliable colleague who
will be greatly missed. She is returning to
France to pursue a postgraduate course in
translation.
Vale DAA
I first met Dara Alizadeh in his first week as a
Gordon Fellow and, as is the WinColl way,
discovered that he had spent four years
studying Economics at the UPenn, with a
focus on game theory. No-one had, of course,
thought to tell me before he arrived, but within
weeks we had incorporated him into the
Economics Department, and got him teaching
some applied Economics. Dara has a gentle
manner, a good sense of humour and a can-do
attitude, that has made him a pleasure to work
alongside. He’d cover, if he could, and
sometimes when he couldn’t, and just got
stuck in to doing the job as best he could
without complaint. I can assure him that it was
good enough, and I think he’s enjoyed
communicating his passion for the subject, and
all things American, to VI Book Economists.
Apart from his up-to-books commitments,
Dara has spent a lot of time on the water, as
befits someone who has rowed for the US
under-23 team. He’s been to Poland, to
Nottingham – many times – and returned to
Boston. Alas, only the market town in
Lincolnshire though. He’s also contributed in
other ways: to Dodgeball; to the staff cricket
team, where the American propensity to run to
first base has been coached out of him; to
creating ‘beard envy’ amongst colleagues and
men in the school alike. He’s also amassed one
of the finest collections of valid passports that
I’ve come across - American, Iranian, British
and Irish - which probably means he works for
Mossad; if so, he’s maintained his cover.
Dara attributes his decision to come to
Winchester to the influence of Nathaniel
Allen, one of the first Gordon Fellows, and his
decision to go pursue a Master’s in Education
Policy at Cambridge to his time at Winchester.
We look forward to seeing where Cambridge
leads him, not least because he hopes to row in
the Light Blue Boat.
Vale HJP
Hettie left the roundabouts of Milton Keynes
after completing her Schools Direct teacher
training at Walton High, her sights set on the
Hampshire cretaceous chalk downland and
WinColl’s Geography department. She arrived
in September 2015 and brought new ideas with
her trademark fresh-faced positivity and
enthusiasm. Her resources were widely shared
around the department, which encouraged
reflection on current practice. Her ability to
create a lesson plan, even with a starter and
plenary that could be completed in exactly
thirty-five minutes taught the department that
it really could be done!
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