Amidst the total confusion at Prep caused by the beginning of a new school year, one faculty member in particular seems completely unfazed by the overwhelming challenges he now faces as a first-year teacher and is fully prepared to start the year off with a bang. Mr. Gregory Morrissey, otherwise known as the teacher with the stunning red beard, is back for his second stint at Prep, this time as an English teacher.

Mr. Morrissey, Prep graduate of ‘08, is a Westfield native. As a child, he enjoyed playing soccer, hockey, and lacrosse. When he was in eighth grade, Mr. Morrissey had his mind made up on attending a catholic high school; the only problem was he couldn’t decide on a particular school. Like many students at Prep, Mr. Morrissey credits his freshman for a day experience as the deciding factor in his decision to come to Grand & Warren. When asked about his first day as a prospective student at Prep, Mr. Morrissey elaborated, “After my freshman for a day experience, I felt a great sense of community at the school.”

While at Prep, Mr. Morrissey made the most of his opportunities. Living up to true Prep standards, he was a well- rounded student who actively participated in many clubs and activities during his time at the school. His main interests included playing hockey and lacrosse but he was also a member of the Campus Ministry Team.

When asked what his favorite subject was, Mr. Morrissey took no time in answering, “Doc Scibilia’s junior year Social Justice Class.” Doc Scibilia has impacted Mr. Morrissey in many ways; particularly in the way he teaches his classes as he cites Doc as someone who he models his teaching style after. Although Social Justice was Mr. Morrissey’s favorite class, Mr. Jeff Alcoser was his favorite teacher. Mr. Alcoser taught history and chaperoned Prep’s service trip to New Orleans to help in Hurricane Katrina relief. As a member of this trip, Mr. Morrissey represented Prep down in New Orleans during the immediate restoration process of the city.

Although he was a two-sport athlete in high school, Mr. Morrissey decided to attend Messiah College in Pennsylvania in order to play lacrosse. Once Mr. Morrissey graduated from Messiah, he decided he wanted to serve as a volunteer for one year of his life. He first did this, by giving his time back to Prep, chaperoning a Prep service trip to Camden, New Jersey during the summer of 2012.  When asked how Mr. Morrissey was as a chaperone, Brendan Boardingham, currently a senior at Prep, said: “Mr. Morrissey was a great chaperone; funny, relatable, and an all-around great guy. He genuinely cared about the trip, the work we did, and all of us on it.”

After chaperoning the trip to Camden, Mr. Morrissey participated in AmeriCorps in Charleston, South Carolina. During his time with AmeriCorps, Mr. Morrissey served as a teacher for an impoverished elementary school. Along with teaching elementary school, Mr. Morrissey was able to help with a local high school’s Campus Ministry program, which was a major passion of his while at Prep. Mr. Morrissey also started a JV lacrosse program at that high school in Charleston and participated in a trip to Costa Rica with some of the team. When asked how he would summarize the year in AmeriCorps as a whole, Mr. Morrissey said: “It was an eye-opening experience.”

Before this year, Mr. Morrissey was on the fence about teaching, but he said that the chance to come back to Prep, “is a great opportunity and I am blessed to be here.”  As a late replacement for Sister Meg, Mr. Morrissey’s presence at Prep was somewhat unexpected. Although Mr. Morrissey rejoined us here at Prep suddenly, we are extremely grateful to have him here and look forward to the year with him!