BETHLEHEM, Pa. — Walking down the main hall of Bethlehem Catholic High School toward the exit doors, Ray Boris looked around, taking it all in.
"I'm trying to create as many mental pictures of this place as I can," Boris said.
Today, he will walk through those doors for the last time. He's retiring after a 50-year career at the school.
- Well-respected teacher Ray Boris is retiring from Bethlehem Catholic High School after a 50-year career
- He taught theology, and was known for being firm, yet fair — as well as making jokes in class
- Boris said he will miss the students and the teacher's parking spot. He says he has his wife Averil to thank
Mr. Boris — as students call him — said he started at the school when he was 25. He had just finished seminary school not too long before, and did a three-month stint at Bethlehem Steel.
He's no stranger to hard work. For 20 years, he worked two other jobs on top of his position as a theology teacher.
Asked what's next for him, he looked at his watch.
"Well, I gotta be at my other job in about three hours," he said with a laugh.
He still works as a janitor at another nearby school, which he said is because the hours are flexible and he doesn't mind the work. He said he plans to keep that job.
Labor of love
In the main office at the school, there's a statue of an eagle in a glass box. It's carrying a bible with its talons, and a bronze plaque below it reads "labor of love."
Across from the eagle were the desks of three administrative staff members of the school. Two of them were taught by Boris.
Their faces lit up as they said it.
Three students who entered the office had the same reaction. Asked to talk about him, one asked, "About how much we love him?"
Those students were Ariana Valenzuela, John Hickey and Leila Carey-Scofanak, all 16 years old, all sophomores at the school.
"He was very interesting," Ariana said, evoking a laugh from the others.
"He was very firm," she said. "If he catches you cheating, he will rip up your paper. And he did! He lived up to his promise. That's the best part about him."
All three students denied being the alleged cheater.
John agreed with Ariana's characterization of Boris.
"I tried to be as good of a student as I could with him, because, yeah, he was really blunt," Hickey said. "So he would say, you know, 'You get on my wrong side, I'm gonna be mean to you.' So I tried to be respectful to him."
The students clarified — they don't think Boris was mean, they think he was fair and firm.
"It's a good part of him — he's fair," Leila said. "He was really funny, too. He would always say things like, 'tough toenails.' I thought it meant like if you stubbed your toe."
Ariana chimed in: "No it's like if somebody asked to turn in an assignment late, he'll be like 'tough toenails.'"
'Parent first who happens to be a teacher'
Asked about the "tough toenails" statement, Boris interrupted before the question was even asked.
"Whatever they said, it's probably true," he said, chuckling.
"I am a parent first, who happens to be a teacher — not the other way around. Not that parents don't do their job — they send their children here, for us to form them. And it's a Catholic environment, so we're giving them exactly what they ask of us. Not that I'm a super person by any means, I certainly have my moments, but the idea is: I'm expecting you to do your best."Ray Boris, Theology teacher at Bethlehem Catholic High School
He said the phrase had been a new addition to his repertoire in the past few years.
"Over the years, depending on when you ask me, there's different ones," he said.
Other favorites were referring to Wednesday as "hump day," and making a cartoonish growling sound to express being annoyed.
"I've definitely said some peculiar things," Boris said.
Boris has six children and said it has influenced his teaching style.
"I am a parent first, who happens to be a teacher — not the other way around," he said. "Not that parents don't do their job — they send their children here, for us to form them."
"And it's a Catholic environment, so we're giving them exactly what they ask of us. Not that I'm a super person by any means, I certainly have my moments, but the idea is: I'm expecting you to do your best."
Asked about finding meaning in his work as a theology teacher, Boris said he's not one to call up a specific bible verse that resonates the most with him.
But he said the overall message is important.
"We're always talking about what Jesus did, how he talked, how he lived," Boris said. "Now I, I try to do my best. I know, I fall short sometimes. But we're all called to do this. This is the challenge, especially in today's society, to treat people fairly."
'I taught him, too'
Boris said he welcomes people to challenge him if they feel as though he's not being fair.
"Because sometimes I make a mistake on a test," he said.
He said that became obvious to him one night when he was watching a football game at the same time as marking tests and he became distracted.
"Twenty-odd years ago, I was watching the Cowboys and the Eagles," he said. "Eagles sucked back then. Next day, half the class was raising their hands, going, 'You marked this wrong, you marked that wrong.'"
"I said, from now on, I will never mark a test or quiz when I'm in a bad mood. And I haven't."
"You get tired, you mark three more. You want to go home, you mark three more."Retiring Bethlehem Catholic High School teacher Ray Boris
Boris said he has another rule with himself — never leave until you're done marking tests for the day.
"You get tired, you mark three more," he said. "You want to go home, you mark three more."
Some of the things will miss about teaching include "the parking spot," he said with a laugh.
But mainly, he said, it will be the students and the rewards of motivating them and getting them excited about learning.
He said he has his wife, Averil, to thank for his career.
On the way out of the school — walking down the main hallway and leaving through the main doors, for one of the last times in his life — Boris ran into a colleague at the school.
The colleague shook his hand, congratulated him, then talked about his own upcoming retirement plans in a few years.
Boris then held open the door and whispered, "You know, I taught him too."
