by Allie Matthias (V)
Ms. Wang will be leaving Pingry this year after teaching Chinese for six years. Lily Wang, better known as Wang Laoshi by her students, will be moving on to continue studying as she pursues a Ph.D in the convergence of Buddhism and science.
Ms. Wang came to Pingry in 2012, seeking teaching experience at a prestigious school. She was invited to teach at Pingry and took a position in the world language department’s Chinese program. She taught many different levels of Chinese, ranging from Chinese 1A with middle schoolers and Chinese 7 with high school seniors. This past year she taught Chinese 2, Chinese 3, and Chinese 4 Pre-AP. She has also become involved in the science department: she gave a Journal Club presentation in 2015 and became an IRT mentor this year. Ms. Wang guided Brian Li (Form IV), Josie Jahng (V), and Emily Sanchez (IV) with the Biogas IRT project.
Ms. Wang has enjoyed her time at Pingry and made great connections with both faculty and staff. “I think the people are very kind and supportive here, she said, “and the staff and faculty work in harmony.” It’s an atmosphere she will miss.
Her favorite part of working at Pingry was that “it was such a pleasure to teach students of diverse backgrounds.” She considered it “a unique opportunity” to teach so many different students who have enjoyed a variety of cultural experiences.
By working at Pingry, she “learned a lot.” She said, “Pingry has a unique culture and a very close community. I learned a lot of American culture from Pingry.” She will carry her memories from Pingry with her into her future endeavors and careers.
She has impacted students and her fellow faculty throughout the year with her genuine love of teaching and her respect for students. Leo Zhu (V), who was Ms. Wang’s student for three years, said, “Wang Laoshi is very flexible and understanding. She is aware of the busy-ness of junior year and is accommodating to make sure that you can put your full efforts into everything.”
In fact, this own writer’s Chinese ability has improved greatly as a student of hers. All her students will miss talking to Wang Laoshi in the language office.