Farewell Ms. Setiady & Ms. Gence
As the vibrant hues of Spring burst, so too does the bittersweet feeling of goodbye to select teachers of the St. Ignatius community. The impending departure of some of SI’s beloved teachers brings forth a poignant reminder of life’s transitory seasons and the importance to hold onto the loving memories made with one another over the past few years.
Ms. Gence, a French teacher who has taught all levels of French at SI for the past six years, bids adieu. Moderating and overseeing the French Club, she cultivated an ambiance of leisure and respite at club meetings, a rare moment, given the intensity of academics and sports pressure at SI. Some of the activities Ms. Gence designed included crêpe making sessions and beignet fundraisers.
She reflected, “It has been a great pleasure to teach here at SI. I have loved to share the magic of the French culture with my wonderful students through French cinema and music.” A hallmark of Ms. Gence’s career at SI was the trip she organized to France and Spain, where she bonded with 48 of her students, in the pre-Covid era
As Ms. Gence parts ways with SI, she encourages all students to explore areas outside of their comfort zone and to keep growing both as learners and as citizens of the world. A fervent believer in mental and physical health, she concluded, “Treat others the way you would like to be treated. And most of all, Carpe Diem!”
Another cherished member of the school community, Ms. Tamara Setiady has been in charge Farewell Ms. Setiady & Ms. Gence of a multitude of programs and service events throughout her tenure at SI. Over the past seven years, Ms. Setiady worked in the Office of Community Service and Social Justice, coordinated the Immersion and St. Anthony’s Retreat programs, and moderated the Arrupe Social Justice Council.
Cultivating the Jesuit ideals of healing, solidarity, and kinship, Ms. Setiady leaves a lasting legacy upon the SI community through her extensive partner initiatives with local, domestic, and international faithbased agencies to host SI students for their community service projects. She has welcomed the student body into a new way of perceiving the world and introduced them to the intersectionality between faith and the work of justice and advocacy. She remarked, “I loved serving as a consistent presence to our students, showing them that they were seen, loved, and cared for.”
With regard to her final advice, Ms. Setiady encouraged all SI students to take time out of their busy schedules to get to know the people who make the school run: the security and kitchen staff, as well as the adults who work in the business and front offices. These individuals are the unsung heroes who make the SI community sing. Ms. Setiady looks forward to turning the page to a new chapter of her life and moving to the East Bay with her husband. In an exclusive interview, she said, “I feel excited about this next stage of my life and my heart is full of gratitude for all I have learned from SI. Student commitment to animating the school around service and justice has energized me.”
As Ms. Gence and Ms. Setiady take their leave, their indelible mark on the school will forever remain etched in the memories and hearts of the community members they have inspired.
Emma Chan ’24 is a Vol. 71 Contributing Editor
Ms. Moraine
Ms. Moraine walked into an SI classroom for the first time filled with the undeniable excitement of a newcomer and, she admitted, a bit intimidated by the outstanding reputation of the English program. Twelve years later, she is an illustrious force in SI’s English Department, teaching AP Literature and moderating the school-wide literary magazine The Quill.
While the sense of intimidation definitely subsided in her decade-plus of teaching at SI, Ms. Moraine’s excitement for teaching literature, as her students can attest, has never diminished.
“I’ll always remember the great discussions our class would have with Ms. Moraine, whether it was about what we were studying or something completely different that was happening in our lives,” said Aidan Stecher ’23, a Senior tak— ing Ms. Moraine’s AP Literature class. “You always knew that Ms. Moraine cared about how we were doing and feeling.”
Ms. Moraine joined the SI community in 2011, when she said she was immediately embraced by then Assistant Principal Ms. Nickolai. At the time, she not only entered into a brand new school environment, but into an entirely different city as well. Teaching at SI helped her adjust to the shift in life in more ways than one, as taking on an additional nature class allowed the English teacher to explore the city through field trips.
From Hamlet readings with foam sword props to book club soireés, Ms. Moraine continually displays dedication in teaching literature with excitement and engagement. Walking into Room 117, one will find unmistakable signs of this commitment: students’ posters and art projects from studying novels decorate the walls of the classroom. Another prominent display is a row of seven framed covers of The Quill, each one designating a different year Ms. Moraine served as moderator.
The moment Ms. Moraine found out about an opening to moderate the literary magazine, she jumped at the opportunity. Through eight total years, she’s worked with a wide diversity of writers, poets, and artists. “Working with Ms. Moraine on The Quill was a blast! She is always ready with witticisms, supportive advice, and book recom— mendations to keep our literary skills sharp,” Meredith Foster ’23, a Quill Editor-in-Chief, shared.
For Ms. Moraine, one of the hardest parts of leaving St. Ignatius will be the physical distance from one of her closest friends and guides at SI: Ms. DeBenedetti. From sharing the same classroom to moderating The Quill together, the two teachers have shared a close bond — so close that, as Ms. DeBenedetti put it, they “have a sort of telepathy.” For example, if one says, “Oh, I did the thing with the thing, so we’re all set,” the other will perfectly understand.
“It’s rare because you just don’t really find too many people in the world, let alone in the workplace, that you have this with,” Ms. DeBenedetti added. She also highlighted the many aspects of Ms. Moraine’s personality she appreciated over the years, including her “stunning sense of humor,” skill at impersonating a wide variety of accents (especially her “wicked Irish accent”), her accomplishments as a published author “many times over,” and constant will— ingness to say “yes” when others are in need of help. Ms. Debenedetti detailed her first impression of Ms. Moraine that arose from one of their first -ever interactions. When Ms. D needed a proctor to take over while she dropped off her kids at school, Ms. Moraine immediately served as a helping hand. “What I know now is that she always says yes. If she can help, she helps. It’s that simple.”
Along with English and The Quill, Ms. Moraine is a former volleyball coach and enjoys interacting with students outside of classes, where she feels truly part of the community and spirit of SI. She can always be found cheering on her students in performing arts, sports, and big events. And in her last year at SI, Ms. Moraine has found special joy in taking a step back to relish the time she spends with her students.
“I just have felt so lucky to be here and have as much fun as I can with my students,” Ms. Moraine said. “I have the best students in the world.”
Turning the page to future adventures beyond SI, Ms. Moraine will be moving with her family to the state of Washington, where she said she looks forward to spending more time with extended family, enjoying the sprawling nature and scuba-diving opportunities, playing the piano again, and possibly becoming involved in a university. SI thanks Ms. Moraine for her lasting impact on the community and wishes both her and her family the very best on the next stanza in Washington!
Jack Quach ’23 is a Vol. 71 Editor-in-Chief
Mr. Santos
After 8 years of working at Saint Ignatius College Preparatory, and 17 years of teaching total, Mr. Michael Santos has decided to move onto new horizons. Having previously taught math at Notre Dame Belmont, in 2015, Mr. Santos moved to SI and has been teaching in room 412 ever since.
In addition to teaching engineering since entering, he also began teaching Project Invent in 2021, a course he created with Mr. Patterson. In addition to heading SITF for several years, he also participated in SI Live as a moderator alongside Dr. Morris.
Although he left coordinating SI Live after the 2019-2020 show, swearing he would never do it again, he made a surprise comeback in 2022-2023 show alongside Mr. White as a moderator for SI Live one last time.
Mr. Santos holds a special place in the heart of SI with his friendly disposition, funny personality, and charismatic charm. From cracking jokes with students in class or outside of class, to hosting the schoolwide-known. cardboard boat races and jumping off the high dive during so, Mr. Santos has never failed to bring joy to the SI community. His dedication, although hidden behind meticulously curated projects and videos, is nothing short of devoted: he has spent many long hours after school around the campus and sometimes through the late night!
Mr. Santos will truly be missed. He leaves this year to go to graduate school at UC Berkeley where he will get his masters in civil engineering, leaving an irreplaceable hole in the soul of the SI community.
Leia Kwan ’23 is a Vol. 71 Contributing Editor
Mr. Rhodes
Mr. Rhodes, Profe Rhodes, Coach or just Profe, Brian Rhodes has shared himself with the SI community since 2009. Teaching Spanish and being an inviting figure for all classes he taught, Mr. Rhodes is often seen dancing around the classroom and encouraging his students to enjoy the fun.
He allowed students to relax and feel welcomed which is especially important when dealing with learning a new language. Not only is Mr. Rhodes, an aspiring dancer and teacher, also coached men and women's soccer. His dancing footwork translated exceptionally well into his soccer footwork teaching kids how to be better players and better people.
“He always made the time fly by in class,” Ethan Qua ’23 said when reflecting on his former Spanish teacher. Mr. Rhodes you have positively impacted the SI community and will be greatly missed by all.
Jack Stecher ’23 is a Vol. 71 Editor-in-Chief