As the school year comes to a close, seniors are not the only ones preparing to say goodbye to AHS forever. Teachers from all departments are retiring, resigning and transferring. All of the faculty members who are leaving will be honored at the final faculty luncheon on June 21. Although retirement is common at the end of every school year, this year AHS is losing key administration officials and teachers, including Principal John Ponton, Director of Student Services Steve Sengstack, Director of Activities Angelo Hilios, English Department Chair Augustine Twyman and math teachers Bruce and Judy Fisher.
Principal Ponton reflects on his career
Ponton e-mailed the AHS community on Jan. 13 to announce his departure. “As an educator, my work isn’t done until the very last student ‘crosses the finish line’,” Ponton said.
He discovered his passion for teaching when he was in high school, after working as a camp counselor for under-privileged kids and serving as a Boys Club team baseball coach.
Ponton credits many of his teachers for inspiring him to go into the field of education. “Some of the teachers I had in high school really enjoyed what they were doing and really had fun being a teacher. All of those things drew me into the career,” Ponton said.
Ponton began teaching straight out of college in the D.C. school system and transferred to Marshall HS three years later.
“Early in my career, as far back as Marshall, I had contemplated administration, but I also wanted to become a varsity basketball coach,” Ponton said. “I was sort of torn. At that point I had only been in education for a few years, so there was a lot I had to learn.”
After serving as a social studies teacher and a JV basketball coach for six years, he was hired as the varsity basketball coach and a social studies teacher at Stuart HS. Ponton worked at Stuart for 19 years, the last four as an Assistant Principal. Before he became an administrator, he began participating in a cohort program for education at George Mason University.
“The unique thing about it is, all the classes were taught by Fairfax people, and so you got to network and meet people along the way,” Ponton said.
After completing the two-year program, he received a Masters degree and was endorsed to become an administrator. Ponton was promoted to Assistant Principal of Stuart before completing the program.
“It was just a point where I felt like I had taught for 21 years and I felt like as a teacher I was really on-top of my game and I needed a new challenge,” Ponton said. “The bulk of my career has been spent in the classroom and it has helped me to become an effective administrator.”
Ponton, who is modest of his accomplishments, feels that AHS is moving in a positive direction now and feels that this is a good time for him to retire. When asked, he noted that among the academics, athletics and activities, he has many memories. He says he will miss activities like Homecoming, Prom and graduation.
“I think the greatest honor I have is graduation,” Ponton said. He believes that being the Principal of AHS is something very special.
“I look at it as almost a privilege. In 57 years, we’ve only had 6 principals. Some of the newer schools have had a bunch of principals in a short period of time,” Ponton said. “I’ve felt really honored and privileged to be the principal of Annandale. This is a very, very special school. And I would put our school up against any in Fairfax County. Hands down, without hesitation.”
As for what his plans are for retirement, Ponton is still “mulling over” a few ideas. He feels certain that he will take a year off and then he will have to return to some form of work of activity because of boredom. Like many formers FCPS faculty members, he is considering becoming a substitute teacher. The hourly pay and no formal contract is considered to be an attractive alternative to the average hectic school days.
Sengstack begins to say goodbye
Sengstack’s office, along with his “great guidance staff”, can be found inside the Student Services office. He is known as the man who has the difficult and draining task of overseeing the schedule assignments every year. Sengstack has served as Director of Students Services at AHS for 17 years. After working in FCPS for 37 years, he has decided that he needs a change in his life.
“At some point it’s time to start doing other things,” Sengstack said. “I think it’s time to turn it over to someone else.”
At AHS, Sengstack taught English for 10 years and served as a guidance counselor for 10. Then, Sengstack was appointed to be Director of Student Services. He began his career at Lake Braddock HS in 1974 then moved to Lee HS before coming to AHS.
He has hired every current guidance counselor with the exception of Nancy Templer, who began working at AHS before he arrived. Sengstack feels a strong bond to his staff and credits them for his positive experience as Director.
“The opportunity to hire really good people has been the best thing,” Sengstack said. “I love counseling and working with students and all, but I’ll be able to find that somewhere else. I haven’t committed to anything, but I’ll continue in working in education somehow.”
Though Sengstack has no tentative plans for his life after retiring for AHS, he has a few ideas, including working at George Mason with interns or expanding his part-time job with Apple Federal Credit Union. One thing Sengstack knows for sure is that he will be spending more time with his family.
“I have a brand new granddaughter, who is a year old. I’ll be able to spend more time with her, so I’m am looking forward to that,” Sengstack said.
Hilios prepares for something new
Hilios has been working in the education field for 33 years. In 1978 he began his career at Woodbridge HS in Prince Williams County and served as a social studies teacher, a boys soccer and a girls tennis coach until he became a temporary administrator one summer. He then realized that it was the right time to look for a new position.
“I always wanted to be an administrator. There was an opening in FCPS so I took a chance,” Hilios said.
He says after 17 years of serving as Director of Activities, AHS has become a part of him that he will miss when he’s gone. “It’s the people that you will miss the most, the daily communication. It becomes part of your life,” Hilios said.
Similarly to Sengstack and Ponton, he has no concrete plans for retirement, but is considering working as an educator or for a private business after his summer vacation with his wife. “I’d liked to do something I’m familiar with. Things have changed since I was teaching,” Hilios said. His replacement will most likely be hired by the end of June.
Twyman Reminisces
English Department Chair Augustine Twyman recently announced that she would become one of the multiple teachers who are leaving AHS.
Although teaching was not her first career choice, Twyman has been involved in the field of education for 20 years, 15 of those at AHS. Initially, her focus was to get a job associated with education through Public Broadcasting Service (PBS). She started as a PR director, which required her to promote programs, raise funds and write scripts. She later became the development director, where she managed a radio station in California.
When she met her husband she was working as a consultant and had left the corporation in D.C. where she had previously been working. She decided her travel schedule was “horrific.” She decided that her travel schedule had been too hectic, so she decided to pursue a career in teaching. She completed her teaching credentials at Howard University. She had previously attended Junior Monterey College and transferred her junior year to Howard and later to Georgia State to complete her masters.
During the 15 years she has taught English at AHS, Twyman has worked to diversify reading lists through incorporating contemporary and world literature in the English curriculum. She was appointed as Department Chair in 2009.
“[I enjoy] being in a room with kids [and] listening to them talk about books [and] discuss literature,” Twyman said. “[I got to] experience watching young people mature in their lives at this time, and I have thoroughly enjoyed it.”
Her plans for the summer include cruises with her husband, traveling to Europe and Alaska and writing a children’s book. The thing she is most looking forward to, Twyman says, is being able to sleep past 5:30 A.M. every day.
