For Matthew Whipple, Social Studies Teacher and Director of the glenbrook Academy of International Studies, South has always been more than a workplace—it has been home, he said. Now, as he prepares to retire at the end of this school year, Whipple is closing a chapter that began decades ago in these very halls.
What started as a dream of law school and sitting on the Supreme Court soon transformed into something far more personal: a life in teaching, Whipple said. Though he first thought that choice would be temporary, Whipple has now spent 41 years shaping students’ lives, just as teachers once shaped his, he added.
“My teachers at South were lifesavers,” Whipple said. “They gave me a framework to believe in myself. When I got my first teaching job, I started to see my [opportunity] to do, for others, what my teachers had done for me.”
Whipple left for college at Northwestern University in 1985, where he earned a Bachelor of Science in communication studies, he said. He got involved in activism, particularly with South African protest movements, Whipple added. That exposure opened Whipple’s eyes to a broader, more complex world—one that deeply influenced the way he teaches and the worldview he hopes to pass on, Whipple continued.
“When I got to college, I began to see outside the bubble,” Whipple said. “Part of what has kept me [at South] is this notion that I can offer [students] a bigger picture of a wider world.”
Working alongside Whipple in the Academy has been the culmination of years exchanging ideas, supporting students, and growing together as educators, Daniel Rhoades, Social Studies Teacher, said. Whipple represents more than just a good educator, he represents the highest ideals of what a teacher can be, Rhoades said.
“Whipple embodies one of the greatest qualities of a good teacher,” Rhoades said. “He is a public intellectual; he reads a lot, knows a lot, [and] understands a lot. But, more importantly, he cares so deeply. [Whipple] wants people to be the best versions of themselves. He defends, roots for, and supports his friends and family.”
Many students also feel the weight of Whipple’s impact, sophomore Oyuka Battulga said. Whipple’s Honors World History class was a space where she felt safe, calm, and welcomed, Battulga said. Whipple made the effort to understand and support each of his students as individuals, she added.
“[Whipple is] always enthusiastic and dedicated to his work, which rubs off on students and makes [them] excited for class,” Battulga said. “Without [Whipple], South will not have the same energy and spark that he gave to each classroom.”
Whipple has long been the teacher students turned to when they wanted to dig deeper and make a difference, Rhoades said. The creation of Students Taking Action Now for Darfur club began because Whipple helped a student understand the crisis in Darfur, Rhoades said. Whipple now sponsors the club Students for Human Rights, exemplifying his readiness to help others, Rhoades added.
“[Whipple’s] willingness to jump up and take [more] on has always been a big part of his identity at South,” Rhoades said. “He is always so thoughtfully and deeply engaged in all [that he does].”
Whether leading a discussion in class or weighing in on the future of the district as the former president of the Glenbrook Education Association, Whipple brought the same sharp focus and empathy to every space he entered, Rhoades said.
“We are colleagues, we are friends, and I would like to think that we are family,” Rhoades said. “That is something you do not get in a lot of workplaces, and you certainly do not get from a lot of colleagues. It is pretty magical.”
As Whipple’s retirement approaches, he focuses not on his own accomplishments but on the futures of the students he has taught, Whipple said.
“I hope students [leave South], like I did: prepared for the excitement and uncertainty of what comes next,” Whipple said. “I would like for them to take their skills and gifts that they have developed here to help make the world a better place. It was the gift that I was given [at South], and that is the gift that I can give to [the students] on their way out.”
Though his time as a teacher is ending, Whipple’s journey is far from over, he said. Taking his own advice, he will face the unknown with courage and continue making a difference in the world just as he has inspired generations of South students to do, Whipple said.
“It’s easy to just sit and talk about [human rights], but the real world is now out there,” Whipple said. “I feel like I am graduating, and now I get to figure out what’s next for me.”
