Tribute to a 'Head Master'

By Bryant Mason

Some teachers are lifers. Jack Pidgeon is one. He is and was my headmaster at The Kiski School, a private boys' preparatory boarding school for students in grades 9-12 in the rolling hills of western Pennsylvania, near Pittsburgh.

Now in his 42nd year, Jack is believed to be the longest serving "head master," as he likes to pronounce the word, in the United States--a remarkable durability, considering the average tenure of a headmaster at private preparatory schools today is three years.

"You know the word 'principal,' if you think about it, is an adjective. It's the principal teacher," Jack explained to me in an interview not too long ago as he described his love for teaching. "For many principals, the teacher part has dropped off over the years," he said. "I have never felt that way. I wanted to be a head master. I wanted to...