From the Tigers to the Blue Wave
A Profile of New Teacher Mr. Scott
By Lizzie Kirst - 10/08
NEIRAD enilno edition | printer friendly
Walking into the math office to conduct my interview, I had no idea what to expect from new DHS teacher Mr. Michael Scott. Would he be anything like the Mr. Scott I knew from popular TV show “The Office”? For the sake of the other math teachers I hoped the common name was the only similarity. The limited information I had on this Michael Scott was that he had played professional baseball, which was enough to lead me to believe the two men were nothing alike.
Soon after I began talking with Mr. Scott it was safe to say the likeness ended with their names. We quickly started talking about his professional baseball career, which started at a very young age. Growing up with a father who coached the high school baseball team at Stamford High School, Mr. Scott said he’s been playing baseball “for as long as I can remember.”
After graduating from Darien High School in 1997, he went on to attend Providence College and was named All-American in 1999 and well as won the Big East Championship the same year. Mr. Scott then transferred to UConn after his sophomore year, where he was named Big East Player of the Year in 2001 as well as played in a collegiate all-star game at Fenway Park in Boston: home of his all-time favorite team.
After graduating from UConn, Mr. Scott received a very exciting phone call telling him he had been drafted to play center fielder for the Detroit Tigers. Scott got his first professional hit during a game against the West Michigan Whitecaps as well as many other hits over the course of two years until an elbow injury sidelined his career.
Fav. Team- Boston Red Sox
Fav. Movie- “Bull Durham”
Fav. TV- “The Office”
Fav. Food- pork chops and vinegar peppers & lobster
Fav. Ice Cream- Phish Food
Fav. Book-A Prayer for Owen Meany by John Irving
Would he be anything like the Mr. Scott I knew from popular TV show “The Office”? For the sake of the other math teachers I hoped the common name was the only similarity.
While he hoped to make a comeback, his elbow injury was too extensive and his pro-baseball career was ended, forcing him to choose a new career path. After working in finance at Merrill Lynch for a few years he opted for yet another career switch. This time Mr. Scott chose the classroom instead of a boardroom or baseball field, and what better place to launch the next leg of his career than his good old alma mater?
Joining the math department this fall, Mr. Scott has now found himself working with many familiar faces from his past. Assistant Principal Mrs. Donna Russo, being one, came DHS for her first year during Mr. Scott’s senior year in 1997. Another “familiar face” from his past is his AP Calculus teacher Ms. Felicia Bellows, who said “It is an honor to work with a former student and fun to think that some of the other people sitting in my classroom may end up teaching math one day too!”
When asked to comment on the young Mr. Scott, Ms Bellows remembered Scott well because he was “an outstanding student and had the nicest personality.” Bellows even recalled Scott as “a great baseball player” and remembers purchasing a Blue Wave baseball shirt from Scott to support the team’s fundraiser. (Ms Bellows even still has that old Blue Wave baseball shirt!)
Mr. Scott hopes to coach Darien’s baseball team with head coach Mr. Tom Zawacki in the spring. Mr. Scott currently coaches the Connecticut American Legion Baseball team, so he already knows some DHS players. While teaching and coaching take up a lot of Mr. Scott’s time, he still finds a moment for other hobbies: he loves cooking and eating anything Italian, as well as skiing and not surprisingly collecting Major League Baseball cards.
