As we ring in the new year, the Hill community welcomes new faculty member David McCombes to the Family Boarding School. McCombes and his family have traveled across the pond from the Charterhouse School in England to experience life in America for a few months by swapping lives with History Department Chair Chris Drowne ’89. The two history instructors met several years ago as coaches of opposing teams while the Hill Boys Soccer team was on their annual England trip. After a few years of communicating, and with support from their respective schools, they decided to switch positions for three months so that they would each experience life at different boarding environments as well as countries.

McCombes and his family are adjusting both well and quickly to life here at Hill. McCombes’s three daughters are enjoying the company of other faculty children as well as the many dessert options at dinner in the dining hall. 

“We feel very welcomed and are taken aback by the overall kindness of the community,” McCombes said. In addition, he is impressed with the courtesy of the students and faculty. 

“Small things like students saying ‘Hi’ in the hallways or another faculty member inviting us over for the Eagles game goes a long way and means a lot.” 

McCombes is also impressed by the positivity and “can do” attitude of the student body.

In the classroom, McCombes is teaching third formers in 20th Century History and sixth formers in Advanced History Seminar. He is grateful that the students have been very accepting of him by allowing him to fill Mr. Drowne’s shoes. He is looking forward to watching the third formers create their oral history projects and famous music videos. In History Seminar. He likes the “flexibility and freedom of the course syllabus” and admires the students’ genuine interest in the subject. As the education system in England is very different, McCombes is enjoying a new way of teaching.

 The students in McCombes’s classes are also appreciating the experience of the swap. 

“I really like having someone like him in the classroom because he draws from his unique perspective and works that into class discussions to create an interesting dialogue,” Advanced History Seminar student Ben Crispin ’20 said. “He also complimented my turtleneck, so I like him.”

Outside of the classroom, McCombes is playing futsal, a type of indoor soccer, with Hill students a few times a week. He hopes to learn more about sports like basketball and ice hockey during his time here. McCombes and his family are also looking forward to going on the Lake Placid ski trip over the long weekend. Through teaching and traveling, he is excited to see what the next few months have in store.