A Farewell to Mr. Westman

French Teacher and avid polyglot Matt Westman will switch from teaching to Advancement, a new face, energy, and perspective for the office’s Planned Giving branch. In the classroom, Mr. Westman holds himself as a learner, not simply a teacher—Chief Advancement Officer Chuck Ramsay also articulated his “intellectual curiosity.” As Mr. Westman put it, “I’m not French... I’m a very enthusiastic learner. And while I am the content expert in the room, I often think that what I can give [students] is a model for how to learn.” A student in his French 3 class, Emily Menzies ’27, described him as “an animated person.” Mr. Westman stresses the importance of real word conversation; in his classes, he has students record themselves speaking each night to measure growth throughout the school year.

Now, Mr. Westman will begin helping alumni set aside end-of-life donations. “Right now in my career, this is another aspect of schools that I have been interested in learning more about, and I’m thrilled to have the opportunity to do that here,” he said. He enters Advancement at a philanthropic turning point—as Mr. Ramsay described, younger generations hold fading institutional faith and a need for specificity in donation. “Our alumni want to know exactly how their money is being spent, so we’ve worked really hard to demonstrate that impact,” he said. Mr. Ramsay highlighted the distinct faculty perspective Mr. Westman will bring: “He can go to somebody who might be a little removed from Deerfield... and give them a glimpse of what Deerfield is today,” he said.

But Mr. Westman also acknowledged, “[Teaching] is a part of who I am.” As Menzies said, “He’s the best French teacher I’ve ever had.” He heads to Advancement eager to become a part of Deerfield’s philanthropy, but teaching, he said, will remain a core part of his spirit and identity.