The Student News Website of Francis Howell North High School.
The Collector Store

FHNtoday.com

The Student News Website of Francis Howell North High School.

FHNtoday.com

The Student News Website of Francis Howell North High School.
The Collector Store

FHNtoday.com

Countdown to 4th Quarter!
days
0
5
hours
0
2
minutes
1
4
seconds
0
7
The Collector Store

Retiring after this year, a fine example of the talent we have here at Howell North leaves his mark

You might know Mike Kenny as a business teacher. You might know Mike Kenny from his famous quote at the football games, “Another fine example of the talent we have here at Francis Howell North.”


You might know Mike Kenny from his work with Knights of Excellence or the senior trip, but one thing is for sure: if you go to FHN, you know Mike Kenny.
For the past 32 years, 19 spent at FHN, Kenny has been teaching business and accounting classes. However, Kenny will not be returning for a twentieth year. “Put a fork in it, I’m done!” Kenny said
laughing. “Let the air out of the balloon, I’ve got nothing left!”
Kenny decided on retirement simply because he felt it was time. However, his years of long work have not gone unnoticed. Kenny won the Walmart Teacher of the Year award in 2006, and was also voted Favorite
Teacher by seniors in the classes of 2005 and 2006.
“He’s had such a big influence in FHN,” fellow business teacher Joe De Ciechi said. “Everyone knows him as the voice of Francis Howell North. Something I get to see that I’m not sure everyone gets to see is the number of students that come back to visit him, that had his classes or was on his team when he coached. He just has an enthusiasm that’s contagious and spreads to the whole room.”
Although he will not be teaching anymore, Kenny will still remain active in many things at North. His company, Sun ‘n Ski Travel, will still coordinate the senior trip. He also hopes to continue announcing events at school. Students remain close with Kenny even after they are in his classes because of his sense of humor and sarcastic personality.
“I was kind of disappointed when I found out he was retiring because he’s one of my favorite teachers,” junior Austin Haywood said. “I know everyday that I’ll walk out of his class with a laugh and a smile on my face.”
Kenny has made a positive impact on not only the students, but the teachers as well. Teachers say they often turn to Kenny for advice in the business department, and that he will be a difficult person to replace.
“Mike’s a team player,” marketing teacher Melissa Trochim said. “He does so much for the students and for our business department. He’s truly going to be missed because in the years he’s been at FHN, he’s truly made his mark, especially in the accounting classes.”
Other teachers feel the same way, agreeing that Kenny’s positive attitude and effective teaching style will be missed in the coming years.
“He’s been such an asset to our school in the classroom, as a coach, and as the voice of FHN,” De Ciechi said. “He’s just done those things so well that our school is really going to miss him. He’s been an extremely strong advocate of the business classes, particularly accounting, that it’s just really going to help the kids when they get to college.”
After being a teacher for so many years, Kenny had mixed emotions about the finality of retirement.
“I was kind of happy that it was going to be over with, that I wouldn’t have to work anymore,” Kenny said. “And sad that I didn’t have to work anymore. I’d like to continue announcing and working the
lower-level games. That way I’ll still get to see all the students and keep in contact with the people that were here when I was. [My biggest accomplishment is] having had the privilege to teach and interact with all the students that I have in the last 19 years.”
As the saying goes, all good things must come to an end. By the end of May, Mike Kenny will no longer be a teacher at FHN. He will have to find something else to fill the void of teaching in his life.
“I’m going to build an ark and start collecting animals two-by-two,” Kenny joked.
Others take into consideration the way they would feel in Kenny’s shoes.
“He always said that he’d be here with his red pen in hand forever,” Trochim said. “So I think that first day of school will be a bittersweet moment for him.”
Despite the fact that Mike Kenny has been teaching at FHN longer than all of the students currently in attendance have been alive, he is not a teacher that will soon be forgotten. The past 19 years have proven that Mike Kenny truly is “another fine example of the talent we have here at Francis Howell North.”
Donate to FHNtoday.com
$105
$500
Contributed
Our Goal

Your donation will support the student journalists of Francis Howell North High School. Your contribution will allow us to purchase equipment and cover our annual website hosting costs.

More to Discover
Donate to FHNtoday.com
$105
$500
Contributed
Our Goal