MY TIME AT AACS WITH MRS. KATHRYN (O’CONNOR) FOSEGAN by: Bill Pulos ‘73
I remember my time with Mrs. Kathryn Fosegan fondly. Known to her teaching friends at Alfred-Almond as “Kay”, she’ll always be in my mind as “Mrs. Fosegan.” She was an English teacher at Alfred-Almond for many years and stands in a long line of talented teaching professionals at AACS that all of us had the privilege of learning from. I feel extremely fortunate to have had her as a teacher.
My first experience with Mrs. Fosegan was in 8th grade English. As I recall, she was just starting as a teacher. She would have been around 30 years old. Attractive, well dressed and all business. She definitely had my attention in that department. My yearbooks reflect she was just starting her beautiful family. 3 boys and 2 girls. You can tell by her yearbook dedication pictures she was happiest with her family.
I suppose the older we get, the better we remember ourselves as good students; as polite, well behaved, respectful and helpful to the teacher. Those were the things my brother and I were taught at home by our teacher parents. I don’t claim to have a perfect recollection of my behaviors in Mrs. Fosegan’s class, but suffice to say I could have done much better in several of those areas. English and public speaking came fairly easily to me and as a result, I didn’t have to work as hard in those subjects. Unfortunately, Mrs. Fosegan knew that and got on my case about my effort, or lack thereof. She knew full well I was not working to my potential. In those days, your student report cards reflected not only a numerical grade but also an effort grade of 1-5, 1 being the highest. Suffice to say, regardless of my numerical grade, my effort grade with Mrs. Fosegan was below 3 on occasion. Wasn’t a lot of fun at home when that happened.
My second classroom experience with Mrs. Fosegan was 11th grade English. As students, we were all a little older and she expected more of us. She knew her stuff and wanted you to take an interest, work hard and she would support you to the inth degree. Her children remember her special gifts to be her warmth, attentiveness, ability to listen and to treat everyone as equal – regardless of their ability or disability, education level, or opinion that made her stand out from others. The fact she kept long and genuine relationships with students for decades after schooling them is a testament to what made her so special to so many.
Her daughter Jennifer remembers: “Mom was teaching us each and every day how to look for anyone who was hurting, isolated, left out, disregarded or in need, and then do something to show them simple kindness and care. One time much later mom told me that she had a student with a tough hygiene circumstance and made arrangements for the student to shower at school. She brought in toiletries and it was as simple as that. What struck me was her taking the time and interest to find out why there was a problem and then, practically and with compassion, provide a solution. That was mom. The more rejected or ostracized someone was, the more she wanted to show that person love and acceptance. And that was every day, no matter where she was”.
All of that was going on with Mrs. Fosegan but I didn’t know it. My job was to go to class and get the grade. All I knew was if I didn’t pay attention, all she’d have to do is give me “the look” and I knew there was trouble brewing. “Her look” was very effective. On occasion I thought I saw a little steam as well. She had no problem keeping me in line but I did test her patience. I’m not sure my “effort grade” improved much from 8th grade but I learned. On the 11th grade Regents exam I did very well. I owe much of that to Mrs. Fosegan and told her so before I left A-A. I think she was a little surprised when I did; I think I surprised myself.
Mrs. Fosegan went on to work many years at Alfred State College. In retirement, she was actively involved in Literacy Volunteers teaching students and administrating. I can testify she was all about her service to others and not bringing attention to herself. When I found out she’d passed, I looked for an obit and couldn’t find one. Now I know why. She was not about herself, she was about others. That’s the way she wanted it.
Kay Fosegan will always have my respect and appreciation. I’m very grateful for my time with her. I can only hope she knows that with much of what I’ve written over the years, I’ve had her lessons in mind. Sentence structure, and so much more, meant little to me then but it does now; thanks to Kay Fosegan.
