I have fond memories of school. At PS 186 in Glen Oaks, Queens, I skipped 3rd grade, where they learned cursive writing. I remember Mrs. Horowitz, my 4th grade teacher, being very patient, but also feeding me penmanship books.
By the time I got to JHS 172 in Floral Park in 1960, teachers gave me extra work, so I got ahead of the curriculum. We had IQ tests so they paid a lot of attention to me from early on. I was in the Special Progress program where you did three years — 7th, 8th and 9th grade — in two.
It was the time of the space race and the Cold War. The culture was permeated with how important science was to the country. I thought about the power of the scientists doing these amazing things — putting people into space and making big bombs — and I was impressed. Anyone who showed interest in science was encouraged, and I benefited from classes and clubs and projects.
We had a math team and the teacher, Mr. Ewan, was very interested in bridge. You could sense his passion. He brought in ideas about probability in the context of bridge. He was the first one who told me what to read outside of class to develop my math skills and my interests. There was a book I wanted to read about Einstein but the math was too advanced so I worked until I could read it.
I went to big schools, especially Martin Van Buren HS in Queens Village. My graduating class was 1,237 people. That was a blessing. There were many specialized programs and a group of us who took advanced classes. It was at a very high level. When I went to the University of Chicago, the classes were more advanced and the subjects were more sophisticated, but the students were just as good at Van Buren, if not better. It was a community, and we taught each other.
I arrived at Van Buren in 1964 for 10th grade. I had just turned 13. Mr. Gottlieb was my physics teacher very briefly, but he was really important to me. He saw something in me, or in my test scores, and gave me extra problems. Mid-semester he moved me into the higher-level physics class. It was like going into the deep end of the pool when you’re not ready but he told me not to worry and he gave me a push. It was a shock. I was going along smoothly, being encouraged but not challenged. He challenged me.
Mr. Rosenblatt taught the advanced class. He was a joker and the class loved him — he kept it fun. I had mixed feelings. I just wanted to wrestle with the stuff. But they worked well as a team: Mr. Gottlieb encouraging me and Mr. Rosenblatt making it fun.
I really owe Mr. Rosenblatt. He taught a class directed toward the Science Talent Search, and I was in it. I went to Washington, D.C., as one of 40 finalists and won 4th place. That was the highlight of my high school career and the experience gave me confidence that I could do things at that level. We met Nobel Prize winners and Vice President Hubert Humphrey attended the banquet. It was grand. It took me to a world I had no idea existed and made me feel I could be part of that.
In retrospect, Van Buren was an extraordinary place then, with students like inventor Ray Kurzweil, political activist Mario Savio and Nobel Prize winner Alvin Roth within a few years of one another. Everyone helped each other and set a level of ambition that was quite unusual. We were strivers: We wanted to improve ourselves and the world.
— as told to reporter Suzanne Popadin