Retiring this year from Morris Hills are teacher Mrs. Wilk and staff assistant Mr. Swanick. Both former Morris Hills students, their connection and contributions to the school will always be treasured, and they will be dearly missed.  

Mrs. Wilk has taught in the business department at Morris Hills for fifteen years, a little less than half of her twenty-six-year teaching career. She started her career at Morristown High School, where she worked for eight years, and decided to take twelve years off to raise her family. She then worked at Dover High School for two years before coming to Morris Hills, where she teaches classes such as Personal Finance and Word Processing along with monitoring the Work Study Program (a structured learning program that provides seniors with the opportunity to leave high school early to work and earn credits). Before her career as a teacher, Mrs. Wilk attended County College of Morris and then Montclair State University, and she earned her master’s degree online. 

She identifies her most unforgettable memory as her being awarded Teacher of the Year in 2018. She explains how unexpected it was and how the award “made [her] feel validated that she chose the right career”.  She also loves to see her former students and see how successful they are; she talks about how it makes her “feel like [she has] made a difference”. 

Mrs. Wilk always puts her family first. In her free time, she enjoys spending time with her grandchildren and her family. She also loves walking on the beach, reading books, and being with her friends. Her retirement plans include spending more time at her house on the shore and traveling.

Mr. Swanick has forty-two years of working at Morris Hills under his belt, the entirety of his career.   Mr. Swanick “assist[s] with the TV production classes, distribute[s] audio/visual equipment, like TV monitors, set[s] up equipment for the assembly programs and for after-school events, like Mr. Morris Hills… and supervises the students that do it.” During Mr. Swanick’s freshman year at Morris Hills,  he joined the AV Club for fun. During his senior year, following the leave of the previous person who did the job, Mr. Swanick rearranged his class schedule so that in the afternoons, he could work at Morris Hills and take over the job; he was simultaneously a student and a part-time employee until the school hired him full-time. 

When asked about his experience at Morris Hills, Mr. Swanick describes it as “very enjoyable” and “rewarding”, and despite the ups and downs that come with every job, he is “very happy to be here”. When asked about any unforgettable memories from his time working at Hills, Mr. Swanick mentions Dr. Toriello’s birthday, where the band played for him, along with General Odierno, a high-ranking official in the armed services as well as a former student of Morris Hills, coming to speak at our school about seven or eight years ago. 

In his free time, Mr. Swanick scuba dives (not as often anymore), he likes to go to the movies, read comic books, and hang out with family, with whom he is very close. His retirement plans include relaxing, local traveling, maybe substitute teaching at some point, finding a small part-time job, and overall staying active.

Morris Hills will miss Mrs. Wilk and Mr. Swanick greatly and is grateful for their contributions to the district. We wish both of them a relaxing and enjoyable retirement!