Retiring Faculty Citations

June 3, 2022

Patricia Collins

Just a look at her home and the exquisite plantings that surround it reveals the fundamental truth about Patricia Collins. She makes things grow, nurtures them, protects them, and under her care everything flourishes. The community of people on the Mesa are no different, for we too have been cared for by Patricia.

She is zealous about that care, handling all of the scheduling for the entire Tri-Valley league so that she can ensure the least disruption to the programming at Cate. Having served as Athletic Director early in her tenure at Cate, Patricia understands better than anyone the complex choreography of this place. And she uses that wisdom thoughtfully, so that we never see the artful work she does behind the scenes to make our lives as seamless as they can be.

The only glimpse of Patricia is when she heads to or from the office, usually with her little dog Ruby by her side, a furry bundle of affection beside an athletic administrator who loves this place, its people, and everything that grows here.

Patrick Collins

Patrick is one of our archetypes: an incredible scholar, a brilliant artist, an expert craftsman, a phenomenal musician, and a transcendent teacher. He has held virtually every post on campus, written a history of the School, built some of our most innovative course offerings, and participated in or led virtually every meaningful curricular initiative at the School.

His presentations to alumni or our parent community on Art History are studies not simply in good pedagogy but in the manner one uses an academic discipline to broaden what we see and distill what we might understand as a result. His performance on guitar during last year’s Baccalaureate, a lovely solemn rendition of Lynyrd Skynyrd’s iconic Free Bird, was similarly transcendent, an artist not simply playing music but becoming it.

That is what Patrick has given Cate over more than three decades, his complete and total commitment, his hope for each student he encounters and colleague he mentors, and a belief in the beauty of the world and the beauty we can all create.

Gary Pierce

To truly understand Gary Pierce’s impact at Cate, you must begin in his classroom. Gary is a specialist when it comes to mathematics, the guy who can make that sometimes nuanced and daunting language make sense to those for whom fluency does not come easily.

His teaching is gentle, practical, kind-hearted, and full of humor and faith.  Gary is a savior for math students who never imagined they would enjoy math. Perhaps that is why, if you visit a Cate reunion, everyone wants to see Mr. Pierce. So many stories of gestures large and small from Gary, of moments of unlikely laughter, untimely misadventure, and patient teaching.

Gary has stayed true to his beginnings at Cate over forty years ago, teaching, coaching, advising, and working in the residential program. He has lived in virtually every residence on campus and contributed in some way to every student’s education.  And in the afternoons, Fall and Spring, you’ll find Gary in the gym supporting our volleyball program, one that his two children led during their time at Cate.

Wherever we go on this Mesa, literally or figuratively, Gary Pierce has already been there, meaning his mark on Cate is as indelible as the lessons he teaches his students.  For that, we and they are in his debt.

Tano Vega

There are names that will be eternally associated with this community, among the most notable of which is the family Vega. Our home here has been in the care of that family and particularly in the care of Tano Vega for as long as any of us can remember. And we are fortunate.

Our grounds have owed their vitality to Tano’s constant care and oversight, his respect for Reginald Johnson’s and Lockwood Tower’s original campus design, his determination to see that our playing surfaces, lawns and outdoor community spaces are in perfect shape. Every morning for the last three plus decades, Tano has risen early from his home in Santa Ynez, gotten in his truck, and made the hour long drive to Cate, arriving before many of us are stirring and staying sometimes long after we have retired.

On a campus where we emphasize the importance of place, Tano stands out as one of our most generous contributors, one who recognizes that the way we care for our home teaches lessons as valuable as any learned in a classroom.  Lessons that last a lifetime, just like the care of the Vega family.

Karl Weis

Everybody has a Karl Weis story.  The runners on his remarkable cross country and track teams will note his not so subtle jibes during difficult workouts, “It’s not that hard. It’s not gonna kill you.”

His history students acknowledge a similar no-nonsense focus on doing their best.  The many students he has taken into the backcountry over the years are quick to see his incredible endurance and his cool leadership when the going gets difficult.

Karl’s calming voice is the one we want to hear, whether it’s during the play-by-play at football games, in a classroom, on the track, in the Sierra or anywhere else we might want a little encouragement or a reminder that all will be well. He has piloted programs that have taken off at Cate – including our sophomore African History course and our Senior Inquiry Program – he has led our History Department, our Kern Trip, and our Admission Committee.

There is nowhere that Karl’s always thoughtful insight and well-meaning candor is not welcome, for we know him to be a shaper of this place.

We trust in his wisdom, take comfort in his presence, are energized by his humor, and remain forever thankful that he came to Cate and chose to stay.

David Wood

If there is anyone who is the personification of the program he teaches it is David Wood. His instruction of Japanese is not simply an academic endeavor or a study of language, it is a celebration of a culture, an expression of principle and commitment, a merger of art, ideology, and discipline.

Wood-San is our sensei, the one who knows always what is most important and whose unselfish deference to the needs of the community and his students is always paramount. We seek to live up to his high standards because we don’t want to disappoint him and because we trust that he is always taking us to a place we need to go.  That is as true on the Mesa as off.

Ask anyone who has ventured into the Wilderness with David Wood and they will acknowledge his incredible expertise and his oft used and only occasionally accurate response to the question, “How much further?”  “15 minutes.”  Always 15 minutes, even when it is not. Eventually, the kids catch on.

A brilliant coach, too, a former Department Head and the most attentive of advisors, David’s skills have had broad application at Cate. And in the last few years, David has led our Inclusive teaching efforts, further refining his commitment and ours to make the classroom a place of fulfillment for every student. A fitting conclusion to a remarkable tenure.