Shimin Zhou – MODERN LANGUAGES DEPARTMENT, 1994-2021
Shimin came to Milton the first time as a visiting teacher in the Beijing exchange (well before my time) and developed a friend- ship with Bill Moore, which led to bringing her back as a full- time faculty member and dorm parent in Hallowell. In Hallowell, Shimin was truly a caregiver and a caring giver to all her girls. Since her arrival, she has been the epitome of self-discipline, dedication, and loyalty to her students, colleagues, and friends. Her mothering love and good humor has graced the lives of her students in and out of the classroom as well as the lives of her colleagues and faculty children.
One colleague commented, “We could always count on Zhou Laoshi’s expertise and tireless wrapping of countless delicious dumplings at Lunar New Year celebrations.” In my estimation, she must have made thousands of those delectable dumplings during her time here, nourishing not just the bodies but also the souls of anyone and everyone who chose to celebrate with Shimin.
Another colleague commented on Shimin Zhou’s generous and loving work in the dorms, her high academic standards, and her unrelenting support of her students’ learning: “Shimin is one of the brightest spirits and most effective teachers I’ve had the honor to know; I learned from her example in every encounter and conversation. How much we have been enriched by her presence here; I miss her already!”
I have seen firsthand how Shimin has seamlessly woven a wonderful tapestry of the traditional and the modern, old-school pencil-and-paper daily homework assignments that Shimin painstakingly corrected each night for each and every student alongside technology with smartboards and multi-media to grace her instruction.
Considering how difficult it is to learn Mandarin with English as one’s starting point, what Shimin has achieved this past almost 30 years is nothing short of miraculous. To clarify, according to the U.S. Department of State’s Foreign Service Institute, to achieve professional proficiency in Mandarin with English as your starting language, you need 2,200 hours, as compared with learning, say, French or Spanish, which only requires 600 hours to achieve comparable proficiency. So it takes more than three times as long to achieve proficiency in Mandarin.
From Shimin’s colleagues at the library: “I think we can all agree that Shimin is literally the hardest worker at Milton, and arguably the kindest. In addition to her classroom, dorm, and advising duties, for the past 20 years she was part of the Cox Library team—an integral part. For the past six years, Shimin was the real boss in the department, tending to the library staff as carefully as she did to the plants she kept thriving in an environment as inhospitable as Cox. (The fear of disappointing her by killing one over the long, excruciatingly hot Cox summer was real!) She not only shelved, made sure that bills were paid on time,
and made sure that students were using the space appropriately, but also insisted that the librarians ate, didn’t overdo things, and went home when not feeling well. And she always did whatever she could to make things just a little bit better in the librarians’ lives. Students and faculty frequently came in during the afternoons, looking for Ms. Zhou—usually to say hello and touch base with someone they knew cared deeply about them. Just seeing her walk into Cox at the end of the school day made us perk up, and while we wish her all the best in retirement, we will miss her more than she will ever know.
There is some bitter irony here I am sure in having to bid farewell to someone who has become so synonymous in her time with the idea of welcoming others. Shimin, we miss you al- ready and in your imminent absence, you are someone whom we have come to count on and depend on for so long, it is only that much more obvious how much you will be missed as we think about your departure. May you know that you are always in our hearts. Best wishes for this exciting new phase of your life’s journey in Colorado. All the best from your friends and colleagues at Milton Academy!
Special thanks to the Modern Language Department, Laura Pearle, Andrea Geyling-Moore, and Ann Foster for their contributions to the crafting of this encomium. —BILL HAMEL