Alex Penny '04

Every student at Deerfield Academy knows who Jay Morsman is: the man who concludes every sit-down meal with, "That's it," of course. But there are few students who know what all Mr. Morsman does to keep the school running so smoothly. He's not just the guy in the dining hall, ya know.

From 1951-1955 Mr. Morsman was a student here, played varsity tennis, and was a cheerleader. He knew Mr. Boyden very well after spending four years as a student and eight years as a faculty member under him. If anyone ever wants to hear some Boyden/Deerfield stories, Mr. Morsman is the person to talk to, as he chauffeured the headmaster down to Florida one time. Commenting on Mr. Boyden, Mr. Morsman said, "He was 'the headmaster' of all headmasters."

Mr. Morsman became a member of the faculty in 1960, and used to give tours to prospective students. In reference to coaching, Mr. Morsman said, "I try to instill sportsmanship, hard work, and fun. At the end of each season we have a team feed or dinner. I give each player a handout of a sentence on each game, a paragraph on the season, stats, and a page or two of funny things that happened." He began coaching soccer with Junior B, and later, along side History teacher Tom Heise, coached varsity to two undefeated seasons. He has coached junior varsity for the longest time and his teams have acquired a 300-113-57 record over his years along with an undefeated season in 1984. Soccer has given him many fond memories, including two comebacks this season--scoring 2 goals in last five minutes to tie Loomis 2-2 and scoring a penalty kick in the final 13 seconds to tie Avon 1-1. A successful hockey coach, Mr. Morsman has coached Junior A, varsity hockey for 4 years with Head Coach Jim Lindsey, and outstanding JV squads with a record of 313-58-5 under his leadership. The most prevalent hockey memories include losing to Loomis JV in the last second, coaching Craig Janney who went on to play in the NHL for 10 years, Mike Mulonnev. and John Gulliano. Mr. Morsman commented on another vivid memory recalling the time he watched the "boys' varsity hockey pull off the biggest upset in hockey with a 5-3 win over Andover," back when he was a JV coach.

Mr. Morsman has also coached tennis during his 43 years as a Deerfield faculty member. His JV coaching record is 125-35-1 and varsity record is 156-54. Mr. Morsman recalls, "winning the KingswoodOxford tournament, winning New Englands, and winning the Nationals all in the same season." Summing up his experiences with Deerfield athletics, Mr. Morsman said, "I love to compete--hate to lose--but my teams work hard and have fun."

The pep rally before Choate Day has become a favorite event for students and faculty alike, and Mr. Morsman does his part year after year to pump students up for the big day. "I love the Choate rally," Mr, Morsman comments. Some of his famous sayings are, "DA is #1, Choate is not." and "DA has the best student body in America."

Some students may not realize that once upon a time Mr. Morsman also was a classroom teacher. In response to his teaching days, Mr. Morsman said, "We had fun. I often dressed up where appropriate. Always had stories, both personal and not personal, about historical events. I often showed famous autographs." Mr. Morsman taught a variety of courses including: U.S. History Survey Course, The U.S. Supreme Court, Women's history, African-American history, Presidents Nixon and Kennedy, and his favorite, The Power of the Presidency.

There are countless smaller tasks that Mr. Morsman undertakes that many students don't know about. He sends varsity sports scores to the Boston Globe and Springfield newspaper and sends articles about varsity games to the Greenfield Recorder. If a student gets mentioned, he mails the parents the article. He sends photos of all sub-varsity and varsity athletic award winners to their parents as well. Mr. Morsman also makes sure that daily newspapers are outside the mailroom and the switchboard in time to be circulated. Before each season, he gives a special handout to varsity captains on how to be a good captain.

What Mr. Morsman is best known for is his work as director of the dining hall. He runs a tight ship where the entire school arrives on time to say a blessing before meals and boys must look tidy by keeping their coats and ties on during meals. He took the job over from James Smith 5 years ago. Mr. Morsman says in response to his job in the dining hall, "#1, it's fun! #2, I get to know many students. #3 I have my own system for assigning students to tables. There are 9 table rotations."

Before announcements can be made, the dining hall is silenced with "Your attention, please." At the finale of the meal, "That's it" are his final words before chaos erupts as everyone tries to exit the dining hall.

"I feel honored that I was a student at Deerfield and that I am a member of the Deerfield faculty (43rd year). It's a privilege to be associated with the best preparatory school in America. We are not perfect, but we are the best!" Mr. Morsman said.