photo courtesy Godwin yearbook 1981
Hoy during his first year of teaching at Godwin, 1980-81.
Since Godwin was founded in 1980, Tom Hoy has served the community as a teacher, coach, and leader. He has taught every math course offered at Godwin except calculus and statistics; was head coach of boys’ basketball, head coach boys’ tennis, and head coach golf; and is the mathematics department chair.
Effective at the end of the 2017 school year, Hoy will be retiring.
Hoy is currently one of two original Godwin teachers from the opening in 1980, after exceptional education teacher Phil Soldan retired in 2016. Government and sociology teacher and social studies department chair Anna Bryant still remains at Godwin since the founding.
Hoy has planned to retire at the same time as his wife, a teacher at Carver Elementary, to have more time to spend with her and their children. He will be fully retired and is not required to come back as a substitute teacher.
The 46-year journey as an educator was not always the plan for Hoy. He came to a career of teaching because of sports and the positive influences of his coaches and teachers while he was growing up.
Hoy said, “Athletics is what got me here. When I grew up, the people that kept me straight were my Little League and high school coaches and I realize now what a positive influence they had.”
Hoy taught at Benedictine College Preparatory School for nine years before transferring to Godwin.
While he was a teacher at Benedictine, he was able to take classes to grow as an educator.
Despite the thousands of students he has taught and the rapidly changing community, Hoy notes Godwin as staying the same throughout his 37 years.
“Technology has changed and diversity has increased, but the basic fundamental values of Godwin and the students have not changed. I am fortunate to have kids today that are just as motivated as my first class,” said Hoy.
When Godwin first opened in 1980, there were only ninth and tenth graders attending the school and classes were small enough that teachers would have the same students multiple years in a row. Hoy’s first class at Godwin was also his second and third.
He taught the ninth graders for two or three years as they progressed through Godwin. Hoy is still in contact with students from his first year at Godwin.
“I enjoy the great students and I enjoy seeing the students that struggle at the beginning of the year but gain some confidence and learn the subject,” said Hoy.
Current trigonometry student and junior Morgan Logsdon said, “Coach Hoy has made trigonometry easy to understand and fun to learn. I’m glad he is retiring after I got to have him as a teacher.”
Hoy has stayed at Godwin since the beginning because it became home to him the first year it opened. He lives in the community and all five of his children went to Godwin.
“I have been very happy here. I like to say about Godwin: ‘good as any, better than most,’” said Hoy.
During his years at Godwin, Hoy taught a number of students that went on to become teachers, many of which are now employed at Godwin.
Hoy said, “It’s fun when [former students] tell you things that you said or did that were memorable to them. It’s a reward you can’t put money on to know you have shown you are happy enough teaching that they would consider pursuing it too.”
Hunter Thomas, current department chair of business and marketing and head coach of varsity basketball, was a geometry student and basketball player under Hoy while he attended school at Godwin.
“First it was strange, but it’s not strange anymore. He is part of the reason I’m doing what I’m doing. I remember that one of the funny things he used to do was hand tests back from best grades to worst grades and you would see people start panicking when they didn’t get theirs back,” said Thomas.
As department head of mathematics at Godwin since 1982, Hoy has been involved in the interview process for teachers within his department. According to Hoy, he sought an array of ages and a variety of ideas and experiences.
Hoy attributes the success of the math program and the school itself to the staff, students, and community.
“It has been quite an honor. Having been at the school since it opened and seeing the first games with only ninth and tenths graders to make our small, varsity teams, it’s great to have witnessed Godwin go from there and develop into the athletic power we are now,” said Hoy.
Hoy was a part of the first class of inductees into Godwin Athletic Hall of Fame in recognition of his time as a coach.
In his time coaching basketball, tennis, and golf, Hoy had substantial athletic success. As head boy’s tennis coach, Hoy saw 13 state championships, 19 district championships, and 21 regional championships. He was state coach of the year two times, USTA state coach of the year in 2011, and district and regional coach of the year 20 and 15 times respectively.
In his time as head golf coach, Hoy reached four state championships, 21 district championships, and eight regional championships. He was state golf coach of the year in 2006 and district and regional coach of the year numerous times.
As basketball coach, Hoy led the boy’s team to 89 wins.
“In math, an addendum is a term you add and a minuend is what you subtract. I just hope in the end, when the final sum is taken from the addendums and minuends, that it is a positive integer,” said Hoy.
