New teacher lays down the law… and picks up the books

By Hilary Anderson
Contributor

Russ Fee traded the courtroom for the classroom and he couldn’t be happier.

Fee, a former civil rights and employment attorney, voluntarily gave up 27 years of practicing law to work with young people. Today he’s a third-grade teacher at St. Bruno School.

“I feel better about what happens in a single day in the classroom than I ever did during my years in law,” Fee said. “The children are enthusiastic, unafraid even with all the problems that occur in their lives.”

The decision to change careers was not a quick one, but Fee said he knew in his heart that the practice of law no longer was giving him a sense of accomplishment. “There were several reasons for my about-face,” Fee said. “I had become too brittle, too competitive, too self-absorbed. I was involved in the adversarial system and became disillusioned with what I had accomplished as a lawyer. I wasn’t achieving what I had intended. I was racing through life instead of strolling.”

Fee began winding down his practice, unsure of which road to take next. Finally, as time became more available, Fee began work as a substitute teacher in Berwyn’s District 100.

“I subbed through every grade and realized I liked the elementary level the best,” Fee said. “Children that age are enthusiastic and energetic. Being a substitute was a delight. It’s not what you think.”

Fee enjoyed teaching so much that he enrolled in the education school at Dominican University, River Forest, to earn a master’s degree in teaching and qualify for a state teaching certificate. He already was qualified to teach high school, which would have made his time in school shorter, but took the necessary courses for certification at the elementary level. Fee will graduate in January.

“It took a leap of the imagination and soon everything began to fall into place,” he said. “Something incredible happened during my first course. I had this fantastic professor who gave us the assignment to observe children in public places. He instructed us to take notes about how they associate with each other, with adults and reflect on what we saw.”

Fee chose North Riverside Mall for his observation. He saw three boys about the age he wanted to teach. Fee watched from a distance, then followed the boys to the food court. The boys, too, had been observing Fee. They asked him: “Do you own the mall? … You’ve been writing things down.”

Fee explained he was studying to be to be a teacher and this was part of his assignment.

The three exclaimed, “Oh, you want to be a teacher! You should apply at our school. It’s really a nice place.”

One of the boys gave Fee the name of their school—St. Mary of Celle, Berwyn. He called the principal.

“The boys recruited me,” he said, “and [the principal] hired me as their fifth-grade teacher.”

When St. Mary of Celle’s school closed, the pastor moved to St. Bruno and he recommended Fee to the principal there.

“The rest is history,” added Fee. “I never anticipated having a full-time teaching job so soon after changing careers,” he laughed. “My biggest challenge now is answering questions from parents and others who wonder how I could give up law to teach third grade.”

His career change inspired Fee to pen a book of poetry, “Dash of Expectations, Poems of the Classroom,” which includes reflections of his experiences as a substitute teacher. The book now is being used by a school district and Dominican University.

“I wanted to write about things that happened in the classroom and the notes turned into poems,” he said.

Fee credited his wife, Joan, with making his career change possible. “If she didn’t support me in this, I couldn’t have done it,” he said.

Fee’s three adult children—Heather, John and Patrick—also gave thumbs up to his new career.

Fee’s only regret is that he didn’t start his walk down the teaching path sooner.

“Changing careers can’t be a forced decision,” he said. “One must go at it slowly and seek out what has values that are important to them and try it out. Changing careers is not necessarily a panacea for what’s wrong in one’s life. It has to be a decision of the heart and mind.”

Fee is unabashedly grateful for having the opportunity to change careers and teach.

“I only wish I had done this a lot sooner,” he stated. “The children’s enthusiasm and joy rub off on me. They teach me to be a better person and I feel better about myself as an individual. I consider it a privilege to be involved in their lives and am grateful to have had this opportunity.”



“Dash of Expectation, Poems of the Classroom” is published by Boreas Press and available at Borders (Oak Park) and at Dominican University (River Forest.)