Berlin High School Graduate Chris Green Becomes Principal at Rocky Hill School

Many Berlinites will remember Chris Green from his days at Berlin High School.

Green was a highly-decorated track and cross country runner as well as a top student that earned him a spot at Harvard University.

He graduated from Berlin High School in 2004 and Harvard in 2008 and has been working as a math teacher at the Advanced Math and Science Academy in Marlborough, MA. but he had always had an interest in the Russian School of Mathematics.

"From the time I was in eighth grade, my mother would send me to Russian School of Mathematics in the woods of New Hampshire in hopes that it would help take me to another level in math," Green said. "I stayed in touch with the school while I was at Harvard, in fact I wrote my thesis on their teaching principals."

So when the Russian School of Mathematics decided to open a school on the Silas Deane Highway in Rocky Hill, Green was an obvious choice to become the Principal of the school.

"I'm really excited to bring this great program back to the area I grew up," Green said. "I think it's a great opportunity to change perspectives and raise standards by helping kids develop math skills, deep conceptual understanding, confidence, and a genuine appreciation for the subject. 

"Our twice a week summer classes will run for six weeks starting the week of July 8 with full year once a week classes starting in early September.  There is more information on our website."

Green said that the basic structure of the program is to introduce concepts earlier in the student's career.

"The schools around here are pretty good but the overall sequencing of when they teach things in math delays the development," he said. "Look at Algebra. Most kids won't take it until they are late junior high school or first year of high school. That's too late. We put it into work with our fourth graders when we introduce variables. We even go back as far as kindergarten students when we give them two variables. And we do it in an age appropriate way which is the coolest part."

Green said registration is available on the website for both the summer and full-year courses.

Right now, he is getting used to being back in the town and area he grew up in.

"I will live somewhere in the suburban Hartford area, maybe in Cromwell or Berlin," he said. "It has been interesting getting back into the scene of where I grew up. I found out that a lot of the kids I went to school with play in a Sunday night basketball league in town. So I'm looking forward to getting back into the Berlin swing of things."