Crestwood High School hosted a special commemorative ribbon-cutting ceremony to officially unveil the Fred F. Paulenich Learning Commons last Saturday afternoon in Mantua. Former colleagues and students of Crestwood senior English teacher Fred Paulenich gathered to celebrate and reflect on his legacy.
“This is a tremendously significant day for us,” Fred Paulenich, Jr. told The Weekly villager. “Our father taught here for 30 years and we have reflected that he had two great passions in his life, one was teaching, and one was his family and so for our family to be involved in giving this gift to the school is a special day.”
Diane Paulenich proudly cuts the ribbon, commemorating the official opening of Crestwood High School’s Fred F. Paulenich Learning Commons last Saturday afternoon in Mantua/Photo by Daniel Sherriff
Paulenich served as the Crestwood’s senior English teacher and the head of the English Department during his Crestwood teaching career from 1967-2001. He passed away in March of 2025 and shortly thereafter, the Paulenich Family funded, along with the Crestwood School District, a project to transform Crestwood High School’s Library into a learning common area for the students.
All books from the Crestwood High School library were moved into classrooms of several English teachers.
Crestwood Superintendent Aireane Curtis offered opening remarks before giving the floor to former colleagues and students of Paulenich, who discussed the impact that he had them.
Former Crestwood English teacher Diantha Hilker spoke of the reputation that Paulenich had as a strict but fair teacher. She also highlighted the bond she and Paulenich shared not just as colleagues but as parents of large families, trading stories during hall duty.
“Our perspectives were a bit different as he was dealing with four boys and I was dealing with five daughters and one son, but it became evident over the years that we were both very proud of our families and the ultimate choices and decisions that they made,” she said.
Hilker read a letter that was written by retired Crestwood English teacher Jami Cutlip, who could not be at the ceremony.
Cutlip wrote that although Paulenich had a strong personality, he was also one of the strongest advocates for his colleagues and students. Cutlip’s letter revealed the support that Paulenich gave to her when she assisted Crestwood students in reviving the Crestwood Chronicle, the school newspaper.
“During year two I naively thought that it would be a good idea to allow students to write editorials, one of which caused some controversy. I was feeling badly about it when Fred popped in my room, offering encouragement and told me to keep my chin up and reminded me that some things just don’t work in a high school environment,” Hilker read from Cutlip’s letter.
Hilker said that she also reached out to some of Paulenich’s former pupils on social media to elicit some of their fondest memories of Paulenich and read them to the crowd.
In a response from Crestwood graduate Annette Thompson, she said that Paulenich cherished his seniors and until a Crestwood student became an upperclassman, they never truly understood what it meant to be one his seniors and the pride he took in each of his students.
In another statement, this one from 1990 graduate Russell Maglianico, he spoke of how Paulenich often pushed his students to step outside of their comfort zone and confront their biggest fears, which was actually the topic of a paper he once assigned to the class. He added that Paulenich was also creative in coming up with new topics, one of his assignments was having his class write a paper on Billy Joel’s famous song “We Didn’t Start the Fire.”
Hilker read a statement from Crestwood 1992 graduate and former Director of Pupil Services Michael Maglionico, which revealed that Paulenich often saw potential in his students before they recognized it themselves and taught every student that their voices mattered.
Retired Crestwood Chemistry teacher Lynn Harvey talked about how impressed she was by Paulenich’s relentless work ethic, as he seemed to always be working, even when he was expected to take time off in the summer.
“He always worked far beyond a normal workday whether it was grading papers at home, writing grants or publishing articles. He often spent parts of his time off during the summer, teaching at colleges like Kent State University and Bard College in Massachusetts which was one of his favorite things to do. I often wondered where he got the energy to do all of that.”
Harvey also spoke of how Paulenich had the presence to command a room and often encouraged his students to have that same charisma as he coaxed even the most introverted students to come out of their shells.
Crestwood music teacher and 1991 graduate Jenny Gilles spoke of the positive impact that Paulenich had on her as a student, as his frequent vocabulary exams often inspired her to be prepared for each class and that preparedness served her well when she attended college.
“He spent so much time grading our writing assignments and notating corrections as well as suggestions to improve our writing skills,” she noted. “I also remember him taking the time to have conversations with us on what we were trying to convey and how to better put those words to paper.”
Crestwood teacher and 1991 graduate Carie Englhart spoke of the compassion that Paulenich often showed his students, reflecting on how supportive he was of her when her father passed away during her senior year.
“We shared tears and a deep conversation about loss and the compassion that Mr. Paulnich extended to me in that vulnerable moment has stayed with me throughout my career,” Englehart said. “While academic excellence is important, he demonstrated that kindness, empathy and humanity are even more enduring lessons.”
Curtis read statements from Crestwood graduate Dr. Edie Knowlton-Benner and former Crestwood teacher Barbara Moss.
In Knowlton-Benner’s statement, she wrote of the impact Paulenich had on her as a child and continued throughout her life while Moss’s message recited her fond memories of how Paulenich’s vibrancy, honest approach, and thoughtfulness helped shape her teaching career.
Curtis spoke of how enlightening it was to discover what kind of teacher Paulenich was as she researched him during the renovation process. She also highlighted his many achievements, presenting at the Indiana University Summer Reading Conference, winning the Ohio Council of Teachers of English Language Arts Outstanding Language Arts Educator Award and being named the winner of the Ashland Oil Teacher Achievement Award.
“I learned that the Ashland Oil Award he earned had over 5700 applicants and Fred Paulenich was their selection due to his work in the classroom,” she said.
Curtis showed the four new rooms in the new learning commons area, with each room named after a literary greatThe Emily Dickinson room willbe used by students who are taking college classes and need to study.
The second room, named for Ernest Hemingway, was designated to be used as a meeting room, the Norman Mailer room was created to be used as an E-Sports Gaming Room and the John Steinbech room was meant for small groups of students to congregate.
“Whether you knew Fred Paulenich directly, he was related to you, or you just came to see this incredible space today, I can assure you that he had the details in his life which distinguished him from others, and I am so happy that I could work with this wonderful family to create a space to honor him,” she said.
Fred, Jr. offered a few closing remarks about his father’s memory, and directed the crowd to a plaque that was displayed in the front of the room, which featured Paulenich’s image and a quote from Johann Wolfgang von Goethe, which reflected his father’s love of the arts.
He also spoke of how his father’s quest for always seeking answers from every source imaginable, writing in countless journals exploring those different perspectives.
“It is what inspired him to develop his intra-disciplinary approach to teaching and his use of real-world materials to try and bring concepts to life and to not allow students to singularly form their perspective from the words of a single text but to factor in as many considerations and perspectives as possible” he added.
Fred, Jr. talked about his father’s dedication to the Mantua community beyond the classroom, serving as the head baseball, volleyball and forensics & debate coach and even coaching boys’ freshmen basketball when Fred, Jr. attended Crestwood.
“What I hope deeply is that the feelings that brough us together today and the words and the sentiments that have been shared, somehow find their way to touch my father’s spirit,” he said.
