As we bid farewell to the 2023 to 2024 academic year, we also say goodbye to beloved performing arts teacher Wayne Pierce—from his time directing the jazz band to teaching the AP Music Theory and AP Art History courses, Dr. Pierce has touched the hearts of students all throughout his 47 years at Kingswood Oxford.
Dr. Pierce has always loved music and began pursuing the art from an early age. When he was a child, his brother played the drums and kept a set of them in the basement—Dr. Pierce picked it up as well, falling in love with the drums and continuing to learn other instruments and forms of music as he navigated his younger years. Eventually, he earned a degree in music education and started his career in schools as a substitute and private music teacher. He saw teaching music as an extension of his love for it. “It is just wanting to share what you know and what you love,” Dr. Pierce described.
In 1977, his passion for teaching eventually led him to KO, where he would spend the next 47 years guiding students on their own artistic journeys. “The most meaningful times, as I reflect back, are the ones where you know a student has been affected in some way by your association with them,” Dr. Pierce revealed. “You feel like you’ve contributed something to their life.”
And contribute he has—not only to students’ individual academic careers but to the performing arts department as a whole. During his time at KO, Dr. Pierce founded the school’s first Faculty Choir, created the Candlelight Concert, and even produced the first LP and CD recordings of a KO musical group. He also urged the school to implement more arts-focused AP courses, such as AP Music Theory and AP Art History, both of which he taught himself at some point in his time at KO.
Dr. Pierce taught AP Music Theory for a number of years, and enjoyed the difficulty of the course, especially as it incorporated and developed aural skills such as singing and listening. “I liked that because it brought a lot of focus for student musicians who might have had a kind of a scattered understanding [of music theory],” Dr. Pierce said.
Junior Margaret Miller took Dr. Pierce’s AP Music Theory class in her sophomore year, hoping to broaden her music knowledge. His class allowed her to do exactly that, and she came away with a new outlook on music as a whole. “I learned that pursuing music could be more than just performing,” Margaret said. “He showed that there’s this whole aspect of theory and that there’s so much more to learn about music.” Margaret appreciated the commitment Dr. Pierce had to both music and his students, commenting that he always made sure everyone was up-to-speed on the class material and that he was an incredibly interesting person to learn from due to his wealth of knowledge.
Upper School history teacher Robert Kyff also noted Dr. Pierce’s experience and knack for connecting with students in a speech he gave at Dr. Pierce’s retirement dinner. “Like all great jazz musicians, Wayne is an improviser,” he said, “someone who can take the most basic melody and tweak it, twist it and twitch it into a truly new and exhilarating sound. As a teacher, he not only provided his students with technical proficiency but also inspired in them a life-long love of music.”
Part of why Dr. Pierce was such a great teacher was because he always strived for new and interesting ways to teach. “One of the things I’ve always enjoyed has been creating new opportunities,” Dr. Pierce said. “Either new concerts, or new classes, or different approaches. There’s a creative energy that’s involved when you’re in the midst of a teaching career.”
That inclination towards something different and new is part of why he eagerly took up teaching the AP Art History course two years ago. “[It] was a new course, so it took a lot of preparation and planning,” he said, “but I found it a very gratifying course.” After teaching the course, Dr. Pierce gained an interest in exploring more of the visual art world. He hopes that he can pursue this interest in retirement, and he aspires to visit several museums.
Additionally, Dr. Pierce has several projects related to music that he hopes to pursue but feels no pressure to follow through with them should he lose interest. An abundance of time and lack of deadlines means he can choose which instruments or tasks he wants to work on.
However, although he still wants to pursue his musical interests, his plans for retirement mostly revolve around his three grandchildren – Andrew, Estelle, and Celine. “A lot of my focus would be on trying to spend more time with them,” Dr. Pierce said. “They’re very busy in their own lives, but I now have the flexibility that I didn’t have to spend some more time with them and help them grow a little bit.”
When reflecting back on his time at KO and looking forward, Dr. Pierce said that one thing he will miss is the community. “I’ll miss the constant contact with people—students and other teachers that are friends,” he said. “When you spend as much time as I have in one place, you get a chance to develop a lot of relationships and see a lot of changes, so I’ll miss that.” However, although letting go of this era of his life is difficult, Dr. Pierce remarked that he is excited to start a new chapter in his life.
One thing is for certain; Kingswood Oxford will deeply miss Dr. Pierce’s experience, expertise, and presence in the coming school years. We hope Dr. Pierce has a wonderful retirement, and we wish him all the best.
