Doings Article Profiles English Teacher and Drama Director Christine Hicks

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Photo Credit: John Langham Sun-Times Media

Here's the article:

Director’s love for job at Hinsdale Central is no act

BY CHUCK FIELDMAN | cfieldman@pioneerlocal.com April 11, 2013 5:46PM

Updated: April 12, 2013 9:56AM

HINSDALE — The passion Chris Hicks has displayed over more than 35 years as a teacher at Hinsdale Central is no act.

By all appearances, Hicks has had a very successful run at Central, both as an English teacher since 1976 and as a director of 63 school plays since 1989. She plans to retire at the end of the 2013-14 school year.

“There were no teaching jobs when I graduated from college (in 1971 from Northern Illinois University), and I wasn’t particularly confident in my ability to be in-charge of a room full of young adults,” she said.

The combination of a lack of confidence and a tight job market left Hicks working as a secretary after college, but she knew she wanted to do something that was more than just a job.

“I needed to get back to making a difference, so I decided to apply for some teaching jobs,” she said.

Growing up in Brookfield and graduating from Nazareth Academy, Hicks said she knew Central had a reputation as an outstanding school when she went through the interview and hiring process there.

“I have a feeling my application was on top of the pile,” she said with a smile.

Hicks took about 1 1/2 years off from teaching when her son was born. Her involvement in the school’s theater department started after she returned.

“I had been involved in theater when I was in school, both in high school and college,” she said. “I knew that was something I wanted to do along with teaching.”

While the settings are different, Hicks said being in the classroom as a teacher and directing plays at Central share common elements.

“It’s two different ways of helping young people, but both allow them to discover things about themselves and shine,” she said.

The moments when students get excited about an accomplishment have been Hicks’ favorites.

“That’s something that happens when I teach classes and with our plays,” she said.

Hicks also has enjoyed the experiences of working in plays with students who have been in her classes, saying she gets to see their intellectual side

“I get to know them by what they write for class, and sometimes it’s a different side I get to know when they are in plays,” she said.

Her final show will come in the spring 2014 musical, which has not yet been chosen.

“I don’t want to get caught up in making a big deal out of it being my last show,” she said. “I’m not really thinking about that last show now.”