You may have noticed him in the halls of Harriton, or maybe he is your new gym or health teacher. One way or another, you have probably met Mr. Egnaczyk; if you haven’t, then you should, because he is not your typical gym teacher.

Harriton’s newest addition to the Physical Education Department didn’t just suddenly decide to become a gym teacher. Mr. Egnaczyk’s original inspiration came in the form of a middle school PE teacher, known to everyone by the name Mr. 24. Mr. 24 was “a really enthusiastic guy” who would open up the gym early every morning and present the opportunity of students to work out and play. He also coached three sports teams and was well known throughout Mr. Egnaczyk’s home town. Mr. Egnaczyk stated that Mr. 24 was a huge athletic influence to him, and helped shape the person he is today.

Mr. Egnaczyk has many hobbies, including running, going to the gym, cross-fit, and basketball (basically anything that keeps his heart rate up). He can easily relate to all of his students because he loves Netflix and thought that “Breaking Bad” was great. Mr. Egnaczyk has a very unique fact about him that not many people probably know: before going back to school at West Chester to become a teacher, he worked at Alex’s Lemonade Stand for three years. He started substituting for our district a little less than three years ago at LM, Harriton, both middle schools and some elementary schools, so he has become familiar with the students and everything else that comes with the job. This year is his first teaching PE and Health full-time.

Mr. Egnaczyk expects participation and effort from all of his students, but is very open and understanding. He knows that everyone fits into athletics in different ways, and that not everyone is going to be a star athlete. He wants all of his students to know that he is very open to working with them, and he wants everyone to try the best that they can.

So the next time you see Mr. Egnaczyk, give him a wave, or ask him about his favorite basketball team- the Syracuse Orange, or how his summer fishing trip in the Outer Banks was, or if he is excited to go fishing in the Virgin Islands in January. Or maybe even challenge him to a game of basketball, as he played in college before he went to West Chester and it is his favorite sport. All in all, Mr. Egnaczyk is a great addition to our school’s staff and will add so much to our already superior physical education program.