Ken Schaefer decided after teaching at Temple University for the last 50 years and at the age of 77 that it was time to retire with 50 being a nice round number.
Recounting coming to Philadelphia in 1970 from New York, Temple University was his first job after receiving his Doctorate from Columbia University. After hearing that Temple was a Baptist school, he shaved off his beard and got a tie.
Even though his mother, father, aunts, and uncles were teachers, Schaefer didn't immediately see himself as a teacher. Schaefer was adamant that he would instead take the scholarly route with a major in liberal arts, English and linguistics as an undergraduate. However, Schaefer realized he was destined to be an educator. "Teaching is in my genes. It's in my DNA," Schaefer added.
Although Schaefer started his career at Temple University in the College of Arts & Sciences in Liberal Arts, he was attracted to the College of Education because of the bright students. Schaefer says he was adopted by the College of Education.
Full of historical background and enlightening stories of Temple University Japan, Schaefer remembers just like it was yesterday the phone call he received in the fall of 1993 from the Dean of the College of Education asking whether he would consider taking an assignment in Japan, teaching the same courses there that he taught on the Main Campus. After recently returning from Germany and China, he wasn't open to the opportunity since he had just put his academic research agenda (historical linguistics) back on track, and he knew nothing about administrative systems in the College of Education nor the history, language, and culture of Japan.
A few weeks later he received a second call to reconsider and teach TESOL courses temporarily in Tokyo. This would be a one-year assignment (1984-85), while the college worked on a long-term solution for the professorship. His academic specialties (grammar and phonology) perfectly fit the short-term requirements for students in Japan.
After being in Japan for 27 years, quite a bit longer than any other Philadelphia-based faculty member, Schaefer came back from Japan ten years ago. Schaefer considers himself a mystery person on the campus of Temple University and not really well known in the College of Education due to his years in Japan as well as other overseas travels.
He calls his last 10 years on the main campus of Temple University as his bonus years.
"I liked the challenge of teaching general education courses to young and feisty undergraduate students with a much shorter attention span than my graduate students in Japan," said Schaefer. In Japan, his lectures would be 3 hours and his students would get upset if he ended early.
Looking to retirement, Schaefer said this spring was another challenge that he welcomed with teaching online and doing PowerPoint lectures for classes.
A native of Minnesota, Schaefer is a Philadelphia person at heart. He plans to stay in his Belle Vista neighborhood, an area that he's called home even while traveling overseas and living in Japan.