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Retired from the Classroom, Jim Yedowitz Continues Teaching on the Track

After retiring as Rye High School’s health teacher in June, everyone he meets keeps asking 60-year-old Jim Yedowitz the same question. How long will he stick around as head coach of Rye’s winter and spring track teams programs?

“My feeling with teaching as well as coaching is that as long as you love what you do, you should keep on doing it,” said Yedowitz, a track-and-field fixture at Rye for over 30 years. “But I never reached a point where I wished I had already retired. I left on a very high note. I didn’t do it because I hated it. I’ve seen some wait too long and become burnt out and tired. That’s what I didn’t want to happen with teaching, and what I don’t want to happen as a coach.”

Yedowitz, a Yonkers resident who fully admits to not being a “morning guy”, still has a passion for teaching, but was finding it harder and harder to get up before daybreak. Now he says he has the best of both worlds. With track back in season, he commutes to Rye around 2 p.m. each day to coach the boys’ winter team.

His love for the sport began as a member of the varsity team at Cardinal Spellman High School in the Bronx. From there it was on to Manhattanville College, where he ran track all four years, was part of a stellar relay team, and eventually named a captain for the Jaspers.

Once out of school, Yedowitz experienced what he calls “the classic situation” for those with a physical education degree. He couldn’t land a job in his field. Then in 1970, New York State passed a mandate requiring schools to teach health.

“There were all these health jobs with nobody to teach them,” said Yedowitz. “A lot of people, including myself, switched from physical education and were certified. It wasn’t easy for me at first, because all my student teaching had been done in gym class. The first few years were difficult as I had to learn on the job with a new curriculum, but it was the best move I ever made.”

Yedowitz was hired by the Rye City School District in 1975, and taught health to middle school students for the first 20 years of his career. He then switched over to the high school where he worked up until last June. A few years after coming to Rye, Yedowitz became head coach of both the winter and spring track teams.

“It’s obviously gratifying to have kids do really well on the County, Section, or State level, and we have had many athletes like that,” said Yedowitz. “The other side of the coin is that track is unique in that with a stopwatch or measuring tape a student’s improvement can be gauged exactly. Every coach says that ninety percent of the athletes are average kids, so the thrill is watching them get better each season. It’s easy to make good athletes better, but it’s hard to make an average kid good.”

Through his position, Yedowitz’s four children were able to attend Rye High. From the oldest to the youngest, they ran track for their father, highlighted by now-27-year-old Jamie’s State and National championships in the racewalk competition for the Garnets in 1999.

With past accolades in the rearview mirror, Yedowitz is excited about the prospects of his current boys’ squad. Seniors Max Yanker, Jeff Gordon, and Jeff Bouton headline the cast. Yanker is the best high jumper in Westchester, and one of Yedowitz’s obvious stars. Gordon is Rye’s No. 1 hurdler and pole-vaulter, and Bouton, who runs the mile and two-mile, went to States on the cross country team.

While Yedowitz has just three seniors to work with, a talented junior class, including Max Robinson, Matt Kao, Mack Gager, John Slack, Dan Forsman, and Tom Jackson, make up for the lack of elder Garnets.

“On paper, this could be one of the best teams I’ve ever had,” said the coach. “We have a very good blend of seniors and juniors among a lot of kids – 60 in all – and we’re still getting to know them in terms of what they can do.”

He paused before adding one final comment. “Being retired makes it all a little easier.”