Academics

Kurt Bennett joined Peddie’s English Department in 2012. A graduate of Amherst College and Middlebury College, Bennett taught humanities at Culver Academies before joining Peddie. He shares dorm duty in Mariboe Dormitory. Bennett resides on campus with his wife, Bryn (admission).

Alison Hogarth joined Peddie’s History Department in 2006 after nine years of teaching history at the Harvard-Westlake School in Los Angeles, taking the helm as department chair in 2017. Hogarth introduced the government program to the department, which now offers Intro to Government, AP Government and American Legal Systems, and also worked to develop the Modern Global curriculum. Hogarth served as co-chair of the school’s accreditation process from 2014-2016. As a teacher in residence, Hogarth organizes student elections, serves on the Disciplinary Committee and officiates as head timer for varsity basketball and field hockey. Hogarth lives on campus and is part of the Coleman Dormitory faculty team.

Gregory Koch joined Peddie’s Mathematics Department in 2019 and is currently the department chair. He also serves as the programming mentor for Peddie’s FIRST Robotics team and is a resident dorm faculty at Kaye South. He received his bachelor’s degree in mathematics and computer science from Austin College. His master’s degree in computer science is from the University of Toronto, where he worked at the Artificial Intelligence Lab designing deep neural networks. Previously, he taught Pre-Algebra through Calculus at Great Hearts Academies in Arizona, in addition to coaching MATHCOUNTS. Koch enjoys working with students of all levels and helping them build their confidence when doing more challenging mathematics. He has taught a variety of courses at Peddie, including MPS1 Honors, MPS2 Advanced, MPS2 Honors, Pre-Calculus, Pre-Calculus Honors, Calculus and Linear Algebra.

Alan Michaels joined the Peddie community in 1998. He currently serves as chair of the Arts Department and director of music. He also continues to perform on Broadway as a professional musician. Alan and his wife live on campus and have three children.

After teaching in Spain for eight years, José Ruiz joined Peddie in 2003 and is the chair of the Language Department. He lives on campus with his wife, Rocío, and their two falcons. Ruiz coaches cross country and serves as residential faculty in our All-Gender Housing (Trask Dorm). He has spent several summers as a program director with the Middlebury-Monterey Language Academy summer program, where he helps high school students fully immerse themselves in a foreign culture. Ruiz strives to spark students’ cultural curiosity in his language classes. “Giving students insight into the life and people of another country creates a context for the practice of grammar and vocabulary and translates to a much stronger sense of purpose and connection.”

Jennifer Terhaar joined Peddie’s Science Department in 2013. She holds a master’s degree in science and education from Rutgers University.