From a very young age, English teacher Mr. Richard Moore had always been told, “You’d make a great teacher.” Now, decades later, he has proven them right.

However, it took years before  he followed that advice.  He actually spent time working in trade for about 15 years before going back to college as an adult to become a teacher.

“Teaching always stuck in the back of my head as a potential job for me, and one day I just  decided to follow it,” Moore said.

After graduating from DePaul University, Moore began teaching some reading and writing classes at Oakton Community College from 1997-1998, followed shortly after his first full time teaching job here teaching English. 

Moore was joined by four other new hires in the English department’s his first year at Lake Forest, which is rare. However, even more special was that one of those teachers he specifically became close friends with: English teacher Ms. Jennifer Van Skyock. 

“I’ve worked with [Moore] for 24 years now, and right off the bat we became really good friends … at  one point I needed a boy and a girl to be on my beach volleyball team, and Mr. Moore and his wife happily decided to join,”  Van Skyock said. “He has got a super witty sense of humor. It’s funny because he comes across as a really serious guy, then his humor just comes out of nowhere.”

Although Moore may seem intimidating at first, it’s only because he holds his students to high standards and pushes them to reach success. From the moment Moore began teaching freshman and senior English at Lake Forest High School, he has made an impact on the courses he taught by teaching with emphasis, detail, and structure.

“He prepares his freshmen really well for their future here at the high school,” Mrs. Kimberly Jones, co-teacher with Moore, said. “He’s a very detail oriented teacher, and the kids  appreciate Moore after they’ve had him because he is so specific…He sets the stage for their time at the high school because of the expectations he has.”

One of the values Moore focuses on with his students, especially his freshman, is self advocating.

“The biggest thing that I tried to get across to them was that it’s always okay to ask questions and to advocate for yourself. As the students come out of junior high, I think there’s a lot of things handed to  them, and that’s okay. I will do the hand holding if it’s needed, but by the time they get out of their freshman year, my goal is that they don’t need me as much,” Moore said. “I want them to go find out [the answer to that question] themselves.”

Moore will be missed by the faculty, administrators, and especially the students  he has impacted along the way. 

“Moore always stood out to me as a great teacher because I could always tell he wanted the best for me and the rest of his students. He would always be patient with me whenever I was confused, and would always check in to make sure I was on the right track,” sophomore Ally Lucania said. “Overall, he really helped me get a good footing here at the high school and I will always appreciate him for that.”