I came to appreciate Mr. Borgman increasingly as time went on.  I suppose there could have been controversial mixed views in town because he rode a motorcyle to school, and so forth in possible ways I won't mention in case memory doesn't serve, but I came to respect greatly his spirit and intentions as a teacher.  He had been in Jesuit seminary, and when I later coached my son's hockey teams in Canada I was sometimes positioned in the box just a few feet from where Jesuit priest coaches from parochial schools spoke to each player as he came off the ice.  They would grip each player by the shirt and give two comments, one positive and another beseeching better effort (and thinking) with a glaring burst of individualized intensity.  Few speak to children with such expectation, subtly so different from criticism. These teams performed well above their natural ability and it was evident the players actually loved the belief they could do better.  I tried a bit of of this my secular self, relative heathen that I am, and also found much more energy in the team. This injection of belief reminded me of Mr. Borgman, and it is how I remember him, although it is a subjective impression and others may have a different view of firm intervention.  (I know from talking with parents this approach can easily be taken too far or be applied inappropriately.)  For me, I first saw that believing in people can have a positive effect in and of itself and I came to feel grateful, apart from any contact with subject matter, that I had been lucky to have such a good teacher.