Welcome Back, Keiner.

This past Thursday, The Beech Hill School welcomed former history teacher, Paul Keiner, and his musical group, The Klassic Kokes for a 45-minute concert. The Klassic Kokes is a an acapella group comprised of Mr. Keiner and a collection of Kenyon College alumni.  While at Kenyon, Mr. Keiner and his mates were members of the Koko Singers, one of the school’s acapella groups.  Mr. Keiner and his friends continued to sing together, long after they graduated from Kenyon. 

 

In the four years that Mr. Keiner taught history at BHS, he shared his passion for singing with his students, leading a chorus, and helping Mr. Arruda with musicals.  While at BHS, Mr. Keiner invited his group to the school and they made a huge impact on our students, as several BHS alums that went on to sing in high school and college attribute their influence as important in their lives.

 

So, when Mr. Keiner and the Kokes sang for the students this past Thursday, it was an opportunity to renew a long-favored activity that COVID interrupted.  Our students were fully engaged and listened with genuine appreciation to the beautiful blends and harmonies of this group.  Following the concert, several of the students stuck around to converse with the group, as they were so enthralled.

 

Of all the activities that I had tried to reinstate following COVID, I had not thought to reach out to Mr. Keiner, so when he contacted me to see if the school would be interested in hosting his group, I was thrilled.  Once again, I find myself wondering what else we lost in those years of the pandemic and what more we can rediscover.

The Beech Hill School does not discriminate in its hiring, admissions policies, financial aid policies, educational policies, or the administration of school-related programs or activities on the basis of race, color, religion, nationality, gender, disability, or ethnic origin. The Beech Hill School is a non-profit 501(c)3 tax-exempt entity.