Remembering a devoted and passionate teacher

Naomi Schwartz had an office on campus that she rarely used. Her designated meeting spot was the back-left dining table in Oliver Hall, the campus dining room. Her reasoning? She wanted to be accessible to her students both physically and emotionally -- putting herself in the open where students could drop in and ask for advice. "She believed that sometimes students don't feel comfortable coming to you, so you have to go where they are and feel comfortable going," said Mary Volmer, her friend and fellow SMC faculty member. Naomi taught Composition and Collegiate seminar classes at Saint Mary's for 35 years until she passed away in 2019. Now a commemorative plaque on a dining chair at that table remembers it as "Naomi's table."

Naomi's unconventional approach to office hours is just one example of the unique, student-focused approach to teaching for which she was admired and respected. When remembering her, her students, colleagues, friends, and family were unanimous in their admiration for Naomi's commitment to her students and her passion for teaching, especially those students who needed additional preparation for college-level work. Her husband Jack Marshall said that he was "moved by her devotion to her students," and that she remained connected to her students after they graduated, with many becoming part of her wide circle of friends.

Naomi was instrumental in developing the English 3 (Practice in Writing) program at Saint Mary's College which prepares incoming students for college-level writing. She also taught in the High Potential Program. "Naomi saw each person as a human being with tremendous potential," said her friend and SMC poetry professor Brenda Hillman. "She felt pride in designing and specializing in this program, and through it she was responsible for a lot of student success." The program resonated with Naomi's core values and her respect for the Lasallian principles of social justice and education for all. "Naomi loved what the Christian Brothers stood for, and she also cared about making students feel that each individual life mattered," said Jack.

A generous mentor to her colleagues as well as her students, Naomi enjoyed reading the work of others and advising on teaching strategies. Mary Volmer said that Naomi had transformed her own approach to teaching – by urging her to identify and focus on the patterns and themes that emerged from students' work. "What is the pattern forming here? If you recognize it, you can change it," said Mary. "Naomi was a master at pointing out patterns – positive and negative. I've found that true in teaching and in life."

Naomi's own passions were organized around important patterns or themes. She had an eye for potential, and a gift for cultivating it. Her colleagues Brenda and Mary extolled her ability to see the potential in every person. "She had an eye, she recognized the value of what she saw," said Mary. "She had an instinct for worth, and understood substance." This eye for potential extended to her personal and professional interest in antiques and early California art, especially women's painting in the 20 ^th century. She was also an accomplished gardener, growing many varieties of roses.

Naomi did more than appreciate beauty, she cultivated it, nurturing the beauty of artistic expression and of the human spirit through her work with students. She and Jack created an endowed scholarship through their estate to continue her legacy of nurturing student potential – theMarshall Schwartz Endowed Scholarship – for students with financial need in the Bay Area. "Naomi wanted to contribute in perpetuity, and to extend work that she had been doing with students to continue even without her," said Jack.

A love of literature and poetry played a central role in her life. Naomi was a poet, but she stopped creating poems to focus on her teaching and the Saint Mary's community. "She had no regret in this decision, she saw students as her poems," said Mary. Naomi and Jack – an accomplished, Guggenheim award winning poet – have also established theRuttenberg Reading Comprehension Fund through their estate to support faculty development for reading comprehension strategies for students. Jack explained that the fund was motivated by Naomi's keen interest in developing students as critical readers. "She wanted students to carefully examine a writer's assumptions, and to understand that there was no objective truth, everything they read had some kind of slant and bias," he said.

The Christian Brothers and the Lasallian values became a core touchstone in Naomi's life. "She was deeply impacted by the Lasallian tradition, and aspired to their charism," said Mary. "She recognized that their traditions were a trait of all good teachers." Naomi's embrace of Lasallian core values created a close bond to the Brothers and to the College. "She very much believed in those values and they motivated her actions, even outside of the College with her friends and philanthropy," said Jack. "She had a very special relationship with the Christian Brothers, and took their community deeply in her heart. She was inspired by the Christian Brothers' lifelong commitment to education."

At her memorial service, Brother Kenneth Caldwell reminisced about a trip to Italy with Naomi and Brother Charles Hilken that brought them closer. He noted wryly that Naomi had "more or less invited herself to come to Sicily" and reflected that it was because she had something to give to him -- gifts that included "intense enjoyment of simple pleasures in the company of friends," focus and attention, and "taking people seriously and taking life seriously but not too."

The Saint Mary's community fondly remembers Naomi Schwartz her spontaneous generosity, uniqueness, and dedication to nurturing those around her. "We all thought we were her favorite and at the memorial it occurred to me that we were all her favorite," said Mary. "You fell in love with her. You couldn't help it."