Mr. James Fields departed the Hellgate world at the end of the 2026 school year. He was a teacher at Hellgate High School for ten years. During his time there, he taught a multitude of math classes, though AP Statistics was his favorite.
His journey to Hellgate was not linear. Fields first pursued a double major in history and political science, but he found that to be a mind-numbingly boring course of study (though he never meant any offense to other aspiring lawyers). And so, he moved to the University of Wisconsin to study mechanical engineering (none of his students had the heart to point out that that is inarguably more boring than law, but in his absence it will be noted) and graduated with this degree. After working in engineering after college, he again decided it was time to mix things up and attended night school to get his teaching certificate. Fields then took a job as an 8th grade teacher and, bless his soul, soon realized why that job was open. After promising to never enter the halls of a middle school again, and understandably not convinced he wanted to be a teacher, he tried his hand at a teaching position at Missoula College. He enjoyed his time there. Fields then taught high school in Hawaii for a year, and upon moving back started a private engineering firm. He then began to pursue a PhD at the University of Montana, but he claimed that he then realized he had to find a “real job.” And so, in this truly auspicious manner, he began his time at Hellgate High School.
During his time there, he enjoyed telling criminally bad dad jokes and ensuring that his students would be prepared to effectively problem solve with the skills they learned in his classroom. He took pride in calling out the institutions and entities that use numbers and statistics to manipulate rather than inform, and a goal of his teaching was to equip his pupils with the skills to spot and discern these uses of bad statistics.
In Fields’ last days, he reflected much on his time with his coworkers and students. He was inspired each day by the refreshingly hopeful perspectives of all of his students, and derived much joy in the fact that his pupils were not as cynical as he was. His most favorite thing about Hellgate was his coworkers, and he praised them for their competence and care.
Fields was preceded in departure by another beloved math teacher, Jeff Dohn. He learned much from Dohn. Fields said that his mentor was always first and foremost thinking about what was best for his students. Fields aimed each day to live by this ethos, and his students will attest to his success in this aim.
Those he is survived by wish him luck in his transition to the next world. Some call it “heaven” and others call it “working as the data and assessment coordinator for MCPS,” but no matter your beliefs, please send your thoughts and prayers on to him in this next life.
His final words were, “You can lead a horse to water, but you can’t teach it to fish.”
