Tony Keys
Mathematics Teacher (2003-2022)
Tony joined ZIS in 2003 and, over his 19-years, undertook various roles, including serving as the Head of the Department.
Mr. Keys excelled in teaching mathematics, preparing his students for both IB and AP examinations. While calculus was his specialty, he also cherished teaching elective courses, including Geometry, Statistics, guitar playing, and songwriting.
With his distinctive teaching style, sense of humor, compassion, and unwavering commitment to student success, Mr. Keys is a deserving recipient of this year's John Mattern Award.
Full Bio
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Tony Keys
"He managed to take my least favourite and academically worst subject and make it so fun and engaging. I went from having a D in Maths to consistently getting an A. He was one of the teachers that you could go to for anything and he would have a chat with you and help out in anyway whatsoever."
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Tony Keys
ZIS John Mattern Award for Alumni Faculty
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Reflective Comments from Nominators
Mr Keys made maths a fun subject and always inspired students to leave the classroom a little bit lighter… But his brilliance as a teacher didn’t stop there; he also had a way of being truly thoughtful and considerate with his students.
He always made class entertaining with his anecdotes of the lives of mathematicians, and would sometimes even play the piano or guitar while explaining the mathematics of the music theory behind the chord changes. I would not be working in science today had it not been for Mr. Keys' influence.
Tony Keys was a colleague of mine at ZIS for 18 years. I considered myself a solid teacher and staff member but I was in awe of Tony's ability to teach mathematics while at the same time teaching his class all the things that he rightly regarded as important for life after ZIS.”
