On a crisp fall afternoon, as the sun sets over Gene Deal Fields, Mary Lynch P’35,’35,’38 stands on the sideline, watching her players huddle together. It wasn’t the outcome of the game that mattered most to her — it was the way they supported one another, the way they learned from their challenges, and the way they carried the lessons of teamwork and resilience beyond the field. As both an English Teacher and Head Girls Varsity Soccer Coach, Lynch sees her work as more than just instruction; it is about connection and preparing students to engage meaningfully with the world around them.

After earning her undergraduate degree from Connecticut College, where she was captain and a four-year member of both the women’s soccer and basketball teams, she began her teaching career at St. Thomas More, a boarding school in Connecticut. She later earned a master’s degree from Trinity College in Hartford before moving to Pittsburgh in 2010 with her husband, a class of 2001 Shady Side alumnus. Soon after, she found her place at Shady Side, first as a coach and substitute teacher and then as a full-time faculty member in the Senior School English Department.

During the school day, Lynch’s classroom is a space where students find their voice. “I want them to feel comfortable taking risks, knowing their perspectives matter,” she says. Her teaching philosophy and classroom setup are centered on discussion and engagement. By encouraging face-to-face dialogue, she ensures that students actively participate, think critically, and learn from one another. 

This year, Lynch and History Teacher Rachel McCool teamed up to teach the Immersive course, From Borders to Bridges: The Immigrant Experience in Pittsburgh. “We wanted students to explore the immigrant stories that have shaped this city,” Lynch explains. The course examined historic and modern immigration patterns, featuring visits to the Heinz History Center, the City of Asylum, and meetings with local immigration policy experts. Students documented personal immigration narratives through writing, presentations, or film while investigating the policies that influenced them. The course culminated in a service project in partnership with Shady Side alumna Sloane Davidson ’97 and her nonprofit, Hello Neighbor. “It’s about connecting their learning with how they can engage and make a difference in their community,” Lynch says.

Her investment in experiential learning is mirrored in her efforts to facilitate off-campus trips that enrich her students’ perspectives. Whether leading a visit to the Latin American Cultural Center to complement reading Edwidge Danticat’s memoir “Brother, I’m Dying” or helping students draw connections between historical movements and contemporary issues in her Literature of the Harlem Renaissance course, she continuously seeks ways to make learning dynamic and relevant.

Her commitment to relational teaching extends to the soccer pitch as well. Lynch embraces the faculty-coach model, believing that some of the most valuable lessons happen outside traditional academic settings.

During Lynch’s leadership tenure, the team won WPIAL championships in 2013, 2016, and 2019 — including in 2010, when she served as Assistant Coach — and was PIAA runner-up in 2016 and 2019. She took a year off from coaching in 2017 for the birth of her twin daughters and watched proudly as the team won its first PIAA state title as Assistant Coach Leah Powers P’26,’28 served as Interim Head Coach. In 2019, she was named Coach of the Year by both the United Soccer Coaches East Region and the Pennsylvania Soccer Coaches Association in the Private/Parochial classification.

In addition to teaching and coaching, Lynch is also a Shady Side parent. Her three daughters — one in senior pre-k and twins in second grade — joke that when they grow up, they want to have three jobs just like her: teacher, coach, and parent. These deep ties to the community give her a unique perspective on what makes SSA special. “The relationships you can build here — with students, colleagues, and families — are unlike anything else,” she reflects. “It’s a place where learning is personal, where students are known and valued, and where they are encouraged to push themselves in ways they never expected. The composition of our community allows us to truly know one another, and that’s something I want my own children to experience.”

Outside of SSA, Lynch treasures time outdoors, whether at the beach in the summer or staying active with her children in Pittsburgh. And as a lifelong reader, she’s always finding time for a new book — most recently diving into a novel by Jessica Soffer, one of Lynch’s college friends, called “This Is a Love Story.”

For Lynch, passion is at the heart of everything she does. “If I love what I’m teaching, I hope my students will be inspired to embrace it, too,” she says. “One of the best things about teaching English at Shady Side is the opportunity to design new courses and explore different ways to engage students,” she says. While technology and teaching methods have changed over time, her core philosophy — building strong relationships and fostering discussion — remains steadfast.