Jay Seigal, who taught in the Chelsea school system for 33 years and carried forth his father’s incredible legacy in the field of education, has retired from teaching.
Seigal was feted by his colleagues, friends, and family at a retirement celebration June 15 at Kowloon.
Jay is the son of the late Morris Seigal and Marion Siegal. “Morrie” Seigal, as he was known by all, was the beloved principal at the Williams School principal and a long-time member of the Chelsea School Committee. The middle school on Clark Avenue is named the Morris H. Seigal Middle School.
Former CHS Principal Joseph Mullaney was among many lauding Jay Seigal’s outstanding work in the Chelsea school district both as a teacher and basketball coach.
“Working with Jay was a real pleasure,” said Mullaney. “Being a Chelsea guy himself, he always wanted to do well by Chelsea kids. You could always depend on him to give his best effort toward the goals we were trying to accomplish at the school. I think one of his real strong qualities was that he really connected well with kids, and they knew that he cared about them, and that permeated through his whole department – Titus Manderson, Lisa Ceccherini, Al Generazzo and Jay Seigal. They were a wonderful group of educators.”
Jay Seigal attended Shurtleff School and graduated in 1976 from Chelsea High School where he played varsity basketball, once exploding for double-figure points in a single quarter against a powerful Somerville High team.
Jay went on to receive his degree from Boston State College. He started teaching in 1981 as an aide to Williams School physical education teacher Joseph Bevere, who was a special guest at the retirement party.
Seigal spent eight years in the jewelry business before returning in 1993 to the teaching profession, working in the Chelsea school system for the next 30 years. He was the CHS boys varsity head basketball coach for 13 seasons, qualifying for the MIAA State Tournament in 10 of those seasons.
Seigal said his career in teaching was inspired by his father.
“My father worked 36 years in Chelsea. He retired in 1982. He was a member of the School Committee for 29 years. He was very inspirational to me,” said Jay. “I grew up in a household that stressed the importance of education, so I thought that was the thing to do. My brother, Jeffrey, started in teaching before he went into his family’s lighting business.”
Jay and his wife, Patricia, finance director at Chelsea Housing and Community Development, have two sons, Aaron, 32, a graduate of Bentley University and New England School of Law now working as an attorney, and Jason, 27, a graduate of Villanova University who is a civil engineer.
“I just decided it was time to retire,” said Jay Seigal. “I had a very good run.”