Catching up with Jack Scott
Jack Scott is a man of many interests. But right now, it seems as if sports and film are at the top of the list. The 2006 Huntington High School graduate is a senior at Union College and he’s busy plotting his future.
“I started out at Union with no intention to declare a major anytime soon,” Mr. Scott said. “I took everything. I wanted to take as many different courses as I could because it is not every day that one could go to a liberal arts college as good as Union. I exposed myself to all different kinds of material, focusing primarily on history, philosophy and social and political movements. Math and science was never my thing. I declared political science as my major, but was reluctant to move forward with that as my focus. So, I followed my heart and declared philosophy with a minor in political science and film studies.
Huntington High School social studies teacher Peter Crugnale was Mr. Scott’s favorite teacher and sparked his interest in philosophy and political thought. “I took his philosophy class in high school, which opened a new door of knowledge and truth and questioning,” Mr. Scott said. “I had taken history courses with him, which established a good relationship. However, not until the philosophy class did I truly understand his teaching ability and dedication to his work. I look back on his class as the birth of my present love for philosophy and can't say enough for what he did for me as teacher and as a friend.”
Mr. Scott was a clean-cut and well-spoken young man during his years in the Huntington School District and he was well-liked by classmates and faculty members alike. He was a key player on the Blue Devil soccer and basketball teams and a fine student, too. Mr. Scott’s parents are both lawyers and the family has always put a premium on the value of an education.
“I have always been skeptical of political and social life in the United States and the rest of the world; skeptical of what we are taught and what is the truth and what isn't,” Mr. Scott said. “I feel right now I am in the middle of an awakening. My mind is open and I am thinking clearly. I am realizing the world is not the way I was taught to believe it is. I am realizing that there are many things that can and should be better and that it is not beyond the pale to think radically or what many people think but never say. It is okay to have opinions that are different from other people. I used to not say what I thought for fear of ridicule and being self-conscious, but now I would be lying to myself and doing an injustice if I did not express my opinions. It is not crazy to believe what others don't.”
At Union, Mr. Scott has a developed into a top midfielder on the soccer team and is one of the captains of the 2009 squad. He’s looking to finish his college career there on a high note. He also has his eye on either playing soccer professionally or enrolling in film school.
“I am proud of the man I have become and looking forward to what I am going to do in the future,” Mr. Scott said. “I plan on either moving to California after I graduate from Union to attend film school [or playing soccer professionally]. I want to be a filmmaker. I am obsessed with film. I have fallen in love and need to move forward with it. I have made two films which I like very much, one documentary and one fictional story, which I wrote and directed.”
Right now it’s 50-50 whether the Huntington alum pursues soccer or film after graduating from college. Whatever he ultimately decides, Huntington teachers won’t be surprised at all to hear future reports of Mr. Scott’s success filtering back to his hometown.
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