Monday, July 14, 2025
Two Wantagh teachers who left lasting impressions on their students — including one who became valedictorian and went on to graduate from Harvard University — were recognized this year by the Harvard Club of Long Island.
Kathleen Stuart, a biology and chemistry teacher at Wantagh High School, and Christine Hult, an eighth grade English teacher at Wantagh Middle School, were each awarded the 2025 Distinguished Teacher Award by the Harvard Club. The honor recognizes Long Island educators who “transform student lives” through academic challenge, support and inspiration, according to the club.
Stuart and Hult were nominated by Wantagh alum Melanie Volz, the 2021 valedictorian who recently graduated from Harvard with a degree in applied mathematics. As a student, Volz had been part of Hult’s English class and Stuart’s honors chemistry class. She also served as president of the World Food Club, one of the many extracurriculars Stuart advises.
"I was always amazed by how detail oriented Miss Stuart was and how caring and compassionate she was towards students," Volz said.
For Stuart, the award was especially meaningful — her husband, Salvatore MulÈ, received the same honor two years earlier. Her husband, who taught at Wantagh High School before retiring, helped build the hydroponics lab that Stuart now uses in her sustainable agriculture classes.
“I’m happy to see that what we do here has an impact on our kids and they don’t forget about it once they leave,” Stuart said. “It stays with them. They carry it with them in the years beyond school.”
Stuart teaches sustainable agriculture to middle and high school students, guiding them through hydroponics, agriculture and real-world problem solving around food sustainability.
Students have become so inspired by her courses, she said, that they’ve built their own growing systems at home — and some have even expressed interest in pursuing agricultural fields in college.
“It means everything,” Stuart said. “We need people to be able to do this. We have such a growing population, and we’re going to need more food. This is really important work.”
Stuart also leads the World Food Club, where students explore global cultures through cuisine and music. A former assistant principal at Wantagh Middle School, she returned to the classroom to reconnect with students. Her advice to fellow educators? Have fun with it.
“If you’re engaged in the topic and you’re excited about it, then they will be as well,” she said. “Students are very good at picking up on the energy that you have in your classroom.”
Hult has been teaching eighth grade English at Wantagh Middle School since 1996, and has more than 30 years of experience as an educator. She earned her undergraduate degree in English from Michigan State University and later completed a master’s in education at Hofstra University. She’s known for encouraging students to explore literature and writing in a way that reflects their individuality.
“I just believe in letting kids be themselves as much as you can,” Hult said, “and try not to shape them or mold them into a certain vision that you have, because only when they are allowed to be themselves will they be open-minded enough to take what it is that you’re teaching them.”
She also organizes the Word on the Street Literacy Celebration, where sixth, seventh and eighth graders share their original work or read favorite pieces aloud — an event designed to celebrate student creativity.
Hult recalled Volz as “sophisticated beyond her years,” praising her drive and determination.
“That’s pretty rare at that age,” Hult said, “to have someone who sets a goal and then takes steps to achieve that goal.”
Volz said Hult was the first teacher who taught her the importance of learning from mistakes. In eighth grade English, after receiving a grade below 90 on a paper for the first time, she initially avoided reading the comments. But once she did, she found the feedback valuable and said it helped her grow as a writer. Hult, she said, prepared her for the critical feedback she would later face in college.
“Miss Hult taught me to be OK with making mistakes, but also knowing that mistakes are OK if you learn from them,” Volz said.
Volz has nominated other teachers in past years, including English teacher Heather Naughton, whom she described as a “fearless advocate” and mentor. She also nominated physics teacher Richard Colavita, noting his passion for teaching and curiosity about the world.
"They did teach a wide variety of life skills," Volz said of her high school teachers, "and just also understanding how to perceive the world outside Wantagh."
