‘His knowledge ... seemed boundless’

Known to some as Fred and to some as Warren, Frederick Warren Korz was known to all as a man who engaged those he met with his warmth, charm and wisdom. As a social studies teacher at Lawrence junior and senior high schools, he made a lasting impression not only on his students, but also on teachers he mentored.

Korz, who battled cancer for the past two years, died on April 4. He was 75 and lived in Middletown, Conn.

“He really was an encyclopedia of knowledge on so many topics, and he could relate that information in an engaging way that never felt like lecturing,” said his son, Charles Korz.

Born in New York City and raised in New Hyde Park, Korz graduated from Sewanhaka High School and earned bachelor’s and master’s degrees in history from Columbia University. His began teaching in 1960 at Lawrence Junior High, and eight years later he moved to the high school. He also served as a consultant to the State Education Department, taught at Columbia, Hofstra and C.W. Post, and was appointed chairman of Lawrence’s Social Studies Department in 1987, a position he held until his retirement seven years later.

Though history is filled with dates and facts to remember, it was the way in which Korz delivered the information that made him a special teacher. “Teaching was done in a conversational style, with less memorization (although dates do need to be remembered) and more stories about how events transformed history and the world,” Charles Korz said. “Often this referenced current events.”

Former student Cliff Richner, co-publisher of Richner Communications, said that Korz was not only a teacher, but one of those people who make a difference in students’ lives. “His knowledge of the world seemed boundless,” Richner said. “He introduced his students to cultures and places we never even heard about before entering his class. More important, he had high expectations for his students and he made us believe we could live up to them.”

Those high expectations manifested themselves in the 10th-grade honors program in European history that Korz supervised. He also established the Advanced Placement European history program at the high school.

Fellow teacher Mike Jacovides developed a lifelong friendship with Korz and remembered that when his friend became department chairman, he acquired computers for the department and ensured that there were enough for all the teachers to use in their free time. “He was methodical and always backed his staff,” Jacovides said. “His organization and attention to the specific needs of his department made for good morale.”

Korz was also known for his interest in clocks and antiques. As a horologist — one who studies, makes or repairs timepieces — he was an expert clock appraiser, repairer and restorer. When he was diagnosed with cancer two years ago, Korz wrote this as part of a planned obituary: “It should be noted that his love of clocks and how they work is an allegory for his life because he was on this planet for far too little time. His impact on this life was, and is, timeless, and it is hoped that he will bring that thought with him to the next dimension of life.”

He was a member of several clock-related organizations, wrote a book, “The Official Price Guide to Collecting Clocks,” published in 2003 by Random House, and served as a consultant to the Winterthur clock collection at the Winterthur Museum in Delaware and the Nassau County Museum System.

But he will be best remembered by current Lawrence social studies teacher Stephen Sullivan as a teacher and mentor. Sullivan noted Korz’s comportment when Korz was a guest in Sullivan’s class and a student asked who Korz was using an expletive.

“By the time I came back from the dean’s office” — where Sullivan took the offending student — “… he had them engaged in a discussion of norms and status and why certain words and forms of speech are especially inappropriate in certain places and situations,” Sullivan said. “A potentially disastrous moment for a young teacher became a teaching moment for the kids and a mentoring opportunity for Warren and me.”

Korz is survived by his wife, Virginia; sons Frederick Mitchell Korz and Charles H. Korz; a brother, Alan C. Korz, and his wife, Margaret; a sister-in-law, Barbara Nielsen; a brother-in-law, Richard Wagner; and several nieces, nephews, grand-nieces and grand-nephews.

A memorial service is scheduled for May 14 at 11 a.m. at Bethany Lutheran Church in Cromwell, Conn. In lieu of flowers, friends may make donations in Korz’s memory to the Columbia College Fund, 622 W. 113th St., MC 4530, New York, N.Y. 10025. Messages of condolence may be sent to the family at www.doolittlefuneralservice.com.